She arrived by ambulance in the middle of the night, awake, alert, and bleeding like crazy. We’d gotten a call earlier in the evening that she was on her way from a small hospital about forty miles to the north. We were the big city hospital, and an attending physician had agreed to have her transferred for a life-saving procedure, in this case a shunt that might stop her bleeding.
People …
Witness to a patient, losing her life in front of us
Most of us reject the rational argument that better medical quality costs more money. Conversely, I have argued that spending less money could improve medical outcomes. Developing incentives to reduce unnecessary medical tests and treatments should be our fundamental strategy. Not a day passes that I don’t confront excessive and unnecessary medical care — some of it mine — being foisted on patients.
At one point in my career, I would …
Should doctors consider costs when making medical decisions?
The holiday season is well underway. This is the time of year for celebrating with family and close friends and reflecting on what is truly important to us. It can also be a time of significant stress, inevitable over-eating and deviation from our usual routines. Essentially, the holidays can be hazardous to your health and this is particularly true when it comes to your gastrointestinal (GI) system. So what can …
Say happy holidays to your GI tract
Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians.
A 50-year-old man is evaluated in follow-up for a recent diagnosis of cirrhosis secondary to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. He has a history of asthma, type 2 diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia, and obesity. His current medications are inhaled fluticasone, montelukast, insulin glargine, insulin lispro, simvastatin, and lisinopril.
On physical examination, temperature is 37.5 °C (99.5 °F), …
MKSAP: 50-year-old man with cirrhosis
A few days before I wrote this, a patient had a complication in my office. I have discussed previously the distinction between a complication, which is a blameless event, and a negligent act. In my experience, most lawsuits are initiated against complications or adverse medical outcomes, neither of which are the result of medical negligence. This is the basis for my strong belief that the current medical malpractice system …
When physicians need backup during a routine procedure
We always want to get it right the first time when treating patients, but the truth is this is difficult. When there is uncertainty of disease course and prognosis, multiple treatment options, and variable responses to therapy this becomes even more challenging. Our typical strategy to making it “just right” isn’t too different from Goldilocks. We have mild treatments (too cold), and aggressive treatments (too hot), and even in the …
The era of trial and error medicine needs to be over
One of the most frequent questions gastroenterologists are asked about is diet, health and disease; and some of the questions gastroenterologists are least comfortable answering are about diet, health and disease. This disconnect occurs for several reasons. Although the subject of nutrition is taught in medical school, it usually covers malabsorption of nutrients, vitamins and minerals that have limited relevance to the concerns of most patients. The modern physician does not see …
Why gastroenterologists should counsel patients on nutrition
One catch phrase in health care reform is cost-effectiveness. To paraphrase, this label means that a medical treatment is worth the price. For example, influenza vaccine, or flu shot, is effective in reducing the risk of influenza infection. If the price of each vaccine were $1,000, it would still be medically effective, but it would no longer be cost-effective considering that over 100 million Americans need the vaccine.
Society could not …
Treating hepatitis C with Sovaldi: Is it worth it?
Did you know that your digestive tract contains over 400 different types of bacteria? This complex ecosystem is called intestinal microflora. The concentration of bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract increases dramatically moving from the stomach towards the colon. In humans, the intestinal microflora is vital in many important functions including digestion of nutrients and prevention of infection. Disruption of the “normal flora” can lead to many problems including diarrhea, bloating, …
Should you give probiotics to your child?
Recently in the emergency room, I saw a 35-year-old patient — we’ll call her Jane — who was vomiting blood. The source of the vomiting turned out to be a bleeding ulcer caused by unintentionally overdosing on ibuprofen. Jane was in pain — she was taking prescription ibuprofen for her chronic knee pain — but she was also taking over-the-counter (OTC) …
Prevent the overdose of OTC pain medications
There he sat, hunched over with rugged, muscular arms stretched across his abdomen, his weary eyes stealing hopeful glances from behind an otherwise steely facade. Mr. J was a 53-year-old Latino agricultural laborer with a history of H. pylori who presented at our student-run free clinic with persistent abdominal pain, unchanged from his multiple previous visits. As I learned more about Mr. J and his story, I realized that treating …
How the costs of care impacted H. pylori treatment
I recently treated a patient who was hospitalized with paraplegia. During some routine lab testing I noticed that his liver function tests were elevated, and so I began looking for a cause. I discussed the patient’s drinking habits (he rarely drank alcohol), risks for viral hepatitis (no IV drug use or exposure to those with known hepatitis), and general medical history (nothing relevant to liver disease). I reviewed his current …
A surprising cause for acute hepatitis in the rehab unit
If you are a physician like me who performs procedures, then rarely you will cause a medical complication. This is a reality of medical life. If perforation of the colon with colonoscopy occurs at a rate of 1 in 1,500, and you do 3,000 colonoscopies each year, then you can do the math.
Remember that a complication is a blameless event, in contrast to a negligent act when the physician is …
Complications are a reality of medical life
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Is your doctor a hammer and you’re a nail? Here’s some insider advice coaxing patients to be more wary and skeptical of medical advice. Should you trust your doctor? Absolutely. But you need to serve as a spirited advocate for your own health or bring one with you. Ask your physician for the evidence. Sometimes, his medical advice may result more from judgement and experience as there may not be …
Doctors are hammers. Don’t automatically be their nails.
The nasogastric tube was killing me. It had been in place for twelve hours now, threading its way up my nose and down my throat, past my esophagus, into my stomach. Try as I might, I couldn’t swallow away the nasty lump stuck to the back of my throat. And every time I tried, it hurt.
Decades before, as a physician-in-training in upstate New York, I’d put in more nasogastric (NG) …
Once more, I had learned my lesson about pain and vulnerability
Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians.
A 42-year-old woman is evaluated for an 8-month history of crampy abdominal pain and three loose bowel movements per day. The pain is relieved by a bowel movement. There are no nocturnal bowel movements, and there is no blood or dark tarry material in the stool. She has not had fever, night …
MKSAP: 42-year-old woman with crampy abdominal pain
Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians.
A 55-year-old man is reevaluated during a follow-up examination for a wrist fracture and anemia. The patient is otherwise asymptomatic. He was treated in the emergency department 2 weeks ago after he slipped in his driveway and sustained a right wrist fracture; mild iron deficiency anemia was detected at that time. He …
MKSAP: 55-year-old man with a wrist fracture and anemia
I am a regular reader of patient blogs, and I find myself frequently gasping at the mistreatment they experience at the hands of my peers. I recently had the “pleasure” of being a patient myself, and found that my professional ties did not protect me from outrageously poor bedside manners. I suppose I’m writing this partly to vent, but also to remind health care professionals what not to do …
Dealing with physicians who have lost empathy and compassion
Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians.
A 25-year-old man is evaluated for a 5-year history of slowly progressive solid-food dysphagia that is accompanied by a sensation of food sticking in his lower retrosternal area. He has compensated by modifying his diet and avoiding fibrous meats. He has not lost weight, and he has not had trouble drinking liquids. …
MKSAP: 25-year-old man with slowly progressive solid-food dysphagia
At the critical time when our nation has made meaningful and measurable progress against colorectal cancer incidence, threats to reimbursement for colonoscopy screening for Medicare beneficiaries are looming, which may jeopardize the effectiveness of public health strategies to increase screening and prevention of colorectal cancer in the U.S.
New data from the American Cancer Society indicate that colorectal cancer has declined by 30% in just the last decade among those aged 50 …
Cutting the wrong test at the wrong time
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