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Outlets focused on physicians won't be able to review papers in advance of publication
The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) is cutting off certain publications from advanced access to its embargoed journal articles.
News outlets that report for physician readers will no longer meet criteria for embargoed access, Dawn Peters, director of strategic communications & media relations at NEJM Group, said in an email to MedPage Today.
Access will unwind as reporters apply to renew their media credentials with the journal, Peters said, confirming that some applications from MedPage Today writers have been denied because the publication "primarily serves clinicians and health care professionals."
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The ketogenic diet shows promise in reducing the symptoms of bipolar disorder and schizophrenia and reversing metabolic syndrome, results of a new pilot study show.
Participants who adhered to the high-fat, low-carb diet experienced a 30% reduction in psychiatric symptoms and an average 10% reduction in weight.
“We’re seeing huge changes,” first author Shebani Sethi, MD, of Stanford University in Stanford, California said in a press release. “Even if you’re on antipsychotic drugs, we can still reverse the obesity, the metabolic syndrome, and the insulin resistance. I think that’s very encouraging for patients.”
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Join the AMA or Renew your Membership Today!
The American Medical Association (AMA) requires all societies to requalify for membership in the AMA House of Delegates (HOD) every five years. To keep and hopefully increase ASIPP's membership in these committees, we have to keep at a minimum 20% AMA membership, otherwise, ASIPP will lose the AMA membership with all the available advantages.
We encourage you to join or renew your membership in the AMA. Joining the AMA will further strengthen our specialty’s representation at the national level through the AMA House of Delegates, the AMA’s policymaking body, and strengthen our ability to meet the challenges in health care today with thoughtful, well-organized responses.
As a member of the AMA, you become part of the organization that unites physicians nationwide to tackle the major issues we all face: 47 million uninsured Americans, looming Medicare payment cuts, and the need for medical liability reform. Membership also gives you access to a broad range of practice management resources and award-winning publications such as the Journal of the American Medical Association, AMNews, AMA Morning Rounds, and the Archives journals.
Please take this opportunity to support the critical activities of ASIPP by joining the AMA today. To join or renew the AMA, we encourage you to visit www.ama-assn.org or call (800) 262-3211.
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Even now, the emergency still has important lessons to teach us
This week marks the 11-year anniversary of the Boston Marathon bombing. On April 15, 2013, beginning at 2:49 p.m., two homemade bombs packed with nails, ball bearings, and shards of metal exploded 13 seconds apart, just shy of the marathon's finish line. The race had been underway for several hours by the time of the explosions and a large crowd was gathered, cheering on runners as they approached. Three individuals in the vicinity were killed immediately, and an additional 264 were injured. Zero lives were lost among the 124 trauma victims transported to the city's five level 1 trauma centers -- a remarkable mortality rate.
Now, over a decade later, the medical response following the bombing is still hailed as one of the most efficient and effective disaster responses in U.S. history. The incident is widely cited in disaster preparedness manuals, and as the regional director of emergency management for 21 hospitals in California, this was the case study I used over and over to provide training and highlight the key elements of mass casualty response for healthcare workers enthusiastic about the field of disaster medicine.
It's worth pausing to remember the event and consider: what went right?
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Registration is open for
ASIPP's 2025 Annual Meeting
We would love it if you would register and join us in Orlando!
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Emergency physicians, contracted through TeamHealth, have pointed to staffing, quality concerns
Less than a year after voting to unionize, emergency medicine physicians contracted through the private equity-backed staffing firm TeamHealth to work at Ascension St. John Hospital in Detroit walked off the job and onto a picket line.
The one-day strike by members of the Greater Detroit Association of Emergency Physicians occurred Thursday afternoon after the union announced earlier this month that, following "months of negotiations with little progress," the emergency department (ED) physicians and physician assistants at St. John Hospital had voted to strike.
At the time, the union had filed its 10-day notice to strike for unfair labor practices, noting concerns over staffing, working conditions, and quality of patient care.
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Virtual
May 25, June 29, July 27, & August 31
Click here for the complete list of upcoming exams.
ABIPP Part I; ABIPP Path - Combined DCCPM/CSM virtual exam;
ABIPP Competency Exam in IPM; ABIPP Competency Exam in Regenerative Medicine;
CSM Competency Exam; DCCPM Competency Exam
In Person
October 18, 2024
ABIPP Part II - Practical Examination
Lab Venue: MERI, 44 S. Cleveland Street, Memphis, TN 38104
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There are robust resources available to help
In 1983, I signed up for a paper route at the age of 13. Every morning, I rose early, got on my bike, picked up the papers, and delivered them to my subscribers. After that, I headed off to school and my other activities. I was once described as a hyperactive child, but, after starting that paper route, my mother was relieved to see me "settle down" for the first time in my life.
I delivered those papers without fail every day, through the warmth of summer, the cold and dark of winter, and the wet and rainy days of spring and fall. My father drove me if the weather was too severe, but mostly, I worked alone. And I did it all for 5¢ per paper and $14 per week. I had a job, and I loved it!
It would be another 40 years before I would recognize my own Autistic traits in that paper route. Those traits included the joy of the repetitive motion of my bike, the sensory gratification of the wind in my face, the calming effect that morning activity brought to my schoolwork, the comfort of a daily routine, and the determination needed to not give up.
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ASIPP State Society Meetings | |
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Independent reviewers reject causal links to infertility, myocardial infarction, stroke
Independent reviewers confirmed a causal relationship between the first mRNA COVID-19 vaccines and myocarditis, and also determined that, more broadly, intramuscular shots can cause a series of shoulder injuries.
At the same time, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) committee rejected a causal relationship between the Pfizer-BioNTech BNT162b2 and Moderna mRNA-1273 (Comirnaty and Spikevax, respectively) mRNA COVID vaccines and female infertility, Guillain-Barré syndrome, Bell's palsy, thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS), and myocardial infarction.
The evidence was also deemed enough to reject a causal link between the Pfizer vaccine and ischemic stroke. There was insufficient data to say the same for the Moderna one, however, according to a report commissioned by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), a subagency of the HHS.
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As it flies off shelves, thousands call poison control over bad experiences
Recreational marijuana remains illegal in about half of the U.S. as products that deliver a similar high gain popularity in some of those states.
To calm her racing mind ahead of a visit with her sister in Arlington, Texas, Jessica Watkins ate half of a delta-8 gummy.
About an hour into the family visit in the spring of 2022, Watkins regretted her decision. She had expected, at most, a mild feeling of lightness. But this was different. She found herself cold, numb and shaking. “It felt like my mental perception was really altered,” she said. “I was detached from my surroundings.”
Watkins, who is 30, has struggled with anxiety since she was a teen. She favors natural remedies, such as herbal teas, to manage it, and figured delta-8 fit the same category. She purchased the 25-milligram birthday cake-flavored gummy from an online store recommended by a friend.
Watkins was upset that the packaging did not include any warning about what to expect. It was nearly two days before she felt like herself again, she said. “It was the most frightening thing ever.”
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- ASIPP Members Only Site Information - | |
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To log in for the first time you will need to click “forgot password” at the bottom of the login window.
- Check your email and then log in as directed.
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If you have problems logging into your account, click here.
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Pain Medicine Case Reports (PMCR) and Editor-in-Chief Alaa Abd-Elsayed, MD, PhD would like to invite you to submit case reports and case series to the PMCR journal. Your article will be published free of charge.
Open access journals are freely available online for immediate worldwide open access to the full text of published articles. There is no subscription fee for open access journals. Open access journals are no different from traditional subscription-based journals: they undergo the same peer-review and quality control as any other scholarly journal.
Interested in becoming a member of the PMCR Editorial Board?
Editorial board members are asked to review 2-6 manuscripts per year. Please submit your most up-to-date CV to sgold@asipp.org for consideration.
For more information or to submit your articles, click here.
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Earl Kilbride, MD, and Lane Kilbride
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Chronic knee pain is highly prevalent in the United States, especially within the older population. The condition negatively impacts overall quality of life and can be a substantial financial burden. Current conservative and surgical interventions are not always effective in managing chronic knee pain. Peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) can be an alternative to current management strategies.
CASE REPORT: Data was retrospectively extracted from the electronic medical records of patients who received a permanent Freedom® PNS System for treating chronic knee pain. Systems were implanted for at least one month. Outcomes of interest included pain levels and occurrences of adverse events.
Seven patients were included in this analysis. Pain scores decreased from 9.8 ± 0.3 to 1.6 ± 1.5 after the trial. The average pain score was 1.3 ± 0.8 at one month, with no adverse events reported.
CONCLUSIONS: Chronic knee pain can be safely managed with the Freedom PNS System.
KEY WORDS: Peripheral nerve stimulation, chronic pain, CRPS, infrapatellar saphenous neuralgia
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Carl Noe, MD, Michael van Hal, MD, Standiford Helm II, MD, and Gabor B. Racz, MD
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Cervical transforaminal epidural steroid injections have become less popular due to the risk of catastrophic complications they pose. However, cervical nerve root blocks are useful for surgical planning in patients with cervical radicular pain syndromes.
OBJECTIVES: Our aim was to find a method of performing cervical selective nerve root blocks that removed the risk of catastrophic complications.
STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective case review.
SETTING: Academic multidisciplinary spine center.
METHODS: Among patients, 50 consecutive cases were retrospectively reviewed for immediate pain scores and follow-up results. In the intervention, a posterior approach using a curved blunt needle was employed for cervical selective nerve root blocks to minimize the risk of arterial injection. To measure the outcomes, we used quantitative pain severity scores and qualitative responses.
RESULTS: This technique detailed in this study has a high immediate analgesic effect that can be used for diagnostic purposes. It is not known if this technique has prognostic value with respect to surgery. The prolonged response rate is about 50%, which is in line with other techniques.
LIMITATIONS: This study had no control group.
CONCLUSION(s): Cervical selective nerve root blocks using a curved blunt needle and a posterior approach are effective in selectively identifying nerves that cause clinical symptoms. This technique minimizes the risk of arterial or spinal cord impingement and therefore may be safer than transforaminal selective nerve root blocks.
KEY WORDS: Cervical radiculitis, cervical radiculopathy, cervical radicular pain, cervical foraminal stenosis, cervical disk herniation, cervical stenosis, cervical selective nerve root block, cervical transforaminal steroid injection
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Davin C. Gong, MD, Aditya Muralidharan, MD, Bilal B. Butt, MD, Ronald Wasserman, MD, Joshua D. Piche, MD, Rakesh D. Patel, MD, and Ilyas Aleem, MD
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Sacroiliac joint (SIJ) injections are crucial in the diagnostic toolkit for evaluating SIJ pathology. Recall bias is an important component in patient-reported outcomes that has not been well studied in SIJ injection.
OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to characterize the accuracy, direction, and magnitude of pain level recall bias following SIJ steroid injection and study the factors that affect patient recollection.
STUDY DESIGN: Prospective cohort study.
SETTING: Level 1 academic medical center.
METHODS: Using standardized questionnaires, baseline Numeric Rating Scale (NRS-11) scores were recorded for patients undergoing SIJ steroid injections at preinjection, at 4 hours postinjection, and at 24 hours postinjection. At a minimum of 2 weeks postinjection, patients were asked to recall their preinjection, 4-hour, and 24-hour postinjection NRS-11 scores. Actual and recalled NRS-11 scores were compared using paired t tests for each time interval. Multivariable linear regression was used to identify factors that correlated with consistent recall.
RESULTS: Sixty patients with a mean age of 66 years (65% women) were included. Compared to their preinjection pain score, patients showed considerable improvement at both 4 hours (mean difference [MD] = 3.28; 95% CI, 2.68 – 3.89), and 24 hours (MD = 3.23; 95% CI, 2.44 – 4.03) postinjection. Patient recollection of preinjection symptoms was more severe than actual (MD = 0.65; 95% CI, 0.31 – 0.99). Patient recollection of symptoms was also more severe than actual at 4 hours (MD = 0.50; 95% CI .04 – 1.04) as well as at 24 hours postinjection (MD = 0.80; 95% CI, 0.16 – 1.44). The magnitude of recall bias was mild and did not exceed the minimal clinically important difference. There was a moderate correlation between actual and recalled pain levels when comparing preinjection with the 4-hour postinjection NRS-11 score (correlation coefficient [r] =0.64; P < 0.001) and moderate correlation when comparing preinjection with the 24-hour postinjection NRS-11 score (r = 0.62; P < 0.001). Linear regression models showed that at preinjection, patients with a lower body mass index and the presence of coexisting psychiatric diagnoses were better at recalling their pain (P < 0.05). Patients with a higher body mass index also experienced less pain relief when comparing preinjection with the 4-hour postinjection NRS-11 score (P < 0.05).
LIMITATIONS: Recall pain scores were obtained via telephone surveys, which can lead to interview bias. One patient died, and 3 were lost to follow-up. We did not control for patient use of adjunctive pain relief modalities, which may modulate the overall response to injection. SIJ injections can also be diagnostic, so some patients may not have shared the same indication for injection or pain-generating diagnosis.
CONCLUSIONS: Patients had favorable pain level responses to their SIJ steroid injection for both actual and recall surveys. Although patients demonstrated poor recall of absolute pain scores at preinjection, 4-hour postinjection, and 24-hour postinjection, they demonstrated robust recall of their net pain score improvement at both 4- and 24-hours postinjection. These findings suggest that there is utility in using patient recollection to describe the magnitude of pain relief following treatment for sacroiliac joint dysfunction.
KEY WORDS: Recall bias, injection, patient-reported outcomes, sacroiliac joint, nonoperative
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ASIPP is now in collaboration with Curi Medical Liability Program
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Since this malpractice insurance program officially launched in November 2018, ASIPP has signed up hundreds of providers with an average savings of 30%. This is professional liability insurance tailored to our specialty and will stand up for us and defend our practices.
Curi is a full-service advisory firm that serves physicians and their practices. Their valued advice is grounded in your priorities and elevated in your outcomes. They are driven by a deep understanding of your specific circumstances in medicine, business, and life. To read a few important points to keep in mind about the program, including discounts, administrative defense, cyber coverage, aggressive claims handling, and complimentary risk management CME activities, visit our website.
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Group Purchasing Organization Offer Better Pricing and Creates Added Value
ASIPP has formed a partnership with Henry Schein and PedsPal, a national GPO that has a successful history of negotiating better prices on medical supplies and creating value-added services for independent physicians. Working with MedAssets, PedsPal provides excellent pricing on products like contrast media that alleviate some of the financial pressures you experience today.
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ASIPP, Fedora Billing,
and Revenue Cycle Management Partnership
ASIPP is now offering our members the benefit of a unique revenue cycle management/ billing service.
We have received a tremendous amount of interest in the ASIPP® billing and coding program.
Click here to learn more about the negotiated rate for practices and more!
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up-to-date news related to you, your practice, and your patients!
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