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Archive for the ‘Cardiology -Patient page’ Category

Sailing the Osler’s ship of medicine in the third millennium

Posted in bio ethics, Cardiology -Patient page, cardiology -Therapeutics, Clinical cardiology, general medicine, Medical education, Medical ethics, medical quotes, Two line sermons in cardiology, tagged , , , , , , , on March 31, 2021|

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Yes, Its official , medical mistakes consume more human lives . . . and threaten to displace cancer and heart disease for the top honor !

Posted in bio ethics, Cardiology -guidelines, Cardiology -Patient page, cardiology -Preventive, Cardiology quotes, medical quotes, Uncategorized on May 5, 2016| Leave a Comment »

We all know to err is human , but most of us probably won’t agree medical mistakes , (bulk of which happen in the name of practicing state of the art of science ! ) could be the dominant theme in modern medical care !

BMJ exposes this  well known secret with the help of most authentic data from an apex scientific body CDC , Atlanta .

Reference

http://www.bmj.com/content/353/bmj.i2139#

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Why big doctors adore “science” more than their patients ?

Posted in bio ethics, Cardiology -Emerging technology, Cardiology -guidelines, Cardiology -Interventional -PCI, Cardiology -Patient page, Cardiology -Therapeutic dilemma, Cardiology -unresolved questions, medical quotes, tagged , , , on August 31, 2014| Leave a Comment »

As the medical care advances  human care  has taken the back seat. It is said super specialists  read more and more about less and less ! In the  process they  fail to see the  patients  as a single biological unit  instead as collection of organs .

While  organs in turn are looked as  pile of data.Hence the  treatment they provide lack the soul !

In the prevailing circumstances , how do we ensure  modern medicine  does not interfere with  these vulnerable souls,either to live in peace or leave in peace ?

Medical Ethics

Image : Source and Courtesy of http://illuminationstudios.com

It appears doctors are not at fault . The system is  biased towards raw science .Highly trained  doctors are tied down by  both  true and pseudo  scientific Intellect .Often  times they are compelled to do some procedure or interventions  just to  justify  the  premier status of the hospital  .While few do it  to show off  their expertise or  to impress  their peers   others are simply bound by rigid and obsessive  protocols and guidelines . Few others do it  for the burning  desire  of  scientific accomplishment .

One can offer hundred reasons for doing a procedure . . . but we always struggle to justify  with a valid reason for not doing a investigation or  procedure !

In fact , the  concept of appropriateness  criteria came out with good intention .But , it had failed miserably.

The irony is  . . . we need to indulge in something to avoid something.

Example 1 If homocystiene and  hsCRP vanish from the CAD screening industry   Adiponectin and Vitamin D3 comes in with a thunderous applause like a new Hollywood movie  !

Example 2: In cath lab  for leaving alone an insignificant  coronary stenosis , we have to do  another procedure  called FFR to satisfy  scientific ego ! (I know one senior doctor , who left a 80% LAD  lesion for medical management without FFR ( with all his clinical acumen )  was ridiculed for being unscientific !)

Here is a recent perspective article NEJM has discussed  this  important issue that plague us

Why should big  Tertiary  teaching hospital  are  flooded  with super specialists  which by default shun basic human care ?

Read this article*

Super specialist tertiary care hospital NEJM

*The article I have quoted  may  not  be completely relevant here  . . . It  answers  few of the queries raised!

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Remove “the style” in life . . . and get rid of CAD !

Posted in bio ethics, Cardiology -Patient page, cardiology -Preventive, cardiology -Therapeutics, Cardiology classics, Cardiology Risk assesment, tagged , , , on August 17, 2014|

Coronary artery disease (CAD)  is man-kind’s  greatest threat in modern times.CAD ,diabetes ,Hypertension, obesity, mental illness  has become an epidemic  even among the young !

 

Lifestyle diseases cad risk smoking alcohol

There is a simple solution for  lifestyle diseases !

Just  . . .  Remove style from your life !

lifestyle diseases coroanry cardiology medical ethics inappropriate stents over treatment excess medical care , bio ethics,

Instead . . . try to live like these  Tibetian villagers

life purpose of living

Final message

One study which researched all lives who crossed 100 Years  concluded something like this !

“To live a longer and healthy life* ,Get up early  , have a purposeful daily chore that must include a physical component , work with conscience ,love every one sync with the nature and  lastly and most importantly remove style from your life !

Choose  your life . . . It is simply there in your hand for grabs !

Post-amble.

* Please note , Doctors  are never listed in the top with relevance to health of mankind  ! They simply cure some illness !

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Platelets , Pride and Plavix . . .

Posted in bio ethics, Cardiology -Patient page, Cardiology quotes, tagged , , , , , on August 31, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Platelets are humble blood cells that  roam  in clusters and guard  against  any  bleeding in internal organs. Though it has natural powers to regulate itself  against aggregation at inappropriate sites , certain high risk individuals need to take these drugs to prevent cardiac event. Patients  who harbor intra-coronary foreign bodies like stents  need more intense antiplatelet  regimens.

We have variety of antiplatlet drugs. Aspirin does it  by blocking  COX. It is irreversible .Clopidgrel does this differently by inhibiting  P2 Y12 receptors .Clopidogrel has been used extensively in India. Some brands of it are many folds costly as well !

A curious encounter

A certain patient with a stable CAD,  from higher strata  of society was offended when I replaced his long term  prescription of Plavix(Clopidogrel)  with Aspirin.His major humiliation was  this  new drug costs just  50 paise ! He suggested  to me  ,  it is huge insult to him  as his driver also takes the same medication !

What does pride  do in platelet inhibition I tried to explain him  ?

He was amused !

I asked him to go elsewhere , to any star-rated , upscale health suit  nearby to fulfill his wishes !

The above event happened few years ago . I am just posting it from by diary .

Final message

In this unequal world , prestige comes to play even in illness and the drugs they take ! I wonder, how prevalent, is the issue of pride  in our patient’s mind that decide  the treatment modality  in modern day medial care !

Your comment.

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