Statins as a drug class are generally safe and widely used to treat hyperlipidemia. They have proven effective in lowering cholesterol levels and reducing the risk of recurrent cardiovascular events in patients at risk.
There are also some concerns about Continue reading
Case Study: A primary care clinician recently diagnosed a patient with major depression. She prescribed citalopram 20 mg per day. One month later the patient felt less depressed and her PHQ-9 had dropped from 16 (moderate depression) to Continue reading
Physicians pride themselves on taking a scientific, evidence-based approach to therapeutic questions. Unfortunately, in many clinical situations the evidence is scant or limited. One common and thorny situation is whether to give antibiotic prophylaxis to total joint Continue reading
The California State Senate Business and Professions Committee recently passed out of committee SB 809, a measure which will levy a 1.2% license fee for pharmacists, NPs, physicians, and podiatrists to increase funding for the Continue reading
Once again the issue of too much calcium intake rears its ugly head. This time it comes up in a prospective cohort study looking at all-cause, cardiovascular, ischemic heart disease, and stroke mortality. High intake of calcium in women was associated with Continue reading
I don’t know about you, but I find osteoporosis frustrating. So many questions. When and who should I screen? When and who should I re-screen? How concerned should I be about possible side effects of various bisphosphonates? Are calcium Continue reading
“You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed.” – The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint Exupery.
In the treatment of peripheral neuropathy, Partnership HealthPlan of California’s formulary has step requirements. It begins with Continue reading
Okay, this quote from Milton Berle is only tangentially related to today’s blog post, but I couldn’t pass it up. My last contribution to our blog was on rising mortality due to Clostridia difficile (C.diff) and its fomite- and hand-related transmission. Continue reading
A recent survey of multiple large, national databases in the US has reported that Clostridium difficile (C.diff) colitis is now the 9th leading cause of gastrointestinal and liver related deaths. Way out of line with my own perception of GI-related mortality, Continue reading
The CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) has just changed its recommendations for the use of pneumococcal vaccines for adults 19 years or older with immunocompromising conditions, such as functional or anatomic asplenia, Continue reading