August 19th, 2010 by Berci in Better Health Network, News, Research
Tags: Analyze Your DNA, Direct-To-Consumer Genetic Testing, DTC Genetics, Family Medical History, Genetic Information, Genetics, Heredity, Mary Carmichael, Newsweek, Science Reporting
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Mary Carmichael of Newsweek had a great series of articles focusing on direct-to-consumer genetic testing. An excerpt:
I’ve been following DTC genetics since 2007, when wide scanning first became available to the public. Since then, a number of writers have gotten wide-scale genetic tests and expounded on the results. Indeed, I sometimes wonder if I’m the last science reporter on earth with virgin genes. (Technical virgin: My doctor gave me a cystic fibrosis carrier test when I was pregnant.) Initially, I put off getting a full-genome scan because I wasn’t sure how useful such a test would be. I had no particular reason to take one, save curiosity. I wouldn’t expect to find anything serious and potentially life-altering like the Huntington’s disease gene in my results, because my family medical history is thankfully rather boring. The data most likely to be medically relevant to me would concern the genetics of common diseases, and at the time, many comprehensive and well-designed studies of those were still getting underway. I decided to wait a few years and see how research progressed. But here I am, three years later, still unsure.
*This blog post was originally published at ScienceRoll*
August 19th, 2010 by Medgadget in Better Health Network, News, Research
Tags: BBC News, Dispense Medication Directly, England, Express Prescriptions, In-Store Pharmacy, Pharmacology, PharmaTrust, Prescription Drugs, Sainsbury's, UK Trial, Vending Machine, West Sussex
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The UK supermarket chain Sainsbury’s is running a trial with two different drug vending machines in two of its West Sussex stores. Basically you can drop your prescription at the machine, the pharmacy will collect the prescriptions and deliver the medications which you can later pick up.
As the machines are placed in stores with an in-store pharmacy service, the only benefit seems to be the lack of face-to-face contact (for those people who consider that a benefit). The trial will run for a year after which it will be decided whether they will be rolled out across all of England. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Medgadget*
August 19th, 2010 by Harriet Hall, M.D. in Better Health Network, News, Opinion, Quackery Exposed, Research
Tags: Aging Men, Anti-Aging Treatment, Cardivascular Health, Celebrity Medical Claims, Diagnostic Accuracy, Dr. Alan Brett, ED, Endocrine Society, Erectile Dysfunction, Impotence, Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, JournalWatch, Longevity Clinics, Low Sexual Desire, Low Testosterone Levels, Medical Frauds, Men's Health, NEJM, New England Journal of Medicine, Older Men, Physical Performance, Placebo Effect, Reproductive Health, Science Based Medicine, Sexual Health, Testosterone Replacement Therapy
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On the car radio, I have several times happened upon “infomercial” programs touting the benefits of testosterone replacement therapy for men, broadcast by doctors who specialize in prescribing the drugs. They have lots of wonderful stories about men who feel younger, happier, and more vigorous because of their macho remedies. It’s a tribute to the power of the placebo.
I have been reviewing John Brinkley’s goat gland scam for a presentation on medical frauds. In an era before the isolation of the hormone testosterone, Brinkley transplanted goat testes into human scrotums in an attempt to treat impotence and aging. We are more sophisticated today — but not much. Longevity clinics and individual practitioners are offering testosterone to men as a general pick-me-up and anti-aging treatment. Their practice is not supported by the scientific evidence. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Science-Based Medicine*
August 18th, 2010 by GarySchwitzer in Better Health Network, News, Opinion, Research
Tags: ALS Association, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, Brain Trauma, Dr. Steven Atlas, Epidemiology, Gary Schwitzer, Health Journalism, HealthNewsReview.org, Inaccurate Health Reporting, Lou Gehrig's Disease, Massachusetts General Hospital, Neurology, New York Times, Science Journalism
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This was one time when the headline was okay, but the story that followed had our heads spinning. “Study Says Brain Trauma Can Mimic Lou Gehrig’s Disease” is a story that was troubling on a number of fronts. It reported on a study which at the time had not yet been published suggesting that some “athletes and soldiers given a diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis…might have been catalyzed by injuries only now becoming understood: concussions and other brain trauma.”
To be clear — and please don’t anyone miss or miscontrue this point — this is an important and fascinating area of research. But the story did not exhibit the best of health/medical/science journalism:
1. It was based on a study of 3 people. (The ALS Association says there are up to 30,000 people in the U.S. living with ALS.)
2. It stated, “Lou Gehrig might not have had Lou Gehrig’s disease.” (No evidence for this was provided. He also may not have been a great left-handed hitter. That may have been an optical illusion.)
3. It said this could “perhaps lead toward new pathways for a cure.” (After a suggestive finding in just three people?)
4. The story later says, “The finding’s relevance to Gehrig is less clear.” (Hedging already after a bold earlier statement in the story.)
5. But just a few paragraphs later, the story says, “The new finding…suggests that Gehrig might not have had (ALS).” (Head spinning yet?) Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Gary Schwitzer's HealthNewsReview Blog*
August 18th, 2010 by RamonaBatesMD in Better Health Network, Health Policy, News, Opinion, Research
Tags: Bias and Medicine, Cultural Sensitivity in Healthcare, Dr. Desiree Lie, Family Medicine, General Medicine, Implicit Association Test, Implicit Vs. Explicit, Internal Medicine, Managing Bias In Healthcare, Medical Practice and Bias, Medscape, Obese Patients, Obesity, Primary Care, Tolerance in Healthcare
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This article was written more for family medicine physicians, but all of us can benefit from self-assessment of potential biases that might affect our judgment. It was also written with the potential bias towards the obese patient in mind, but the article could have been written with any “fill in the blank” bias as the topic.
The article points out that bias among physicians tends to “be implicit rather than explicit because of social pressure for healthcare providers to show tolerance and cultural sensitivity.” Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Suture for a Living*
