Update of the 2004 U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendation statement on screening for family and intimate partner violence (IPV).

In 2004, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force determined that evidence was insufficient to recommend behavioral interventions and counseling to prevent child abuse and neglect.

D-Dimer testing is sensitive but not specific for diagnosing deep venous thrombosis (DVT). Changing the use of testing and the threshold level for a positive test result on the basis of risk for DVT might improve the tradeoff between sensitivity and specificity and reduce the need for testing.

U.S. HIV treatment guidelines recommend branded once-daily, 1-pill efavirenz-emtricitabine-tenofovir as first-line antiretroviral therapy (ART). With the anticipated approval of generic efavirenz in the United States, a once-daily, 3-pill alternative (generic efavirenz, generic lamivudine, and tenofovir) will decrease cost but may reduce adherence and virologic suppression.

The protocol of a clinical trial serves as the foundation for study planning, conduct, reporting, and appraisal. However, trial protocols and existing protocol guidelines vary greatly in content and quality. This article describes the systematic development and scope of SPIRIT (Standard Protocol Items: Recommendations for Interventional Trials) 2013, a guideline for the minimum content of a clinical trial protocol.The 33-item SPIRIT checklist applies to protocols for all clinical trials and focuses on content rather than format. The checklist recommends a full description of what is planned; it does not prescribe how to design or conduct a trial. By providing guidance for key content, the SPIRIT recommendations aim to facilitate the drafting of high-quality protocols. Adherence to SPIRIT would also enhance the transparency and completeness of trial protocols for the benefit of investigators, trial participants, patients, sponsors, funders, research ethics committees or institutional review boards, peer reviewers, journals, trial registries, policymakers, regulators, and other key stakeholders.

Although there is broad policy consensus that both cost containment and quality improvement are critical, the association between costs and quality is poorly understood.

Women account for 23% of newly diagnosed HIV infections in the United States, but there are few recent, well-characterized cohorts of U.S. women in whom behavior characteristics and HIV acquisition have been well-described.

Guidelines from the United Kingdom and the United States on risk stratification after polypectomy differ, as do recommended surveillance intervals.

Interventions to prevent smoking uptake or encourage cessation among young persons might help prevent tobacco-related illness.

Upper endoscopy is commonly used in the diagnosis and management of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Evidence demonstrates that it is indicated only in certain situations, and inappropriate use generates unnecessary costs and exposes patients to harms without improving outcomes.

Data to support improved patient outcomes from clinical decision-support systems (CDSSs) are lacking in HIV care.

Identification of hepatitis C virus (HCV)-infected persons through screening could lead to interventions that improve clinical outcomes.