As a physician one is used to getting compliments from patients when things go according to plan. A few weeks ago, I was floored and humbled by a unique compliment I received from Dave Remington (posted with his permission). He told me “the best thing that happened to me is that my ablation did not…
causes of death in the US
If you are interested in the full article it is here.
sober curious
I like the term. I am going to ask my AFIB patients to be sober curious. Sober curious as a concept started gaining popularity with the book by Ruby Warrington. Non alcoholic drinks, raves and bars are now the in-thing. Dry January as a concept is catching on in the US and UK. “Alcohol Change“,…
coincidence?
the sugar saga continues
Sugary drinks including fruit juice once again implicated in increased risk of overall cancer and breast cancer in a study published in British medical journal. Of note, this correlation persisted with even a small amount of sugary drink consumed – 100 ml or 1/3rd of a can of soda a day. So far, I have…
ireland & iceland
Great places to walk!
plant based diets & high blood pressure
DASH (dietary approaches to stop hypertension) trial published in NEJM showed that a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and low-fat dairy foods and with reduced saturated and total fat can substantially lower blood pressure. This trial was published in 1997 – results were seen with 8-10 servings of fruits and vegetables a day but our…
reducetarian
While it does not meet the ethical argument, it does check the boxes for the health and environmental argument. Reducetarian
AFIB & dementia
There is a strong correlation between AFIB and dementia. Prevalence of AFIB and dementia are both increasing with aging population. There have been several meta-analyses looking dementia in patients with AFIB. Study by Kwok in Neurology – 46.637 patients – twice the risk of dementia in patients with AFIB. Study by Santangeli in Heart Rhythm…
anxiety & AFIB
This quote is not meant to be funny. This is the truth of atrial fibrillation for most symptomatic patients. Early in the course of atrial fibrillation, most patients are anxious. I tell them “the paradox of AFIB is that the more you have it, the less it bothers you (most people)”. Anxiety increases risk of…