Cardiology

My journey to the root of empathy and why we must try to teach it

Physician

September 7, 2021

“Are there specific ways empathy will be tested in the standardized patient exam?” a medical school classmate of mine earnestly asked following a lecture years ago. I laughed, thinking that teaching empathy was impossible. As an optimistic and naive medical student, I had thought of myself as naturally empathetic. During those days, I was able to spend hours with patients, gaining their confidence while hearing their stories and concerns. I …

I learned the most about medicine from my dad’s death

Dr. Gleeson Rebello

Physician

July 20, 2021

I had just finished a grueling orthopedic residency. Yet once again, I was on the run and bearing bad news. I was sprinting from a well-known Mumbai hospital to a nearby hotel room. But this time, the bad news wasn’t for the family of one of my patients. It was for my mother.

As I waded through the crowd whose constant overflow from the sidewalk onto the road left a shifting …

The impact of COVID-19 on health conditions

Martin Lustick, MD

Conditions

April 2, 2021

For the past year, we have been inundated with statistics about the impact of COVID-19 on our lives. Reports of daily case rates, hospitalizations, and deaths are so pervasive that they have become routine fodder for “water cooler” and dinner table conversations. Several early studies, looking at the pandemic’s secondary health implications, give us an inkling of just how broad and deep its impact has been.

Mental health

Perhaps the most visible …

Extreme athleticism and the risk of atrial fibrillation

Aseem Desai, MD

Conditions

January 23, 2021

Consider the following sports icons: tennis legend Billie Jean King, basketball veteran Larry Bird, triathlete Karsten Madsen, baseball pitcher Kenley Jansen, and cyclist champion Haimar Zubeldia.

What do all of these well-known professional athlete heroes have in common? They are athletes with atrial fibrillation, also called AFib. AFib is the most common heart rhythm disorder worldwide, accounting for 750,000 hospitalizations per year in the US alone. It is estimated that 6 …

A medical student’s experience at an urban free clinic

Srijesa Khasnabish

Education

August 22, 2020

During my first year of medical school, a professor in my clinical skills course shared a timeless adage in medicine: “If you listen closely enough to the patient, they will tell you the diagnosis.” I accepted this statement as a fact of medicine – if I could develop astute history taking skills in my first year, this skill would serve me well throughout my medical training. However, when I volunteered …

Consider the natural ways to prevent or reverse atherosclerosis

Hans Duvefelt, MD

Conditions

August 19, 2020

Some people have high cholesterol but not much atherosclerosis. We think of their arteries as having nonstick surfaces. We know inflammation can predispose to plaque formation and plaque rupture, which is the trigger of most heart attacks.

We know statin drugs can prevent and reverse plaque buildup, and make existing plaque sturdier and less likely to rupture. These drugs lower blood levels of inflammatory substances. Most doctors focus on their cholesterol-lowering …

A few intense hours with a cardiothoracic surgeon

Tomi Obafemi, MD

Physician

July 12, 2020

The warm rays of the sun serenade me as I drive to work eager to begin another shift. I find a parking spot on the first floor of the garage don my N95 mask and walk towards the hospital. First, I must stop by at the neighboring building and have my temperature checked. Today it is 97.3. I am awarded the sticker for the day; my boarding pass into the …

Don’t be afraid to say “Black” when asking about someone’s culture

Arindam Sarkar, MD

Physician

July 9, 2020

On the morning of George Floyd’s funeral less than ten miles from our medical center in Houston, I was avoiding the word “Black.” Despite wholehearted pride in the strong Black presence in our community health center’s physicians, staff, and patients, I felt a loss of words that Tuesday morning. There was simply too much pain, grief, and rage in our community.

I was thankful …

I don’t care what your cardiologist says

Stephen Freiberg, MD

Physician

July 5, 2020

Yeah.

I said it.

As an anesthesiologist, especially as a cardiothoracic anesthesiologist, there are few things I am more interested in than how well or how poorly your heart functions and why. And a cardiologist can help me obtain a lot of vital information in that regard. But there several things a cardiologist cannot, and I argue, should not do, when it comes to the perioperative care of patients.

First, a cardiologist’s assessment …

What does sacrifice in medicine really mean?

Anonymous

Education

April 6, 2020

Just another day as you work into the depths of the night. Medicine engulfs your life as your focus is centered on your responsibilities for tomorrow. You may or may not have time to sit down and enjoy a meal in silence. You may or may not have the opportunity to say good-bye or hello to a loved one. I hope we all had the foresight to realize what we …

I struggle with my pride in the profession and fear of the health care system

Santina Wheat, MD, MPH

Physician

February 29, 2020

I believe in the practice of medicine and enjoy teaching others this amazing art. However, after experiencing nine months of interactions through medicine as the daughter of a sick patient, I struggle with my pride in the profession and fear of the health care system.

My mother would proudly tell all her physicians that her daughter was a doctor. I knew she was proud, but I didn’t believe in using my …

How do you know if you have hypertension and need medication?

Peter Ubel, MD

Conditions

January 27, 2020

High blood pressure is the silent killer. It puts people at risk for heart attacks, strokes, vascular disease, kidney failure. It is basically really bad to have longstanding, undertreated high blood pressure.

But it is also harmful to be told you have high blood pressure when you don’t, and to be treated for high blood pressure when that treatment won’t benefit you. So when your doctor diagnoses you with high blood …

Beyond red flags: Beware of black butterfly warnings

Raj Waghmare, MD

Conditions

January 23, 2020

I’ve just discharged a kid with a cough, and there are no patients waiting to be seen. “I’ll be back,” I tell the nurse, as I slip away to the hospital kitchen and unlock the door. I steal two frozen grilled cheese sandwiches from the freezer and throw them into the microwave. Minutes later, I’m in the call room.

I take a couple of bites and can already feel acid rising …

My dream as a physician

Kamala Tamirisa, MD

Physician

January 5, 2020

Everything in life starts as a dream. Big or small. My dream was to become a physician since I was quite young — the first one in my family to walk the path. I wanted to understand the science of the human body and help the sick. Heal with my skills, knowledge, and empathy. Hold my patients’ hands with care and confidence. My work was to be like none other. …

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My dream as a physician

MKSAP: 67-year-old man with a carotid bruit

mksap

Conditions

November 23, 2019

Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians.

A 67-year-old man is evaluated for a carotid bruit detected on routine medical examination. He reports no history of previous focal neurologic symptoms or visual loss. He has type 2 diabetes mellitus and hyperlipidemia treated with metformin, moderate-intensity pravastatin, and aspirin.

On physical examination, blood pressure is 128/64 mm Hg, …

What does a cardiologist think of the keto diet?

Deepti Bhandare, MD

Conditions

November 8, 2019

Being a cardiologist, the most frequent question coming my way for the last few years is “Doc what do you think about the “keto” [ketogenic] diet.”

All foods contain both micronutrients and macronutrients that are essential for the body to function optimally. The human body requires macronutrients in large amounts, which include carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. These nutrients provide energy for your body in the form of calories. Micronutrients are nutrients …

Our healers need healing

Anonymous

Physician

October 30, 2019

I woke up to him, pacing the bedroom.

Within an hour, I was pacing the ER at his bedside.

Our experience at one of the country’s best-ranked hospitals lasted only three days before we were discharged home. What led us there will last a lifetime in our minds. When faced with your own mortality (or that of your husband’s), you are forever changed. We are grateful for his continued recovery from myopericarditis. …

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Our healers need healing

Should there be a disqualifying upper age limit to become president?

S. Jay Olshansky, PhD and Nir Barzilai, MD

Conditions

October 28, 2019

The health challenge recently faced by Sen. Bernie Sanders has brought two issues to the forefront of the 2020 presidential election. Should there be a disqualifying upper age limit to become president, and should an existing health issue preclude a candidate from running for president?

As scientists in the field of aging, we cannot tell the voting public how to answer these questions. What we can do is inform you about …

When you’re a physician, you’re a detective

Lauren Joseph

Education

October 21, 2019

A professor recently romanticized my idea of clinical reasoning as he began our session by saying, “When you’re a physician, you’re a detective.” He elaborated: “Every fact you have, every piece of evidence you have, must be consistent with your leading diagnosis.” As he said this, my eyes narrowed, and I sat up a little taller.

My fellow first-year medical students and I have begun our official training in clinical reasoning, …

A cardiologist’s take on red meat consumption

Anthony Pearson, MD

Conditions

October 13, 2019

The Skeptical Cardiologist was recently greeted by headlines announcing that an international panel of 14 unbiased researchers had concluded that it was OK for humans to continue eating red meat and processed meat at current levels.