The 2018 Flu Epidemic: Hives and other Influenza Related Nonsense
While it isn't likely to be the flumaggedon, it is shaping up to be a really bad flu season. Unfortunately there is a lot of overzealous news coverage that I fear is causing more anxiety among parents than is warranted.
Anti-vaccine sentiment associated with belief in conspiracy theories
A recent survey examined the relationship between opposition to vaccines, belief in conspiracy theories, and other factors. The results suggest that we may need to modify how we address concerns about the safety and effectiveness of vaccines.
What Not To Write in an E-mail to SBM
What to do, and what not to do, when sending a critical e-mail to SBM or elsewhere – assuming you want to be taken seriously.
MyMedLab Offers Expensive, Useless, Nonstandard Lab Tests
Direct to consumer lab testing is good marketing but not good medicine. For instance, there is no reason to spend $199 to measure glyphosate levels in your blood.
Death by Gardasil? Not so fast there…
There is a type of "vaccine injury" story promoted by the antivaccine movement that is particularly pernicious, a narrative I call "death by Gardasil." The stories, which use tenuous connections between vaccination against HPV to prevent cervical cancer and the unexpected death of a teen or young adult, are always tragic, and you can't help but feel incredible empathy for the parents....
Kennedy, Fisher and Bigtree: a triple dose of anti-vaccine injected into upcoming chiropractic conference
Even as the flu rages, chiropractors will be stoking their anti-vaccination ideology at a March conference with speeches from anti-vaxx Illuminati Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Barbara Loe Fisher and Del Bigtree.
Vision Therapy Quackery
Behavioral optometry claims to treat a wide range of disorders, including learning difficulty and attention problems. But these claims are not based on solid scientific ground, and are not supported by rigorous evidence.
Broken Brain
In his new video series, Dr. Mark Hyman says your brain is broken and functional medicine can fix it. He mixes conventional healthy lifestyle advice with highly questionable claims and recommendations based on speculation rather than on evidence.
The effort of integrative medicine advocates to co-opt the opioid crisis to claim non pharmacological treatments for pain as solely theirs continues apace
Last week, I wrote about how advocates for quackery were trying, and succeeding, at persuading state Medicaid agencies to pay for acupuncture for pain. This week, I discuss how they are promoting the integration of quackery with medicine. In this case, they are promoting a white paper and trying to influence the AHRQ.
Rabies Claims the Life of a 6-Year-Old Florida Child: The Tragic Case of Ryker Roque
Rabies is an incredibly deadly infection, but one that is virtually 100% preventable. Unfortunately a Florida child recently paid the ultimate price when his parents failed to seek out appropriate medical care for a bat bite, and despite an experimental but flawed treatment protocol.
Don’t Blame the Patient