Tattooing: medical uses and problems.

Decorative tattooing is a custom thousands of years old and is growing in popularity today. Medical professionals may be less familiar with its medical applications-medical alert tattooing, reconstructive and cosmetic applications, endoscopic tattooing, corneal tattooing, tattooing in radiation oncology, and uses in forensic medicine. We review current medically related tattooing applications and discuss their potential risks and benefits.

Relationship between self-reported high-heeled shoe use and bone mineral density using quantitative ultrasound at a community health fair.

This is the first known study to examine the relationship between high-heel use and bone mineral density (BMD). Because women are disproportionately affected by osteoporosis, it is important to identify possible modifiable behaviors of women that may adversely affect bone health. Many studies have shown changes in body mechanics when wearing high-heeled shoes in comparison to normal gait.

Giant cell arteritis of the thyroid in a 69-year-old male.

We report the case of a 69-year-old Caucasian male with a histological confirmed diagnosis of giant cell arteritis (GCA) of the thyroid. To our knowledge this is the second reported case of GCA of the thyroid with a histological confirmed diagnosis. Unique to this case is that our patient did not have the simultaneous occurrence of a positive temporal artery biopsy or classic symptoms of temporal arteritis.

Asymptomatic severe hypocalcemia secondary to vitamin d deficiency in an elderly patient.

Objective. To describe an asymptomatic presentation of severe hypocalcemia secondary to vitamin D deficiency in an elderly patient. Methods.

Relationship between depressive symptoms and cardiovascular risk factors among selected Latino patients at a community clinic.

The objective of this study was to explore the relationship between severity of depression and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors among selected Latino patients within a primary care setting. We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of 164 low-income Latino patients at San Ysidro Health Center (SYHC) who had been recruited into a mental health program between January 2007 and March 2008. Patients were between the ages of 18 and 83 years, 54 were males and 109 females.