Apathy has been increasingly recognized as a neuropsychiatric symptom in many neurologic disorders. Since apathy per se almost never occurs as an isolated syndrome, it must be viewed in the context of an individual's entire behavioral and cognitive status.
Interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) is a time-limited, evidence based psychosocial intervention used to treat depression either alone or in combination with medication.
Psychiatric side effects are extremely common in patients treated with corticosteroids. The elderly and those with previous psychiatric diagnoses are not at increased risk for these side effects, but women and those with prior corticosteroid-induced psychiatric side effects are.
A 53-year-old woman presents with a 4-day history of a pruritic eruption on her leg. She had a benign lesion surgically excised with 2-layer suture closure 1 week before onset of the eruption.
In older patients with advanced systolic heart failure of ischemic etiology, rosuvastatin added to standard heart failure medication had no significant effect on the incidence of cardiovascular death, nonfatal MI, and nonfatal stroke compared with placebo.
Q. If, while in my office, I discharge a patient from a nursing home or skilled nursing facility, can I bill Medicare or the patient for the discharge?
Q. A previous article stated there was not a way to obtain reimbursement for phone consultation. Do recent changes in Medicare law allow for reimbursement for coordination of care using codes 99339-99340?
Q. I am a family physician. Another physician recently joined the practice. She is self-employed. Her earnings are based on production minus overhead and will be for the first year. We are not a legal entity at this time; that is, we are not a partnership or a corporation. When she sees one of my established Medicare patients in my absence, does she charge for a new patient visit or an established visit?
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Geriatrics archives are now available on ModernMedicine.com, a new online resource designed to meet the evolving needs of physicians.