Expert Interviews

RSV is comparable to influenza every year in the severity of infection among older adults. Drs Bill Schaffner and Chuck Vega say both patients and clinicians will need education this season.

Before creating a nutrition plan for patients with obesity, clinicians should first understand their eating patterns, says one obesity expert.

Well-known ID specialist Bill Schaffner, MD, and active primary care educator Chuck Vega, MD, offer thoughts on how to get shots into arms in the 2023-2024 respiratory virus season.

Respiratory virus season 2023-2024 will likely be a "transition year," according to family physician Chuck Vega, MD and ID specialist Bill Schaffner, MD. Here's why.

Dr Alina Elperin details which medications primary care clinicians should be prepared to prescribe patients with obesity to help prevent cardiovascular disease, here.

Internist and obesity medicine specialist Alina Elperin, MD, details the most common cardiovascular complications that she has observed in patients with obesity.

Obesity medicine specialist and internist Alina Elperin, MD, shares why screening for obstructive sleep apnea and metabolic disease in patients with obesity is crucial.

His relationship with primary care physicians is one of the most important, says physiatrist DJ Kennedy, MD, and he lists the reasons in this interview.

Physiatrist DJ Kennedy, MD, is excited by the potential for new, and even existing technology, to present novel options for diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment.

Greg Mattingly, MD, and Jeremey Schreiber, MSN, PMHNP-BC, provide their practice pearls for community psychiatrists and psychiatric nurse practitioners who care for patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) to optimize their treatment and management.

Experts provide an overview of novel treatments, including glutamatergic, GABAergic, and psychedelic drugs, that are either approved or currently being evaluated in clinical studies for MDD (major depressive disorders).

Raffi Tachdjian, MD, MPH, FAAAAI, FACAAI; Dareen D. Siri, MD, FAAAAI, FACAAI; Nicole Chase, MD, FAAP, FACAAI, FAAAAI; and Andrew White, MD, give final thoughts on asthma management, considering the current treatment landscape.

Experts outline biomarkers to measure asthma, highlighting eosinophil count and fractional exhaled nitric oxide levels.

Experts discuss the use of biologic treatment in asthma by primary care physicians vs pulmonology specialists as well as overcoming barriers to biologic use through patient and physician education.

When is a primary care patient with back pain ready for referral to PM&R? No formulas available but basic principles hold true and earlier is always better.

Recurrent back pain is common, so teaching patients how to stay strong and flexible—and also when to get help—is essential, says Vanderbilt physiatrist DJ Kennedy, MD.

The challenge posed by a complaint of back pain is not that the origin is unknowable but rather the remarkable heterogeneity in this condition, says the president-elect of the American Academy of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation.

Greg Mattingly, MD, and Jeremey Schreiber, MSN, PMHNP-BC, discuss the typical strategies for switching therapies for major depressive disorder (MDD).

Practitioners discuss the need to treat patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) to a complete remission vs a decline in symptomology.

Experts comment on switching from 1 biologic treatment to another, as well as combining biologics with steroids or other treatments in asthma.

Andrew White, MD, discusses choosing the right biologic for patients with severe asthma, considering factors such as asthma comorbidities as well as patient preference.

Primary care clinicians will need to be particularly alert for signs of long COVID in older patients as some signs and symptoms may be easily attributed to the aging process.

Greg Mattingly, MD, and Jeremey Schreiber, MSN, PMHNP-BC, discuss best practices for monitoring and follow-up with patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) to ensure treatment efficacy and safety.

Practitioners discuss their approach to treatment with their patients with major depressive disorder (MDD).

Dareen D. Siri, MD, FAAAAI, FACAAI, reviews the efficacy and safety of dupilumab for the treatment of asthma, as well as which patients are good candidates for dupilumab.

Nicole Chase, MD, FAAP, FACAAI, FAAAAI, provides an overview of the difference between single and dual inhibition of interleukins, focusing on dupilumab as a dual inhibitor for asthma treatment.

The importance of avoiding judgement, monitoring behavior, and cardiovascular risk prevention in primary care are discussed, here.

For older adults who feel limited by physical changes associated with aging, physiatry can help maintain strength and flexibility along a continuum of primary care.

Early intervention is crucial to help prevent complications in patients with obesity and type 2 diabetes. Two experts explain more, here.

Experts discuss how practitioners are viewing major depressive disorder (MDD) as a chronic condition vs an episodic condition.