Category: Medications

Motrin vs. Tylenol for children: A pediatrician explains

As a pediatrician, I am asked by worried parents about what they should give their child with a fever, Motrin (ibuprofen) or Tylenol (acetaminophen) to bring down the temperature daily. This question always requires more than a one-word response to the…

Physicians need to be better judges of science

A guest column by the American College of Physicians, exclusive to KevinMD.com. The aim of medical education is not only to transfer scientific knowledge, but also impart the wisdom accumulated over the long history of medicine that equips us to apply …

A paradigm shift in acute pain assessment and management

We have embarked upon a unique strategy to assess and manage pain. “Opioids Rarely Help Bodily Pain” is not a catchy phrase but a mnemonic related to educational learning which serves as the cornerstone of a new acute-pain management paradi…

Esketamine is not a breakthrough new drug: Why the nasal spray for depression is old news

The FDA has given official approval to market eskatamine as a treatment for depression. As expected, there has been great fanfare (press releases, morning TV talk show guests, NPR segments and so on). The news leaves me salty. The esketamine story reve…

The conflict between pharmacists and their corporate superiors

Pharmacists play an essential role in today’s ever-expanding health care system today. They check for drug interactions, watch for signs of opioid overprescribing and try to determine whether a drug for one condition prescribed by one doctor will negat…

A call for the end of routine opioid use after wisdom tooth removal

We are writing as a parent and a dentist to spread a message to parents and dental health care providers across Canada: there are alternatives to prescribing opioids after wisdom tooth removal. Removing wisdom teeth is considered by many as a rite of p…

The recent fish oil and vitamin D studies: Go beyond the headlines

Results of a much-anticipated trial on fish oil and vitamin D generated conflicting headlines recently. Some stories declared good news about the popular supplements. Reuters wrote that fish oil “can dramatically reduce the odds of a heart attack while…

3 ways pharmacists can change your prescribing habits

As the health care landscape evolves, health care provider roles continue to shift. Industries recognize the power of collaboration and the strength of communication between different providers; among those, the pharmacist and the physician. Unfortunat…

When Western medicine fails patients and clinicians

It’s a common scenario: a patient shows up to my office lugging a bagful of over-the-counter supplements, defiantly informing me that they “don’t believe in prescription drugs.” In the very next breath, they present a lab slip with a list of bloodwork …

Does that patient really need antibiotics?

For those of you who have been following my story since this summer of 2018, you will remember that I quit my nine-to-five job to pursue a career in public speaking on a more semi-permanent basis. I started working essentially full-time with a national…