The Curbsiders Internal Medicine Podcast

Summary Conquer Clostridium difficile (Clostridioides difficile) with this “spore-tacular” episode featuring infectious diseases expert, Dr. Curtis Donskey, Professor at Case Western Reserve University and clinician at the Louis Stokes VA Hospital. We discuss the updates in the 2017 IDSA C. difficile guidelines plus a bunch of random pearls. If you have ever laid awake at night wondering how many pills are needed for a fecal transplant, then this is the episode for you!  We discuss why metronidazole was dropped as the first line therapy for Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) along with other hot topics such as two-step testing, loperamide use, which antibiotics are the least likely to cause CDI, and more. Do not miss this episode! Full show notes available at http://thecurbsiders.com/podcast. Join our mailing list and receive a PDF copy of our show notes every Monday. Rate us on iTunes, recommend a guest or topic and give feedback at thecurbsiders@gmail.com. Credits Written by: Carolyn Chan MD Produced by: Matthew Watto MD Hosts: Carolyn Chan MD, Matthew Watto MD, Paul Williams MD Editor: Matthew Watto MD Guest: Curtis Donskey, MD

Geriatric psychiatry returns. We tackle sleep problems and behavioral disturbances in patients with dementia with returning guest, and Geriatric Psychiatrist Dennis Popeo MD, Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry at NYU Langone Medical Center. Topics include: pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic management of insomnia; treating agitation and irritability; medical management of psychotic symptoms and paranoia; ethical concerns about the treatment of challenging behaviors in dementia; and the shortage of geriatricians and geriatric psychiatrists. Full show notes available at http://thecurbsiders.com/podcast. Join our mailing list and receive a PDF copy of our show notes every Monday. Rate us on iTunes, recommend a guest or topic and give feedback at thecurbsiders@gmail.com. Credits Written & Produced by: Jordana Kozupsky NP, Matthew Watto MD Artwork by: Kate Grant MD Hosts: Jordana Kozupsky NP, Matthew Watto MD Editor: Matthew Watto MD Guest: Dennis Popeo, MD Time Stamps 00:00 Intro and guest bio 01:55 Case of sleep disturbance in a patient with dementia; medications for sleep disturbances; nonpharmacologic strategies for sleep 11:32 Irritability and agitation versus paranoia, or psychotic symptoms; benzodiazepines in older adults 15:40 Antipsychotic medications, the black box warning and ethical concerns 23:50 Geriatricians, geriatric psychiatrists in short supply; Behavioral interventions 28:16 Outro Tags psychiatry, psych, geri, geriatrics, dementia, paranoia, psychosis, sleep, insomnia, agitation, antipsychotics, atypical, black, box, warning, adverse, zolpidem, benzodiazepine, side, effects, therapy, mirtazapine, gabapentin, assistant, care, doctor, education, family, FOAM, FOAMim, FOAMed, health, hospitalist, hospital, internal, internist, meded, medical, medicine, nurse, practitioner, professional, primary, physician, resident, student

Join Geriatric Psychiatrist Dennis Popeo, a Clinical Associate Professor at NYU Langone Medical Center, as he navigates the pressing issue of geriatric depression. He discusses vital topics such as recognizing symptoms, suicide prevention in older adults, and effective antidepressant strategies. Learn about the nuances of diagnosing depression in seniors and the importance of sensitive patient conversations. Plus, get insights into when and how to adjust medications tailored to this vulnerable population.

Kick up the quality of your care with tips and tactics from Caitlin Clancy MD, coauthor of ACP’s High Value Care Curriculum. We learn to define quality and value in healthcare; the most common barriers to high value care; use of probability and likelihood ratios to boost clinical reasoning and combat diagnostic uncertainty; some useful tools to estimate cost; sources of healthcare waste; and some general pearls on how the healthcare system works...or doesn’t. ACP members can claim free CME-MOC at acponline.com/curbsiders (goes live 0900 EST on podcast release date). Full show notes available at http://thecurbsiders.com/podcast. Join our mailing list and receive a PDF copy of our show notes every Monday. Rate us on iTunes, recommend a guest or topic and give feedback at thecurbsiders@gmail.com. Credits: Written & Produced by: Matthew Watto MD Hosts: Paul Williams MD, Stuart Brigham MD, Matthew Watto MD Guest: Caitlin Clancy MD Time Stamps 00:00 Disclaimer, intro and guest bio 03:50 Guest one-liner, some discussion on non traditional paths, and picks of the week 12:10 Case 1: Defining value, cost, quality; sources of healthcare waste; and how to avoid the waste of daily labs 23:00 Case 2: An uninsured patient who needs major surgery; costs for uninsured versus insured patients 28:35 Do insured patients have better outcomes? 31:15 How to determine cost and “fair market price” 36:29 Case 3: Clinical case of suspected heart failure 45:45 Case 4: Clinical case of patient requesting antibiotics; barriers to high value care and how to overcome them 57:05 Outro Tags: high, value, care, quality, cost, diagnostic, uncertainty, likelihood, ratio, testing, treatment, consumer, acp, college, american, insured, uninsured, bill, charge, reimbursement,

Master the management of gout with tips from expert, Tuhina Neogi MD, PhD, Professor of Medicine at Boston University School of Medicine. Topics include: how to initiate and titrate urate lowering therapy, guidelines controversy over uric acid targets, colchicine & NSAIDS for anti-inflammatory prophylaxis, uricosuric agents, febuxostat, HLA B5801, use of uric acid levels in the acute setting and more random gout facts. Full show notes available at http://thecurbsiders.com/podcast. Join our mailing list and receive a PDF copy of our show notes every Monday. Rate us on iTunes, recommend a guest or topic and give feedback at thecurbsiders@gmail.com. Credits: Written and produced by: Matthew Watto MD Hosts: Paul Williams MD, Stuart Brigham MD, Matthew Watto MD Guest: Tuhina Neogi MD, PhD Time Stamps 00:00 Intro and guest bio 01:30 Allopurinol initiation and titration 07:10 Uricosuric therapy 09:10 Controversy over uric acid targets for gout 17:40 Parachutes and randomized controlled trials 19:15 Colchicine or NSAIDS for prophylaxis 23:20 Who needs febuxostat? 26:20 When to refer for gout, HLA B5801, and checking uric acid levels in the acute setting   33:29 Take home points 36:15 Outro Tags: allopurinol, uric, urate, acid, level, therapy, management, gout, flare, crystal, arthritis, titration, probenecid, febuxostat, target, acr, acp, guidelines, nsaids, colchicine, hla b5801, septic, rheumatology, assistant, care, doctor, education, family, FOAM, FOAMim, FOAMed, health, hospitalist, hospital, internal, internist, meded, medical, medicine, nurse, practitioner, professional, primary, physician, resident, student

Crystalize your knowledge of gout and stop flares in their tracks with tips from expert, Tuhina Neogi MD, PhD, Professor of Medicine at Boston University School of Medicine. On this first of two gout episodes we learn to diagnose gout with or without arthrocentesis, how to treat flares, and how to counsel patients about gout, which apparently involves fire fighting and bathtubs. Don’t miss next week’s episode on urate lowering therapy, gout guidelines controversy, and answers to your gout questions from social media. Full show notes available at http://thecurbsiders.com/podcast. Join our mailing list and receive a PDF copy of our show notes every Monday. Rate us on iTunes, recommend a guest or topic and give feedback at thecurbsiders@gmail.com. Credits: Written and produced by: Matthew Watto MD Hosts: Paul Williams MD, Stuart Brigham MD, Matthew Watto MD Guest: Tuhina Neogi MD, PhD Time Stamps 00:00 Disclaimer, intro 01:40 Guest bio 03:20 Guest one liner, music recommendations, advice for researchers, and some comments on failure 09:15 Clinical diagnosis of gout 12:15 Is taking a diet history useful? 14:30 Classification criteria for gout 17:35 MSK ultrasound and Physical exam findings in gout 21:06 Arthrocentesis and MSU crystals 24:45 A recap of how to make the diagnosis of gout 26:50 The bathtub analogy and how to counsel a patient with a new diagnosis of gout 30:55 Pathophysiology of gout 34:55 Treatment for acute gout flares (steroids, colchicine, NSAIDS. And topical NSAIDS?)  45:30 Outro Tags: gout, crystal, colchicine, steroids, nsaids, joint, flare, acute, chronic, urate, uric, acid, arthritis, acr, exam, diagnosis, rheumatology, assistant, care, doctor, education, family, FOAM, FOAMim, FOAMed, health, hospitalist, hospital, internal, internist, meded, medical, medicine, nurse, practitioner, professional, primary, physician, resident, student

Dr. Neda Frayha (@nedafrayha) of Primary Care RAP (Hippo Education) joins us this month for our thoughts and analysis of some recent (and not so recent) journal articles that interested us this month. Our articles spanned topics that include at cancer survival among patients pursuing treatment with complementary medicine, the effect of body weight on effectiveness of preventive aspirin dosing, strategies to promote physician leadership, respiratory symptoms in those with marijuana use and MRSA risk among patients with penicillin allergies. ACP members can claim free CME-MOC at acponline.com/curbsiders (goes live 0900 EST on podcast release date). Full show notes available at http://thecurbsiders.com/podcast. Join our mailing list to receive a PDF copy of our show notes every Monday! And hey, while you’re here, consider rating us on iTunes and leaving a review. The Curbsiders thank you! Thoughts on the Journal Club series? Article or guest nominations? Compliments or complaints? You can reach us at thecurbsiders@gmail.com. We are also on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter: @thecurbsiders.   Credits: Written by: Sarah Phoebe Roberts MPH, Neda Frayha MD, Christopher Chiu MD Producers: Sarah Phoebe Roberts MPH, Christopher Chiu MD Hosts: Matthew Watto MD, Stuart Brigham MD, Paul Williams MD, and Christopher Chiu MD Editor: Matthew Watto MD  Time stamps: 00:00 Disclaimer, intro, guest bio 05:05 Do patients using complementary medicine for cancer therapy have worse outcomes? 13:11 Does low dose aspirin work for primary prevention of major adverse cardiac events? 19:16 Do physicians make better leaders? 24:55 Does marijuana cause respiratory symptoms? 30:40 Does penicillin allergy confer increased risk for C Diff and MRSA infection? 38:40 Wrap-up and outro Tags:​ aspirin, cardiac risk, mortality, cancer, complementary, alternative, conventional, therapy, marijuana, cannabis, respiratory, symptoms, leader,

Get schooled on driver’s safety for older adults by expert, Alice Pomidor MD, Professor of Geriatrics at Florida State University. Whether or not older adults can continue to drive is a huge problem faced by for primary care clinicians, and will remain one until driverless cars become ubiquitous. Topics covered include: how to take a driving history, red flags, physical exam, cognitive exam, and vision assessment for driver’s safety, resources, when to refer, alternate means of transportation, and the legal repercussions of reporting...or not reporting. Full show notes available at http://thecurbsiders.com/podcast. Join our mailing list and receive a PDF copy of our show notes every Monday. Rate us on iTunes, recommend a guest or topic and give feedback at thecurbsiders@gmail.com. Credits: Written and produced by: Matthew Watto MD and Elizabeth Garbitelli MD Candidate 2022 Editor: Matthew Watto MD Cover Image by: Kate Grant MD Hosts: Matthew Watto MD, Stuart Brigham MD, Paul Williams MD Guest: Alice Pomidor MD  Time Stamps 00:00 Disclaimer 00:35 Intro and guest bio 03:10 Guest onliner, book recommendations, and career advice 10:43 Clinical case, and the 5 Rs of clinicians responsibility 19:15 Taking a history from older adult drivers 26:28 The clinical exam for driver’s safety (cognition, vision, and MSK tests) 37:24 How can we avoid patient anger towards clinician and family members? 41:10 When and where to refer for driving evaluation 47:00 Alternative transportation 52:00 What to do if someone refuses or forgets to stop driving 59:45 Reporting requirements and legal ramifications 69:15 Take home points 72:00 Outro  Tags: driving, elderly, geriatrics, dementia, treatment, prevention, cognition, seniors, drivers, safety, crash, motor, vehicle, car, assistant, care, doctor, education, family, FOAM, FOAMim, FOAMed, health, hospitalist, hospital, internal, internist, meded, medical, medicine, nurse, practitioner, professional, primary, physician, resident, student  

Things We Do For No Reason #TWDFNR highlights some widespread practices that are difficult to justify based on lack of proven health benefits, but significant cost (both financial and non-financial harms). Avoid these low value practices and inflated medical bills with tips from expert, Dr Lenny Feldman, MD, FACP, Associate Professor of Medicine Johns Hopkins. Topics include: renal ultrasound and urine electrolytes in acute kidney injury (AKI), folate deficiency and anemia work-up, prealbumin and malnutrition, blood transfusions, shellfish and contrast allergies, monitoring after switch from IV or oral antibiotics, and “against medical advice” discharges. Don't forget to check out Clinicwiki.org a free, online resource for teaching ambulatory medicine. Full show notes available at http://thecurbsiders.com/podcast. Join our mailing list and receive a PDF copy of our show notes every Monday. Rate us on iTunes, recommend a guest or topic and give feedback at thecurbsiders@gmail.com.  Credits: Written and produced by: Justin Berk MD, MPH, MBA Editor: Matthew Watto, MD Hosts: Justin Berk MD, MPH, MBA; Matthew Watto MD; Paul Williams MD, FACP Guest: Lenny Feldman MD, FACP Time Stamps 00:00 Announcements 00:38 Disclaimer, intro, and guest bio 03:53 Guest one liner, some recommendations, and advice 08:35 Defining high value care and things we do for no reason (TWDFNR) 12:40 Why do clinicians order useless testing? 14:58 Urine electrolytes for acute kidney injury 20:30 Renal ultrasound for acute kidney injury 25:54 Stop ordering folate for anemia workup 31:47 How many units should I transfuse? 34:40 Prealbumin and albumin for malnourishment. 43:24 Iodine, shellfish and contrast allergy 50:28 Patient leaving against medical advice 56:45 Switching from IV to oral antibiotics 63:27 Dr Feldman’s plugs 65:36 Outro

Point-of-care Ultrasound AKA POCUS ain’t no hocus. Dr. Renee Dversdal (@ReneeDversdal) Director of the Oregon Health & Science University Point of Care Ultrasound and General Medicine Ultrasound Fellowship Director, joins The Curbsiders to discuss her craft. Topics include: Defining POCUS, the value POCUS adds to the physical exam, training pathways and the appropriateness of billing. This episode is sponsored for CME-MOC credit by the American College of Physicians. ACP members can claim free credit at acponline.org/curbsiders (goes live at 9am on release date). Follow this link to read the ACP’s statement in support of POCUS in Internal Medicine. Full show notes available at http://thecurbsiders.com/podcast. Join our mailing list and receive a PDF copy of our show notes every Monday. Rate us on iTunes, recommend a guest or topic and give feedback at thecurbsiders@gmail.com. Credits: Written by: Christopher Chiu MD and Renee Dversdal MD Produced and CME questions by: Christopher Chiu MD Edited by: Matthew “Mike” Watto MD Hosts: Matthew Watto MD, Stuart Brigham MD, Christopher Chiu MD Guest Expert: Renee Dversdal MD Tags: point-of-care, acp, impocus, ultrasound, bedside, POCUS, CLUE, exam, training, lifestyle, management, assistant, care, doctor, education, family, FOAM, FOAMim, FOAMed, health, hospitalist, hospital, internal, internist, meded, medical, medicine, nurse, practitioner, professional, primary, physician, resident, student