Primary Care
March 24, 2018
The Fascinating Arithmetic of Guns in the U.S.
In the midst of the marches against gun violence, the Boston Globe special section pointed out the 78% of Americans don't own guns, but 3% of Americans own over half of all guns. We do some arithmetic with those numbers.
March 24, 2018
Boostrix, a New TdaP for Grandparents
Boostrix is a new TdaP vaccine that has been approved for patients over 65 for protection against whooping cough. It's another tool in the vaccine armamentarium.
March 21, 2018
Thoughts on Recreational Marijuana and Alcohol
Modest use of marijuana or alcohol is unlikely to be physically harmful, unlike heavy use. Teenagers should not use either. The recreational marijuana statute heightens the concern about how to protect teenagers from marijuana.
March 5, 2018
Silky Smooth “Almondmilk”? Really?
So-called "almondmilk" is not milk but an emulsion of a few almonds in water combined with chalk and vitamins. Let's look through the marketing haze to find the facts.
February 18, 2018
Fish Oil Supplements Do Not Help Humans
Fish oil supplements do not prevent damage or death from heart disease or strokes, according to a new meta-analysis in JAMA Cardiology. But salmon is tasty.
January 14, 2018
Stairs Can Hurt You at Home
Stairs at home can be dangerous and are a frequent source of significant injury.
January 13, 2018
Drugs From Canada
Canadian pharmacies sometimes provide needed first-quality drugs at greatly reduced prices. GoodRx helps find drugs inexpensively at local pharmacies.
December 6, 2017
Shingrix: New! Improved! Shingles Vaccine Coming
Shingrix is a new highly effective vaccine for shingles (herpes zoster) infections that has been approved by the FDA and will be available early in 2018. We plan to offer it to everyone over age 50, including those of you who have had Zostavax or had the shingles infection. Shingles is chicken-pox revisited.
March 6, 2017
Lowering the Bar on Blood Pressure
Recent SPRINT study showed that lowering the goal for treatment of high blood pressure to 120 systolic substantially reduced death from heart disease and stroke compared to older target of 140 systolic in older adults.
March 1, 2015
Prescriptions and Prior Authorizations
Getting you the medication I prescribe or you want often takes more time and energy because of drug formularies and obstacles such as "prior authorizations." You should be aware of how complex it can be for all of us.
February 2, 2015
Salt, More Salt, Yet Again
Another study demonstrates that salt-restricted diets are not needed for most people in their 70's. People with important heart and kidney disease are another story.
January 31, 2015
Benadryl, Amitriptyline May Promote Dementia
Common drugs with anticholinergic properties (such as older antihistamines, many antidepressants, and antispasmodics for the bladder and intestine, may impair memory and promote dementia if used for long periods.