CMAJ Podcasts

Dr. Moneeza Walji, editorial fellow, interviews Dr. Angel Petropanagos, postdoctoral fellow at Dalhousie University in Halifax. Some women who anticipate fertility decline due to the natural aging process may now choose to freeze their eggs to preserve their future fertility. Dr. Petropanagos discusses the benefits, risks, ethical concerns and societal implications of this practice to provide family physicians with the tools to offer balanced information to clients who seek it. Dr. Petropanagos has co-authored an analysis article with Alana Cattapan MA, Françoise Baylis PhD, Arthur Leader MD, published in CMAJ on April 13, 2015. Full article: https://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.141605To request a transcript of this podcast, contact [email protected]

Highlights from the April 7th issue of CMAJ, presented by Dr. John Fletcher, editor-in-chief. In this issue: reducing imaging for low-back pain, incidental findings of genetic mutations and whether or not Canadians want to know about them, fair pricing for old orphan drugs, childhood obesity guidelines, and more. Full issue table of contents: http://www.cmaj.ca/content/187/6.toc

Dr. Diane Kelsall, deputy editor, interviews Dr. Xuyi Mimi Wang, fellow in geriatrics at McMaster University. In a review published in CMAJ, Dr. Wang and colleagues discuss the complex and common issue of elder abuse. Although evidence to support screening and any particular intervention is weak, physicians must be skilled in handling this important problem. Wang and colleagues discuss an advocacy approach that physicians can adopt to handle suspected cases of elder abuse. Published April 7, 2015, doi: 10.1503/cmaj.141329. Full article: https://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.141329To request a transcript of this podcast, contact [email protected]

Dr. Matthew Stanbrook, deputy editor for CMAJ, interviews Dr. Danielle Martin, family physician and VP of Medical Affairs and Health System Solutions at Women's College Hospital in Toronto. Dr. Martin and colleagues say that implementing universal public coverage of prescription drugs in Canada would be estimated to reduce total spending by $7.2 billion while increasing government costs by only $1.0 billion. This economic modeling study shows that universal public drug coverage could be implemented without substantially increasing government spending. Full article: http://www.cmaj.ca/content/early/2015/03/16/cmaj.141564.full.pdf+htmlTo request a transcript of this podcast, contact [email protected]

Dr. Diane Kelsall, deputy editor, interviews Dr. Patricia Parkin, pediatrician at the Hospital for Sick Children, professor with the University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine. CMAJ recently published new recommendations from the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care, where Dr. Parkin is chair of the child obesity working group. The Task Force recommends structured behavioural interventions for obese and overweight children, but not medications or surgery. There is little evidence showing long-term effectiveness of interventions for obesity prevention. Full guidelines: http://www.cmaj.ca/content/early/2015/03/30/cmaj.141285To request a transcript of this podcast, contact [email protected]

Highlights from the March 17th issue of CMAJ, presented by Dr. John Fletcher, editor-in-chief, and Dr. Domhnall MacAuley, associate editor. In this issue: how different duty schedules affect day-time sleepiness of residents, using the Rowland Universal Dementia Assessment Scale (RUDAS) cognitive assessment tool for multicultural populations, who gets appropriate follow-up after visiting an emergency department for chest pain, how to manage neonatal jaundice, frequent night-time urination, cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome and more. Full table of contents: http://www.cmaj.ca/content/187/5.tocTo request a transcript of this podcast, contact [email protected]

Interview with Paula Brauer, head of the adult obesity working group at the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care. This latest guideline from the Task Force, published in CMAJ, focuses on the growing epidemic of obesity in adults, recommendations for prevention of weight gain and use of behavioural and pharmacologic interventions to manage overweight and obesity in adults in primary care. Full guideline: http://www.cmaj.ca/content/187/3/184 To request a transcript of this podcast, contact [email protected]

Highlights from the March 3rd issue of CMAJ, presented by Dr. Kirsten Patrick, deputy editor, and Dr. Domhnall MacAuley, associate editor. In this issue: seasonal variation of nocturnal leg cramps, concerns over the use of quinine to treat leg cramps, quality indicators of pharmacotherapy, dangers of trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole co-prescribed with spironolactone, IV immunoglobulin as therapy, human myiasis in Canada, use of primary care EMR data for research, and more. Full issue table of contents: http://www.cmaj.ca/content/187/4.tocTo request a transcript of this podcast, contact [email protected]

Interview with Dr. Sheryl Spithoff, addiction medicine specialist and family physician at Women's College Hospital in Toronto who co-authored a commentary published in CMAJ. Spithoff and Dr. Suzanne Turner say the Canadian health care system provides inadequate access to effective treatment for at-risk drinking and alcohol use disorders. However, improved physician training, combined with strategies to ensure better access to appropriate treatment, would improve health outcomes and generate cost savings for the health system. Full article: http://www.cmaj.ca/content/early/2015/03/02/cmaj.140849To request a transcript of this podcast, contact [email protected]

Interview with Dr. Dennis Ko, interventional cardiologist at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto and senior scientist with the Institute of Clinical Evaluative Sciences. Dr. Ko and colleagues found that patients discharged after an emergency department visit for chest pain were less likely to be seen within 30 days by a primary care physician or cardiologist if they had known cardiac or cerebrovascular conditions, as well as other comorbidities. The paradoxical finding that patients at higher risk for adverse events were less likely to receive follow-up suggests the need for a better strategy to improve transition of care in this context. Article: http://www.cmaj.ca/content/early/2015/02/17/cmaj.141294To request a transcript of this podcast, contact [email protected]