Public Trust in Physicians — U.S. Medicine in International Perspective Robert J. Blendon, Sc.D., John M. Benson, M.A., and Joachim O. Hero, M.P.H. N Engl J Med 2014; 371:1570-1572October 23, 2014DOI: 10.1056/NEJMp1407373 The U.S. health care reform process is entering a new phase, its emphasis shifting from expanding health coverage to improving our systems for […]
Medscape Medical News Clinician Unaware of Central Line in 20% of Inpatients Veronica Hackethal, MD October 21, 2014 About 20% of clinicians at various levels of training were unaware of the placement of a central line in their hospitalized patients, according to a study published in the October 21 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine. “[T]his is […]
By Andrew M. Seaman NEW YORK | Mon Oct 20, 2014 12:33am EDT NEW YORK (Reuters) – Roughly every eight minutes from 2002 through 2012, a child in the U.S. experienced a medication mistake, according to a new study of calls to poison control hotlines. The number and rate of reported medication mistakes rose during […]
Caroline Helwick October 16, 2014 NEW ORLEANS — The number of malpractice claims related to chronic pain management is increasing, and many involve permanent disabling injury or death, according to a closed-claims analysis presented here at the American Society of Anesthesiologists 2014 Annual Meeting. “Malpractice claims associated with chronic pain have increased in number and severity over […]
Larry Hand October 15, 2014 It will take a dramatic shift in attitudes and culture for physicians and patients to address the problem of medical overtesting and overtreatment, two physicians argue in an article published onlineOctober 14 in the BMJ. Jerome R. Hoffman, MD, and Hernal K. Kanzaria, MD, from the Emergency Medicine Center at the University […]
Annals of Internal Medicine, 10/15/2014 Evidence Based Medicine Clinical Article Dunn AG, et al. – Industry funding and financial conflicts of interest may contribute to bias in the synthesis and interpretation of scientific evidence. To examine the association between financial conflicts of interest and characteristics of systematic reviews of neuraminidase inhibitors. Reviewers with financial conflicts […]
Study: Unneeded Stress Tests Too Common Published: Oct 14, 2014 By Crystal Phend, Senior Staff Writer, MedPage Today Cardiac stress tests done with imaging have risen substantially and more than a third appeared inappropriate, according to a national study. While the annual frequency of cardiac stress testing stayed constant after adjustment for other factors, the […]
Medscape Medical News Diana Phillips October 08, 2014 An outbreak of an unusual form of Carbapenem-resistant enterobacteriaceae (CRE) in an Illinois hospital has been linked to duodenoscopes contaminated with the bacteria despite no apparent lapses in disinfection protocol, according to a study by researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). From January […]
Ricki Lewis, PhD Story Source October 03, 2014 Medications are the leading cause of anaphylaxis-related deaths, especially among older individuals and blacks, according to a study published onlineSeptember 30 in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. The United States does not maintain a national registry to track fatal anaphylaxis. To understand the temporal patterns and demographic associations of such […]
An analysis of data on nearly 15,000 patients found that treatment with beta-blockers was linked to a higher risk of stroke among patients with multiple heart disease risk factors but no history of a cardiovascular event. Researchers also found that use of beta-blockers was not linked to lower cardiovascular events in those with no history […]
Nick Mulcahy September 29, 2014 A rising star in the field of breast cancer who last week was found guilty of poisoning a colleague, a fellow oncologist at the renowned University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison. The pair was involved in a sexual relationship. […]
Larry Hand September 25, 2014 Story Source Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) may almost double the risk for venous thromboembolism (VTE), including deep venous thrombosis and pulmonary embolism, according to an article published online September 24 in Rheumatology. “[T]he results of our meta-analysis demonstrate a statistically significantly increased VTE risk among NSAID users. Physicians should be […]
Medscape Medical News from: The American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR) 2014 Story Source September 22, 2014 HOUSTON, Texas — Use of hypnotic medications for insomnia and use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are each associated with an increased risk for osteoporotic and hip fractures in older women and men, independent of other risk factors on […]
By ELISABETH ROSENTHAL SEPTEMBER 20, 2014 Story Source Before his three-hour neck surgery for herniated disks in December, Peter Drier, 37, signed a pile of consent forms. A bank technology manager who had researched his insurance coverage, Mr. Drier was prepared when the bills started arriving: $56,000 from Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan, $4,300 from […]
Breaking News: Dr. Evil Pleads Guilty to Medicare Fraud Yesterday, Detroit-area oncologist/hemotologist Dr. Farid Fata, aka, Dr. Evil pled guilty in U.S. District Court to several counts of health care fraud, money laundering and conspiracy. As if the millions of dollars of Medicare wasn’t enough the good doctor was accused of misdiagnosing patients, telling them […]
Deaths From Narcotic Painkillers Quadrupled in Past Decade: CDC Increases highest among whites, and people between 55 and 64 By Steven Reinberg HealthDay Reporter Story Source TUESDAY, Sept. 16, 2014 (HealthDay News) — The number of Americans dying from accidental overdoses of narcotic painkillers jumped significantly from 1999 to 2011, federal health officials reported Tuesday. […]
by John Gever, Managing Editor, MedPage Today September 16, 2014 Action Points Note that this study was published as an abstract and presented at a conference. These data and conclusions should be considered to be preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal. BOSTON — Women using combined oral contraceptives containing norethindrone or levonorgestrel were substantially […]
Two new studies make a case against too much medicine It’s a public health conundrum: Current screening guidelines lead to an overdiagnosis of diseases like cancer, which results in overtreatment for ailments that might never seriously impact a person’s health.We’ve heard the overdiagnosis argument in the U.S. before, especially surrounding breast cancer; in 2009, the […]
MedscapeToday.com Robert Lowes September 10, 2014 The dramatic federal bust in April 2013 of a Chicago hospital and some of its physicians yielded its first prison term last week, and a light one at that. A federal district judge sentenced 74-year-old urologist Subir Maitra, MD, to 6 months behind bars after he pleaded guilty earlier […]