TIL: MRSA nares swab has an almost perfect NPV
The MRSA nares swab is very poor at predicting whether someone could have MRSA, but it has an EXTREMELY high negative predictive value...
TIL: for mechanical valves, ASA + VKA is better than VKA alone
A systematic review1 showed that adding an antiplatelet agent (e.g. aspirin) to a vitamin K antagonist decreased the risk of both a...
TIL: TZDs worsen heart failure in T2DM
Thiazolidinediones (the -glitazones) have a known side effect of worsening heart failure in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. This...
TIL: Signs of cirrhosis - the hands
JAMA released this meta-analysis1 in 2012 detailing what physical exam and laboratory findings were associated with cirrhosis (end-stage...
TIL: an approach to thrombocytopenia
My senior shared the Curbsider's (internal medicine podcast) approach to thrombocytopenia today. https://thecurbsiders.com/podcast/167-cb...
TIL: Some facts about bedbugs
There was a great review on bedbugs that came out of the New England Journal of Medicine1. Bed bugs can survive on a human host for 4-5...
TIL: steroids cause mostly post-prandial hyperglycemia
Corticosteroids are associated with hyperglycemia1. This effect is most significant in the post-prandial time period. 1. Tamez-Pérez,...
TIL: Bubble studies with late bubbles -> intrapulmonary shunt
When a bubble study is performed during a transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE), early bubbles suggest an intracardiac shunt1, which makes...
TIL: Loop diuretics worsen metabolic alkalosis
Loop diuretics can worsen metabolic alkalosis mainly because they increase secretion of chloride, which draws H+ into the urine and...
Reflection: Dial 1 For an Interpreter
The cachectic, elderly man lay in the hospital bed; he looked brittle as glass as his wife carefully tucked in the sheets beneath him. On...