Prevention of Rheumatic Fever and Rheumatic Heart Disease Rheumatic fever and its cardiac complications of carditis and valvular damage are potentially serious consequences of infection with group A β-hemolytic streptococcus…
Infective Endocarditis Prophylaxis Once universally fatal, infective endocarditis remains a serious disease, with a mortality rate of about 25%. The pathogenesis of endocarditis suggests that individual infections might be prevented…
Screening for Hyperlipidemia and Associated Coronary Heart Disease Risk Factors Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the leading cause of death in American men and women, making identification and treatment of…
Screening for Hypertension Hypertension ranks among the most important of conditions to screen for in adult primary care practice, given its prevalence, ease of detection, associated cardiovascular morbidity and mortality,…
Approach to the Patient with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Infection Stephen L. Boswell Despite the fact that a cure remains elusive, the management of the patient infected with human immunodeficiency…
Evaluation of Lymphadenopathy Of the nearly 600 lymph nodes throughout the body, only a few are normally palpable, including small nodes in the submandibular, axillary, and inguinal regions. Nevertheless, lymphadenopathy…
Evaluation of Fever Since antiquity, fever has been recognized as a cardinal manifestation of disease. Indeed, people identify fever as a sign of illness more readily than they recognize the…
Evaluation of Overweight and Obesity W. Scott Butsch Overweight and obesity have become major health concerns in modern postindustrial societies, affecting an estimated 69% of Americans older than the age…
Evaluation of Weight Loss Involuntary weight loss, which can be defined as an unexplained sustained weight loss of 5% or more over a 6- to 12-month period, is a sensitive,…
Evaluation of Chronic Fatigue Chronic fatigue is one of the most common complaints in primary care practice, with a reported frequency in excess of 20%. It can also be one…
