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Effect of Caffeine Consumption on Women's Hormones Varies

Consuming 200 milligrams or more of caffeine per day-roughly equivalent to two cups of coffee-can either increase or decrease a woman's estrogen level, depending on her ethnic background and the source of the caffeine, a study from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) finds.

Incidence of death and MI associated with stopping clopidogrel after ACS

Rates of death and myocardial infarction were assessed for a national sample of acute coronary syndrome patients after stopping clopidogrel. In the first 90 days after stopping treatment, patients experienced a nearly twofold increased risk of adverse events compared with subsequent follow-up intervals for patients treated medically without stents and for patients treated with coronary stents. This suggests a possible clopidogrel rebound effect, but additional studies are needed to support this hypothesis and to identify strategies to reduce early events after clopidogrel cessation.

Valproic Acid and Carbapenem Antibiotics Interaction

The effect of a carbapenem on VPA is significant and may result in reduced efficacy and increased seizure activity. Because of the mechanism of this interaction, increasing the dose of the VPA will unlikely achieve therapeutic plasma concentrations.

Quality Reading: Growing Up with National Geographic

Teach Your Children the Value of Money

National Asthma Guidelines Updated

Atherosclerotic renovascular disease in older dialysis patients

We hypothesized that atherosclerotic renovascular disease (ARVD) might account for a growing proportion of end-stage renal disease in the United States because of shared risk factors and the aging of the population. We tested this hypothesis through an evaluation of 146 973 older patients starting dialysis therapy in the United States between 1996 and 2001.

Anticholinergic Practice May Not Affect Tardive Dyskinesia

While withdrawal of anticholinergic drugs has been investigated in the past to improve TD symptoms, evidence is weak for arguments in favor and against the drug class for TD.

Red, White, and…Green?

Critique Your Favorite Fund Columnist

Intensive statin therapy in acute coronary syndrome

We conducted a meta-analysis of 13 randomized controlled trials involving 17 963 subjects to determine the effect of intensive statin therapy instituted within 14 days of hospitalization for acute coronary syndrome. Results showed that early, intensive statin therapy is safe and significantly decreases cardiovascular death and recurrent ischemia following acute coronary syndrome after 6 months of treatment.

Are statins cardioprotective in patients undergoing major vascular surgery?

We evaluated the cardioprotective effects of intensive statin therapy before major vascular surgery in a prospective study of 359 subjects. After multivariate analysis, lower low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol was associated with decreased myocardial ischemia, troponin T release, and 30-day and late cardiac events. Furthermore, higher doses of statins were associated with better cardiac outcome, even after adjusting for LDL cholesterol.

The SORT OUT II trial: Updated summary with a special focus on stent thrombosis and discontinuation of dual antiplatelet therapy after 1 year

The SORT OUT II trial showed that the first generation of drug-eluting stents, Cypher® and Taxus®, exhibit similar efficacy and safety when used for percutaneous coronary intervention in everyday practice, including in a high proportion of off-label situations.

The Syllable as the Perceptual Unit in Speech Perception

Dom Massaro comments on the debate regarding the basic unit of speech perception.

The Emperor of All Maladies: Documenting Cancer's Long Reign

An interview with Siddhartha Mukherjee, author of the book "The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer."