Today I was able to give good news to a patient: he was going to be discharged home in 48 hours. He was a feisty elderly man, admitted after having a stroke. His response to the news:
“Well, thanks for telling me, doc. At least I know when I’ll be getting out of here so I’m not stuck in a vacuum, like some kind of science fiction movie.”
Dr. Val & Mort Kondracke
I had the recent honor and privilege of having dinner with Mort Kondracke and his gracious wife Marguerite. Mort’s TV show, The Beltway Boys, offers entertaining and insightful political commentary each weekend.
Mort and I share a common medical interest: Parkinson’s Disease. Mort wrote an excellent book about his late wife’s battle with Parkinson’s. It’s called Saving Millie: Love, Politics, and Parkinson’s Disease. My experience working with patients with the disease has led me to become a supporter of the Parkinson’s Action Network (PAN). I look forward to seeing Mort at future PAN events, and I hope that the recent increase in funding to NIH will help to advance research in Parkinson’s Disease so that we may one day find a cure.
Also at the dinner: PAN CEO Amy Comstock Rick, Robin and Brian Strongin, and my husband Steve. Mort shared some personal perspectives on the famous political figures he’s interviewed over the years – and we compared notes on what they’re really like. Of course I won’t reveal the unsavory stories, but what I can say is that we both agreed that Bob Schieffer is one of the nicest people on earth. Go Bob!
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Bert Rein |
On November 3, 2008 the US Supreme Court will hear opening arguments in the Wyeth vs. Levine case. This highly publicized lawsuit has been discussed by the New York Times and the Journal of the American Medical Association and will likely be the most important case during the upcoming Supreme Court term. However, neither source has fully explained the unexpected consequences to the consumer if Wyeth loses.
To get to the bottom of the issue, I interviewed Bert Rein, attorney for Wyeth. Bert has conducted interviews with NPR and the three major TV news networks. Please enjoy this exclusive podcast interview here at Getting Better with Dr. Val, or read my summary of our conversation below.
Dr.Val: Bert, please summarize for our listeners what has happened so far in the Wyeth vs. Levine case.
Rein: Ms. Levine is a guitarist who suffers from migraine headaches and associated nausea. One day she sought pain management therapy at a clinic in northeast Vermont – the same clinic where she regularly received care. They elected to treat her with a combination of demerol (for pain) and phenergan (for nausea). They delivered the drugs intramuscularly, but several hours later Ms. Levine returned, complaining of an unrelieved migraine headache.
The clinic’s physician realized that the drugs would be more potent if they were injected intra-venously so he asked the PA (physician assistant) to give another dose of the drugs through Ms. Levine’s vein. Unfortunately, the PA inserted a butterfly needle (rather than the usual heplock for an IV) into what she thought was Ms. Levine’s vein, and delivered the phenergan into or near a punctured artery. Phenergan’s label clearly states that the drug can cause tissue necrosis if it comes in contact with arterial blood. Ms. Levine experienced a necrotic reaction to the medication which resulted in the eventual amputation of her arm. She sued the clinic for negligence and was awarded $700,000 dollars in a cash settlement.
Ms. Levine then brought a separate lawsuit against Wyeth, claiming that the phenergan label did not offer sufficient instructions about how to administer it safely, though the risks of necrosis from arterial blood exposure to phenergan are well known and labeled in capital letters as a warning on the drug’s label. Read more »
Deanna and Rebecca Sherman
As many as 15% of Americans have a blood disorder (called anti-phospholipid antibody syndrome – APS) that can increase their risk for blood clots and stroke. While these antibodies are especially common in people with certain auto-immune diseases like SLE (systemic lupus erethematosis – or “lupus”) quite a few people have them without ever knowing it. In fact, most people with APS remain asymptomatic their entire lives – but for an unlucky few, the disorder can cause devastating consequences.
I interviewed Rebecca Sherman about her recent stroke caused by APS. Listen to the podcast here.
Dr. Val: Tell me about the events leading up to your stroke.
Sherman: I was a young, healthy 32-year-old with no idea that I had anti-phospholipid antibodies in my blood. One morning when I was washing my face at my boyfriend’s house I suddenly noticed that one side of it was frozen. I was standing in front of the bathroom sink and I fell to the floor with the washcloth in my hand. I couldn’t walk or talk – the whole right side of my body didn’t do what I wanted it to do. So I threw the washcloth at my boyfriend’s head (with my left hand). Luckily my aim was good (he was asleep in bed) and the bed was near the door to the bathroom – the cold, wet object caused him to jump out of bed and find me. Read more »
Alzheimer's A. Gala '08
I am so incredibly excited about this great news: the Alzheimer’s Association won first place in the American Express Members Project contest. Cardmembers voted for their favorite cause, and the early detection of Alzheimer’s disease project won the majority. The research grant is valued at $1.5 million.
I first became aware of this worthy cause when I attended the Alzheimer’s Association gala with Chris Matthews (thats us in the photo to the left) and had the chance to interview Patty Smith, a young victim (diagnosed at age 51) of this disease. She gave a moving speech about living with Alzheimer’s.
Here is an excerpt of my blog post about Patty:
What struck me most about Patty was her courage and determination. Although her symptoms were troublesome to her (she had some difficulty concentrating, remembering details of her past, and couldn’t offer robust answers to questions) she was prepared to be vulnerable in a very public way. I was moved by Patty’s bravery, and her willingness to sacrifice personal comfort for public education. Of all the important donors and benefactors at the event, Patty was (in my opinion) the one who sacrificed the most- because she was the one who was willing to expose her frailty to us all.
I know that the award will be put to good use and I certainly hope that we will soon discover a cure for this devastating neurological disease.
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What’s the Chris Matthews connection? His mom died of Alzheimer’s disease and he moderated the event.
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