Americans love technology. We love our iPods, our tablets and our smartphones. At the swipe of a finger, we can map a route, make a reservation, buy a pair of boots and, now, cure what ails us. Or can we? Published in the Washington Post, an investigation by the New England Center for Investigative Reporting….
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Who Cares If It Works, I Have a Coupon!
Who doesn’t like a good deal? The popularity of Groupon, the online deal-of-the-hour/day/week service has spawned a whole family of mimics. Unfortunately, suggests Gary Schwitzer on Health News Review, it’s a dysfunctional family when it comes to dubious medical treatments. In the space of mere days, irresistible deals were available for: laser toenail fungus treatment;….
Continue ReadingSuccess of Nicotine Replacement Products Called Into Question
Because the effects of nicotine are deadly, because cigarettes are so addictive (some research indicates it’s harder to kick nicotine than it is heroin), any and all efforts should be made to quit smoking. In trying to wean themselves off of “cancer sticks,” many people turn to nicotine replacement in the form of patches that….
Continue ReadingGetting the Best Health Care: Statisticians Are Our Friends
Today’s news has two reminders of why statisticians are our friends and allies when it comes to getting the right health care and avoiding dangerous and over-hyped treatments. The headlines: * Hormone replacement therapy after menopause not only increases the risk of getting breast cancer, but also makes the cancer more deadly. Details here. *….
Continue ReadingTips for Getting Home Safely from the Hospital — and Staying Home
It’s such a relief to get a family member home from the hospital that many of us don’t realize how crucial the next few weeks are in making sure the patient stays home and gets healthy. Hospitals don’t always help the situation by giving out confusing and cryptic discharge instructions. For this especially vulnerable time,….
Continue ReadingPoor Patient Education Can Be Fatal; A Washington, DC Malpractice Story
Did you know that rupture of an Achilles tendon can be fatal? This common injury has one potentially fatal but preventable complication: a blood clot can develop in the calf while the leg is immobilized for healing of the injury, and if the clot gets big enough, it can travel to the heart and cause….
Continue ReadingAcetaminophen (Tylenol): More Reason for Caution
Acetaminophen, the unpronounceable name for the active ingredient in Tylenol, is the most widely used pain reliever in the United States. But it can destroy the liver in ordinary or near-ordinary doses. That fact is news to many consumers but is old hat to liver specialists who every week treat patients at death’s door from….
Continue ReadingHeart Failure: An Expensive Revolving Door
Nobody wants to go home from the hospital only to be readmitted within a few weeks. But that revolving door is very common in conditions like heart failure, where the patient’s heart muscle doesn’t pump effectively after it has been weakened by heart attack or other heart disease. The open secret of the hospital industry….
Continue Reading“Back in the Hospital Again” — A Result of Fragmented, Uncoordinated Care
Getting a loved one home from the hospital is always a relief for both patient and family, but the weeks immediately after hospital discharge are fraught with peril, as many families don’t discover until the patient has to be readmitted for a new problem. This is especially common with Medicare patients: an alarming one in….
Continue ReadingAmericans’ Health Care Suffers in Ailing Economy
In a newly released Thomson Reuters survey, one in five respondents say they have delayed medical care, and one in four of those who did listed financial cost as the primary reason, reports Maggie Fox of Reuters. The survey also predicted that in the next three months, one in every five adults in America will….
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