HIV and ID Observations

December 8th, 2011

Big TB Prevention Study Important, Highly Relevant — Even Here

As I’ve noted before, tuberculosis is disappearing from the United States — which means that the bulk of cutting-edge research in TB (both clinical and basic science) has little relevance to US-based practitioners. But over in NEJM, a much-anticipated TB study is published today that is highly relevant: We conducted an open-label, randomized noninferiority trial […]

---

April 5th, 2011

Scamming Academic Journals

Academic scams are not just limited to meetings. Every so often, I receive an e-mail that goes something like this: Dear Dr. Sax, The journal Contemporary Organic Biosynthesis [journal name made up] covers all the latest and outstanding developments in organic biosynthesis studies. It is one of the leading journals for expert reviews in the […]

---

March 8th, 2011

Really Rapid Review of CROI 2011 — and No CROI 2012 Dates

With CROI 2011 now officially over, I offer below the following Really Rapid Review™ for ID/HIV Specialists with limited time — or for those who said they went to the conference but spent the entire week shopping in the Prudential Mall and eating at Legal Seafood: Lots on PrEP.  Bottom line — it works if you […]

---

December 13th, 2010

My (Second) Favorite Journal Switches Publishers

I absolutely love the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases. It’s easily my second-favorite journal. (Can you guess my favorite? Perhaps this new “About this blog” section will give you a hint.) But back to CID — here’s why I love it: Great content.  Seems every issue has fascinating studies, usually of great clinical relevance to the […]

---

September 17th, 2010

What Are These Conferences?

With ICAAC now completed — which took place in a city called Boston but seemed far, far, from home (see picture) — it seems timely to inquire about another form of “scientific” conference. Every so often, I’ll receive an email like this (slightly edited to protect the sender, whomever he or she may be): Dear […]

---

September 6th, 2010

Treating Cellulitis: Getting the Answer Wrong and Right

What’s the right antibiotic choice for cellulitis in the era of community-acquired MRSA? As astutely pointed out by Anne in her comment, the “correct” answer to the recertification question was #4, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, for the following reason: I am not a doctor, I am a test developer. Having exactly zero knowledge about the content here (could […]

---

September 1st, 2010

Testing your Testing Skills

Have I whined yet about how I’m part of the first Internal Medicine class that was not “grandfathered” through to eternal board certfication?  If not, now I have. So for you fellow test-takers, here’s another one for you, adapted somewhat from this delightful experience I’m required to go through every 10 years.  Oddly, just like the […]

---

March 14th, 2010

MRSA Bacteremia Question Redux — and the “Answer”

As noted here, I recently had to answer a question on management of MRSA bacteremia as part of an every-10-year cycle of test-taking. (For more on that joyous process, read this interesting debate here in the New England Journal of Medicine.) The question seemed to have no obvious right answer, so I did what one is explicitly […]

---

March 5th, 2010

Test Question on MRSA Bacteremia

I just happened to be taking a test the other day — something I do for fun every now and then, say every 10 years or so — and I came across this question (slightly condensed/changed to protect the innocent): Man with history of IDU admitted with fever, has bacteremia due to MRSA (MIC 2 […]

---

February 19th, 2010

CROI 2011 Dates: February 27-March 3, Boston

CROI just about wrapping up — excellent, as usual.  Hope to provide some “greatest hits” shortly. But since John Mellors announced the dates of next year’s conference — and because the CROI web site can be “leisurely” in posting this information — I offer the following evidence as a public service to researchers, teachers, clinicians, […]

---