Dear Dr. Lakin, In this morning’s NY Times (Science section), there was an article reporting the results of “… a Swedish study that followed 61,433 women born between 1914 and 1948 for an average of 19 years. After controlling for physical activity, education, smoking, alcohol and other dietary factors, they found that women who consumed 1,400 …
Aspirin may be among the topics most discussed in these pages and today there is another study on aspirin, this time looking at coated aspirin and perhaps it’s reduced effectiveness compared to plain aspirin. I think most people use coated aspirin now as it is the type most advertised, and it does provide some benefit …
More and more medications are being manufactured in India and these are produced safely and without concern. This week, the LA TIMES reported that there is a recall of bottles of Lipitor 20 and 40mg tablets manufactured by Ranbaxy. The reason for recall is small particles of glass in the medications (which is a reason …
Meta Analysis is a term that refers to a study that develops conclusions by combining the data and results from several studies. By employing statistical methods that are valid, the researchers essentially create new conclusions from a variety of data from different studies. The recent study of Omega-3 Fatty Acids is one such study. This …
A recent study of implanted defibrillator heart devices, also known as an AICD, calls into question the safety of the wires (leads) on St. Jude Medical’s Durata and Riata implanted devices. This a device meant to ‘shock’ the heart out of dangerous or life-threatening arrhythmia. (It is not a pacemaker…a much more commonly used device.) …
Recent reports have confirmed that statin medications, like Zocor and Lipitor, do increased a person’s risk for developing diabetes over their lifetime. This is an important issue and any negatives from the medication need to be weighed against their positives. For cholesterol medications, in most instances, the benefits ‘do’ outweigh the negatives. A recent study …
Good news for patients treated with hormone deprivation therapy for their prostate cancer…..There is no increase risk in heart disease rate from this treatment. This is an important finding and is documented in a 10-year follow-up study out of Sweden. There has been concern that removing male hormone effects, might have a negative effect on …
Prozac is a very effective medication in helping with decreased mood, severe depression, and anxiety. Often these conditions accompany stressful life issues….like when someone has a heart attack. A recent study from Canada, involving 27.000 patients, showed that Prozac, and other SSRI (anti-depressant medications like Zoloft, Lexapro, etc….) and increase the risk of bleeding issues …
