A really snazzy new invention allows doctors to see inside their patients’ hearts as never before: the CT angiogram. It produces gorgeous 3-D video images of the beating heart in action. It allows us to see the blood flow through the heart’s chambers and it shows any plaque in the… read more "Are Cardiologists Ordering Too Many CT Angiograms?"
Death By Medicine
Critics of “conventional” medicine delight in pointing out how much harm it causes. Carolyn Dean, Gary Null, and others have written extensively about “death by medicine.” A typical statement (from Mercola.com) says: A definitive review and close reading of medical peer-review journals, and government health statistics shows that American medicine… read more "Death By Medicine"
Not Treating – A Neglected Option
One of the criticisms of modern medicine is that doctors prescribe too many pills. That’s true. Patients and doctors sometimes get caught up in a mutual misunderstanding. The patient assumes that he needs a prescription, and the doctor assumes that the patient wants a prescription. But sometimes patients don’t either… read more "Not Treating – A Neglected Option"
Christiane Northrup, MD: Science Tainted with Strange Beliefs
After her daughter left for college, Christiane Northrup, MD, went for a morning walk one day. About halfway through her walk she developed an ache in her throat radiating up into her jaw. It felt like a fist was squeezing her esophagus. It persisted even after she returned home. What… read more "Christiane Northrup, MD: Science Tainted with Strange Beliefs"
The “Art” of Clinical Decision-Making
Much nonsense has been written about the “art” of medicine. All too often, it amounts to a rationalization for doctors doing what they want to do instead of following the evidence. Medicine is not an art like painting. Neither is it a science like physics. It’s an applied science. Since… read more "The “Art” of Clinical Decision-Making"
Science and Chiropractic
In the comments to a previous blog entry, a chiropractor made the following statements: 1. Chiropractic is a science.2. Chiropractic is based on neurology, anatomy and physiology.3. Chiropractors are doctors of the nervous system.4. Chiropractic improves health and quality of life. I offered to write a blog entry on the… read more "Science and Chiropractic"
Antibiotics for Sinusitis
You’re a patient. That cold just isn’t getting better and you have purulent drainage from your nose, and your face hurts and your teeth hurt. You probably have sinusitis, right? You go to a doctor to get an antibiotic. You’re a doctor. Deep down, you know there’s a good chance the patient has… read more "Antibiotics for Sinusitis"
Snake Oil Science
For my first blog entry, I wanted to write about something important, and I couldn’t think of anything more important than a recent book by R. Barker Bausell: Snake Oil Science: The Truth About Complementary and Alternative Medicine. If you want to understand how medical research works, if you want… read more "Snake Oil Science"
Homeopathy: How It Really Works
Book Review of Homeopathy: How It Really Works, by Jay Shelton, published by Prometheus in 2003 This will not be the last book written about homeopathy, but perhaps it ought to be. It says everything that needs to be said unless homeopaths can succeed in supporting their claims with better evidence than… read more "Homeopathy: How It Really Works"
Andrew Weil: Harvard Hatched a Gullible Guru
Book review of Natural Health, Natural Medicine: The Complete Guide to Wellness and Self-care for Optimum Health. By Andrew Weil. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 2004. ISBN 0-618-47903-1. 432 pp. Softcover, $14. Andrew Weil’s Natural Health, Natural Medicine is a dangerous book. The preface states: “All the information is consistent with the… read more "Andrew Weil: Harvard Hatched a Gullible Guru"