Evidence-Based Practice

Example 1

Your next patient is a 72-year-old woman with osteoarthritis of the knees and moderate hypertension, accompanied by her daughter, a lab tech from the hospital. The daughter wants you to give her mother a prescription for one of the new COX-2 inhibitors. She has heard that they cause less GI bleeding. Her mother is concerned that the new drugs will mean more out-of-pocket costs each month.

Specific Question:

In a 72-year-old woman with osteoarthritis of the knee, can COX-2 Inhibitor use decrease the risk of GI Bleeding compared with other NSAIDs?

Example 2

You have been treating a 54-year-old woman for many years and despite the excellence of your fixed partial denture restorations, the intense routine maintenance by her periodontist, and good homecare, she has been experiencing a continued deterioration of her periodontal tissues. Her attempts to quit smoking have been unsuccessful; otherwise she is in good health and taking no medications. Because you are her primary care dentist, she has questioned you about her current dilemma. The periodontist has suggested a 3-week course of doxycycline therapy to control her latest exacerbation of periodontal disease, but she is concerned about Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reports asking for prudent use of antibiotics. How do you advise this patient?

Specific Question:

For a 54-year-old woman with periodontal disease, how effective is the therapeutic use of doxcyline in decreasing gum bleeding and recession compared with no treatment?

Case Study Scenario: Diabetes and Fenugreek

 Mrs. Hernandez, a 45-year-old Spanish-speaking woman, has been recently diagnosed with Diabetes Type 2.

• She is admitted to UWMC with uncontrolled hypertension.
• She takes fenugreek.
• Prescribed medications include Lisinopril, Clonidine, and Metformin.

Search the databases below for evidence-based information on fenugreek used for diabetes.

For more information on each database, see Find Articles/Databases.