Risk/Benefit Ratio of Mammograms Being Questioned
In an article from the NYTimes titled “Benefits of Mammograms Under Debate in Britain” the author discusses the controversy raging over information pamphlets handed out to patients on the benefits of mammograms in the UK. (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/31/health/31mamm.html?ref=health&pagewanted=print) A group of advocates and experts complain that the pamphlets are not truthful and exaggerate the benefits of mammograms…
Read MoreProstate Screening Test PSA may not save lives
This particular article is worth reading in its entirety for those interested in the relative value of mass screenings for common diseases. For those of us who don’t always trust the common medical orthodoxy, the conclusion of this article doesn’t come as a huge surprise. I recently attended a symposium offered at UCSF on Issues…
Read MoreCare Instead of Pills for Alzheimer’s
This opinion piece in the LATimes by Ira Rosofsky March 19, 2009 crystallizes an argument that I would love to see have more mainstream traction. The argument is to weigh the cost of some of these new “wonder drugs” against how that money could be better spent in other types of care. This argument could…
Read MoreCare Instead of Pills for Alzheimer's
This opinion piece in the LATimes by Ira Rosofsky March 19, 2009 crystallizes an argument that I would love to see have more mainstream traction. The argument is to weigh the cost of some of these new “wonder drugs” against how that money could be better spent in other types of care. This argument could…
Read MoreAmericans receive too much radiation from diagnostic scans
Yay for the USA!!In yet another version of “follow the money…”(For more information about my practice, please click here.)“Overexposed: Imaging tests boost U.S. radiation doseCHICAGO (Reuters) – Americans are exposed to seven times more radiation from diagnostic scans than in 1980, a report found on Tuesday as experts said doctors are overusing the tests for…
Read MoreIs electromagnetic radiation dangerous?
This topic has been an interest of mine for a few years. An electrical engineering colleague of mine, Jim Andrews, and I took EMF readings along the route of the wiring for the new Lucas center in the Presidio. We did this so we would have baseline data to compare to once the Lucas center…
Read MoreMedia failed to protect babies against BPA
In a follow up post to the one above, FAIR (Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting) has an article by Candice O’Grady showing that there had been evidence of the danger of Bisphenol-A (BPA) as early as 1999. BPA is found in plastics and baby bottles. BPA was already being linked to serious developmental illnesses as…
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