I am riled up—almost to the point of being inflamed. I hate it when doctors get dragged through the mud. It’s a matter of pride. Doctors are my team. The latest kerfuffle centers on how much we should charge for return patient visits. The difference here is between moderate and moderately high visits–or about 30$. […]
I say it over and over again. I urge, cajole and yes, sometimes even plead. It’s the small choices that add up… …to good outcomes. Outcomes? That’s the thing. It could be good health measures like lower blood pressure or boastful cholesterol levels, or it could be successful cycling results. Small choices. Little things. Not […]
The old thinking had obesity only indirectly involved with atrial fibrillation. That is, fatness perpetuated AF because the extra weight led to other conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes and sleep disorders. Emerging data paint a gloomier a picture for patients with high body fat composition. It looks like fatness itself has direct and negative […]
On the matter of how (or if) work stress relates to heart disease, there was a very large and well-publicized study released last week in the Lancet. Its results speak to the obvious, which of course draws me in. It got me thinking about what I see every day in the office. I posted some […]
Here’s what I was learning: secrets are poison. They suck the life out of you, they steal your ability to live in the present, they build walls between you and the people you love. Tyler Hamilton, The Secret Race It seems frivolous at times: to be so rabid a fan that I would actually take […]
Last evening, on a ride, I asked Staci, my wife, what was a good example of being in the middle of something and not being able to see it. She came through beautifully. I was thinking about healthcare. Here we are in the midst of all this fury, seeing people through acute illnesses with wizard-like […]
I have some truths to talk about tonight. Truth and doping: The dwindling few who still apply magical thinking to cycling were tested again today. Whether you believe Tyler Hamilton’s, now-I-am-really-telling-the-truth story on doping in professional cycling will depend on how you weigh the almost 300 pages of evidence. I plan to read the book […]
In Louisville, each Labor Day and Memorial Day, our government embraces health. The Mayor’s Hike, Bike and Paddle turns our Southeastern city into something, well…something that looks a little Euro. Riding with thousands of Kentuckians just days after returning from Munich Germany got me thinking about stuff. Things like walking places, riding bikes safely, public […]
May I tiptoe onto a ledge for a moment? Some (just-back-from-Europe) thoughts on health care policy, perhaps? One of the many differences between the European Society of Cardiology Congress and a typical American cardiology meeting was the scarcity of healthcare policy sessions at ESC. That’s hard to explain; perhaps European countries are settled on their […]
Greetings from Munich Germany. Today was the last day of the European Society of Cardiology Congress. I had a great time, learned a ton and met an amazing group of medical journalists from theHeart.org. On the last day, I decided to attend a bit ‘softer’ session. Provocatively titled, A drinker, rather than a smoker, is […]
There was a lively debate on this topic at ESC 2012. One of the strategies proposed to reduce stroke in AF involves occlusion of the sack-like structure called the left atrial appendage. Two devices are being evaluated and nearing consideration for approval. There is a great deal of debate on these devices. Here is my […]