Medical blog content and relationship with blogger credentials and blog host

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A quantitative content analysis was performed on 398 blog posts from a constructed 1-week sample of posts in WebMD, Yahoo!Health Expert Blogs, and independently hosted blogs.

Most health and medical blog posts highlighted and provided commentary pertaining to medical issues found in external media such as books, television, Web sites, magazines, and newspapers

Only 16% contained actual health or medical information.

Distinct differences in patterns of content were evident between credentialed and noncredentialed bloggers, as well as different blog hosts.

References:
Health and medical blog content and its relationships with blogger credentials and blog host. Buis LR, Carpenter S. Health Commun. 2009 Dec;24(8):703-10.

Comments from Google Buzz:

Shabber Hussain - Now if I can some how know about those 16% medical blogs that "contain actual health or medical information", it should make my day. Feb 26

Arin Basu - I think (I just read the abstract perhaps a closer reading of the full text of the article might be more useful, @Ves, did you have a chance to read the full text?)
* The findings are not unexpected, at least that's what you expect based on "credentialing the blogger who has written the posts"
* There seems on first reading at leas the abstract that there may be quite a bit of bias in that study (just one week snapshot (too few blogs sampled), few selected sites (selection bias right there), and interpretation)
* Not surprised that most blogs contained commentaries published in popular press and journals.
I think that's what blogs should ideally do. Raise awareness, enable and alert people to read & interpret meanings. I'd not expect blogs to replace "actual" texts (well, that's my perspective)
* Which makes @Shabber's point very pertinent, what are those 16% saying, on a one week selective sampling?

All in all, a very interesting article. I think it needs to be closely read and discussed in medical blogosphere. Feb 26

Image source: public domain.

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New Treatment Effective in Killing Head Lice – benzyl alcohol lotion 5% (Ulesfia)

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From WebMD:

A new prescription lotion (Ulesfia) with benzyl alcohol treats head lice and is effective and safe for children as young as 6 months. The study shows it works by suffocating lice, a method that has long been tried with limited success using messy substances like petroleum jelly, olive oil, and even mayonnaise.

Overnight "home remedies" such as mayonnaise merely appear to kill lice, but don't because the bugs are able to close their spiracles long enough to survive. This is called the "resurrection effect" because, after rinsing, the lice thought to be dead are able to open their breathing spiracles and start biting again.

Existing over-the-counter head lice treatments contain neurotoxic pesticides as active ingredients, resulting in potential toxicity and other problems, including lengthy applications, odor and ineffectiveness.

References:

Image source: Benzyl alcohol, Wikipedia, public domain.

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Doctors use Facebook pages to connect with patients

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With a 500-million large audience, many practices find that creating a Facebook presence can be an easy -- and free -- way to stay in touch with patients or attract new ones.

Businesses, including physician practices, can create something similar: pages (previously "fan pages"). Anyone on Facebook who elects to "become a fan" or like your page receives, on his or her own home page, any updates, photos, videos or Web links that you post.

Rather than having patients "friend" you on Facebook, you can direct them to this page. Having a moderator is important, because having someone dedicated to responding to people makes them feel more connected and encourages respectful and on topic discussions.

References:
Amednews: How Facebook fan pages can connect with patients.

Image source: Wikipedia.

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Metabolic pathway plays a role in susceptibility to stuttering

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Stuttering is a disorder of unknown cause characterized by repetitions, prolongations, and interruptions in the flow of speech. Genetic factors have been implicated in this disorder, and previous studies of stuttering have identified linkage to markers on chromosome 12.

This study shows that variants of proteins that guide hydrolases to the lysosome are associated with stuttering. This unexpected finding implies a metabolic pathway in susceptibility to stuttering.

Video: Biology Homework about Lysosomes.

References:

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Physically fit students score higher on tests than their less fit peers

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Test scores dropped more than one point for each extra minute it took middle and high school students to complete a 1-mile run/walk fitness test.

65% of the students were below the state fitness standard. Compared with these students, students who met or exceeded fitness standards had higher average test scores. Overweight and obese students also scored significantly lower on tests.
Schools may have to reverse their recent disinvestment in physical education ostensibly for the purposes of boosting student achievement.
Exercise slows telomere shortening (and aging). Telomeres are the chromosome tips which shorten each time a cell divides, making them a possible marker of aging. A study of 2400 twins showed that physically active people had longer telomeres than sedentary people.


Human chromosomes (grey) capped by telomeres (white). Image source: Wikipedia, public

domain.


If you need any more convincing, please see this "health promotion" video that clearly shows the benefits of exercise:

"Health Promotion" video: Benefits of exercise.

References:
Physical, academic fitness tied at the hip: study. Reuters, 2010.

The Journal of Pediatrics, published online January 25, 2010.

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Room-temperature plasma gases may replace hand disinfectants

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From the NYTimes:

Instead of scrubbing, the workers would put their hands into a small box that bathes them with plasma — the same sort of luminous gas found in neon signs, fluorescent tubes and TV displays.

This plasma, though, is at room temperature and pressure, and is engineered to kills bacteria, including the drug-resistant supergerm MRSA.

References:
Hospital-Clean Hands, Without All the Scrubbing

Image source: Neon sign. Wikipedia, Rolf Süssbrich, Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 3.0 License.

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"Blogging fame does not pay the bills"

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From Social Media Examiner:

Wendy Piersall provides some insights into the "dark side" of being popular online:

- Fame does not pay the bills
- Being on the front page of Digg does not bring you success
- It takes lots of work to get internet fame and even more work to maintain the internet fame

See the video interview at Social Media Examiner.

References:
The Dark Side of Blogging Fame (a Wendy Piersall Interview). Social Media Examiner.

Image source: public domain.

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Health benefits of chocolate

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The health benefits of chocolate may include:

- Reduction of blood pressure by eating 6 grams of dark chocolate per day. Probably due to the flavonol epicatechin
- Reduction of platelet and endothelial cell activation
- Reduction of inflammatory mediators
- It can also inhibit oral caries
- It can cross the blood brain barrier and increase cerebral blood flow in humans

From Writer's Almanac:

Ode to Chocolate by Barbara Crooker (excerpt)

I hate milk chocolate, don't want clouds
of cream diluting the dark night sky,
don't want pralines or raisins, rubble
in this smooth plateau. I like my coffee
black, my beer from Germany, wine
from Burgundy, the darker, the better.

References:
The Essence of Chocolate. Dr Shock MD PhD, 2010.

Image source: Wikipedia, public domain.

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"Microscopic cancers are forming in human body all the time"

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From TEDtalksDirector — May 17, 2010 - William Li presents a new way to think about cancer treatment: angiogenesis, targeting the blood vessels that feed a tumor. The crucial first (and best) step: Eating cancer-fighting foods that beat cancer at its own game.

"We're probably forming microscopic cancers all the time in our body. Autopsy studies from people who died in car accidents have shown that about 40 percent of women between the ages of 40 and 50 actually have microscopic cancers in their breasts. About 50 percent of men in their 50s and 60s have microscopic prostate cancers. And virtually 100 percent of us, by the time we reach our 70s, will have microscopic cancers growing in our thyroid. Yet, without a blood supply, most of these cancers will never become dangerous. Dr. Judah Folkman, who was my mentor, and who was the pioneer of the angiogenesis field, once called this "cancer without disease."

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Antibiotic use for respiratory infections could be reduced by 40% by procalcitonin (PCT) test

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Procalcitonin (PCT) is a precursor of the hormone calcitonin, which is involved with calcium homeostasis, and is produced by the C-cells of the thyroid gland.

In healthy people, procalcitonin (PCT) concentrations are low, but in those with bacterial infection it occurs at high concentrations in the blood as early as 3 hours after infection. In people with viral infections, procalcitonin (PCT) levels rise only marginally, if at all.

A PCT-guided strategy applied in primary care in unselected patients presenting with symptoms of acute respiratory infection reduces antibiotic use by 41.6 percent without compromising patient outcome.

The FDA Approved an Automated Procalcitonin (PCT) Test in 2008.

References:
Simple test could cut excessive antibiotic use. Reuters, 2010.

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Sunscreen with high SPF needed at high altitudes: 8-10% increase in sun exposure for every thousand feet of elevation

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Golfers playing in Vail, Colorado, at 2500 meters (roughly 8200 feet) above sea level, got significantly more burn protection from sunscreen with a sun protection factor (SPF) of 70+ compared to one with an SPF of 15.

There is 8-10 percent increase in sun exposure for every thousand feet of elevation. In the summertime, you can get anywhere from 40 percent to 50 percent greater sun intensity than at sea level.

References:
Sunscreen with high SPF needed at high altitudes, Reuters.

What sunscreen to use for children?
Image source: Amazon, for illustration only, not a suggestion to buy any products.

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Osteoporosis Drug Lasofoxifene May "Fight" Several Diseases But Increases Risk of Blood Clots

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Lasofoxifene is a part of a class of drugs known as nonsteroidal selective estrogen-receptor modulators (SERMs). It has already been shown to decrease the bone loss associated with osteoporosis, like other SERMs, including tamoxifen and raloxifene. But until now its effect on other health conditions commonly experienced by postmenopausal women was unknown.

The women who took lasofoxifene had an 81% lower risk of estrogen-receptor (ER) positive breast cancer, a 32% lower risk of heart-related events like heart attack, and a 36% lower risk of stroke. "This is the first SERM that reduces the risk of all of these conditions at once."

However, not all the results were positive. As with other SERMs, women taking lasofoxifene had double to nearly three times the risk of experiencing a serious blot clot of the deep veins.

References:
Osteoporosis Drug May Fight Several Diseases. WebMD, 2010.

Image source: Flickr, Creative Commons license.

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Pediatrician retires at 89, enjoys seeing 40-50 patients a day, will become an artist

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"How are you? Have you retired?"

"No," said Dr. Segal, "I need to keep practicing until I get it right."
"You took care of my baby for me."
"Wonderful. How old is your baby now?"
"He's 58."
Dr. Segal laughed when he recounted this story. But, then, Segal laughs a lot. Maybe that's how he practiced medicine for more than six decades. Because he found pleasure in his work. So many people are in a hurry to retire so they can start having fun. Segal never understood the reason to wait.
He had fun going to the office every day, had fun saying hello to children and making them well.

Segal got an art degree from Memphis State. When World War II broke out, there wasn't much demand for artists. So Segal went to medical school.

Six decades later, he's not one of those doctors who will tell you how much better things used to be. Sitting in his office during his last week of work, Segal mostly wanted to talk about how good we have it now."

References:
Geoff Calkins: Retiring Dr. Segal didn't wait to have fun — he worked at it. Scripps Interactive Newspapers Group, 2010.
Image source: Wikipedia, GNU Free Documentation License.

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Erectile dysfunction is a strong predictor of death in men with cardiovascular disease

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From CNN:

Men with cardiovascular disease and ED were twice as likely to die from all causes than men who did not have erectile dysfunction. And those with ED were 1.6 times more likely to suffer from a serious cardiovascular problem such as a heart attack or stroke.

Erectile dysfunction is something that regularly should be addressed in the medical history of patients; it might be a symptom of early atherosclerosis.

Men with ED who are going to a general practitioner or a urologist need to be referred for a cardiology workup to determine existing cardiovascular disease and proper treatment. ED is an early predictor of cardiovascular disease.

References:
Study: Erectile dysfunction may indicate heart disease, death risk - CNN.com.

Image source: Viagra (sildenafil), Wikipedia, GNU Free Documentation License.

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7.2% Decrease in Work Hours of U.S. Physicians Between 1996 and 2008

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After remaining stable through the early 1990s, mean hours worked per week decreased by 7.2% between 1996 and 2008 among all physicians (from 55 hours per week in 1996-1998 to 51 hours per week in 2006-2008.

Excluding resident physicians, whose hours decreased by 9.8% due to duty hour limits imposed in 2003, nonresident physician hours decreased by 5.7%.

Physician fees decreased nationwide by 25% between 1995 and 2006, coincident with the decrease in physician hours.

A steady decrease in hours worked per week during the last decade was observed for all physicians, which was temporally and geographically associated with lower physician fees.

References:
Trends in the Work Hours of Physicians in the United States, February 24, 2010, Staiger et al. JAMA 303 (8): 747.

From Happy Hospitalist:

"That means your doctor earns 25% less today than they did just a decade ago. If you went to college and joined a company that said up front you would be paid 25% less in a decade than you were paid on the day you were hired, would you join them?

Why are physicians working fewer hours, a trend unique to doctors? The conclusion was reduced pay. Physicians just don't seem inclined to spend long hours in the office and hospitals to sacrifice their family life for the life of their patients when the the economic reward of doing so just isn't there.

I've talked with many subspecialists at Happy's hospital about the declining payment for their efforts. They all tell me exactly the same thing. They are going to work less and limit their hours as payment reductions come down the pipeline."

Image source: sxc.hu

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What is the oldest medical blog?

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Medical Blog Anniversaries

Dr. Rob explains why he has been blogging for nearly 4 years http://goo.gl/seKp

Dr. Bates has been blogging for 3 years, leading to over 1,000 posts and many new friends http://goo.gl/eB1e

I have maintained medical blogs since 2004 but never thought about blog anniversaries - blogging seems such mundane task of daily life.
What is the "life expectancy" of a medical blog?
The studies are ongoing but the current record is around 8-9 years... http://goo.gl/5LRx
What is the oldest medical blog?
As pointed out in the comments, the "oldest" medical blog probably is Family Medicine Notes, followed by GruntDoc.

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Hospitalist evolution? "Extensivist" = hospitalist who prevents readmissions by seeing patients after discharge

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"On a typical morning, Sandip Patel, MD, a hospitalist employed by a health plan in Southern California, rounds on patients at the hospital, then meets with case managers and a medical director to review care plans and decide which patients will stay or go.

In the afternoon, Dr. Patel may see recently discharged patients—those coded "red" or "yellow," based on medical complexity—at an integrated-care center, which is also owned and run by the health plan. Then he might head to a nursing home to check on patients discharged a week ago.

Dr. Patel considers himself an "extensivist" with a goal to reduce readmissions. "Lowering readmission rates is within the purview of the hospitalists."

References:
Health-plan hospitalists cut readmissions—by sometimes leaving the hospital. Today's Hospitalist, 2010.

Image source: sxc.hu

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TED video: CIO of Cleveland Clinic talks about electronic medical records (EMR)

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Video - TEDxCLE - Dr. C. Martin Harris, CIO of Cleveland Clinic talks about EMR. The Cleveland Clinic uses Epic Systems EMR and, although the system costs millions of dollars to purchase and maintain, it has been perceived as very useful by both physicians and patients.

Disclaimer: I was a Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic until 2008.

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