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The herd mentality is alive and well when it comes to investing in high-risk, high-potential stocks. Researchers found that what investors fear most is not the chance they'll lose money with their investments, but the risk that they'll do worse than their peers.

Perhaps not. More than two-thirds of them are adding the value of their homes to their retirement portfolio, according to a recent survey. That?s a mistake, say financial planners.

Bypassing a broker—whether a traditional one or a discounter—can save you some bucks on your next stock purchase.

Malpractice Consult

Here's how to expand your deductible contributions for 2006 and spur your nest egg's growth.

Three very different practices embark on their EHR journey with different approaches. We'll follow them over the next year so that you can learn from their experience.

This doctor tells how to make that assessment-and suggests ways to turn things around.

By using this formal fact-finding process, you can make picking a system a swan dive instead of a belly-flop.

What angers physicians more than recalcitrant patients? Insurance companies that penalize them because of these patients' actions.

Don't risk denials by using outdated codes. Review the major changes here, and be sure to check the Category II changes.

The author wonders why he continues to subject himself to a healthcare system that values paperwork over patients.

After several narrow escapes, the author is eager to share his hard-won lessons with others.

Confronted by emotional suffering, this doctor found compassion more effective than clinical skill.

For most doctors, our poll shows, patient autonomy is key when the patient turns away from conventional medicine.

A series of analyses offers no consensus on the safety of drug-eluting stents (DES) compared with bare metal stents. Depending on the study, DES either result in an increase in major adverse coronary events (MACE) or a decrease in subsequent need for coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery and repeat percutaneous coronary intervention without an excess of adverse clinical events.

A comparison of the investigational COX-2 inhibitor etoricoxib and diclofenac found no increase in the risk of cardiovascular events over 3 years with etoricoxib.

The first-ever anticoagulant drug-plus-antidote system has passed initial safety trials at Duke University in Durham, N.C. The new platform combines a short nucleic acid chain that quickly blocks clotting with an antidote that removes the clotting blockage in minutes.

The thiazolidinedione pioglitazone has a beneficial effect on carotid intima media thickness (CIMT) compared with glimepiride in patients with type 2 diabetes, said Theodore Mazzone, MD, lead investigator of the CHICAGO (Carotid Intima Media Thickness in Atherosclerosis Using Pioglitazone) study.

Pharmacist-directed education combined with prepackaging of medications increases compliance with medication schedules, leading to improvements in blood pressure and cholesterol levels among elderly patients, according to a study headed by Allen J. Taylor, MD.

Screening for coronary calcium may provide an impetus for physicians to initiate preventive cardiovascular therapies in patients who have coronary calcium, but persistence with the medications is no better than in patients who are started on therapies without a coronary calcium test, said Allen J. Taylor, MD

You don't have an e-prescribing program, but wish you could reduce the number of pharmacy calls regarding refills? Help may be on the way. Navimedix, a national company that provides web-based, health plan-sponsored administrative services, recently started offering a free service that connects physician offices online with pharmacies for prescription renewals, patient drug histories, and formulary lookups. The only thing physicians have to do is allow Navimedix to include some patient care messages from plans and disease management companies on the refill queries from pharmacies.

Compare your earnings with those of colleagues in your specialy and others. The news for primary care physicians is a bit better.

There's no one-size-fits-all answer, judging by your responses to our poll examining the difficulty faced by physicians caught between a frugal patient and an insurance company's rules.

When my patient died needlessly, part of me died, too.

At the center is a doctor who says he was simply sharing his experiences with colleagues.

Who's got your back, why you need them, and where to find them.

Technology Consult

The lifestyles of many women baby boomers has now placed them at risk for cardiovascular disease, said Mary Elizabeth Roth, MD, Associate Chief Academic Officer, Geisinger Health System, Wilkes Barre, Pa.

More than 90% of patients who visit a primary care doctor for headache have migraine, said Jeffrey R. Unger, MD, Medical Director, Chino Medical Group, Chino, Calif.

Patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) who are over age 65 are 5 to 7 times more likely to have a stroke than same-aged patients without the condition, said Daniel Tambunan, MD, Assistant Director, Family Practice Residency, Florida Hospital, Orlando, Fla.