Since graduation, I've had plenty of reminders - good and bad - that I am no longer a student. There is the ''PA-C'' behind my name and my shiny new state license. A paycheck arrives every two weeks like an airplane dropping supplies on a desert island. And, of course, I now hold myself to an even higher professional standard. While these ...

Last week, NP and PA readers submitted questions to our communities asking for advice from fellow clinicians. Below are a sample - if you have any advice for these NPs and PAs, comment on the respective article or share with us here and we'll make sure to pass along the wisdom. Have something you'd like a clearer answer on? Let us know on our ...

Autumn is my favorite time of year. I love the colors of the leaves, cool brisk evenings, baking with pumpkins and Sunday soup making. Fall also just happens to be a favorite season of mine in the office, too. I call it ''catch-up time'' for a number of reasons. First and foremost, this is an excellent opportunity to discuss with patients the ...

Cryolipolysis is a new noninvasive technology that uses cold exposure to result in lipolysis, the breakdown of fat by freezing. Clinical studies have demonstrated 20% to 25% reduction in superficial fat layer thickness after each treatment. After a cryolipolysis treatment, the fat layer gradually decreases in thickness over about 3 months. ...

Last week, readers commented on two of our recent orthopedic articles. In response to ''After Your Patient's Knee Replacement,'' reader Thomas said, ''Nice article Jennifer - I had my TKR in 2010 and you described my overall experience quite well. Patients do really tend to forget that they lost their joint mobility slowly over a sustained time ...

Year after year, summer after summer, we start to notice our skin losing elasticity and developing new, larger or darker brown spots on the face, chest, arms or legs. Fortunately, more people are now educated about the risk of excessive sun exposure and are taking sun protection more seriously. When skin looks and feels old - leathery with brown ...

It was a sunny, warm afternoon. A great day to spend outdoors with the family. But Dad had not come home ... again. Then, the phone rang. Maybe it was him? But the voice was not his. ''I'm afraid that he has died,'' the voice whispered across the phone. They found him in a ditch, motionless, dirty ... and gone. ''I am sorry. He died from alcohol ...

As providers we know the deeper we dive into the dermis, the greater the risk of potential side effects, sometimes including permanent adverse changes to the skin. I am a fan of options. There is no cookie-cutter treatment protocol we can follow with every patient. Treatments that allow us to treat the skin safely and are a good alternative to ...

Traditionally, wrinkles on the cheeks adjacent to the corner of the lips have been a challenge in cosmetic rejuvenation. Loss of volume, sun exposure and the aging process break down collagen and reduce elasticity, contributing to this rippled wrinkle appearance. In an attempt to reduce or eliminate these wrinkles, some patients have undergone ...

Over the years we have learned that excessive sun exposure causes an acceleration of skin aging and significantly increases the risk of skin cancer. Sunscreens were originally developed to protect from sunburns caused by ultraviolet rays. Skin cancer comprises 50% of all cancers. Ultraviolet rays are linked to early skin aging and skin cancers. ...