Recently, a journalist with NPR asked her audience if sleeping with your baby is as dangerous as doctors say. In short, yes, it is very dangerous. In the article, Michaeleen Doucleff repeatedly trivializes the danger of parents co-sleeping with their baby. She uses anthropological evidence to reassure parents that sleeping with their infant is safe […]
Category: Conditions
Which of these patients should get a liver transplant?
People with liver failure and cirrhosis die every year because there are not enough livers available. Who should receive the treasured life-saving organ? There is an organ allocation system in place, which has evolved over time, which ranks patients who need liver transplants. Without such a system, there would be confusion and chaos. How can […]
MKSAP: 68-year-old man with heart failure
Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians. A 68-year-old man is evaluated at a follow-up appointment. He has a 7-year history of heart failure secondary to ischemic cardiomyopathy. Over the past 6 months, he has had three hospitalizations for exacerbations of his heart failure. He currently has exertional […]
Depression is personal to this physician
Kate Spade. Anthony Bourdain. Two celebrity icons splashed the headlines recently as both figures committed the unthinkable act of suicide. Both left behind young daughters and significant others reeling in the background wondering what had just happened. Kate Spade was the colorful fashionista of purses and dresses. Anthony Bourdain was the connoisseur of delectable eats […]
A difficult situation a resident faced in the emergency department
As I begin my overnight pediatric emergency department shift, there is one patient waiting to be seen: “Six-year-old male with autism, alleged sexual assault.” In year one of my pediatrics residency, I have not yet managed a sexual assault case, it is time to learn. I sign up to see the patient and move to […]
How Anthony Bourdain and Kate Spade could change mental health
Many people in our country, or I should say in this world, have been shocked and devastated by recent celebrity suicides. Many wonder how can someone whose life looks so perfect be depressed? Well, people are starting to recognize that anyone, no matter how successful, how rich or how attractive can experience severe depression. Many […]
Treating mental illness: Quality of life matters
Quality of life matters. This straightforward assertion gets complicated when we discuss the treatment of depression. Depression is common, part of a family doctor’s daily schedule; it can affect anyone, although certain groups are at higher risk. There have been many hypotheses as to why we as a species are susceptible to depression (and its […]
Education as an intervention for the chronic pain epidemic
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.com. Chronic pain is a silent epidemic Chronic pain is a significant public health burden, but one that is not talked about enough. In 2011, the Institute of Medicine estimated that approximately 100 million Americans suffer from chronic pain. But chronic pain is not just a […]
Education as an intervention for the chronic pain epidemic
A guest column by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, exclusive to KevinMD.com. Chronic pain is a silent epidemic Chronic pain is a significant public health burden, but one that is not talked about enough. In 2011, the Institute of Medicine estimated that approximately 100 million Americans suffer from chronic pain. But chronic pain is not just a […]