The drug representative had a smug look; she knew she had a winner. She didn’t need to sell anything—the American public had already bought the story. There are very few drugs in history where patients are excited about the conversation and want …
Category: Meds
From Moscow Mule to the opioid crisis: Unveiling the tragic legacy and urgent solutions
The Moscow mule, a mix of ginger beer, an ounce of vodka, and a squeeze of lemon, has become one of the favorites among cocktail aficionados across the United States. It delivers on all that it promises, namely, an easy-to-make tasty drink, except it h…
The deadly consequences of a shortage: The Pluvicto crisis leaves metastatic prostate cancer patients in limbo
You’ve recently been diagnosed with metastatic cancer. You started the recommended first-line therapy, but it isn’t cutting it. There is another available treatment, but your hopes are crushed upon learning that you will have to wait at lea…
The real story of Xylazine contamination in street fentanyl and how we can manage it
Have you heard the news? “Flesh-eating ‘zombie’ drug ‘kills you from the inside out,’” headlines a CNN article. “Tacoma market busted for selling ‘zombie’ drug,” barks out a Seattle-area news affili…
The cannabis education gap: Why patients are left in the dark
Imagine that you are suffering from chronic pain. The pain keeps you awake at night so you don’t get much sleep. Lack of sleep most nights and the ensuing chronic fatigue causes you some anxiety during the day. Your primary care physician suggests that…
Are doctors ready to discuss psychedelic therapies with patients?
As I’m pre-charting for my primary care clinic, I see Ms. C on the schedule, whom I know well through our nearly monthly follow-up visits over the past two and a half years of residency. We talk in Spanish as it’s her preferred language. Sh…
The rise and dark side of fungi: Exploring health benefits and pathogenic threats
Fungi have a well-deserved surge in popularity. More mushroom varieties have found their way to grocery store shelves, shopping lists, and food blogs. Mushroom foraging is a trending activity as people endeavor to connect to nature. There is a growing …
Advocacy and collaboration lead to major patient safety benefits on sterile pharmaceutical compounding: a review of USP’s revisions to Chapter
In November 2022, revisions to the United States Pharmacopeia’s (USP) General Chapter <797>, a standard for sterile pharmaceutical compounding – defined as the process of “combining, admixing, diluting, pooling, reconstituting, repa…
Counterfeit drugs: a hidden danger lurking in your medicine cabinet
The timing of the United States Drug Enforcement Administration’s One Pill Can Kill campaign is crucial, considering the recent Carrollton teen tragedy in which Fentanyl-laced pills posing as oxycodone were distributed through a “juvenile d…
Telemedicine in the opioid crisis: a game-changer threatened by DEA regulations
In March 2020, I was directing a federally qualified health center in rural New Mexico when the first flashover of COVID ripped through the state. In two days, the clinics transitioned from an entirely in-person model to a near-total remote model. The …
