Recently, my middle school daughter has been learning about the use of the scientific method in science class. In her school laboratory, she and the other sixth graders learn how to ask a question, perform background research, formulate a hypothesis, design and execute an experiment to test the hypothesis, and ultimately synthesize conclusions. She is being taught to accurately record and interpret data; the concept of manipulating data to suit ...
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1. Antibiotic Tied to Higher Risk of Miscarriage. Use of the antibiotic clarithromycin (Biaxin) in the first trimester of pregnancy is associated with an increased risk of miscarriage.
2. AHA Adds Its Weight to NSAID Risk Message. The American Heart Association (AHA) has joined the newly formed Alliance for the Rational Use of NSAIDs, a ...
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Surprise! It turns out that if every woman in the US got a mammogram every year, almost exactly the same number of them would still die of breast cancer. Why? Watch this video. Read this by TBTAM. Bottom line: mammograms don’t find aggressive cancers soon enough (by definition, you can’t), while too many of the cancers they do find were never going to be fatal anyway. This is ...
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Several physicians contribute regularly to BMJ. One of my favorites is a GP in Glasgow named Des Spence. Through their writings, I have gained a glimpse of the challenges faced by GPs in the UK, and the broader culture in which they work.
In two of his columns this summer, he railed against various early detection movements in the UK. In one column, he protests against Alzheimer’s disease advocates who ...
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Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians.
A 62-year-old man is evaluated during a routine examination. Medical history is significant for a myocardial infarction 3 years ago, dyslipidemia, hypertension, tobacco use, and drinking two alcoholic drinks per day. Medications are an ACE inhibitor, a statin, a β-blocker, and aspirin. He participates in cardiac rehabilitation, exercising four to five times per week.
On ...
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This series is brought to you by MedPage Today.
1. Primary Care Docs Can Help Keep Kids Off Cigarettes. Behavioral interventions either directly or indirectly involving primary care providers appeared to be effective in preventing children and teens from taking up smoking.
2. ICP Alternative OK to Guide Care of Brain Injury. In patients with traumatic brain injury, monitoring intracranial pressure to help guide ...
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1. Patients' Health IT Savvy Judged Lacking. As hospitals and physicians move to wider use of electronic health records (EHRs), patients need to become more engaged and be made aware that their records are accessible.
2. People Living Longer but Not Healthier Lives. Americans are living longer thanks to advances in medical care, but have ...
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This series is brought to you by MedPage Today.
1. Intense Chemo Bests Standard in Breast Cancer. After a decade of follow-up, a highly concentrated chemotherapy regimen for women with high-risk breast cancer outperformed conventional treatment with the same drugs.
2. Binge Eating: Stepping Stone to Drug Use?. In addition to becoming overweight, children and teens who binge eat were at risk for marijuana ...
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A version of this column was published on October 24th, 2012 in USA Today.
As the cost of prescription drugs soar, more patients are turning to online coupons or discount cards from drug companies or promotional offers in magazines. In the past year, it is estimated that 19 million Americans whom took prescription drugs used such incentives to save money. The healthcare industry ...
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This series is brought to you by MedPage Today.
1. Teen Dating Violence Impacts Health as Adults. Teens subjected to psychological and physical violence in their relationships may be at higher risk for adverse health outcomes in young adulthood.
2. Heart Patients Rank Outcomes Differently. Individual cardiovascular outcomes are not weighted equally by patients, even though they're usually combined into a composite endpoint in ...
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