Type 2 diabetes is 8 to 10 times more common than type 1 diabetes, but no single large trial has established that improved glycemic control can prevent complications in type 2 diabetes. We have reviewed the results of the existing epidemiologic and clinical trial studies and have arrived at the following conclusions: (1) Strong evidence exists that improved glycemic control is effective at lessening the risks of retinopathy, neuropathy, and nephropathy in type 2 diabetes. (2) The evidence about the effect on coronary heart disease is limited and equivocal. (3) The hypoglycemic risk from improved glycemic control is significantly less in type 2 diabetes than in type 1, and weight gain seems to be modest. In conclusion, although glycemic goals should be individualized based on several clinical factors, most patients with type 2 diabetes would probably benefit from glucose lowering to a hemoglobin A1c level between 7% and 8%.

BACKGROUND: The use of chronic opioids for noncancer pain is an increasingly common and difficult problem in primary care.

Based on a small number of studies, tricyclic and tetracyclic antidepressants appear to produce moderate symptom reductions for patients with chronic low back pain. This benefit appears to be independent of depression status. SSRIs do not appear to be beneficial for patients with chronic low back pain. There is conflicting evidence whether antidepressants improve functional status of patients with chronic low back pain.

T o address whether St John's wort is useful for the treatment of depression we attempted to retrieve all English-language articles with data on the efficacy, safety, and availability of St John's wort. Randomized, controlled, double-blind trials were selected and assessed for methodological quality using a standardized checklist, and data on pharmacology, cost, regulation, and safety were extracted. Eight studies were identified, found to be of generally good methodological quality, and determined to provide a modest amount of data to suggest that St John's wort is more effective than placebo in the treatment of mild to moderate depression. The absolute increased response rate with the use of St John's wort ranged from 23% to 55% higher than with placebo, but ranged from 6% to 18% lower compared with tricyclic antidepressants. More data are required to assess both its use in severe depression and its efficacy compared with other antidepressants. Rates of side effects were low. As a dietary supplement, St John's wort is currently largely unregulated, but the Food and Drug Administration is reviewing plans to tighten its regulatory oversight.Arch Intern Med. 2000;160:152-156

To assess physicians' use of and attitudes toward electronic mail (e-mail) for patient communication, we conducted a mailin survey of physicians who see patients in outpatient clinics affiliated with a large academic medical center (N = 283). Seventy-two percent of physicians reported using e-mail to communicate with patients, averaging 7.7 e-mails from patients per month. The lowest level of use was by communitybased primary care physicians (odds ratio, 0.22; 95% confidence interval, 0.08 to 0.59). Those physicians who reported using e-mail with patients reported high satisfaction with its use. Although physicians were concerned about the confidentiality of e-mail, few discussed this issue with patients.

Exposure to an interactive web-based training focused on shared decision-making and communication skills was more effective than exposure to compatible practice guidelines for knowledge and self-reported competence in the management of chronic noncancer pain.

In the coming years, an increasing number of people will experience dementia. Worldwide, the number of people living with dementia is projected to increase from 47 million in 2015 to 132 million by 2050. 1 Family members and clinicians are often unsure whether the care they provide for such patients is the care that patients would have chosen. Across the care spectrum, including skilled nursing facilities, hospital wards, intensive care units, and outpatient clinics, family members and clinicians commonly encounter this dilemma.National campaigns have increased awareness of advance care planning to guide care for patients who can no longer make decisions for themselves. The Conversation Project, for example, has developed partnerships with more than 400 community organizations across the United States to provide tools to promote end-of-life conversations. 2 Advance directives, when incorporated into comprehensive goalsof-care discussions, are an important part of this planning and help reduce family anxiety about surrogate decision-making. 3 Standard advance directives are often not helpful for patients who develop dementia. Dementia is a unique disease from the standpoint of advance directives. It usually progresses slowly over many years and leaves people

With thousands of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) treatments currently being used in the United States today, it is challenging to design a concise body of CAM content which will fit into already overly full curricula for health care students. The purpose of this article is to outline key principles which 15 National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine-funded education programs found useful when developing CAM course-work and selecting CAM content. Three key guiding principles are discussed: teach foundational CAM competencies to give students a framework for learning about CAM; choose specific content on the basis of evidence, demographics and condition (what conditions are most appropriate for CAM therapies?); and finally, provide students with skills for future learning, including where to find reliable information about CAM and how to search the scientific literature and assess the results of CAM research. Most of the programs developed evidence-based guides to help students find reliable CAM resources. The cumulative experiences of the 15 programs have been compiled, and an annotated table outlining the most highly recommended resources about CAM is presented.