The time was June 2000. Scientists with the Celera Genomics Corporation, in conjunction with the international Human Genome Project, announced that they had successfully derived the entire sequence of the human genome. Furthermore, they noted that humans share 99.9% of their genetic code with one another. This discovery served as the platform for the medical community to declare that there was no genetic foundation for the notion of race, and we were all just human beings. Read more →

The cholesterol-lowering drugs collectively known as “statins” are among the top drugs sold in the United States, and worldwide. Although current guidelines only recommend the use of statins for people with elevated cholesterol, there is new evidence that these recommendations should be expanded. The November 20, 2008 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine will report the findings of the Justification for the Use of Statins in Primary Prevention: an Intervention Trial Evaluating Rosuvastatin (JUPITER), which were also reported on November 9 at an American Heart Association Conference in New Orleans. The JUPITER trial studied nearly 18,000 healthy adults without high cholesterol and found that daily therapy with rosuvastatin (Crestor) significantly prevented cardiovascular events. Read more →

A few years ago, my friend encouraged her father to drink large amounts of water through hot and sultry summer afternoons in India in a bid to sustain hydration in him — with solely good intentions. The next year, he was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy — which meant that his heart muscles were not pumping efficiently; leading to water retention and dilation of the heart. While the water drinking of the previous year did not cause the heart failure, co-existence of both events could have had a devastating effect on his health. Unfortunately, a woman from Sacramento, CA was not as lucky, and died as a result of consuming too much water. She voluntarily consumed about 8 ounces every 15 minutes for a whole day while controlling her bladder. Read more →

It is now established beyond any doubt that women in particular can die of a broken heart. The good news is that if you can make it to hospital, your chances of survival are pretty high.

First described in 2005 in Japan, the Tako-tsubo syndrome (or the “broken heart syndrome”) is being increasingly reported in world literature, although it must have been happening all the time. In 80% of cases, it reportedly occurs in post-menopausal women above 60 years of age after an episode of stress or occasionally related to anger. Death of a close relative is the most common situation. Read more →

I’ve been pondering exactly how to post about what happened this week at the campus of Virginia Tech. I’ve got so many emotions about the killings of so many innocent people. I’m deeply saddened by all of it. At times, I’m a little numb because death is really something that is a daily part of a physician’s life. I’ve also just felt angry at society for allowing this to happen. At other times, I’m just angry with the killer.

The news has been going nonstop about this event. Who is to blame? Mr. Cho? His parents? His friends? The Virginia Tech community? No one? Read more →

Living with Alzheimer’s disease is challenging for the patient and the entire family. AP Psychology student and elder brother Steven and Robert Griegoliet document the daily life of their grandfather James Conran suffering with Alzheimer’s. “During my grandfather’s last few days at home before his admission into an assisted living home geared towards Alzheimer’s patients, I made a short documentary,” says Robert, who serves as the director, editor, researcher, and cameraman of the project. “The video shows the dementia in a humorous, factual, and heart-touching way. Symptoms of dementia are listed throughout the video along with examples from my grandfather. It was my brother’s final project for psychology, hence his name in the credits, not mine.” Read more →