Tai chi and fibromyalgia in the New England Journal of Medicine: An “alternative” frame succeeds
It never seems to fail. I go away for a few days, in this case to combine fun with pleasure and pleasure with fun by giving a talk to the Chicago Skeptics and at the same time meeting my brand new (well, by this time three weeks old) nephew for the first time, and something always happens. Before I get to what...
Peer Review and the Internet
Peer-review has been the cornerstone of quality control in academia, including science and medicine, for the past century. The process is slow and laborious, but a necessary filter in order to maintain a certain standard within the literature. Yet more and more scholars are recognizing the speed, immediacy, and openness of the internet as a tool for exchanging ideas and information, and...
Antioxidant Supplements for Macular Degeneration
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is one of the major causes of visual impairment in the elderly: it affects central vision, impairing the ability to read and recognize faces while preserving some peripheral vision. It comes in two forms: wet and dry. Dry macular degeneration is by far more common, but wet macular degeneration, involving the proliferation of blood vessels, is more severe. ...
High Fructose Corn Syrup: Tasty Toxin or Slandered Sweetener?
The perils of fructose: High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) has, over the past few decades, gradually displaced cane and beet sugar as the sweetener of choice for soft drinks, candy and prepared foods. In recent years, there have been a growing number claims that HFCS is a significant health risk to consumers, responsible for obesity, diabetes, heart disease and a wide variety of...
Does peer review need fixing?
One of the most important aspects of science is the publication of scientific results in peer-reviewed journals. This publication serves several purposes, the most important of which is to communicated experimental results to other scientists, allowing other scientists to replicate, build on, and in many cases find errors in the results. In the ideal situation, this communication results in the steady progress...
How to make a difference – Responsible vaccine advocacy
I lost a patient this season, an infant, to pertussis. After falling ill he lived for nearly a month in the intensive care unit on a ventilator, three weeks of which was spent on a heart/lung bypass machine (ECMO) due to the extent of the damage to his lungs, but all our efforts were in vain. The most aggressive and advanced care...
Medical Science and Public Opinion: The Avandia Story
The week of 12-16 July saw an FDA Advisory Panel meet to decide the fate of an important drug. Along the way, the FDA charted new territory in using drug comparisons to judge safety, amidst external allegations of corporate malfeasance and patient harm. Avandia, or rosiglitazone, is one of a new class of anti-diabetes drugs approved for marketing by the FDA in...
Pertussis Epidemic 2010
Bordetella pertussis is the bacterium that causes whooping cough – the main clinical feature of which is a severe lingering cough that can last for weeks or even months. Right now we are in the midst of an epidemic of pertussis cropping up in pockets throughout the US, most notable California. According to the CDC: During January 1– June 30, 2010, a...
Testosterone: Not an Anti-Aging Panacea
On the car radio, I have several times happened upon “infomercial” programs touting the benefits of testosterone replacement therapy for men, broadcast by doctors who specialize in prescribing the drugs. They have lots of wonderful stories about men who feel younger, happier, and more vigorous because of their macho remedies. It’s a tribute to the power of the placebo. I have been...
Dr. Gorski to be speaking at the Chicago Skeptics on Saturday
The week is finally here! Believe it or not, I’m heading back to my old stomping grounds in the 1990s to appear as a guest of the Chicago Skeptics. This Saturday, August 21, I’ll be giving a talk co-sponsored by Chicago Skeptics, Women Thinking Free Foundation, and the Center For Inquiry-Chicago at the Black Rock Pub & Kitchen. My talk will be...