December 30th, 2010 by Harriet Hall, M.D. in Better Health Network, Book Reviews, Opinion, Research
Tags: Biography Of Cancer, Chemotherapy, Dr. Harriett Hall, Dr. Siddhartha Mukherjee, Gleevec, Oncogenes, Oncology, Science Based Medicine, War Against Cancer
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Myths and misconceptions about cancer abound. Oncologists are frequently criticized for torturing patients by burning, cutting and poisoning without making any real progress in the war against cancer. Siddhartha Mukherjee, an oncologist and cancer researcher, tries to set the record straight with his new book The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer.
It is a unique combination of insightful history, cutting edge science reporting, and vivid stories about the individuals involved: The scientists, the activists, the doctors, and the patients. It is also the story of science itself: How the scientific method works and how it developed, how we learned to randomize, do controlled trials, get informed consent, use statistics appropriately, and how science can go wrong. It is so beautifully written and so informative that when I finished it I went back to page one and read the whole thing again to make sure I hadn’t missed anything. I enjoyed it just as much the second time. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Science-Based Medicine*
December 29th, 2010 by GarySchwitzer in Better Health Network, Health Tips, News, Opinion, Research
Tags: Accuracy of Medical Decision Making, American Healthcare System, Becoming A Savvy Healthcare Consumer, Dr. Kent Bottles, Empowered Patients, Evidence-Based Healthcare Decisions, Gary Schwitzer, Good Medical Decision Making, Health Media, Health Reporting, Health Sciences, Health-Savvy Patients, Healthcare Decision Making, Healthcare Decisions, HealthNewsReview.org, Limitations Of Science, Making Good Health Choices, Media Coverage of Healthcare, Medical Media, Medical Reporting, Patient Empowerment, Personal Health Decisions, Responsibility in Healthcare, Science And The Media, Science Based Medicine, Science In Medicine, Science Reporting, Shared Decision-Making
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Dr. Kent Bottles is in the midst of a very thoughtful multi-part blog post under the heading, “The Difficult Science Behind Becoming a Savvy Healthcare Consumer.”
Part I examined “the limitations of science in helping us make wise choices and decisions about our health.”
Part II explores “how we all have to change if we are to live wisely in a time of rapid transformation of the American healthcare system that everyone agrees needs to decrease per-capita cost and increase quality.”
Both parts so far have addressed important issues about news media coverage of healthcare. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Gary Schwitzer's HealthNewsReview Blog*
December 28th, 2010 by RyanDuBosar in Opinion, Research
Tags: ACP Hospitalist, AF, American College Of Physicians, Annals Of Internal Medicine, Anticoagulants, Anticoagulation, Atrial Fibrillation, Blood Clotting, Blood Thinners, Cost of Medications, Dabigatran, Dr. Juliet Marvromatis, DrDialogue, Drug Costs, Drug Efficacy, Emory Healthcare, Emory University, FDA, Food and Drug Administration, Healthcare Economics, Hospital Formularies, INR, International Normalized Ratio, Patient Safety, Pharmacology, Primary Care, Prothrombin Time, PT, RE-COVER, RE-LY, Rivaroxaban, Ryan DuBosar, Stroke Prevention, The Business Of Thinning Blood, VA, Veterans Administration, Warfarin, Ximelagatran
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This is a guest post by Dr. Juliet Mavromatis:
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The emergence of a new generation of anticoagulants, including the direct thrombin inhibitor, dabigatran and the factor Xa inhibitor, rivaroxaban, has the potential to significantly change the business of thinning blood in the United States. For years warfarin has been the main therapeutic option for patients with health conditions such as atrial fibrillation, venous thrombosis, artificial heart valves and pulmonary embolus, which are associated with excess clotting risk that may cause adverse outcomes, including stroke and death. However, warfarin therapy is fraught with risk and liability. The drug interacts with food and many drugs and requires careful monitoring of the prothrombin time (PT) and international normalized ratio (INR).
Recently, when I applied for credentialing as solo practioner, I was asked by my medical malpractice insurer to detail my protocol for monitoring patients on anticoagulation therapy with warfarin. When I worked in group practice at the Emory Clinic in Atlanta I referred my patients to Emory’s Anticoagulation Management Service (AMS), which I found to be a wonderful resource. In fact, “disease management” clinics for anticoagulation are common amongst group practices because of the significant liability issues. Protocol based therapy and dedicated management teams improve outcomes for patients on anticoagulation with warfarin. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at ACP Hospitalist*
December 27th, 2010 by John Mandrola, M.D. in Better Health Network, News, Opinion, Research
Tags: AF, Atrial Fibrillation, Cardiac Electrophysiology, Cardiac Implants, CardioBrief, CardioExchange, Cardiology, Cardiology News, Cardiology Predictions, Coronary Artery Disease, Coronary Stent, Dabigatran, Dr. John Mandrola, Dr. Mark Midei, Heart Health, ICDs, Larry Husten, NEJM, New England Journal of Medicine, Obesity, Percutaneous Coronary Intervention, Pradaxa, TAVI, The Partner Trial, Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation, Valvular Heart Disease, Warfarin
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The end of the year marks a time for list-intensive posts. Recently Larry Husten from CardioExchange and CardioBrief asked for my opinion on the three most important cardiology-related news stories of 2010. Additionally, he wanted three predictions for 2011. Here goes:
Top Cardiology Stories Of 2010:
1. By far, the #1 heart story of 2010 was the release of the novel blood-thinning drug dabigatran (Pradaxa) for the prevention of stroke in atrial fibrillation. Until this October, the only way to reduce stroke risk in AF was warfarin, the active ingredient in rat poison. Assuming that there aren’t any post-market surprises, Pradaxa figures to be a true blockbuster. Doctors and patients have waited a long time to say goodbye to warfarin.
2. The Dr. Mark Midei stent story: Whether Dr. Midei is guilty or innocent of implanting hundreds of unnecessary stents isn’t really the big story. The real impact of this well-chronicled saga is the attention that it brings to the therapeutic misconceptions of coronary stenting. The problem with squishing and stenting is that although they improve the physics (of bloodflow), they do not change the biology of arterial disease — a hard concept to grasp when staring at a picture of a partial blockage. The vast press coverage of Dr. Midei’s alleged transgressions has served to educate many about heart disease, the nation’s #1 killer. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Dr John M*
December 27th, 2010 by Medgadget in Better Health Network, News, Research
Tags: Biofeedback, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Delft University of Technology, Electromagnets, Managing Stress, Medgadget, Miguel Bruns Alonso, Pen, Psychiatry and Psychology, Relaxation Techniques, Short-Term Stress, Stress Control, Stress Reduction, Stress-Associated Movement, The Netherlands, Therapeutic Effect
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Miguel Bruns Alonso, a graduate student at Delft University of Technology in The Netherlands, has developed a pen that detects how much twitching and twirling it’s being put through.
People under stress tend to move and shake a pen more than someone who is calm. In order to try to get a therapeutic effect out of the pen, Bruns built in counter motion feedback that makes the pen a bit more difficult to move around. Though initial experiments have shown a marginal benefit, further studies and development may prove the benefit of the technology. From TU Delft:
Bruns, who studies industrial design, carried out various experiments during the course of his research, which showed that people tend to play with their pens in their hands when they are tense. It also seems that when they are encouraged to check these nervous movements, or make more gentle movements, it is possible to gain more control over a situation. “Sensors in a pen could provide an unobtrusive way of measuring stress levels. Giving users the right feedback could then help them deal with their stress in a constructive way,” says Bruns. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Medgadget*
