Aging
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    STATINS AFTER AGE 80

    It seems that when senior citizens reach the age of 80, the healthcare industry is no longer interested in them.…
    A Day in the Life Scenarios
    2 days ago

    OLDER PHYSICIANS: IMPAIRED?

    Many healthcare institutions and medical practices are seeing the age of practicing physicians increase as more continue to practice beyond…
    Human Interest
    3 days ago

    DIET SODA BLAMED AGAIN!

    Like so many things in life, one entity, item, or thing gets blamed for many of the ills that human…
    Human Interest
    4 days ago

    SENIOR NATIONAL PARKS PASS

    If you’re young or still physically able to travel and enjoy the great sights and scenes the U.S. is blessed…
    Cancer
    5 days ago

    TOP 10 RISK FACTORS FOR PANCREATIC CANCER

    In the last five years, I have personally known five people who died of cancer of the pancreas. In 1968,…
    Human Interest
    1 week ago

    IU BASKETBALL 2025-‘26 SEASON POSTMORTEM

    IU BASKETBALL 2025-‘26 SEASON POSTMORTEM Now that Indiana University’s men’s basketball season has mercifully come to an end, I thought…
    Human Interest
    1 week ago

    NON-TRADITIONAL MED STUDENTS

    The reference for this DrGOpines.com post made a statement I find somewhat surprising! It stated that 57% of current medical…
    Drugs & Medications
    1 week ago

    NEW IDEAS FOR HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE

    As I’ve written many times previously, procedures, protocols, and treatments in medical care change constantly. Medical research publications are filled…
    Heart Disease
    2 weeks ago

    CHEST PAIN? HOW BEST TO EVALUATE

    I don’t think I would call it “a raging debate,” but there certainly is disagreement about how best to evaluate…
    Heart Disease
    2 weeks ago

    STABLE CHEST PAIN? CCTA IS YOUR ANSWER

    The information that follows may be as important as any previously reported here! I’m referring to a 2021 recommendation from…
    End of life Issues
    2 weeks ago

    AUTOPSY ANSWERS THE QUESTION

    “What question is that?” you ask. The question on the minds of doctors, nurses, friends, and family is what was…
    Preventive Medicine
    2 weeks ago

    EXERCISE SEEMS TO HELP EVERYTHING!

    For just about every physical affliction or metabolic disorder people experience, the first thing experts recommend is “lifestyle changes.” Foremost…
    Drugs & Medications
    2 weeks ago

    NEW IDEAS ABOUT STATIN TREATMENT

    When it comes to prescribing statin drugs, doctors now have two different options. The purpose of each is to lower…
    Drugs & Medications
    3 weeks ago

    ANTIHISTAMINES DISCOURAGED IN CHILDREN

    Nearly everyone has taken an antihistamine at some time in their life. Antihistamines  have dozens of uses and as such…
    Human Interest
    3 weeks ago

    A PATTERN FOR OUR LIVES

    By the time you read this article, we will have already passed the first day of March. The first two…
    Preventive Medicine
    3 weeks ago

    PILLARS OF LIFESTYLE

    Regardless of the problem being discussed, medical professionals almost always start their list of recommendations with lifestyle changes. When it’s…
    Human Interest
    3 weeks ago

    WHAT’S HAPPENED TO PHYSICIAN PRESTIGE?

    Impersonal care and poor rapport, that’s what! These are two very important aspects of medical care, today, that affect how…
    Office Practice Info
    3 weeks ago

    HOSPITAL CREDENTIALING NOT AUTOMATIC

    HOSPITAL CREDENTIALING NOT AUTOMATIC To become a member of a hospital medical staff, a physician must undergo a thorough investigative…
    Cancer
    4 weeks ago

    MIDLIFE PSA PREDICTS RISK FOR PROSTATE CANCER

    Finally, someone has presented a common sense approach for using the Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) blood test. Long criticized for…
    Heart Disease
    4 weeks ago

    FINDING HEART DISEASE BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE!

    Many years ago, I was troubled by a situation involving a man in his 30’s who had every indication he…
    Drugs & Medications
    4 weeks ago

    NEW DROPS FOR OLD EYES

    As we age, many things about our bodies change. If we don’t become bald, what hair we have eventually turns…
    Drugs & Medications
    February 18, 2026

    STATINS HAVE FEW SIDE EFFECTS

    The Lancet is the leading medical journal in Great Britain. Actually, it’s one of the most respected medical journals in…
    Human Interest
    February 17, 2026

    MEDICAL SCHOOL SYNDROME: TEMPORARY HYPOCHONDRIA

    During the first two years of medical school, on several occasions I was certain I was suffering from some dread…
    Physician Office Issues
    February 16, 2026

    SOME BLOOD TESTS ARE OBSOLETE

    It amazes me how often and how rapidly things in medicine change. Inquiring minds are everywhere in the vast realm…
    Cancer
    February 13, 2026

    CANCER SCREENING IN THE ELDERLY

    Dermatologists have not established an end point, or an expiration date, when they no longer screen for skin cancer. Skin…

      COVID-19
      October 27, 2025

      MEDICAL “MISINFORMATION”

      I fear I may be “wading into shark-infested waters” when I approach the subject in the title of this article.…
      COVID-19
      September 23, 2025

      LONG COVID STILL AFFECTING DOCTORS, NURSES

      The serious, deadly phase of the COVID-19 pandemic has ended along with the frequency of acute cases. It’s been over…
      COVID-19
      September 3, 2025

      VACCINES PROTECT CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS

      COVID-19 and the vaccines developed to combat it did more to erode trust in old, well-established, standard vaccines than any…
      Cancer
      July 27, 2025

      COVID-19, VITAMIN D, CANCER, GLP-1’S, HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE

      MEDICAL NEWS BRIEFS #29 COVID-19 has a greater effect on kidneys than pneumonia: Natural aging causes a gradual decline in…
      COVID-19
      September 16, 2023

      CDC RECOMMENDS ALL AMERICANS 6 MONTHS AND OLDER RECEIVE AT LEAST ONE DOSE OF UPDATED COVID-19 VACCINE

      The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently approved “reformulated” COVID vaccines by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna. That prompted a CDC Advisory…
      COVID-19
      March 18, 2023

      MOST COVID-19 DEATHS WORLDWIDE WERE AMONG OLDER PEOPLE.

      The high mortality rate from COVID-19 among the elderly was a fact everyone knew, but a lot of people ignored.…
      Preventive Medicine
      January 18, 2023

      STROKE AND PFIZER VACCINE

      Have you heard the latest about the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 booster? There’s always something, you know! This time, there are serious…
      Healthcare Policy
      December 26, 2022

      LIFE EXPECTANCY LOWERED—AGAIN!

      The CDC just announced the life expectancy of Americans recently dropped to a 25-year low. People born in 2021 have…
      COVID-19
      May 27, 2022

      mRNA VACCINE EFFICACY

      Who really knows how effective mRNA vaccines are for COVID-19. All degrees of outrageous claims about them are made back…
      COVID-19
      February 4, 2022

      MONOCLONAL ANTIBODIES: What are they? What do they do?

      This is a difficult subject to write about. Difficult because to understand it, you must possess basic knowledge of the…
      COVID-19
      January 23, 2022

      “COVID-19 VACCINE BOOSTERS SAVE LIVES”

      Yes, they really do! And The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) is proud to report that fact. Two…
      COVID-19
      January 5, 2022

      COVID-19 VACCINE-MYOCARDITIS LINK INSIGNIFICANT

      Last summer, there was a lot of fuss about a link between mRNA vaccines for COVID-19 and the occurrence of…
      COVID-19
      October 11, 2021

      NATURAL IMMUNITY TO COVID-19: IS IT A REALITY?

      Why can’t today’s viruses play fair? Why can’t viruses like SARS-CoV-2 behave like the viruses of old—the varicella-zoster virus or…
      COVID-19
      September 28, 2021

      PFIZER COVID-19 VACCINE AND MYOCARDITIS

      In July, I wrote a blog about the incidence of myocarditis in young males after vaccination with Pfizer/BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine.…
      COVID-19
      September 17, 2021

      COVID-19 VACCINATION AND CIVIL LIBERTIES

      I’m having a bit of trouble with the current attitude of a lot of people. I’m referring to the 80…
      COVID-19
      August 15, 2021

      VACCINE HESITANCY: WHY PEOPLE REFUSE COVID-19 VACCINE

      I’m old enough to remember what life was like before vaccines. As a child I had measles, mumps, and chicken…
      COVID-19
      July 12, 2021

      MYOCARDITIS AFTER COVID-19 VACCINE

      Much ado has been made on cable news programs about the adverse effects attributed to COVID-19 vaccines. In particular, there…
      COVID-19
      March 6, 2021

      SIX COVID-19 VACCINES IN PHASE III TRIALS

      We’ve heard repeatedly about the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines for COVID-19. Those are the two vaccines in use locally; if…
      COVID-19
      March 5, 2021

      ALLERGIC REACTIONS TO PFIZER-BIONTECH VACCINE

      Today’s media seems to have difficulty reporting the good news that comes from developments in the COVID-19 pandemic. Such is…
      COVID-19
      January 12, 2021

      COVID-19 VACCINE: MY EXPERIENCE

      The Maricopa County (Arizona) Health Department began administering COVID-19 vaccine in late December. Maricopa County has the bulk of the…
      COVID-19
      December 5, 2020

      AT-HOME COVID-19 TESTING

      These days news travels fast so you may already know the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the…
      COVID-19
      November 21, 2020

      PFIZER COVID-19 VACCINE 90% (95%) EFFECTIVE!

      By now you’ve surely heard the good news about the COVID-19 vaccine being developed by Pfizer Pharmaceutical Company in collaboration…
      COVID-19
      July 5, 2020

      HERD IMMUNITY? What’s That?

      Lately, there have been many references to the term HERD IMMUNITY. Public health officials use it in their communications about…

      CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES

        Heart Disease
        August 21, 2020

        ATRIAL FIBRILLATION: Does it affect Length of life?

        That question and several others were answered recently by information reported in a study reported in the British Medical Journal…
        Heart Disease
        August 11, 2025

        STABLE CHEST PAIN? CCTA IS YOUR ANSWER

        The information that follows may be as important as any previously reported here! I’m referring to a 2021 recommendation from…
        Bone & Joint Problems
        December 1, 2024

        MEDICAL NEWS BRIEFS #24

        Does a cortisone shot help a frozen shoulder? Adhesive capsulitis is the fancy term for a frozen shoulder. The bones…
        Drugs & Medications
        May 3, 2020

        MORE ON ASPIRIN AND CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE

        On March 22nd, I published a blog on aspirin for the primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease. The message…
        Drugs & Medications
        March 7, 2022

        STATIN INTOLERANCE OVERESTIMATED

        The use of statin drugs has been challenged for years by the fear of alleged adverse effects. Patients who need…
        Drugs & Medications
        November 3, 2025

        LYRICA INCREASES RISK OF HEART FAILURE

        This article pertains only to patients who take Lyrica (pregabalin) and are over age 65. If you don’t fall in…
        Drugs & Medications
        August 7, 2025

        ARE YOU AT RISK FOR ATRIAL FIBRILLATION?

        At my age, most of my friends and acquaintances have, or have had, Atrial Fibrillation! It is the most common…
        Cancer
        October 14, 2025

        LOW-DOSE ASPIRIN AND CANCER PREVENTION

        Is there no end to the creative imagination of medical researchers? Some amazing revelation of a new, life-altering use for…
        Heart Disease
        February 24, 2021

        HEART ATTACKS IN WOMEN: Are They Really Different?

        For many years, the mantra has been that heart attacks in women are different; they are harder to diagnose, the…
        Heart Disease
        October 10, 2025

        HEART ATTACKS: WHAT’S NEW?

        In the simpler, unenlightened world of the past, a heart attack was just a heart attack. It was a serious…
        Aging
        January 20, 2020

        THE USE OF STATINS IN THE ELDERLY

        For some people, the use of statins continues to be a concern. Concern, not because they don’t do what they’re…
        Diabetes
        July 30, 2023

        MORE ABOUT SUGAR IN OUR DIET

        Recently, I reported information that certain amounts of sugar in our diet were tied directly to increased risk of a…
        Heart Disease
        August 15, 2023

        SHORTNESS OF BREATH

        Doctors call shortness of breath a single, much shorter name—Dyspnea. The Greek and Latin derivatives of dyspnea are “dys” which…
        Cancer
        November 12, 2024

        MEDICAL NEWS BRIEFS #23

        Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: To operate or not to operate? That’s the question: Carpal tunnel syndrome is compression of the median…
        Drugs & Medications
        November 6, 2025

        POST-MI BETA BLOCKER USE SHOULD CEASE

        On August 6, 2025, DrGOpines.com posted an article titled “Post-MI Beta Blockers Questioned.” In it, the routine prescribing of Beta…
        Heart Disease
        4 weeks ago

        FINDING HEART DISEASE BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE!

        Many years ago, I was troubled by a situation involving a man in his 30’s who had every indication he…
        Drugs & Medications
        October 16, 2022

        STATINS ARE “MIRACLE DRUGS!”

        I’m going to beat the statins drum once again! Very few drugs have had the impact on cardiovascular disease than…
        Heart Disease
        October 19, 2020

        PREVENTION OF CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE: Decades of Learning and Progress!

        For decades, Cardiovascular Disease (CVD), and heart disease, in particular, has been the number one killer of American adults. Heart…
        Drugs & Medications
        December 8, 2024

        NEW APPROACH TO TREATING HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE

        For decades, the “step-wise care” approach to treating high blood pressure (HBP) was in vogue. This approach recommended starting with…
        Heart Disease
        June 3, 2019

        AN EPIDEMIC OF A DIFFERENT COLOR: Atrial Fibrillation

        I have at least 8 or 10 personal friends who have had episodes of Atrial Fibrillation. My wife and I…
        Heart Disease
        May 6, 2019

        CHOLESTEROL TREATMENT GUIDELINES: Latest Info

        AHA vs. USPSTF Both the American Heart Association (AHA) and the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) issue guidelines…
        Heart Disease
        April 15, 2020

        CHOLESTEROL

        What is it and how does it cause harm? Everyone has heard of cholesterol. Everyone has cholesterol. Everyone should worry…
        Drugs & Medications
        March 28, 2022

        TYLENOL AND BLOOD PRESSURE: THERE’S MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE!

        Most people think of Tylenol (acetaminophen) as a safe drug. They substitute if for aspirin because they are continually reminded…
        Preventive Medicine
        June 22, 2022

        CAROTID STENOSIS AND STROKE

        Carotid stenosis is a narrowing of the artery in the neck that sends blood to the brain. When blood flow…
        Heart Disease
        January 2, 2021

        HYPERTENSION AFFECTS COGNITIVE PERFORMANCE

        An article I read today had some disturbing information about hypertension and the effect it has on memory, verbal expression,…

        DAY-IN-THE-LIFE SCENARIOS

          A Day in the Life Scenarios
          2 days ago

          OLDER PHYSICIANS: IMPAIRED?

          Many healthcare institutions and medical practices are seeing the age of practicing physicians increase as more continue to practice beyond…
          A Day in the Life Scenarios
          February 11, 2026

          THE QUIRKS OF MEDICAL EDUCATION

          Medical education is phenomenon unto itself. It is filled with nuances that make it distinctive in  character and personality, as…
          A Day in the Life Scenarios
          February 5, 2026

          KNOW YOUR LIMITS

          When I was in medical school, it seemed like my friends and family immediately thought I knew everything every other…
          A Day in the Life Scenarios
          February 4, 2026

          SOME DOCTORS JUST NEVER RETIRE

          What in the world is it with some doctors? I’m referring to the legion of doctors who practice well beyond…
          A Day in the Life Scenarios
          December 5, 2025

          EMPATHY: THE PATH TO BETTER OUTCOMES

          Sympathy is a word we can all define and use correctly in a sentence. It’s an expression of the feelings…
          A Day in the Life Scenarios
          December 3, 2025

          RURAL HEALTHCARE SUFFERING PHYSICIAN DRAIN

          We’ve all heard stories or read articles about small towns and rural communities who have such serious need for medical…

          YOUR WELLNESS MATTERS

            August 8, 2025

            FASTING FOR BLOODWORK IS OUTDATED

            Here’s something that might brighten your day. “It really doesn’t matter if you’re stomach is empty” [when you have blood…
            July 5, 2024

            PRIORITIES IN GERIATRIC CARE

            In spite of statistics that show the average life expectancy of Americans has been declining over the past 5-10 years,…
            January 9, 2024

            WHITE TEETH

            Many people today have a significant focus on personal appearance. You might not think so from the way segments of…
            September 1, 2023

            MEDICAL NEWS BRIEFS NO. 5

            Cancer Among Younger Americans is Increasing    A study published on JAMA Network Open using data from the National Cancer…
            August 25, 2023

            WATER FLUORIDATION, CREST TOOTHPASTE

            There’s little or no disagreement with the statement that fluoridation of community drinking water supplies has been one of public…
            August 5, 2023

            MORE ABOUT SUGAR IN OUR DIET

            Recently, I reported information that certain amounts of sugar in our diet were tied directly to increased risk of a…
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