Clinician's Roundtable

Host: Matthew J. Sorrentino, MD, FACC, FASH Guest: Eric Prystowsky, MD Can we reduce cardiovascular deaths by preventing a recurrence of atrial fibrillation? Dr. Eric Prystowsky, Director of Electrophysiology at St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis, Indiana, will discuss the results of the ATHENA trial; a study using dronedarone, an amiodarone-like medication, that was shown to significantly reduce cardiovascular deaths and hospitalizations due to atrial fibrillation and acute coronary syndromes. Join host Dr. Matthew Sorrentino.

Host: Lee Freedman, MD Guest: Gwen Huitt, MD Dr. Huitt discusses the range of atypical mycobacterial infections encountered in practice. She emphasizes the settings in which these infections present, how a diagnosis can be made and how they should be treated and followed.

Host: Lee Freedman, MD Guest: Gwen Huitt, MD First and foremost, what is hot tub lung? Not surprisingly, it typically affects patients who spend time in and around pools, hot tubs and other aquatic environments. But several additional issues of this condition require answers, including diagnosis and treatment patterns. Further, how do we gauge the prognosis for patients who suffer hot tub lung? Dr. Gwenn Huitt, a mycobacterial infection specialist from the National Jewish Medical and Research Center, probes these questions and more with host Dr. Lee Freedman.

Host: Lisa Dandrea Lenell, PA-C, MPAS, MBA Guest: James Cawley, MPH, PA-C With the increase use of physician assistants, understanding the certification requirements is becoming of greater importance to physicians and practitioners alike. Host Lisa D'Andrea talks with Jim Cawley about the potential changes and certification requirements for physician assistants. Mr. Cawley explains the greater need for physician assistants to demonstrate competency in their field of practice by a certification process. Mr. Cawley views this as a positive change that will benefit physician assistants even though it will limit the physician assistant's freedom to change specialties.

Host: Lisa Dandrea Lenell, PA-C, MPAS, MBA Guest: James Cawley, MPH, PA-C Lisa D'Andrea talks with Jim Cawley about the physician assistant doctorate degree.

Host: Lisa Dandrea Lenell, PA-C, MPAS, MBA Guest: James Cawley, MPH, PA-C Host Lisa D'Andrea speaks with James Cawley, professor of health care science and director of the PA/MPH Program at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, about the steady movement of physician assistants away from primary care medicine. How will this trend, similar to what we're seeing among entering physicians, impact the medical community?

Host: Leslie P. Lundt, MD Guest: Joe Goveas, MD Mild cognitive impairment occurs in up to 29 percent of our geriatric patients. What should we be doing after the diagnosis is made? Host Dr. Leslie Lundt welcomes Dr. Joseph Goveas, assistant professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee to discuss interventions for mild cognitive impairment.

Host: Leslie P. Lundt, MD Guest: Joe Goveas, MD Memory complaints in those of us aged 50 and up are not unusual. How can you determine whether subtle changes are due to normal aging, early dementia or some other medical problem? Dr. Joseph Goveas, assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine at the Medical College of Wisconsin joins host Dr. Leslie Lundt to discuss mild cognitive impairment.

Host: Leslie P. Lundt, MD Guest: Thomas E. Eissenberg, PhD We recognize that tobacco use kills millions of people around the world each year, but most of the available research focuses on cigarette smoking. The scope of tobacco use extends well beyond cigarettes, and includes an upswing in hookah, or water pipe, smoking, which many young people believe is less harmful than other forms of tobacco use. What do we know about the growing popularity of hookah smoking? What can we do to educate our young patients about the dangers of this form of tobacco use? Dr. Thomas Eissenberg, associate professor of psychology at Virginia Commonwealth University and an expert in the behavioral pharmacology of drugs of abuse, joins host Dr. Leslie Lundt to discuss his research on waterpipe smoking.

Host: Leslie P. Lundt, MD Guest: Beth Ann Malow, MD, MS Insomnia is a common sleep concern in children with autism spectrum disorders. As these children often have a complex array of other conditions, hypnotic use can be problematic. Is melatonin a reasonable alternative? Dr. Beth Malow joins host Dr. Leslie Lundt to discuss her research in this area.

Host: Leslie P. Lundt, MD Guest: Robert Rosen, PhD Dr. Robert Rosen was awarded a six-year multi-million dollar grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to study leadership and healthy organizations. Having interviewed more than 250 CEOs and worked with organizations in more than 30 countries, Dr. Rosen says anxiety is a necessary and desirable feature of a successful leader. He expands on this idea in a conversation about his latest book, Just Enough Anxiety, with host Dr. Leslie Lundt

Host: Larry Kaskel, MD Guest: Jeffrey Gulcher, MD PhD Are we already able to assess our patients accurately for MI risk factors or is there another test that could provide more accuracy? Our guest today, Dr. Jeffrey Gulcher, chief scientific officer and co-founder of deCode Genetics tells host, Dr. Larry Kaskel about deCode MI. Learn how to use and interpret the results of the new decode MI test. What can you learn that you don't already know?

Host: Larry Kaskel, MD Guest: Richard Goode, MD Are your patients' expectations too high? Could docs be at fault for setting those expectations? Dr. Richard Goode, professor of otolaryngology at Stanford University Medical Center, joins host Dr. Larry Kaskel to discuss his recent article, The Unhappy Patient Following Facial Plastic Surgery: What to Do? and analyze why some patients will always be dissatisfied with the results. Tune in to hear how to identify those unhappy patients before they undergo a procedure. Does surgeons have an ethical obligation to treat and/or refuse treatment to these patients?

Host: Bill Rutenberg, MD Guest: Charles Samenow, MD, MPH Disruptive Physicians: Do you work with one? Do you manage one? What can you do to help a disruptive or "distracted" physician? Our guest Dr. Charles Samenow, instructor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences and co-author of a recent NEJM publication entitled, Disruptive Physician - A CME Course Aimed At Addressing Disruptive Physician Behaviorexplains a CME course aimed at training referred physicians. In this segment learn about the content, logistics, goals and successes of this life changing course. Hosted by Dr. Bill Rutenberg.

Host: Bill Rutenberg, MD Guest: Charles Samenow, MD, MPH How do you define disruptive physician? They are not always the loud, intimidating, abusive physician but also the one unwilling to return phone calls timely or properly chart a case. Dr. Charles Samenow, psychiatrist in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at George Washington University Medical Faculty Associates joins host Dr. Bill Rutenberg to discuss a recent paper he co-authored, Disruptive Physician - A CME Course Aimed At Addressing Disruptive Physician Behavior. Better communication programs and more teaching of self-awareness can help to decrease inappropriate behavior. We must also become a healthcare community that does not tolerate this type of behavior.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Stewart Justman, PhD Professor Stewart Justman discusses his new book "Do No Harm" in which the results of finasteride trial that ended in 2003 are looked at again. By reducing the size of the gland, what previously had appeared to be causing increased aggressive cancers may now be called into question. We will have to decide whether a healthy man should take a treatment to prevent a disease he may never get and if he did might be better off in not going through treatment.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Guest: Stewart Justman, PhD Professor Stewart Justman discusses his new book "Do No Harm" in which the results of the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial cause us to reflect on Hippocratic ethical principals of 300BCE in our present practice. Finasteride leaves us with an ambiguity of reducing the incidence of cancer but also associated with a higher rate of aggressive neoplasm. In chemoprevention is any risk too much to be expectable? Hosted by Maurie Pickard.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Dr. William Galanter, assistant professor of pharmacy at University of Illinois College of Medicine, speaks to doctors about the real cost of drug industry lunches and samples. It is time that the government looks at comparative drug efficacy. Also physicians should not have to be confronted by pharmaceutical representatives who know their prescription data. Join Host Maurie Pickard.

Host: Maurice Pickard, MD Dr. William Galanter, assistant professor of pharmacy at University of Illinois College of Medicine, discusses the ongoing relationship between physicians and drug representatives and how the 19 billion dollars that pharmaceutical companies spend on this "educational/marketing tool" can be used to provide the best and most cost effective care for our patients. Education institutions must teach young learners how to evaluate the literature that is not biased so that they are not overwhelmed by industrial pressures their first day in practice.

Host: Mark Nolan Hill, MD Guest: Richard B. Lipton, MD For decades, researchers and medical professionals have pursued a more concrete understanding of migraine headaches. We're still not sure of the origin of migraines, but we may have found a device that minimizes their impact. Dr. Richard Lipton, professor and vice chair of neurology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and director of the Montefiore Headache Center in New York City, shares details on this device with host Dr. Mark Nolan Hill.