Conditions

Live longer, die shorter: the surprising health secrets to a vital old age

Conditions
October 17, 2024

An excerpt from 21st Century Schizoid Health Care: Essays and Reflections to Keep You Sane on Your Medical Travels.

Over a decade ago, a landmark ten-year study by the MacArthur Foundation shattered the stereotypes of aging as a process of slow, genetically determined decline. Researchers found that 70 percent of physical aging and about 50 percent of mental aging are determined by lifestyle and the choices we make every day. …

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Understanding and supporting loved ones with celiac disease: a guide from 2 gastroenterologists

Conditions
October 16, 2024

Living with celiac disease can be a profound challenge, not just for those diagnosed but also for their friends and family. A strict gluten-free lifestyle is essential, and providing thoughtful, informed support can significantly improve the quality of life for someone with celiac disease. September 13 is National Celiac Disease Awareness Day, and as gastroenterologists, we want to share how you can be a source of strength and comfort in …

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Stop calling me “doctor”: the nurse practitioner’s fight for recognition

Conditions
October 15, 2024

I introduce myself to the patients as a nurse practitioner (NP), but they still call me a doctor. Even worse, some of the staff refer to me as “doctor.” I imagine they do so out of respect, but no matter how many times I correct them, the erroneous title lives on. The reason I ask not to be called doctor is not because I have not earned my doctorate nor …

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The deadliest condition in emergency departments deserves a new diagnostic approach

Conditions
October 13, 2024

Today, most emergency departments (EDs) face overcrowding, high patient volumes and a strain on our increasingly limited staff and resources. As a result, the average patient experiences ED wait times of about two-and-a-half hours, with some reaching nearly four hours.

The possibility of sepsis makes these delays even trickier. More than one-third of all in-hospital deaths are attributed to sepsis, making it the Read more…

Why prayers alone couldn’t save my friend from cancer

Conditions
October 11, 2024

I was raised in the Catholic Church. The solemn, reserved, respectful quiet as the priest whispered out his occasional reverent chants. That’s what I knew. That was the only thing I grew to love of the Catholic faith.

This friend of mine. We met years ago by happenstance. She was a firm believer in God, her husband, her dog, her daughters, and her Christian novels that she read feverishly.

She also loved …

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Gaps in the pediatric care of autistic children

Conditions
October 10, 2024

P.K. presents for a medical evaluation to the early intervention program. He is 26 months old. P.K.’s parents self-referred to the early intervention program because of concerns regarding a delay in his development. The mother reports that he is not saying any words and is not following directions. He does not turn to the sound of his name. He appears to be in his own world. When I, the pediatric …

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When words aren’t enough: the heartbreaking truth about suicide

Conditions
October 9, 2024

They died by suicide—that is the politically correct way to say it. I want to be politically correct, but I am not sure words can dampen the impact. Someone just lost a friend, a son, a partner, a child. Somehow, we believe if we say the words prettily, it takes the sting away—it doesn’t. No matter how you say it, they left the world today, or yesterday, or whatever day …

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How in-home care gave this couple a new lease on life

Conditions
October 7, 2024

An excerpt from Get What’s Yours for Medicare: Maximize Your Coverage, Minimize Your Costs.

Carmella Mason has been a caregiver since her husband, Frank, had a heart attack fifty years ago. They were in their 80s when we spoke. Frank likely owes his survival to her efforts. When he developed diabetes, circulatory complications necessitated the amputation of a big toe in 2022. Things did not go well. He underwent more …

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Parents in crisis: How physicians can help

Conditions
October 5, 2024

Did you hear the news from the U.S. Surgeon General recently? Dr. Vivek Murthy issued an advisory called “Parents Under Pressure,” outlining the ways in which the 63 million-plus parents and caregivers in the U.S. are struggling—really struggling. Even as a parent who is a child psychiatrist, I was shocked by some of the data.

An analysis of parents’ responses from the 2023 Stress in America survey, conducted by the American …

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What U.S. veterans with ALS deserve to know

Conditions
October 4, 2024

When considering the diseases that United States veterans are burdened with, you might think of COPD, Type 2 Diabetes, certain cancers, post-traumatic stress disorder, and depression. However, there is another disease diagnosed at twice the rate in veterans compared to the general population: amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). ALS is one of the only diseases known to occur at an increased rate in all veterans, regardless of when or how long …

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Psychological safety for all: Why this phenomenon matters to everyone

Conditions
October 4, 2024

We saw the smile vanish from her face instantly. Our colleague, a zestful individual with a passion for obstetrical care, fell silent after our superiors met her ideas for improving her training experience with defensiveness and deflection. After the meeting, she confessed she was losing hope about getting robust enough exposure to delivering babies and managing laboring mothers prior to completing residency. For her, this was essential to her securing …

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The shocking fall of a respected ICU nurse

Conditions
October 1, 2024

In the ICU, there was an experienced nurse. She was full of information and knew the policies and procedures inside and out. She was proficient in her role as an ICU nurse.

But she was flawed. Something was wrong.

Each day, she came to work wearing a gold bracelet, which she made sure everyone knew was valued at $15,000. She wore two-carat diamond rings. She would arrive, showing off her fancy pocketbook …

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What you need to know about near-death experiences

Conditions
September 30, 2024

Imagine a medical syndrome so common that as many as one in five patients who nearly die in a medical setting experience it. Also, imagine that this syndrome has a profound, lifelong effect on both the patient and their family. Finally, imagine that if this syndrome is mishandled by the patient’s physician, it may have major adverse consequences for the patient and their loved ones.

Sounds like something all physicians and …

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Postpartum crisis: a physician’s call for comprehensive maternal support

Conditions
September 29, 2024

The moment my daughter was placed on my chest, I knew something was wrong. Her skin had a blue-purple tinge, and she barely cried. I instinctively began rubbing her tiny body, trying to stimulate her, but she remained quiet and minimally responsive. When I tried to put her on my chest to nurse, she did nothing. My doctor quietly left the room, and soon after, a team of medical professionals …

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Solving the health care dilemma: Why older adults are skipping vital care

Conditions
September 28, 2024

As a gerontologist, it is disheartening to engage with older adults who express disinterest in routine medical check-ups. Many of these individuals outright refuse to follow doctors’ orders or take prescribed medications. This troubling trend is not only a growing problem in America but also a critical issue that warrants our collective attention and action.

The advancements in modern medicine have significantly prolonged life spans and improved the quality of life …

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A new approach to antidepressants and anxiolytics: the microbiota-gut-brain axis

Conditions
September 26, 2024

Our understanding of anxiety and depression has evolved over the years, leading to advancements in diagnosis, treatment, and clinical management. However, their prevalence has not lessened; in fact, it has heightened in recent years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Its effects will last for years to come, so all mechanisms that can influence its incidence should be thoroughly considered, and the gut microbiota is the newest emerging target for antidepressant …

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How biomarkers are advancing dementia detection and care

Conditions
September 26, 2024

For decades, physicians have relied on diverse biological indicators to diagnose and monitor normal development, health, and diseases. Such indicators are important from the time we are born, when APGAR scores are recorded in the labor and delivery room, throughout our childhoods, when pediatricians monitor growth curves closely, and into adulthood, when our height, weight, and vital signs initiate virtually every medical appointment. For adults, these indicators, collectively known as …

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Gus Walz and the male loneliness crisis 

Conditions
September 25, 2024

As Tim Walz accepted the vice presidential nomination at the DNC, his teenage son, Gus, inadvertently became internet famous after clips of him crying and exclaiming, “That’s my dad!” circulated. While many across the political spectrum found the display of emotion endearing, inevitable ugliness ensued.

Ann Coulter commented in a since-deleted post on X: “Talk about weird.” Podcaster Mike Crispi mocked “Walz’s stupid crying son” as a “puffy …

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Why we’re never prepared for death—even after years of medical training

Conditions
September 25, 2024

I remember the first time I pronounced a patient dead—that’s something they make sure you learn well in medical training, as nobody wants to get it wrong. They taught us how to apply pressure to the fingernail to ensure the patient does not respond to pain while holding the patient’s hand, watching for breaths, and feeling for a pulse. They taught us to take our time to ensure we got …

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The hidden flaws of traditional CPR: Why we need a new approach to save lives

Conditions
September 23, 2024

Since its inception in the 1960s, traditional CPR has been heralded as a revolutionary life-saving technique. However, the limitations of CPR are becoming increasingly apparent, particularly in cases of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). Currently, the survival rate for OHCA patients with good neurological function at discharge stands at a mere 7.5 percent. This raises important questions about the efficacy …

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