Tonight's Show Changed

The good news is that I'm not going to cancel The Doctor Anonymous Show tonight. The bad news (and it's not really bad news) is that something has come up to make me change topics for the show tonight.

First of all, Dr. Val contacted me saying that she was feeling ill and was not able to be on the show tonight. Everyone send Dr. Val a "Get Well" e-mail! I have three words for her - "Physician, Heal Thy Self.' HA! Hope you're feeling better.

Next, MexicoMedStudent (pictured above) contacted me and told me about what his medical school is doing to him. Here's just the beginning of his post called "School Beating Me Down Once Again", but I encourage you to read the whole thing...

This post is way late in coming, but I can’t hold it in anymore. As many of you might remember, I took a voluntary leave from school this semester to focus on personal matters. I said that the worst of all possibilities was that I’d look back on this time, now drawing nearer to a close, and feel that I wasted 6 months of my life, having gotten no further in my personal goals.

Well, UAG doesn’t disappoint, and they’ve trumped themselves in the sodomizing students department. While I do have some regrets about things I didn’t get to accomplish during my break (which, as I remind myself, is not over), the reality is UAG has given me the biggest stressor of all: creating an untenable situation which would force me to leave school altogether, the last two years of my life wasted and over 120k of debt for my troubles.

Wow! You can feel the emotion just come through the screen. So, naturally, he's not really in the holiday spirit.

One of the reasons I started a radio show was to talk with people and have them share their stories - and this is a compelling one. This is a show that you need to listen to. There's a lot of crap on television that is called "reality TV." But, boys and girls, this is real life.

This is a story of a guy who has a dream of being a doctor. From reading his blog and talking with him a little bit in the last hour, someone who has went through some personal and professional trials and tribulations. And, just TODAY, learned that his dream may be delayed, or even destroyed by the medical school that he his attending.

This is a story that needs to be told. This is a story that you have to listen to. This is a story that you need to listen to. Tune in Tonight at 9pm Eastern Standard Time on The Doctor Anonymous Show.

Listen LIVE tonight!

Thursday, December 13th, 2007 at 9:00pm Eastern Time

Join us tonight for The Doctor Anonymous Holiday Show. Our distinguished group of panelists include Dr. Val, MexicoMedStudent, and Dr. Blogstein. You can join us as well by calling the show and/or being in the chat room. 

Need any help getting your thoughts going on this topic? Well, I have the perfect show-prep material for you. The Mo Show last night also talked holiday stuff, so you can check that out. See you tonight!

For first time Blog Talk Radio listeners:

*Although it is not required to listen to the show, I encourage you to register on the BlogTalkRadio site prior to the show. I think it will make the process easier.

*After registering, don't forget to make me you BlogTalkRadio "friend" and "favorite show." You can even give me 5 stars if you like the show. These will help my stature as a BTR host (hehe). Thanks in advance for considering this!

*To get to my show site, click here. You can even ask the BTR site to send you an e-mail reminder so you don't miss the show! As show time gets closer, keep hitting "refresh" on your browser until you see the "Click to Listen" button. Then, of course, press the "Click to Listen" button.

*You can also participate in the live chat room before, during, and after the show. Look for the "Chat Available" button in the upper right hand corner of my show site. If you are registered with the BTR site, your registered name and picture will appear in the chat room. (If not, you will be designated as "guest")

*You can also call into the show. The number is on my show site. I'll be taking calls beginning at around the bottom of the hour. Hope these tips are helpful!

Checkpoint Vodka

So, you get all the way to the airport. You wait in line to find a parking spot. You wait in line at your airline check in desk. You wait in line to drop off your checked bags at the security station. You wait in line at the next security check point before getting to your gate. Your patience is wearing thin, because you just want to get to your gate.

As you're waiting in line with the other million people who are waiting to get through, you see a sign that says this: "The following liquid materials are prohibited and cannot pass through this checkpoint." What? Who made up all these silly rules? What else am I not allowed to bring on the plane?

"Let's see," you tell yourself. "Let's see what's in my carry-on bag that may get me in trouble." Hmmmm.... Vodka? In my bag? Who put it there? Did I actually put that in there in my rush to get out of the house this morning? Well, I can't bring it on the plane. What to do? Here's an Associated Press story about a guy did at a Berlin airport.....

Berlin - A man nearly died from alcohol poisoning after quaffing two pints of vodka at an airport security check instead of handing it over to comply with new rules about carrying liquids aboard a plane, police said Wednesday. The incident occurred Tuesday at the Nuremberg airport, where the 64-year-old man was switching planes on his way home to Dresden from a vacation in Egypt.

New airport rules prohibit passengers from carrying larger quantities of liquid onto planes, and he was told at a security check he would have to either throw out the bottle of vodka or pay a fee to have his carry-on bag checked. Instead, he chugged the vodka — and was quickly unable to stand or otherwise function, police said.

A doctor called to the scene determined he had possibly life-threatening alcohol poisoning, and he was sent to a Nuremberg clinic for treatment. The man, whose name was not released, is expected to be able to go home in a few days.

The Dr. A Holiday Show

Join us this week for the long awaited Doctor Anonymous Holiday Show! Even though there will be very little medicine discussed, but there will be a lot of fun!

We will be talking about everything to do with the holidays including Christmas, Hanukkah, New Year's, and any other holidays that come at this time of year. We will be "debating" the very controversial topics as the following: Favorite Holiday Cartoon, Best/Worst Holiday song, Favorite Holiday Movie, and any other topics that come up.

I know I've been discouraging people from sending me e-mail and leaving comments about their faves, but Kb sent me her favorite holiday song and favorite holiday movie. I encourage the rest of my faithful Doctor Anonymous listeners to call into the show on Thursday night to share your thoughts.

We have a distinguished panel who will be talking about these and other holiday issues. They are Dr. Val, MexicoMedStudent, and BlogTalkRadio personality Dr. Blogstein. So, write it down! Thursday, December 13th, 2007 at 9pm Eastern Standard Time. Advertise it on your blog. The Doctor Anonymous Holiday Show on Blog Talk Radio. Be there!

Need sleep? Forget the hospital

Anyone who has been admitted to the hospital or whose family member has been admitted to the hospital or works in the hospital knows this fact - The hospital is the worst place to get some sleep - Even though I "prescribe" adequate sleep to everyone who comes into my clinic.

Well, now, there is research that was just released which supports this. According to this article from Reuters, researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern found that the healing process may be interrupted because of inadequate sleep (restorative sleep) in the hospital.

[Dr. Randall Friese, lead researcher] monitored the sleep patterns of 16 patients in the ICU who had suffered traumatic injuries or had abdominal surgery. Although it appeared the patients were getting enough sleep, Friese said their brain wave patterns showed their sleep was fragmented and superficial.

"There are two major things contributing to abnormal sleep in these patients -- the pathophysiology of the disease process itself and the stressful environment of the ICU," Friese said. "If we can neutralize the stressful environment, maybe we can shorten the hospital stay, lower infection risks and increase patient wound healing."

Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not saying totally ignore the intensive care patient while in the hospital. But, there may be something to this sleep/healing connection. And, if there is some way to increase restorative sleep and accelerate healing and shorten the hospital stay, I'm all for looking into it more. I know our patients would appreciate this.

Gasoline price drop

Here's something that the majority of the press will not report on - an actual price drop in gasoline - at least in Ohio. According to the Associated Press, Ohio gasoline prices have dropped 12 cents in one week. Yipee!

The statewide price is now $2.91 according to the American Automobile Association. A week ago, prices were just above three dollars a gallon.

Now, compared to a year ago, the price is up about 70 cents. That will probably spark some remarks in the comments section. But, any kind of price drop, I'm happy to report. So there....

Pro-biotics

Now, everyone has heard about anti-biotics. But, look out, because the latest craze in the health food world is the area of "pro-biotics." What are these? Well, as you can probably figure out, these are "friendly" bacteria - and they are found in the digestive tract. A recent article from the Associated Press discusses this further.

Experts say probiotics are generally safe, and in some cases might be helpful. More research is needed, and it's a hot new area, reflecting a growing understanding of the role that naturally occurring intestinal bacteria play in health. This week, the National Institutes of Health is hosting a conference where top scientists will discuss recent advances.

From a business standpoint, this is a fast growing sector. According to the article, over 150 food products that have probiotics have been introduced in the market this year - compared to about 100 last year and just 40 the year before that. But, do they actually work?

Small studies have suggested that certain probiotics might help treat or prevent some types of gastroenteritis, diarrhea and allergic skin reactions, and the bugs are being investigated for many other ailments.

The NIH has declared the study of gastrointestinal bacteria and probiotics a major research initiative. The agency's upcoming meeting will highlight current science so it can identify research gaps and determine the direction of future research, said Crystal McDade-Ngutter, who heads an NIH working group on the topic.

It's still too early to say whether these probiotics deliver substantial health benefits. The research still has to be done. Pro-biotic detractors say that without a gastrointestinal condition, probiotics just exhibit a placebo effect.

In my clinical experience, in talking with some of the specialists around here, feelings are mixed as well. Some put all their patients on probiotics, and others say it's just a waste of money and give patients false hope of symptom relief. Me? I'm cautiously optimistic. I have read and I am intrigued from some of the early studies. But, I'm not completely sold - yet.

Round 3: OTC Cholesterol Med?

I talked about this before back on October 3, 2007 (why does that feel like two years ago as opposed to two months ago?). Anyway, USA Today is reporting that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will again consider whether cholesterol medication will be able to be available without a prescription.

For the third time, Merck is seeking FDA approval to sell over-the-counter Mevacor, the brand name for lovastatin. In 2000 and 2005, advisory panels recommended against that move. The FDA is not bound by advisory committee recommendations, but it usually goes along with them.

Public Citizen, a watchdog group (and, in my opinion, sometimes goes too far in the alarming the pubic at times), is against making cholesterol medications over the counter. I would agree with this group on this issue.

"People can't, on their own, evaluate whether they are at sufficient enough risk that they could benefit from this drug," says [Sydney] Wolfe, [director of the Public Citizen Health Research Group.]

On the other side of this issue is, of course, the pharmaceutical industry who has been chomping at the bit to push this entire drug class onto pharmacy shelves for patients to purchase and for docs to deal with the side effects.

Over-the-counter Mevacor "fits with the philosophy that patients should take more responsibility for their health care decisions," says Antonio Gotto, former president of the American Heart Association and dean of New York's Weill Cornell Medical College. He will serve as a Merck consultant Thursday.

Steve Francesco, a pharmaceutical industry consultant in West Orange, N.J., who specializes in prescription-to-nonprescription switches, says switching Mevacor "would be a real turning point."

You betcha it would be a turning point. As a prescription medication class, cholesterol meds are a multi-Billion dollar industry. If this is made over the counter by the FDA, the pharmaceutical industry will see dollar signs. But, what will patients, doctors, nurses, and others who take care of patients see? I hope the FDA rejects this request again on Thursday...

Seven Million Dollars

What would you do if you stole with seven million dollars? Would you try to hide out just 350 miles away and hope for the best? That's exactly what a trio of criminals did after nabbing an armored car. The story from our local paper is below. It's kind of interesting, what do you think?

Youngstown — A trunk filled with more than $7 million can take most people, or at least the average imagination, on a trip around the world. While traveling, throw in exotic cars, expensive clothes and fascinating people.

That same amount of stolen loot took Roger Dillon, 22, and his girlfriend Nicole Boyd, 24, as far as a trailer in Pipestem, W.Va. Extravagance? The couple did manage to buy an 18-year-old van along the way — before the FBI came knocking at the trailer door.

Dillon and Boyd are charged in the theft of more than $7 million in cash and checks from an armored car company in Liberty Township. On the run, their heist spawned local pondering of where were they and what would you do had you done the deed.

When they were arrested, you could almost hear the chorus back home: “West Virginia?” Piling on were the details of their plan. One cop called them stupid.

So .... We wondered what others would do with more than $7 million and the world to explore?

The Office Christmas Party

No, not that Office Christmas party. I mean, those Hollywood writers are on strike. We probably won't see a new Office episode for weeks (or even months). What do I watch on TV now? I'm catching up on re-runs of MASH and Whose Line Is It Anyway?

So, our office Christmas party was Saturday night. It was actually at a new place for us. It's usually in this country club setting - which I don't really enjoy. It's really hard to have fun there. I always think of movies like Trading Places and other movies where people act non politically correct and get thrown out of the joint.

This year, it was at a local coffee shop that had a lot of old historical memorabilia. Who knew this small town had so much history? The food and drink were great, and the atmosphere was perfect to mingle with the staff away from the office.

I admit it was difficult to try to talk about anything other than work. I mean when you talk about medicine and medically related things for 8-10 hours a day with this same group of people, it can be hard to talk about anything else. But, it was nice to learn about other people's families and Christmas plans.

Overall, I think things went well. Of course, I'm probably the last person to hear about gossip. So, I may be adding to this post later. For those of you who had office Christmas/Holiday parties, how did they go? I'm curious....