Despite the pervasiveness of pregnancy-related nausea, there is still no easy treatment, since most expecting mothers and their doctors aren't keen on exposing a still developing fetus to medications. Now, researchers report in the New England Journal of Medicine that a commonly prescribed heartburn drug, which also has anti-nausea properties, may be used in pregnant women without causing harm to babies. Time magazine (June 10) asked Jennifer Niebyl, MD, for comment. "There are very few drugs FDA-approved for use in the first trimester of pregnancy," said Niebyl, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology with University of Iowa Health Care. "But this study could lead to metoclopramide (Reglan®) getting approved to treat morning sickness because these are good data with big numbers."

Most general practice doctors in teaching hospitals are willing to discuss their own patient care errors with colleagues, but about one in four do not. At the same time, nearly nine of 10 doctors said that if they wanted to talk about a mistake, they knew a colleague who would be a supportive listener. These conclusions were noted in the Hindu, published in India, which cited a study in the Journal of Medical Ethics. Lauris Kaldjian, MD, PhD, said the results "suggest it is important to ensure that learning occurs not just in the person who made the mistake but also among their peers." Kaldjian, an associate professor of internal medicine with University of Iowa Health Care, was the study's lead author.

In an article about bracing as a treatment for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis, a writer for the Huffington Post (June 1) talked with Stuart Weinstein, MD, a professor of orthopedics with University of Iowa Health Care and former president of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. Weinstein noted that at one time, bracing and surgery went hand in hand for the toughest childhood cases that resisted bracing alone. The days of casting the entire torso are over, but braces may need to stay on 18 hours of the day or more to work (orthotists are starting to rig sensors to tell if wily teens are really following their prescriptions). Weinstein doesn't believe there's much evidence for the practice, and after decades of this arduous therapy, the NIH is just now funding a $4.9 million investigation into bracing efficacy, headed by Weinstein.