There was important news this month on statin drugs. As one of the world’s most effective and commonly used medications, statins provide great writing topics. Lots of people have high cholesterol–including cyclists. Lots of people are interested in avoiding our mostly deadly disease. I’d like to tell you about a recently-published (Lancet) landmark study that […]
Search: “statins”
We found 61 results for your search.
Nearly six months have passed since “emergency†meetings were called. Gosh, if I had a dollar for every emergency meeting. It’s amazing how looking back at these crises makes our angst seem silly. Like many things medical, time and deep breaths have a way of sorting things out. The latest heart-rhythm crisis centered on the […]
I follow a lot of intriguing people on Twitter. Each of them sends me noogets (a favorite slang word of mine) of information that either inspires, uplifts, informs or even amuses me. But there’s one twitter-er that stands out. He really helps me–along with 2.6 million others. The Dalai Lama tweets most mornings about the […]
I recently wrote about the incredible sensations that come with vigorous exercise. Perhaps it was the post ride cannabinoid flurry, but it’s possible that I went too far in suggesting that ‘we’ (doctors, patients, the whole of Western Society) default first to pills before healthy living. Two commentors called me out on this snark. They […]
Did you know September is AFib awareness month? As a believer in education as the first, and best treatment of AF, I think it’s great to enhance the public knowledge of this highly-misunderstood disease. By all means… Tell people about AF’s risks: stroke and heart failure. Tell them that their fatigue, poor exercise tolerance and […]
<Apologies in advance: this post is a (major) re-write of an old post.> Heart rhythm doctors are trained observers. We spend our days focusing on minute squiggles which are timed in milliseconds. It’s all a lot of observation. It’s only natural that one’s work skills might spill over to normal life. Plumbers are handy around […]
The Biology of Omega-3 fatty acids: (Just a little science:) When fish, flax-seeds or Brussels sprouts pass through the intestine, pancreatic enzymes transform the fat to free fatty acids. These acids are quickly taken up by the cells. Once in the cell, these fatty acids enter the mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum and cytosol–places that you might […]
When cyclists find out that I am a heart doctor, they most frequently ask about cholesterol numbers. “…My cholesterol is this…What do you think?†“…My doctor wants me to take a statin…But I read that these drugs might lower my functional threshold power 2.014 watts/40km.” All this focus on numbers saddens me. Remember, I am […]
Good morning all. Cycling Wednesday fell prey to the Springtime weather in Kentucky. Right before post time last evening, our power (which means internet) went down when a large thunderstorm rolled through. Here’s what I have for you this week: It is hardly news to say that we need better means to predict who will […]
At the core of my doctoring self, I am an internist and cardiologist–just like a heart surgeon is a surgeon, a judge a lawyer, and an electrical engineer an engineer. Heart rhythm disorders do not occur in a vacuum, they occur in people. And people are complicated. There are nearly always other medical issues that […]
Statin drugs are in the news. The real truth is coming out. The truth that statin drugs (Zocor, Lipitor, Crestor are a few of the more recognizable names) are much more than simple cholesterol lowering agents. This very informative WSJ piece presents the thesis–first published by renowned experts in the Annals of Internal Medicine this […]