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I'm A Blogaholic: Gone
2008-02-28 04:32:00
The I'm A Blogaholic blog was started almost a year ago during the whole Flea episode - and when Fat Doctor took down her blog (she did eventually come back). At the time, the blog was a great way for people to just talk about what was happening at the time. But, as typically happens, people move forward and move on. And, that has showed in the past few months. The number of posts and the number of visitors have decreased. So, I've decided that The I'm A Blogaholic Blog has run it's course and will be taken down in the next few weeks. So, thanks for the memories!

Google YOUR private health information?
2008-02-27 06:01:00
What if I told you that companies like Google and Microsoft will soon have the opportunity to handle your private medical information? Maybe this is information that you do not want anyone else to know - other than - say your doctor? Earlier this week the state of Tennessee announced a partnership with AT&T for the first statewide network to share health information.An article in today's Washington Post states that the Cleveland Clinic, in association with Google, will be starting a pilot project that is aimed at putting personal electronic health records in the hands of consumers. (I've talked about personal health records on this blog in the past)What Cleveland Clinic wants to do is have the ability to merge outside electronic medical records with their own system. For example, if I refer a patient up there, currently, the only thing I can do is send paper records and even x-rays up to Cleveland Clinic with the patient. How much more convenient would it be for me and the pat...
More About: Health , Information , Private

Antibiotics overused in Alzheimer patients
2008-02-26 17:01:00
Should people with Alzheimer 's disease/dementia be treated with antibiotics? According to a new study, they say that antibiotics are being overused in patients with dementia and antibiotic use should be considered more carefully especially in this time of antibiotic resistant superbugs. (AP)The study raises ethical questions about when it's acceptable to withhold perhaps futile treatment and let people die, and whether public health issues should ever be considered."Advanced dementia is a terminal illness," said study co-author Dr. Susan Mitchell, a senior scientist with the Harvard-affiliated Hebrew Senior Life Institute for Aging Research in Boston. "If we substituted 'end-stage cancer' for 'advanced dementia,' I don't think people would have any problem understanding this."People wouldn't have a problem understanding this? Of course, when you paint a picture like that. Here's the question, though- What is advanced dementia? There really is no consensus definition. Of cou...
More About: Antibiotics , Patients

The Shamrock Shake
2008-02-25 18:31:00
I have been a blogging slacker for the past few days. I do have a lame excuse, though. I was on call last weekend, and I have to tell you, there are a lot of ill people out there and the hospital has been hopping for the past few weeks.Anyway, as I was making "rounds" at McDonalds yesterday, the friendly drive-thru chap asked, "Would you like to try a Shamrock Shake?" Wow! It's only February, and our local McD's has already gotten out the shamrock shake. This is great stuff! If you haven't had this before, you have to try it.I do admit that I like the taste of mint. So, the shamrock shake is definitely delish to me. And, as Dr. Rob has stated recently that obsessing about anything is bad. I kind of get addicted to the shamrock shake - especially when they say "for a limited time only." Anyone with me on this? What do you think?

TBTAM on the Dr. A show
2008-02-21 07:01:00
Thursday, February 21st, 2008 at 9pm Eastern TimeJoin us tonight for The Blog That Ate Manhattan. At the bottom on this post, you'll see an embed from ustream.tv. TBTAM has a great promo post saying we're going to talk about "Big Pharma, dissecting the medical literature, giving out free medical advice and discussing the insanity known as gyno-food blogging. Who knows, I may even resurrect the Vagina Blogging song for the occasion!" Wow! I can't wait for this interview.Take part in the chat room, which is the "show within the show." A great opportunity to interact with medbloggers you've only read about. You can even call into the show to talk and/or ask a question. See you tonight!For first time Blog Talk Radio listeners:*Although it is not required to listen to the show, I encourage you to register on the BlogTalkRadio site prior to the show. I think it will make the process easier.*To get to my show site, click here. As show time gets closer, keep hitting "refresh" on your br...
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Just venting
2008-02-21 06:44:00
I've had all this pent up frustration in me this week because of last week's show. In this video post, I just wanted to get it all out in the open and out of my system. I didn't want to contaminate Thursday night's show without (kind of) resolving in my own mind what happened last week. So, I apologize for the whinnyness (is that a word?) of this video post, but at least I feel better and I can really focus on having fun again on The Doctor Anonymous Show.....

Med 2.0 blog carnival
2008-02-18 18:01:00
I'm a big fan of Bertalan Meskó and his blog called Science Roll. If you haven't checked out his blog, I highly recommend it. He has an interest in genetics and in technology. And, I'm looking forward to having him on The Doctor Anonymous Show sometime soon in the future.Many people are familiar with the blog carnival called "Grand Rounds." But, Science Roll anchors a blog carnival called "Medicine 2.0" where there are links and stories about web 2.0's impact on medicine and healthcare. I was pleasantly surprised to be included in the most recent edition of Med 2.0.You should check out and follow the live shows of Doctor Anonymous.There is even a Blog TalkRadio badge over on the Med 2.0 post. Thanks so much to Berci for mentioning the show and for including a BTR badge. I really appreciate it. I'm looking forward to when our schedules can match up for you to be on The Doctor Anonymous Show. So, if you've never experienced Medicine 2.0, check it out! You'll be glad you did.
More About: Carnival , Blog Carnival

You've been traded - To Japan
2008-02-18 17:00:00
It's baseball spring training time again, and I've had enough of all the talk about steroids and congressional hearings and all that stuff. I heard about the video above last night. And, it's a practical joke that had one young recruit going until the last minute.The way the video above goes, the young pitcher is brought into the managers office and is told that he is being "traded" to Japan for a player named "Kobayashi Iwamura." You can see that this guy is totally dejected - not only because he was traded, but because he's going to have to go to an entirely different country.His next move is to let his teammates know what the news is. Of course, his team is in on the joke. Not only his teammates, but his manager, his agent, and the press who are interviewing him at the end of this video. Finally, to save him, one of his teammates say, "You've been Punk'd." I really felt bad for the kid, but in the end, it's all laughs.

Mac users are snobs?
2008-02-18 04:01:00
This is according to this video report from The Street (via Insanely Great Mac and The Unofficial Apple Weblog).The assertions made by this report include the following: Mac users more likely to use teeth-whitening products; Mac users bought on average five new pairs of sneakers in the last year; More likely to buy organic food; More likely to frequent Starbucks; More likely to own a hybrid car; Mac users are perfectionists; Prefer to drive station wagons; More likely to pay for downloaded music.To me, this report is pretty funny. I hardly resemble any of the characterizations above or in the report. (I'll let you sort out which ones you think I am.) But, I will not stand for this painting of a broad brush of all Mac users. There is too much discrimination going on in this country right now. Can't I stand on my own merits? Does the computer that I use determine the person I am and how you should treat me? I think not. I will not stand for this. I am a Mac, and I'm proud of it! YAY!
More About: Users , Snobs

Flu Epidemic
2008-02-18 02:01:00
(This is a continuation of part one from yesterday)Last night got a little better for me. The coughing was still there, but not as bad. In fact, the coughing is still here right now as I write this. The muscle aches have pretty much resolved. And, to be honest, this was the main symptom that was bothering me. The headache and sore throat are continuing to improve. It's a good thing, because I'm on call tomorrow and the weekend coming up.As I was doing more research this weekend, I found this article from the Associated Press from February 15th saying that this year's flu vaccine is effective for only 40% of this year's flu viruses.Infections from an unexpected strain have been booming, and now are the main agent behind most of the nation's lab-confirmed flu cases, said Dr. Joe Bresee, the CDC's chief of influenza epidemiology. It's too soon to know whether this will prove to be a bad flu season overall, but it's fair to say a lot of people are suffering at the moment. "Every...
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Gov. Strickland has marching orders
2008-02-18 01:01:00
This is definitely not a political blog. But since the US presidential nominating process is going to be rolling through my state 16 days from now, I thought that it may be interesting to make a few observations. Channel surfing this evening, I saw the interview above, which I thought was fascinating.The interview has two governors from the same Democratic Party who are supporting two different candidates for the nomination. The first is Governor James Doyle from Wisconsin (pictured to left above) who is supporting Sen. Barack Obama for the Demorcatic Presidential nomination. The second is Governor Ted Strickland from Ohio (pictured to right above) who is supporting Sen. Hillary Clinton. I have particular interest in this because Gov. Strickland was my congressman before being elected to the Governor's Mansion.Even if you don't know anything about politics or don't care about politics, I encourage you to check out this eight and a half minute interview. I think it will summarize ...
More About: Orders

Influenza Case Study: ME
2008-02-16 22:01:00
The following is a anecdotal case study of a guy who has influenza. I apologize in advance for the long post. But, if you want to know how it feels to have influenza, read on. As you can see from the graphic above from The Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, the flu epidemic is practically nationwide.Here's my story. I was on call the day before Valentine's Day. A typical busy day and night - having to go back and forth into the emergency room to see people. While making rounds on Valentine's Day, I was talking with some people who said the hospital was starting to see cases of influenza. Of course, those words passed right by me because I got my flu shot last fall.A few hours before the worst. show. ever., I was starting to feel some muscle aches in my legs. And, then, I was feeling pretty tired. But, I always feel tired after being on call. I mean, you hardly get any sleep. I was hoping to sleep things off and feel better in the morning.The next morning comes, and the mu...
More About: Study , Influenza , Case

Worst. Show. Ever.
2008-02-15 04:31:00
I'm so mad right now that - that - I don't know what I could do. I'm just venting. You know this is what happens when I really try to promote a show. The problem started from the first minute. There was this annoying echo that I could hear. At first, I thought that one of my guests was causing the feedback, but it wasn't.The echo really threw me off for the entire show. It felt like I was in a tunnel for the entire thing. Thanks so much to Dr. Val, Jenni, and Crzegrl for sticking with things and wanting to go forward with the show. Thanks also to Mother Jones who called into the show to add some banter.What we found out later was that the audio from my show was cutting into the audio of another show. The host of the other show called in and explained the problem. Seemed like a pleasant chap, but what I found out later was that they were encouraging people to get into my chat room and call in to disrupt the show - that's not cool.I haven't heard the audio yet from the other sho...
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Estrofest Live TONIGHT
2008-02-14 13:01:00
Thursday, February 14th, 2008 at 9pm Eastern Time Finally, officially, Happy Valentine's Day, everybody. Don't forget to join us tonight for The Doctor Anonymous Show for the Valentine's Day Estrofest. What is it and how did it come about? Well, Dr. Val, one of our panelists tonight explains it in this post. Also, scheduled to be on the show will be Jenni from ChronicBabe.com, Crzegrl, and EE. Who knows what we are going to talk about? You'll just have to tune in to find out! Also, take part in the chat room, which is the "show within the show." A great opportunity to interact with medbloggers you've only read about. You can even call into the show to talk and/or ask a question. See you tonight! For first time Blog Talk Radio listeners: *Although it is not required to listen to the show, I encourage you to register on the BlogTalkRadio site prior to the show. I think it will make the process easier. *To get to my show site, click here. As show time gets closer, keep hittin...
More About: Live , Tonight

Fewer Primary Care Docs
2008-02-13 06:01:00
In a shocking report (not really) released by the General Accountability Office (ie - the US federal government), they stated that there are fewer primary care docs now than there was about 10 years ago. The first thing I have to comment about is the name - "General Accountability?" - What's up with that? To whom are they accountable? Let me answer that - nobody!Anyway, in this Associated Press article, the report goes on to say that in 2006, there were about 22, 146 American docs in residency programs across the United States. In 1995 (when I was in medical school), the number was about 23, 801. For the next few years after that, the number plateaued. Then, right when I graduated is when the fall started to happen."It is troubling to me that the number of Americans pursuing a career in primary care has declined," said Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. Overall growth in the number of primary-care physicians "has been totally due to the number of international medical students training in ...
More About: Care , Primary

Grand Rounds
2008-02-12 23:01:00
Grand Rounds 4.21 is now up and running over at HealthBlawg: David Harlow's Health Care Law Blog. If you can believe it, this is a health care lawyer and consultant handling GR this week. But, not to worry, this Valentine's Day edition is well done.In fact, it is so well done, that I have a post in this week's Grand Rounds, and I didn't even know it. On Sunday afternoon, I wrote the post called "Love Hormone," and I thought that it would be a great edition to GR. But, when I looked at the deadline, I read that I missed it. So, being a past GR host, I remember how annoyed I was when people tried to e-mail me something past the deadline.But, this morning, I was checking my stats and found that I was getting referrals from this week's GR site. When I clicked over there, I was pleasantly surprised to find the following link to my blog (and even more pleasantly surprised to find it in the top 1/3 of the post - great location!)Dr. Anonymous is blogging about "the love hormone" and wi...
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Happy Valentine's Day
2008-02-12 06:01:00
Welcome back to love week here on the blog. Yes, I know, Valentine's Day is not for a couple of days. But, why not try to start a little discussion on this topic. In my video post above, I talk a little bit about the "controversy" surrounding Valentine's Day. I think that asking people about Valentine's Day is more controversial than asking people about politics or religion.Do you think I'm kidding? Well, ask someone about Valentine's Day and leave me a comment about your experience. I've encountered either really happy people or really bitter people. Let me know what you find out when you ask people.Finally, direct from the category of over-promotion, I'm going again to tell everybody about the Valentine's Day Estrofest on The Doctor Anonymous Show - Thursday, February 14th at 9pm eastern time. It's going to be a great time. Get ready to be in the chat room and even call into the show. You don't need a date. Come as you are. See you then!
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Love Tragedy
2008-02-11 16:51:00
Welcome back to "love week" here on The Doctor Anonymous blog. Unfortunately, this is going go be a bad news post. In fact, quite a tragedy. I didn't believe it the first time I read this story. A bride has a dream being like the movie, "My Big Fat Greek Wedding." I've seen the film - good stuff.According to this Associated Press story, here is what happened...Kim Sjostrom carried blue and white flowers during the ceremony ? the colors of the Greek flag ? as she exchanged vows with Teddy Efkarpides, a 43-year-old carpenter and Navy veteran. They had met three years to the day before the Jan. 19 wedding.During the couple's first dance, Sjostrom complained of being lightheaded. Efkarpides thought his wife, a diabetic, needed sugar, but she collapsed. Wedding guests, paramedics and doctors at a nearby hospital were unable to revive her.My heart just goes out to this groom and the families involved. What a sad story.....
More About: Love , Tragedy

The Love Hormone
2008-02-10 22:31:00
Ok, first of all, this is not a spam post. And, I have not become a spokesman for the latest craze in the treatment of sexual problems. But, you are reading this post, aren't ya? So, here's what this is about.Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine are theorizing that the hormone oxytocin can be used in the treatment of disorders like schizophrenia, autism, and anxiety. In quoting this UPI article, oxytocin "is a brain chemical associated with pair bonding, including mother-infant and male-female bonds and increased paternal involvement with children.""That's why oxytocin is sometimes called 'the love hormone,'" [researcher Dr. Kai] MacDonald in a statement. "It's said that the eyes are the window to the soul ... they certainly are the window to the emotional brain. We know that the eye-to-eye communication -- which is affected by oxytocin -- is critical to intimate emotional communication for all kind of emotions -- love, fear, trust, anxiety...
More About: Love

Welcome back Cathy!
2008-02-10 00:31:00
A few weeks ago, I was saddened to find that Cathy 's Place to Blog was closed. I'm happy to report that Cathy has reopened her blog and wrote a new post yesterday. Welcome back, Cathy! Please click here, drop by, and welcome her back to blogging.Thanks again for everyone who have listened to the show Thursday night with Dr. Schwab. I also appreciate the posts written about the show including from SeaSpray, EricThePragmatic, and Sid Schwab himself. Oops, I forgot Suture for a Living. Look out for next week. I already appreciate the promos that have already been written by Dr. Val, Crzegrl, and the Chronic Babe newsletter. Spread the word. This is going to be a fun show!
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Sid Schwab Show: Epilogue
2008-02-08 07:01:00
Thanks so much to Sid Schwab for being on the show. It was a really fun interview. (video post above) We probably could have talked for another hour. I'll definitely have to bring him back on the show. There was talk in the chat room about bringing Mrs. Sid onto the next show. So, that should be interesting.We talked about how be chose general surgery as a career. He also shared some stories from medical school, residency, and his 25 years of practice. At the end of the show, we briefly talked about his book: Cutting Remarks: Insights and Recollections of a Surgeon.The chat room was as busy as it has ever been -at times as many as 22 people chatting. So, if you have never listened to the show live - you are missing "the show within the show." I did have a few small technical glitches, but I don't think that it affected the audio at all (you can let me know otherwise).Thanks so much to the people who called in as well. Bongi called in all the way from South Africa where is was 4am....
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Dr. A live TONIGHT
2008-02-07 07:01:00
Thursday, February 7th, 2008 at 9pm Eastern TimeJoin us tonight for Sid Schwab. At the bottom on this post, you'll see an embed from ustream.tv. This week, BlogTalkRadio has been very interesting in that the sound has not been ideal. Some shows sound like they were under water they sounded so bad. Hopefully, that won't happen to me or my guest. We'll see what happens this week.Take part in the chat room, which is the "show within the show." A great opportunity to interact with medbloggers you've only read about. You can even call into the show to talk and/or ask a question. See you tonight!For first time Blog Talk Radio listeners:*Although it is not required to listen to the show, I encourage you to register on the BlogTalkRadio site prior to the show. I think it will make the process easier.*To get to my show site, click here. As show time gets closer, keep hitting "refresh" on your browser until you see the "Click to Listen" button. Then, of course, press the "Click to Listen"...
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"Normal" sugars may harm diabetics
2008-02-07 05:16:00
I can't even imagine having diabetes. Every day, I talk with and take care of patients with diabetes. I'm just fascinated with the technology out there to monitor blood sugars and to deliver insulin. No longer are just the syringe and the needle. There are stuff like pre-filled insulin pens and even insulin pumps that can deliver the medicine now.In diabetes treatment, the current thinking has always been to push your average sugar level to a lower and lower number. Now, I'm not talking about too low - like hypoglycemia - but a lower Hemoglobin AIC level (the three month blood sugar level).In what can be characterized as a stunning move, a federal government study had to be stopped because of deaths NOT due to HIGH blood sugar levels - but because of possible too LOW blood sugar levels (Associated Press)The government abruptly halted aggressive treatment in a major study of diabetes and heart disease after a surprising number of deaths among patients who pushed their blood sugar ...
More About: Harm , Sugars , Normal

Virtual Office Visits? Not Really
2008-02-07 04:35:00
A friend of mine sent me a link today in which the article uses the term "virtual office visit." What comes to your mind when you hear this phrase? Well, to me, this sounds like you type in your symptoms, the doc makes a diagnosis and sends a prescription to the pharmacy for you to pick up. Simple, right?Well, not really. Again, this is a case of the press inaccurately describing something in the text article. If you watch the video clip, it's from a national morning news show. In the video piece, the anchor and the medical reporter talk about a computer program. Yes, a computer program. No, the computer doesn't diagnose and treat.This program actually is a communication piece between the physician and the patient. I see it as a tool to be used to communicate things like routine lab work. One of the goals at the physician's office is to try to find a way to cut down on the number of phone calls.We see this every day. You want to let the patient know that she/he has normal blood t...
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The Sid Schwab Interview
2008-02-06 06:01:00
This week The Doctor Anonymous Show welcomes one of the most widely read medical bloggers around: Sidney M Schwab , MD. He is author of the blog Surgeonsblog: Wherein a surgeon tells some stories, shares some thoughts, and occasionally shoots off his mouth. Like a surgeon. Now, not only does Sid have a blog, he also has a podcast in which he reads parts of his book. I encourage you to check it out. Also, if you're never read anything by this guy before, check out the disclaimer on his blog below, and that's a great start:What I say here is as true as I can make it, based on my experience as a surgeon. Still, in no way is it intended as specific medical advice for any condition. For that, you need to consult your own doctors, who actually know you. I hope you'll find things of interest and amusement here; maybe useful information. But please, please, PLEASE understand: this blog ought not be used in any way to provide the reader with ideas about diagnosis or treatment of any sympto...
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Personal Health Record
2008-02-05 06:01:00
In addition to EMR (electronic medical record) and EHR (electronic health record), the latest three letter acronym in this area is PHR - or, personal health record. These are described in a February 4th article from the Associated Press. What's intriguing about PHRs is that they are patient-driven.Everyone has heard of computer tax preparation software. Well, why not a health record created and maintained, not my doctors or hospitals, but by patients. Hmmmmm...... The article does take a shot at doctors for being slow to accept electronic records (although I do agree that docs have been slow to adapt certain technologies).Doctors have been slow to switch from error-prone paper records to digital ones, so the trend promises to empower patients to take matters into their own computers.From the front lines of American health care, I do admit that - every day - I have people bring in their blood sugar log or blood pressure log. They keep track of it on excel or other spread sheet progr...
More About: Personal , Health , Record

Dr. A on the road: Day 4
2008-02-01 06:31:00
I just arrived home a couple of hours ago. It's taken a while unpacking and getting ready for work on Friday. And, how it's time to tell you what happened on Thursday - and what a day! We had our final site visit, which I found very valuable. I'm still processing the information that I have learned.The exciting part of the day happened after that. When we got to the Cincinnati airport, we saw that our flight was on time. Our final destination is our home airport of Pittsburgh, but to get there we had to fly west to Chicago and then east to Pittsburgh. In the early afternoon, we started hearing reports that Chicago was getting hit with a snowstorm.Right when our team got to the gate, we learned that our flight into Chicago was going to be delayed. I started getting stressed out at that point. I was starting to think that even if we got to Chicago, would we be able to get out of there and back home? Or, would our flight out of Chicago be delayed, or even cancelled.After discussion,...
More About: Road , On The Road , The Road

I'm featured on Viddler!
2008-02-01 04:43:00
I just got home from my week long trip (I'll be talking more about that soon). I just checked my inbox and found a message that my Super Bowl video is right now being featured on Viddler's front page. YAY! If it is no longer there, you can always click here or here to also check it out.Thanks so much to Viddler for featuring my video. I definitely recommend this site to anyone out there who is doing or is considering doing video blog posts. This is a great site, pretty easy to use and navigate, and the community over there is fabulous. "Me Todays" are fun and I'm looking forward to doing more of them in the future!
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Dr. A on the road: Day 3
2008-01-31 15:31:00
I finally go home later today - YAY! Since, there is no radio show this week, I (kind of) substituted this with the video post above (even with my phrase, "Beyond the Blog" included. This is also a video I'm including in the Viddler "Me Today" group.The travel day was surprisingly calm and efficient on yesterday. As I remarked in yesterday's post, I thought that we would definitely have problems going into and/or getting out of Chicago. Fortunately, the weather cooperated, and I think we arrived in Cincinnati on time.After a quick break at the hotel, our group went to dinner at a place called Newport on the Levee which is actually on the "Kentucky" side of Cincinnati. The restaurant was called Mitchell's Fish Market - excellent food. Great food and great company. That complex looks relatively newly built. I wish I had more time tonight to explore more of that place. Oh well, maybe another time.One more site visit this morning. It'll only be a quick visit, and then the journey ho...
More About: Road , On The Road , The Road

Dr. A on the road: Day 2
2008-01-30 14:59:00
I recorded this quick video this morning before leaving the hotel. (See video above) I apologize up front, because since I have little time this morning, the video quality may not be that great. I had to sacrifice quality for time, so the images may not be as clear as previous videos. When I get to my final destination today, I'll may re-encode the video and may re-post it later.Anyway, I know people are curious about my comments about the electronic medical record. In talking with these people from our site visit yesterday. I have a little better understanding of kind of what happened. Initially, the marketing on EMR was similar to other computer products - computers will make the life of a doctor easier and will save time.Well, that may not necessarily be the case, at least initially. There is definitely a learning curve, and it may take more time to see a patient than just using paper. And, until you really learn the system, it may make things much more complicated than what yo...
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