Medical Lessons

A Vitamin Chart From the National Women’s Health Information Center

February 23, 2011May 28, 2012 Elaine Schattner, MD

Lately I’ve been worrying about Kevin’s refusal to eat broccoli, and wondering what exactly is so good about those green bunches of roughage. In browsing the Web for more detailed information on the matter, I found a helpful vitamin chart.

This table comes from the HHS-sponsored National Women’s Health Information Center – a good spot to know of if you’re a woman looking on-line for reliable sources. It’s a bit simple for my taste. In the intro, we’re told there are 13 essential vitamins our bodies need. After some basics on Vitamin A – good for the eyes and skin, as you probably knew already – the chart picks up with a quick review of the essential B vitamins 1,2,3,5,6, 9 and 12 (my favorite), followed by a rundown on Vitamins C, D, E, H (that would be biotin) and K:

Posted in Homemaking, Nutrition, Wednesday Web SightingTagged broccoli, cooking, National Women's Health Information Center, nutrition, Public Health, vitamins3 Comments

May I Call You ‘Doctor’?

February 22, 2011December 8, 2012 Elaine Schattner, MD

Last week I considered the relationship between the Prince Albert and his speech therapist in The King’s Speech. One aspect I wanted to explore further is why the future king initially insisted on calling the practitioner “doctor.” In real life, now, patient-doctor relationships can be topsy-turvy. This change comes partly a function of a greater […]

Posted in Communication, Empowered Patient, Life as a Doctor, Life as a Patient, Movies, Patient-Doctor RelationshipTagged call me doctor, doctor term, doctor-patient relationship, first-name basis, how to refer to a physician, movie, patient-doctor relationship, respect for physicians, the King's speech2 Comments

New Numbers Should Factor Into the Mammography Equation

February 21, 2011February 24, 2011 Elaine Schattner, MD

On Friday the New York Times reported that surgeons are performing far too many open breast biopsies to evaluate abnormal mammogram results. A new American Journal of Surgery article analyzed data for 172,342 outpatient breast biopsies in the state of Florida. The main finding is that between 2003 and 2008, surgeons performed open biopsies in an operating room – as opposed to less invasive, safer biopsies with needles – in 30 percent of women with abnormal breast images.

I was truly surprised by this should-be outdated statistic, which further tips the mammography math equation in favor or screening.

Posted in Breast Cancer, cancer screening, health care costs, Medical News, Oncology (cancer)Tagged breast biopsy, breast cancer screening, health care costs, mammography, mammography math, needle biopsies, outdated medical practice, surgical biopsyLeave a Comment

Stunning Comments on the Risk of Breast Implants, and Cancer

February 18, 2011May 28, 2012 Elaine Schattner, MD

The FDA recently identified a link between breast implants and a rare form of lymphoma. From today’s report in the New York Times: When talking to patients about a rare type of cancer linked to breast implants, plastic surgeons should call it “a condition” and avoid using the words cancer, tumor, disease or malignancy, the […]

Posted in Breast Cancer, Communication, Informed Consent, language, Oncology (cancer), Patient Autonomy, Plastic and Reconstructive SurgeryTagged anaplastic large cell lymphoma, breast implants, cancer terms, communication in medicine, fear of cancer, informed consent, lymphoma, Oncology (cancer), reconstructive surgeryLeave a Comment

A New Source of Potential Error in Scientific Research

February 17, 2011May 28, 2012 Elaine Schattner, MD

In today’s Times, Nicholas Wade reports on a potentially serious, besides costly, problem for biomedical researchers: Human DNA Contamination Seen in Genome Databases. He writes: Nearly 20 percent of the nonhuman genomes held in computer databases are contaminated with human DNA, presumably from the researchers who prepared the samples, say scientists who chanced upon the […]

Posted in Genetics, ScienceTagged DNA, DNA sequences, genome, laboratory research, NCBI, PLoS report, research, science news, scientific errorsLeave a Comment

A Glimpse into the Cochrane Library

February 16, 2011February 16, 2011 Elaine Schattner, MD

I’m taking notes on the Cochrane Library. The site – a collection of databases and reviews – drew my attention yesterday when an embargo was breached for an article to be published there having to do with zinc’s putative power to squelch the common cold. From the website, published John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.: the […]

Posted in Epidemiology, Medical History, Wednesday Web SightingTagged Cochrane Collaboration, Cochrane Library, Cochrane Reviews, library, medical information, Professor Archibald Leman Cochrane, Web resourceLeave a Comment

The King’s Speech is Not Just About Stuttering

February 14, 2011May 28, 2012 Elaine Schattner, MD

Over the weekend I went to see the King’s Speech. So far the film, featuring Colin Firth as a soon-to-be-King-of-England with a speech impediment, and Geoffrey Rush as his ill-credentialed but trusted speech therapist, has earned top critics’ awards and 12 Oscar nominations. This is a movie that’s hard not to like for one reason […]

Posted in Communication, Medical History, Movies, Patient-Doctor Relationship, ReviewsTagged cigarettes, Colin Firth, credentials, doctor-patient relationship, Geoffrey Rush, movie, review, speech therapy, stuttering, the King's speech, trust2 Comments

Quote of the Day, on Health and Discrimination in Hiring

February 11, 2011February 11, 2011 Elaine Schattner, MD

From an article in today’s New York Times on hiring discrimination against people who smoke: “There is nothing unique about smoking,” said Lewis Maltby, president of the Workrights Institute, who has lobbied vigorously against the practice. “The number of things that we all do privately that have negative impact on our health is endless. If […]

Posted in health care costs, Life, Patient Autonomy, Privacy, Public Health, Quote of the DayTagged chronic illness, disability, discrimination, hiring practices, insurance costs, self-destructive behavior, smoking bansLeave a Comment

More News On Lymph Nodes and Breast Cancer Surgery

February 10, 2011February 13, 2011 Elaine Schattner, MD

Last week the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) printed a major research article on lymph node dissection in breast cancer surgery. When I first saw the Times’ recent headline, I thought it would cover this paper: Effect of Occult Metastases on Survival in Node-Negative Breast Cancer.*

It turns out there were separate articles on axillary node dissection after sentinel node biopsy in breast cancer – one in JAMA and one in the NEJM – published a week apart. For some reason, the NEJM paper got little attention…

Posted in Breast Cancer, cancer treatment, Oncology (cancer), Pathology, Under the RadarTagged Breast Cancer, lymph nodes, metastases, occult mets, prognosis, sentinel node dissection, surgery, treatment options, Women's HealthLeave a Comment

Breast Cancer Study Shows No Benefit In Extensive Lymph Node Removal

February 9, 2011February 11, 2011 Elaine Schattner, MD

Today’s Times leads with a story on surgical removal of lymph nodes in women with breast cancer. The dramatic digital headline, Lymph Node Study Shakes Pillar of Breast Cancer Care, made me tremble at first glance. The article by Denise Grady covers a new report* in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

The key finding is that for women with apparently limited disease before surgery who undergo subsequent radiation and chemotherapy, taking out all the cancerous nodes from the axilla (armpit) has no advantage.

I read the original publication and took some notes:

Posted in Breast Cancer, cancer treatment, Medical News, Oncology (cancer)Tagged axillary lymph nodes, Breast Cancer, lymphedema, prognosis, sentinel node dissection, surgical treatment, survivalLeave a Comment

Medical Lessons

Medical Lessons

A Vitamin Chart From the National Women’s Health Information Center

May I Call You ‘Doctor’?

New Numbers Should Factor Into the Mammography Equation

A New Source of Potential Error in Scientific Research

A Glimpse into the Cochrane Library

The King’s Speech is Not Just About Stuttering

Quote of the Day, on Health and Discrimination in Hiring

More News On Lymph Nodes and Breast Cancer Surgery

Breast Cancer Study Shows No Benefit In Extensive Lymph Node Removal

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