Applied Evidence
Sport-related concussion: How best to help young athletes
Increased focus on sports concussion means you’re likely to see greater numbers of children and adolescents with mild brain trauma. Here’s what to...
Although we reserve the term “PURL” for our popular feature, Priority Updates from the Research Literature, I’m proud to comment on the collection of articles in this issue of JFP, each of which contains important “pearls” of information for family physicians and other primary care clinicians.
Managing sport-related concussion. Revelations about serious head injuries in the National Football League have catalyzed important research regarding the management of sports-related head injuries, and the evidence for diagnosis and treatment is evolving. The article in this issue by Dr. Sprouse and colleagues provides some of the latest information regarding brain changes after concussion straight from the American Academy of Neurology’s 2016 Sports Concussion Conference held in Chicago in July, as well as valuable return-to-play recommendations.
Family medicine ultrasound. Because of advances in technology and reductions in the cost of portable machines, ultrasound use is rapidly moving into family medicine offices. Drs. Steinmetz and Oleskevich provide a no-nonsense review of the current uses of ultrasound in family medicine, leading me to wonder whether ultrasound might become the stethoscope of the future.
Shortness of breath. Although the diagnosis of shortness of breath is straightforward in many cases, misdiagnosis is not uncommon. Recently, I cared for a new patient who was diagnosed with asthma 15 years ago. Because of fine rales on exam, I suspected the patient’s diagnosis was incorrect. Indeed, he had pulmonary fibrosis, not asthma, and he is doing fine now without his asthma inhalers. Dr. Taggart outlines a thoughtful approach to the evaluation of shortness of breath, one that alerts you to when to suspect something beyond the usual culprits.
Cervical cancer screening. The days of yearly Pap smears for all women are over. Combined screening with cytology and human papillomavirus testing is now recommended at 5-year intervals for women 30 to 65 years of age who are at low risk for cervical cancer. In addition, Dr. Hofmeister reviews recent randomized trials that suggest HPV screening alone may be sufficient for low-risk women.
On-demand HIV prophylaxis. Our PURL for the month discusses an effective prevention strategy—other than condoms—that can be used as needed by people at high risk for human immunodeficiency virus.
We hope you enjoy this PURL—and the other “pearls”—this month. As diagnosis and treatments evolve, JFP will continue to bring you the information you need to provide the best possible care for your patients.
