Primary Care
Physician perspectives on preventive care, chronic disease management, and evidence-based primary care practice.
Recent Discussions
How would you manage an incidental catheter-related thrombosis in a functioning dialysis catheter?
If the patient is asymptomatic and the catheter is functioning well, I recommend starting anticoagulation.If the patient develops symptoms, he or she should still be anticoagulated but the catheter removed. Anticoagulation options in ESRD patients include Coumadin, Eliquis (my preference is a dose o...
What is the importance of finding a positive titer for FGFR3 and what treatment would be advised for these patients?
The significance of positive FGFR3 antibodies in patients with neuropathy, and the optimal treatment regimen for those patients remain to be determined. Based on the largest case series of FGFR3-IgG + patients to date, the antibodies seem to be associated predominantly, if not exclusively, with non-...
Are there scenarios where you send additional antibodies beyond anti-centromere, Scl-70, and RNA polymerase III in suspected scleroderma patients?
While these are the most common ANA subtypes in scleroderma, there are several other antibodies that are important. High titer ANA's with a speckled pattern may be U1 RNP and may be associated with overlap disease (MCTD). ANA's with a nucleolar pattern can be U3 RNP (fibrillarin), Th/To, or PM -Scl,...
For low rectal adenocarcinoma that extends to the anus through the internal sphincter muscle, would you recommend neoadjuvant therapy in a patient who will undergo APR?
Yes, since the margin is positive and local recurrence rates are high for low rectal cancer patients such as this, they should be treated with neoadjuvant chemoradiation including the inguinals with IMRT.
Would you start tocilizumab in a patient with temporal arteritis and cirrhosis?
This is a challenging question as data regarding this question is lacking and the decision should be individualized to the specific presentation and through shared decision making. In general, I would consider using TCZ in such clinical situations. While TCZ can cause hepatotoxicity, it's not typic...
What is your approach following R1 resection in a patient who has received total neoadjuvant therapy for rectal cancer?
This is a challenging scenario and there is not a one-size fits all solution. My decision making would involve thorough assessment of the patient's performance status, co-morbidities, pre-treatment extent of disease, tolerance of therapy, and review of what TNT regimen was employed: number of chemo ...
When do you trial pyridostigmine in a patient with suspected myasthenia gravis?
I usually try it very early on if I have a reasonable suspicion. Compared to the tensilon test and even the neostigmine test, a diagnostic trial of pyridostigmine is safer and more resource-efficient. Diagnostic trials of pyridostigmine are not particularly evidence-based, nor is treatment, but this...
Would you use inhaled steroids with or without oral steroids for the treatment of radiation pneumonitis?
I have not tried inhaled steroids instead of oral steroids for symptomatic radiation pneumonitis much in my practice. Many patients are already on inhaled steroids at baseline, and many who develop pneumonitis have severe symptoms. That being said, avoiding oral steroids could be particularly import...
How do you approach treatment for arthritis associated with multicentric reticulohistiocytosis?
There are no systematic treatment studies of multicentric reticulohistiocytosis due to its rarity. There are, however, numerous case reports of TNF inhibitors used with success, frequently requiring higher doses than used for rheumatoid arthritis. As this condition is based on proliferation of osteo...
How would you approach chronic isolated severe non-cyclic neutropenia with negative bone marrow and rheumatologic work-up?
My preference would be to use G-CSF at the lowest effective dose, i.e., the dose that maintains the ANC >1000. The risk of inducing leukemia is low in individuals with idiopathic, chronic neutropenia, but it is positively correlated with the G-CSF dose. There are also other side effects like bone pa...