HealthFacts

Browse past and current articles from this publication.

The 2009 version of the "Harry and Louise" ads.(Conservatives for Patients' Rights campaign)
The $20 million national ad campaign, sponsored by Conservatives for Patients' Rights (CPR), continues on TV, the Internet, and radio. CPR wants the U.S. medical care system to remain as is, but cal . . .

Mediterranean diet: what accounts for benefits?(Brief article)
The Mediterranean diet is not only wildly popular around the world but also considered to be one of the most healthful diets of all that have received in-depth research attention. Yet it is unclear . . .

From the director ... back to the future: a unique view of health reform.
Opponents of President Obama's health reforms are not above misrepresenting the quality of health care in other countries. In my experience, critics of progressive efforts to reform health care are . . .

Medical tests: don't forget to call for the results.
You go through the time, trouble, and expense of having a medical test. You don't call to learn the results, assuming all is well or the doctor would have called. In fact, some doctors never notify . . .

Red yeast rice--not a good alternative to statins.
Many people who cannot tolerate any of the cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins (e.g., Lipitor, Pravachol, Zocor) turn to an herbal supplement called red yeast rice, which lowers the low-densit . . .

Blood pressure drugs for all whether or not blood pressure is high.
The typical doctor visit starts with blood pressure measurement, and everyone with a high reading is told to come back again in three months. If blood pressure remains high, one drug or more is the . . .

Heartburn drugs overused in hospital patients not at risk for stress ulcers.
Acid-reflux drugs like Nexium and Zantac, which suppress stomach acid, are among the most widely prescribed in the country. Their use has been steadily increasing among hospital patients, often for . . .

Wrist splints work for thumb arthritis.
People with osteoarthritis at the base of the thumb are often told to wear a thumb splint to ease symptoms. The first study to test this advice found it to be effective for many people. It was publi . . .

Oral vs. standard chemotherapy to prevent recurrent breast cancer.
Older people are underrepresented in clinical trials, a problem that is particularly acute where it concerns breast cancer. This is a disease that strikes women who are average age 63 years at diagn . . .

Drug-coated stents are just as good as bare-metal stents, but ...
Drug-coated stents, intended to keep coronary arteries from closing up again, have been under suspicion for causing harm to people years after they had an artery-opening procedure. In earlier studie . . .

CT scans--lots of radiation, little research.(computed tomography)
"The increase in CT [scan] use and in the CT-derived radiation dose in the population is occurring just as our understanding of the carcinogenic potential of low doses of x-ray radiation has improve . . .

Treatments for early-stage bladder cancer are overly aggressive, new study says.
"Bladder cancer is among the most prevalent and expensive cancers to treat in the U.S." This is the opening line of a new study that looked at how early-stage bladder cancer is treated. It showed th . . .

From the director ... the need for comparative effectiveness research.(medical practice)(Editorial)
For the last several months I have been hard at work as a member of an Institute of Medicine committee charged by Congress with advising the Secretary of Health & Human Services on how to best spend . . .

Home remedy and antibiotics for eczema.(Brief article)
A small, preliminary study published in the journal Pediatrics showed a combination treatment can alleviate symptoms of the painful itchy skin disease called atopic dermatitis, which is the most com . . .

Healthy ovaries should not be removed.(Brief article)
For about 50 years, gynecologists have been recommending the surgical removal of healthy ovaries in women who undergo a hysterectomy for reasons unrelated to cancer. The advice is based on the fact . . .

Best topical medications for psoriasis.(Brief article)
Creams or ointments that contain vitamin D and those that contain potent corticosteroids were shown to provide the most benefit to people with psoriasis, a skin condition that occurs most often on t . . .

Just say no to the PSA prostate cancer test.(prostate-specific antigen)
"Studies Fail to Settle Prostate Screening Debate" (Boston Globe); "Prostate Screening Saves Lives" (BBC). "Prostate Cancer Screening May Not Reduce Deaths" (Washington Post). These are just some . . .

Consumer beware: two health scams on the Internet.
Two ubiquitous ad campaigns circulating on the Internet have raised major concerns. Both prey on the near-universal desire to look good, be healthy, and live longer. One involves free trial offers f . . .

Drinking very hot tea associated with higher incidence of esophageal cancer.
People who drink very hot tea increase their chance of developing cancer of the esophagus, the muscular tube through which food passes from the throat to the stomach. This is the finding of a new st . . .

Breast cancer incidence drops in U.S.(Health News in Brief)(Brief article)
The incidence of breast cancer in postmenopausal women has been decreasing since 2002, probably because so many women have given up hormone therapy, say researchers who assessed the follow-up data f . . .

Weight loss and urinary incontinence.(Health News in Brief)(Brief article)
Weight loss reduced the frequency of the number of incontinence episodes in women who are overweight or obese, according to one study of women with urinary incontinence. Losing 8% of body weight was . . .

Radiation dose of cardiac CT scans.(Health News in Brief)(Computed tomography)(Brief article)
ACT scan of the coronary arteries is a good diagnostic tool, but it involves a large dose of radiation. To determine how much radiation is involved in cardiac CT scans (also known as computed tomogr . . .

Acute low back pain and imaging.(Health News in Brief)(Brief article)
People with acute low back pain do not benefit from immediate x-rays or high-tech imaging techniques like CT scans because these diagnostic procedures do not lead to reduced pain, improved function, . . .

Free consumer's guide.(Health News in Brief)(Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives)(Brief article)
For help in determining when a CT or a PET scan is necessary, read the 2-page "Consumer's Guide to Health Screening" at the Web site of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (www.policyalterna . . .

Treatment for early prostate cancer not better than "wait and see".
A common treatment given to men with early-stage prostate cancer--one that has significant harms--was found to be no more effective in extending life than the "wait-and-see" approach. The study, pub . . .

A rare honest explanation of the pros and cons of mammography screening.
Printed materials designed to inform women about the need for regular screening mammograms are notorious for not mentioning the harms as well as the benefits of early breast cancer detection. A grou . . .

From the director ... doctors ignore computerized drug safety alerts.
When it comes to improving patient safety it sometimes seems as if doctors can be part of the problem than part of the solution. Just how much part of the problem was revealed in a study recently pu . . .

Fosamax-induced osteonecrosis of the jaw more common than previously thought.
Dentists have been in the forefront of identifying a severe complication of Fosamax, the osteoporosis drug widely prescribed to prevent fractures. The January issue of the Journal of the American De . . .

Five-year HealthFacts index.
For the five-year index to HealthFacts from 2004 through 2008, send a check for $5.00 to the Center for Medical Consumers, 239 Thompson St., New York, New York 10012. . . .

Open breast biopsies performed much too frequently.(Interview)
Too many U.S. women are having the more drastic, more expensive open biopsy once a mammogram detects an abnormality, according to a new study conducted at one academic medical center. This is diagno . . .

Interview with co-author of breast biopsy study.(Interview)(Brief article)
One co-author of the breast biopsy study is Susan K. Boolbol, MD, Chief, Appel-Venet Comprehensive Breast Service and Director, Breast Surgery Fellowship, Beth Israel Medical Center, New York City. . . .

Generic versions of heart drugs are just as good as brand-name drugs.(Report)
Buying prescription drugs under their generic names can save a substantial amount of money, but the perception lingers--among doctors and consumers alike--that brand-name drugs are superior. To dete . . .

Two Web sites--about Safe Cosmetics and breast cancer--worth checking out.(www.SafeCosmetics.org)(www.BrainMetsBC.org)
www.SafeCosmetics.org is sponsored by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, a coalition of women's, public health, labor, environmental-health and consumer-rights groups. Its stated mission: "Our goal is . . .

Colonoscopy's benefit found to be overestimated.(Clinical report)
Long-time readers know that this publication has never championed cancer screening tests. They are inevitably oversold to the public--benefits hyped, risks downplayed. Now colonoscopy has been expos . . .

Peppermint oil, fiber and antispasmodic drugs help many with irritable bowel syndrome.(Clinical report)
Three inexpensive treatments work well for many people with irritable bowel syndrome, according to a new review published in the British Medical Journal. While peppermint oil, fiber and antispasmodi . . .

From the director ... battle for quality information with all prescription drugs.
A study recently released by the FDA found that the printed information handed to consumers when they pick up their prescription at the pharmacy often fails to provide critical information about a d . . .

Six holiday- or winter-related medical myths from the British Medical Journal.(Clinical report)
The following six medical myths were discredited in a recent issue of the British Medical Journal. All are related to winter or the holiday season; all are beliefs commonly held by physicians and no . . .

Avoiding alcohol while on antibiotics--a prevalent myth.(Brief article)(Clinical report)
Yet another medical myth was explored in a recent issue of the British Medical Journal. The idea that alcohol should be avoided while taking antibiotics is prevalent, according to a survey of Britis . . .

Going on a statin? Take a close look at the size of the benefit.
The current practice of advising healthy adults to go on prolonged drug therapy just got a big boost from a large international trial. It found that healthy people with normal cholesterol can halve . . .

Vitamin research: continues to find no benefit and some risks.
Looking for ways to save money? Stop taking vitamins. The scientific case against them has been building over the last few years, starting with the report from the 2006 U.S. National Institutes of H . . .

Ginkgo Biloba does not prevent dementia.(Brief article)(Clinical report)
Ginkgo biloba, an over-the-counter herbal supplement widely sold to improve memory, does not prevent dementia or Alzheimer disease, according to a new study published in the November 19 issue of the . . .

Prescription drug use--new podcast dispels many myths.
One information source used in the preparation of HealthFacts is The Therapeutics Initiative, which publishes a free online newsletter. This project was established in 1994 by the Department of Phar . . .

From the director ... new concerns about a class of drugs called biologics.
The fastest growing class of new drugs in the U.S. is the so-called biologics. Although the first in this class of drugs was approved in 1982, most have been marketed for a decade or less and little . . .

New book called The Healthy Skeptic takes on the hype in health advice.(Book review)
Sometimes it's the opening anecdote that draws you into a book. In the introduction of The Healthy Skeptic: Cutting through the HYPE about your Health, author Robert J. Davis describes a youthful en . . .

Arthroscopic surgery for knee arthritis found to be useless (once again).
Arthroscopic surgery is no better than conservative treatment for people with knee osteoarthritis. This was shown in a 2002 clinical trial, and now a new trial has produced the same result. Will it . . .

Free booklet about pain drugs.
The U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality provides free copies of its, "Choosing Pain Medicine for Osteoarthritis: A Guide for Consumers." The guide gives the trade-offs between pain relie . . .

Some herbal medicines found to be contaminated.(Brief article)
Herbal medicines are widely perceived by the public as safe, certainly in contrast to prescription drugs. But a new study found that a substantial proportion of ayurvedic medicines, made in the U.S. . . .

Vytorin and Zetia continue to be prescribed despite hints of harms and no proof of benefit.
There is no proof that Zetia can do anything beyond lowering cholesterol--no evidence that it can reduce heart attacks or cardiovascular disease, which, of course, is the ultimate goal. Once again, . . .

Hip- and knee-replacement surgery: need for reoperation within three years is extremely low.(Clinical report)
People facing hip- or knee-replacement surgery might want to know whether there's a success rate that can be checked beforehand. The National Joint Registry for England and Wales has provided just s . . .

Adverse drug reactions.(Brief article)
The FDA Web site now lists drugs currently being evaluated for potential harm. Selection is based on a review of reports in FDA's Adverse Event Reporting System (AERS). This is the agency's database . . .