This page presents a patient’s question and summarizes best evidence.
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A “MMWR” report on mask wearing. Can the results be used for decision making?
A report from the CDC in MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report) on February 4, Volume 71, examined if wearing a mask protects from getting COVID-19. The study design is a case-control study. Cases were people who tested positive for COVID-19 and the comparison group was those who tested negative for COVID-19. These subjects were […]
Will rapid covid tests help stop the pandemic?
My quick answer to the question posed in the title is, no. But, this is an opinion based on my interpretation of the data on the likelihoods of the test being positive or negative should you have covid, and the likelihoods of the test being positive or negative should you not have covid. Given this […]
When can individuals make decisions only for themselves? A letter to Aaron Rodgers.
Dear Mr. Rodgers, I have been a fan from the moment I saw you play quarterback for the Cal Bears. I was at a daughter-father weekend at the University of Illinois in, I think, 2003, or 4. My daughter got tickets and we watched you pick the Illinois defense apart. Your skills were so striking […]
Helpful or Unhelpful Information?
I often get questions asking how to determine helpful from unhelpful information in social media or news reports. I have not before addressed this question as my job is to help people make decisions using only the best medical information. Best information comes from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) or full population studies and includes a […]
Should total knee replacement (TKA) be supported by insurance?
In 2015 a randomized controlled trial (RCT) of knee replacement (TKA) versus 12-weeks of physical therapy for people with osteoarthritis (OA) was published in the New England Journal of Medicine. A quote from the authors of that paper; we are “not aware of any high-quality randomized, controlled trials of TKA …. compared to nonsurgical interventions”. […]
Should I take vitamin D to prevent hip fractures? My physician says my vitamin D level is a bit low.
This week’s post responds to two women asking me the same question. One woman, known to have kidney stones, was prescribed vitamin d alone without calcium as a treatment to lower her chance of having a hip fracture. The woman is healthy with no family history of an increase in fractures. The other woman “succumbed” […]
I am in my 50’s, healthy but my cholesterol is 263. My physician called in a prescription for a “statin”. Should I take it?
A healthy man in his 50’s cholesterol test was “elevated” at 263. When a nurse from his physician’s office called with the result, he was told a prescription for a statin was waiting for him. Before picking it up, he wondered if the treatment would be worthwhile. I introduced this question in a previous blog […]
Do you want this “drug”? Should everyone have this “drug”? Should we pay for others to have this “drug” or should the user pay?
A person asked if they should take this “drug”. The word, “drug” is in quotes to disguise the intervention that was proposed to this person. I have not been asked this person’s question in over 10 years, which prompted me to relook at the data on benefit and harm of the intervention. This blog post […]
Should I take a “BCI” test to decide on 10-years of Tamoxifen?
A woman read my previous blog regarding a genetic test to decide for/against adding chemotherapy to Tamoxifen (T) for her hormone responsive breast cancer. Now, during a follow-up visit with her oncologist, and nearing 5 years on T, her physician suggested she get a test called, Breast Cancer Index (BCI), to determine if she should […]
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