Search

The majority of Americans use the Internet daily, if not more often, and many search online for health information to better understand a diagnosis they have been given or to research treatment options. The average American reads at an eighth-grade level. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the readability of online patient education materials on the websites of 14 professional organizations representing the major internal medicine subspecialties. We used ten well-established quantitative readability scales to assess written text from patient education materials published on the websites of the major professional organizations representing the following subspecialty groups: allergy and immunology, cardiology, endocrinology, gastroenterology, geriatrics, hematology, hospice and palliative care, infectious disease, nephrology, oncology, pulmonology and critical care, rheumatology, sleep medicine, and sports medicine. Collectively the 540 articles analyzed were written at an 11th-grade level (SD 1.4 grade levels). The sleep medicine and nephrology websites had the most readable materials, written at an academic grade level of 8.5 ± 1.5 and 9.0 ± 0.2, respectively. Material at the infectious disease site was written at the most difficult level, with average readability corresponding to grades 13.9 ± 0.3. None of the patient education materials we reviewed conformed to the American Medical Association (AMA) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) guidelines requiring that patient education articles be written at a third- to seventh-grade reading level. If these online resources were rewritten, it is likely that more patients would derive benefit from reading them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this study was to present the characteristics of non-spinal musculoskeletal malpractice suits with attention to rates, anatomic location, and payments in a survey of 8,265 radiologists. The malpractice histories of 8,265 radiologists from 36 states were evaluated from credentialing data required of all radiologists participating in the network of One Call Medical, Inc., a broker for imaging tests in workmen's compensation cases. Twenty six hundred of the 8,265 radiologists (31.5 %) had at least one suit. Of the 4,741 total claims, 627 (13.2 %) were related to the bones and soft tissues. Four hundred seventeen (66.1 %) of them involved the musculoskeletal system other than the spine. A cause was known for 400. Of these, 91.8 % (367/400) resulted from an alleged failure to diagnose. The foot was the most common site with a rate 6.00 cases/1,000 radiologist's person years (95 % confidence interval (CI), 4.68-7.68), and the hip was second with a rate of 5.30 cases/1,000 person years (95 % CI, 4.15-6.76). The highest median payment related to ankle injuries with a median settlement of $72,500 (interquartile range (IQR), $40,000-$161,250). The state in which the highest median settlement occurred was Maryland ($125,000; IQR, $95,000-$230,000)) whereas Utah had the highest rate of suits (5.24 cases per 1,000 person years; CI, 3.03-9.04). Claims regarding foot and hip injury were the most common, but ankle settlements incurred the highest awards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To present overall rates, anatomic location, percent of adverse settlements to the radiologists, and average payments to the plaintiff in spinal-related malpractice suits in a survey of 8,265 radiologists. The malpractice histories of 8,265 radiologists from 36 states were evaluated from credentialing data required of all radiologists participating in the network of One Call Medical Incorporated, a broker for CT/MR in workmen's compensation cases. Two hundred twenty-six of the 8,265 radiologists (31.5 %) had at least one suit. Of the 4,741 total claims, 627 (13.2 %) were related to the bones and adjacent soft tissue. Two hundred and ten (32.9 %) involved the spine. Of these, 70.2 % (134/191) were settled in favor of the plaintiff. One hundred and sixteen (68.2 %) involved the cervical spine with an average settlement of $483,156. Lumbar cases accounted for 28 (16.5 %) of spinal suits, with an average settlement of $119,272. Thoracic cases (26) accounted for only 15.3 % of spinal cases and had an average settlement of $481,608. An allegation of spinal malpractice resulting in a settlement or judgment against the radiologist occurred at a rate of 29.5 cases per 1,000 radiologists' person years. Of the three spinal regions, the cervical spine was the most frequent anatomic site of a malpractice suit and among all those cases settled incurred the highest payment in judgment to the plaintiff. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Radiographic series of the foot are often obtained in conjunction with ankle X-rays when the clinical presentation is limited to trauma to the ankle. The Ottawa Ankle and Foot Rules were established in 1992 and serve as reliable guidelines to determine when an ankle or foot series is warranted in patients who have sustained minor ankle and/or foot injury. We retrospectively reviewed radiographic studies of all patients over a period of 18 months who simultaneously had ankle and foot plain radiographs performed for acute complaints limited to the ankle alone. Of the 243 patients who met our inclusion criteria, 55 patients had fractures, 46 in or near the ankle joint, and nine which were located at the base of the fifth metatarsal bone. No fractures or dislocations were noted elsewhere in the foot. All of the fifth metatarsal fractures were evident on adequately performed ankle series. Our findings suggest that films of the foot are not necessary when trauma is limited to the ankle and when an appropriately performed ankle series has been completed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]