Internal medicine content commonly referenced by physicians includes major clinical practice guidelines, landmark cardiometabolic and chronic disease trials, disease-modifying therapies, and validated clinical assessment tools. The following 10-item framework reflects widely used sources that inform internal medicine care.

1. American Diabetes Association Standards of Care in Diabetes — The American Diabetes Association annually updates its Standards of Care in Diabetes, a comprehensive clinical guidance document outlining evidence-based recommendations for screening, diagnosis, treatment, risk reduction, and long-term management across the spectrum of diabetes care.

2. Multisociety Chronic Coronary Disease Guideline — The 2023 guideline for chronic coronary disease from the American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology (AHA/ACC) Joint Committee on Clinical Practice Guidelines updates prior stable ischemic heart disease recommendations with the latest evidence and provides an evidence-based framework for treatment, risk reduction, revascularization decision-making, follow-up, and patient-centered care strategies.

3. Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) Guideline — The Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes 2024 clinical practice guideline updates prior recommendations on CKD evaluation and management, providing evidence-based practices for clinicians providing treatment in pediatric and adult patients with CKD. The guidance covers risk assessment, disease progression, complications, drug management, and models of care, informed by systematic reviews and the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation framework.

4. Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease Report — The Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease report provides evidence-based recommendations for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) management In its 2026 revision, the report includes updates on screening, vaccination, exacerbation risk classification, treatment algorithms, multimorbidity, biologic therapies, artificial intelligence applications, and other emerging approaches to COPD care.

5. SELECT Trial — In the randomized, placebo-controlled SELECT clinical trial involving adult patients with cardiovascular disease (CVD) and overweight or obesity without diabetes, once-weekly semaglutide 2.4 mg was associated with lower rates of major adverse cardiovascular events, including fatal cardiovascular events, nonfatal myocardial infarction, and nonfatal stroke, compared with placebo during a mean follow-up of nearly 40 months. However, treatment discontinuation because of adverse events occurred more frequently with semaglutide.

6. STEP-HFpEF Trial — In the STEP-HFpEF clinical trial involving patients with obesity and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, once-weekly semaglutide 2.4 mg was associated with greater improvements in symptoms, physical limitations, exercise function, and body weight compared with placebo during 52 weeks of treatment.

7. Sodium-Glucose Cotransporter-2 Inhibitors — Empagliflozin is approved by the US Food and Drug Administration to reduce hospitalization for heart failure and cardiovascular-related mortality in adult patients with heart failure; reduce the risk of sustained estimated glomerular filtration rate decline, end-stage kidney disease, cardiovascular-related mortality, and hospitalization in adult patients with CKD at risk of progression; improve glycemic control in adult patients with type 2 diabetes; and provide an adjunct to diet and exercise to improve glycemic control in patients aged 10 years and older with type 2 diabetes.

8. Multisociety Atrial Fibrillation Guideline — The 2023 guideline for atrial fibrillation from the AHA/ACC Joint Committee on Clinical Practice Guidelines updates prior recommendations with newer evidence and provides guidance on thromboembolic risk assessment, anticoagulation, left atrial appendage occlusion, catheter and surgical ablation, and risk factor modification.

9. PREVENT Calculator — The AHA developed the PREVENT equations in 2023 to estimate 10-year and 30-year CVD risk in adults without known CVD using clinical, kidney, and metabolic health measures to help guide primary prevention decisions.

10. Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire — The Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire is a patient-reported outcome measure used in heart failure to assess symptoms, physical function, social limitations, and quality of life. The measure has been incorporated into clinical trials, quality assessment, and patient-centered care evaluations.

Sources: Diabetes Care, Circulation, Kidney International, Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease, The New England Journal of Medicine, FDA, AHA, Journal of the American College of Cardiology