KevinMD.com

January 2, 2011Jan 2, 20113

"She just got permanent eye liner and eyebrow augmentation—looks fab," emailed one of my closest friends last month, about her coworker. "I am seriously considering permanent liner/eyelash augmentation. Do you have any interest in doing this with me?" I understood…

“She just got permanent eye liner and eyebrow augmentation—looks fab,” emailed one of my closest friends last month, about her coworker. “I am seriously considering permanent liner/eyelash augmentation. Do you have any interest in doing this with me?”

I understood the appeal … I’d never have to reapply makeup after showering at the gym, save time on my morning routine and enhance features like thinning lashes and brows. Although we had …

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Permanent makeup risks and dangers

Health policy

What will become of health insurance companies after reform?

Paul Levy

January 1, 2011Jan 1, 20116

The talk around the country among health insurance companies is that their insurance business is dying. What is happening? First, the consolidations in other industries, resulting in large, multistate corporations, already mean that many companies self insure their employees. Even…

The talk around the country among health insurance companies is that their insurance business is dying.

What is happening? First, the consolidations in other industries, resulting in large, multistate corporations, already mean that many companies self insure their employees. Even many local firms have large enough work forces that they can be self-contained risk pools. (One source I found says that in 2008, 89 percent of workers employed in …

Conditions and diseases

Discussing cancer treatment with the terminal patient

Bruce Campbell, MD

January 1, 2011Jan 1, 201115

For everything, there is a season… - Ecclesiastes “Are you giving up on me?” My patient looks at me severely. “There must be other treatment options! Aren’t there some experimental drugs out there? I have beaten this cancer twice before.…

For everything, there is a season…
– Ecclesiastes

“Are you giving up on me?” My patient looks at me severely. “There must be other treatment options! Aren’t there some experimental drugs out there? I have beaten this cancer twice before. Are you saying that I can’t beat it again?”

No one can ever know with absolute certainty whether my patient’s newly recurrent cancer might miraculously disappear with one more treatment. His recurrence, however, has …

Real physician voices, twice a week

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Conditions and diseases

Lessons learned from asthma therapy

Juliet K. Mavromatis, MD

December 31, 2010Dec 31, 20106

As a kid I had allergies and asthma. Because of this, for several years, my mother wrote a note excusing me from the 600 meter run in elementary school. My father took me to weekly allergy shots. At times I…

As a kid I had allergies and asthma.

Because of this, for several years, my mother wrote a note excusing me from the 600 meter run in elementary school. My father took me to weekly allergy shots. At times I had eczema on my forearms and eyes, and according to my allergist, whose notes I later read, I had moderate allergic shiners (also known as dark circles under my eyes). My …

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Lessons learned from asthma therapy

Medical education

Will medical school as we know it exist in a decade?

Scrub, MD

December 31, 2010Dec 31, 20105

A century ago in the U.S., the American Medical Association (AMA) created the Council of Medical Education (CME) to evaluate the standard of medical education. In 1908, the committee recruited the Carnegie Foundation to survey the 155 medical schools operating…

A century ago in the U.S., the American Medical Association (AMA) created the Council of Medical Education (CME) to evaluate the standard of medical education.

In 1908, the committee recruited the Carnegie Foundation to survey the 155 medical schools operating at the time in order to see whether they met the standard of medical education set by the CME. The Carnegie Foundation in turn asked Abraham Flexner, a professional educator, to …

Patient voices

Heart attack symptoms in women, in their own words

Carolyn Thomas

December 31, 2010Dec 31, 201025

Having a heart attack felt nothing like I thought it would feel. For one thing, unlike sudden cardiac arrest, in which the heart stops beating and you stop breathing, during my heart attack (myocardial infarction), my heart continued beating, and…

Drugs and prescribing

Adding tiotropium (Spiriva) to an inhaled steroid a mistake?

Matthew Mintz, MD

December 30, 2010Dec 30, 20103

There is a lot of press about a study recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine that shows that adding tiotropium (Spiriva) to an inhaled steroid might have benefit in asthmatic patients. This study is creating a lot…

There is a lot of press about a study recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine that shows that adding tiotropium (Spiriva) to an inhaled steroid might have benefit in asthmatic patients. This study is creating a lot of buzz due to recent concerns of ICS/LABA safety and might prompt doctors and patients to start switching (some already have before this study came out). However, this …

Patient voices

Take responsibility for your own health

Peter J. Weiss, MD

December 30, 2010Dec 30, 20103

An excerpt from More Health Less Care: How to Take Charge of Your Medical Care and Write Your Own Personal Prescription for Lifelong Health. Bob Baker is a patient of Dr. Lisa Martin. Bob works as an engineer for a…

An excerpt from More Health Less Care: How to Take Charge of Your Medical Care and Write Your Own Personal Prescription for Lifelong Health.

Bob Baker is a patient of Dr. Lisa Martin. Bob works as an engineer for a Fortune 500 company that holds major commercial and Department of Defense contracts. He’s 45 years old and happily married with two college-age children. Bob’s lifestyle is stressful. He …

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Take responsibility for your own health

Physician voices

Hospital meals make it difficult to control blood sugars

Roxanne B. Sukol, MD

December 30, 2010Dec 30, 201022

My mom doesn’t take any diabetes medicine. She keeps her blood sugars normal through a combination of common sense and careful carbohydrate consumption. A few months ago, she had to be hospitalized for what she calls a “minor procedure.” The…

My mom doesn’t take any diabetes medicine. She keeps her blood sugars normal through a combination of common sense and careful carbohydrate consumption.

A few months ago, she had to be hospitalized for what she calls a “minor procedure.” The procedure went fine, but not the food. The first meal they brought her consisted of breaded fish (frozen), mashed potatoes (instant), corn (canned), a dinner roll (frozen), and tea (2 sugar …

Physician voices

Should surgeons tell patients how much sleep they had?

Kevin Pho, MD

December 30, 2010Dec 30, 201010

In a recent New England Journal of Medicine, a perspective piece on what to do with fatigued surgeons is generating debate. The issue of work-hour restrictions has been a controversial issue when it comes to doctors in training, something that…

In a recent New England Journal of Medicine, a perspective piece on what to do with fatigued surgeons is generating debate.

The issue of work-hour restrictions has been a controversial issue when it comes to doctors in training, something that I wrote about earlier in the year in USA Today. But once doctors graduate and practice in the real world, there are no rules.

As summarized in the WSJ’s Health Blog, …

Patient voices

Health care economics and the relationship between doctor and patient

Maggie Kozel, MD

December 29, 2010Dec 29, 201051

I used to practice pediatrics. It has been several years since I decided to leave medicine, but people still ask me about it, and I find myself offering neat explanations between gulps of coffee. Of course, the full truth is much more complicated. The full truth has as much to do with our health care system and our culture as it does with me.

My journey in pediatrics was not entirely …

Conditions and diseases

Your attention deficit disorder may be an anxiety disorder

Srini Pillay, MD

December 29, 2010Dec 29, 20102

Are you one of those people who simply cannot concentrate for long enough? Do you find that no sooner than you start doing something, that your attention is scattered all over the place? Do you find that you log onto…

Your problem may not be a problem with your attention. In fact, it may be that the …

Health policy

How American physicians should be paid

George Lundberg, MD

December 29, 2010Dec 29, 201082

How do you think American physicians should be paid? I think many of the current methods are insane. Case in point: In the 1980s, during a meeting of the board of trustees of the American Medical Association, I experienced sudden…

How do you think American physicians should be paid?

I think many of the current methods are insane. Case in point:

In the 1980s, during a meeting of the board of trustees of the American Medical Association, I experienced sudden unexpected unilateral loss of hearing. You might say that was lucky. But I was scared and went right to my ENT’s office.

He looked in my ear and extracted a large wad of …

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How American physicians should be paid

Physician voices

Tips to find a good psychiatrist

Dinah Miller, MD

December 29, 2010Dec 29, 201011

Seems like a simple enough question: How do you find a psychiatrist? It's not that easy to answer. There are all sorts of psychiatrists who do all sorts of things (therapy, not therapy, specific forms of therapy like psychoanalysis or…

Seems like a simple enough question: How do you find a psychiatrist?

It’s not that easy to answer. There are all sorts of psychiatrists who do all sorts of things (therapy, not therapy, specific forms of therapy like psychoanalysis or CBT), and then there’s the overriding insurance question. Not to mention location, location, location.

We’ve talked before about insurance, and if you haven’t read Why Shrinks Don’t Take Your …

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Tips to find a good psychiatrist

Conditions and diseases

CT scans and x-rays draw patients into risk and overutilization

Michael Kirsch, MD

December 28, 2010Dec 28, 20104

Many patients erroneously believe that x-rays and CAT scans have no risk. In their minds, they are non-invasive studies that can cause no harm. Since there are no incisions or anesthesia, they regard the experience as having the same risk…

Many patients erroneously believe that x-rays and CAT scans have no risk.

In their minds, they are non-invasive studies that can cause no harm. Since there are no incisions or anesthesia, they regard the experience as having the same risk as taking a family photograph. How wrong they are. In my mind the danger from non-invasive radiology studies may surpass the risk of hard core medical treatment. True, radiology tests won’t …

Patient voices

Are chaperones a hindrance to patient privacy?

Joel Sherman, MD

December 28, 2010Dec 28, 201081

Chaperones are increasingly recommended for routine use in Western medicine. There are semi-official recommendations in both the UK and USA. The AMA has long had this. The rationale for using chaperones is twofold. In theory their primary purpose is to…

Chaperones are increasingly recommended for routine use in Western medicine. There are semi-official recommendations in both the UK and USA. The AMA has long had this.

The rationale for using chaperones is twofold. In theory their primary purpose is to protect, comfort and assist the patient. In reality though, the usual purpose is to protect the physician against claims of sexual assault or harassment.

Preferably, chaperones should be real professionals, ideally …

Physician voices

Reduce phone calls in your medical practice

Rosemarie Nelson

December 28, 2010Dec 28, 201016

A physician approached me at the end of a talk on optimizing practice efficiency and improving service to patients and said, "I dream of an office with no phones." Do you have days where the phones are ringing off the…

A physician approached me at the end of a talk on optimizing practice efficiency and improving service to patients and said, “I dream of an office with no phones.”

Do you have days where the phones are ringing off the hook? Or the phone message forms in your in-box seem to be reproducing? Maybe it’s been one of those days when you can never get your nurse’s help because she’s been …

Patient voices

Responsibility, respect and relationships are important for patients

Jackie Fox

December 28, 2010Dec 28, 20108

At the risk of dating myself, I recall a time when “The Three Rs” summed up American education. In case you aren’t familiar with this phrase, it stands for "Reading, ‘Riting, and ‘Rithmetic." I think it’s high time we develop…

At the risk of dating myself, I recall a time when “The Three Rs” summed up American education. In case you aren’t familiar with this phrase, it stands for “Reading, ‘Riting, and ‘Rithmetic.”

I think it’s high time we develop “Three Rs” for patients. Right now, Patient World is ruled by “E” words such as “empowered” and “engaged,” with “empowered” the big one. I think “empowered” is turning into a label, …

Physician voices

Patient complaints do not fit the primary care office visit

Kevin Pho, MD

December 28, 2010Dec 28, 201050

Primary care physicians often have to see patients with a litany of issues. Often within a span of a 15-minute office visit. This places the doctor in the middle of a tension -- spend more time with the patient to…

Primary care physicians often have to see patients with a litany of issues. Often within a span of a 15-minute office visit.

This places the doctor in the middle of a tension — spend more time with the patient to address all of the concerns, but risk the wrath of patients scheduled afterwards, who are then forced to wait.

And, in some cases, it’s simply impossible to adequately address every patient question …

Posts of the year on KevinMD.com, 2010 edition

Kevin

December 25, 2010Dec 25, 2010

Merry Christmas! I'd like to thank everyone for your continued readership. Doctors, patients and other health care professionals need to be heard, and there's no better place to do so than here, on social media's leading physician voice. This year,…

Merry Christmas!

I’d like to thank everyone for your continued readership.

Doctors, patients and other health care professionals need to be heard, and there’s no better place to do so than here, on social media’s leading physician voice.

This year, KevinMD.com had a regular rotation of 175 guest contributors, and surpassed 1.75 million visits, 2.95 million pageviews, 33,000 followers on Facebook and Twitter, and 40,000 RSS subscribers.

I am truly …

Real physician voices, twice a week

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