Evaluation of a Systems-Based Tobacco Cessation Program Using Bedside Volunteers.

Introduction: Hospitalization and post-discharge provide an opportune time for tobacco cessation. This study tested the feasibility, uptake, and cessation outcomes of a hospital-based tobacco cessation program, delivered by volunteers to the bedside with post-discharge referral to Quitline services. Patient characteristics associated with Quitline uptake and cessation were assessed.

Pharmacogenetics in the Development of Lipid Lowering Medications: Lomitapide & Mipomersen in Clinical Practice.

Introduction: The familial hypercholesterolemias (FH) are a group of undertreated genetically inherited disorders of lipid metabolism that lead to severely elevated cholesterol levels and early onset cardiovascular disease. Aggressive lifestyle modifications and lipid-lowering medications such as statins and bile acid sequestrants are the backbone of current treatment. Despite these interventions, homozygous FH (HoFH) patients are unable to reach LDL-C targets and remain at significantly increased risk of cardiovascular disease.

Washington's Senate Bill 6610 on transferring provisions for persons found not guilty by reason of insanity.

In Washington state, public concern about the potential dangerousness of mentally ill offenders has led to increasing legislative efforts to contain them in secure settings. A recently enacted law authorizes the transfer of persons found not guilty by reason of insanity from state psychiatric hospitals to prison facilities. The authors review the recent legislation and discuss some of the legal, policy, and clinical ramifications of the law.

Gastro-right ventricular fistula: a deadly complication of a gastric pull-through.

A 70-year-old patient presented with melena, dyspnea, and generalized weakness. An endoscopy revealed a deep ulcer with a pulsatile clot in the intrathoracic gastric tube that had been previously constructed for esophageal replacement. Shortly thereafter, the patient died of exsanguination secondary to a fistula between the stomach and the right ventricle.