By Natalie Smith, MD
Faculty Peer Reviewed
A few weeks ago I received an email from a friend I grew up with containing a link to an article she had seen online and a question as to its implications. The email was directed to me, the medical student, but was also sent to eight of our other closest friends. I clicked on the link and found a short article titled, “What drugs are known to cause memory loss?” My friend’s particular concern was based on…
By Gloria Lan, MD
Faculty Peer Reviewed
This week, Angelina Jolie surprised the world with her confession of having had a prophylactic double mastectomy because of a BRCA-1 mutation. This led to an outpouring of support from breast cancer organizations and celebrities and has landed her on the cover of next month’s Time Magazine entitled “The Angelina Jolie Effect.” Many have predicted that because of Angelina’s brave story, more women will investigate their own family histories and probe further into the issue of genetic testing.…
By Jenna Piccininni
Faculty Peer Reviewed
Bisphosphonates are a relatively new medication having only been approved to treat osteoporosis in the US since 1995 . In addition, large placebo controlled trials have, at most, 10 years of follow-up data. Thus, there are still questions regarding the long-term use of these agents. There are a few well-established side effects of bisphosphonates including rare osteonecrosis of the jaw and more common esophageal irritation. However, several more recent case reports suggest a correlation between prolonged bisphosphonate use and…
By Anna Krigel
Faculty Peer Reviewed
The iconic image of Abraham Lincoln is ubiquitous in our lives, from his small face on the penny to his large figure looming over the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Lincoln fascinates historians because of his significant role in American history when our nation was bitterly divided, but he intrigues physicians because of his remarkable stature. A reporter once described the 16th president as a “tall, lank, lean man considerably over six feet in height with stooping shoulders, long…
By David G. Rosenthal and Robert Gianotti, MD
Faculty Peer Reviewed
Case: A 33-year-old man comes to your clinic complaining of worsening acne over the last 6 months. You note a significant increase in both BMI and bicep circumference. After several minutes of denial, he reveals that he has been using both injectable and oral anabolic steroids. He receives these drugs from a local supplier and via the Internet. He confides that his libido has dramatically increased and he feels increasingly pressured at work, describing…
By Robert J. Gianotti, MD
Faculty Peer Reviewed
No matter how hard I try I just can’t get the picture of Kevin Ware fracturing his leg last Easter Sunday out of my head. Not only did it ruin my appetite for a perfectly cooked crown roast, but it has had me asking “How?”. How could this happen, how could a young, fit, elite college athlete suffer such a horrible injury after what appeared to be an routine jump for a pass block. A quick Google…
By Jiah Shin Teh, MD
Faculty Peer Reviewed
On behalf of Primecuts, happy belated Easter! We all hope that the days of special observance, no matter your faith, will help to refresh and recharge. For as we venture into the days of 2013, or post-12/21/12 for some out there, the world ever changes. Meteorites crashing down in spectacular Youtube-worthy fashion. North Korea’s wanton bluster reaching heights seldom seen that has got the world worried. And for us medical folks of course, the litany of new…
By Gregory Katz, MD
Faculty Peer Reviewed
Habemus papum! It was hard to find anything in the news this week that didn’t mention Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio’s ascension to infallibility as he became Pope Francis. As the first pontiff from the Western Hemisphere, Francis ushers in a new era for the Catholic Church. He chose his name to honor St. Francis, the Italian friar best known for his advocacy for the poor. Overshadowed by the church’s announcement was the legal rejection of Mayor Bloomberg’s plan…
By Aaron Smith
Faculty Peer Reviewed
Happy Belated Valentine’s Day! In this edition of Primecuts, we look at recent scientific articles pertaining to our favorite Valentine’s Day traditions. Next year, you may find the following information useful before you pour that bottle of wine, open that box of chocolates, or snuggle with that special someone.
Long believed to be an aphrodisiac, red wine is practically synonymous with love and romance. An article in Molecular Reproduction & Development supports red wine’s purported fertility-enhancing properties. Aquila et…
By Jillian Rosengard, MD
Faculty Peer Reviewed
This week we bundled up to bear the brutal cold, watched President Obama’s second term inaugural address, and inched closer to our return to Bellevue. Meanwhile, an article from this week’s New England Journal of Medicine gained media attention. Jha et al’s retrospective cohort study of more than 200,000 Americans examined cigarette smoking’s effect on survival and the benefits of smoking cessation. After accounting for potential confounders (namely education level, alcohol use, and obesity), life expectancy for current…
By Jessica Taff, MD
As the 3 major teaching hospitals that make up NYU Medical Center begin to come back online, we thought it was the right time to share some of our reflections on Hurricane Sandy. It’s been a long strange journey for the faculty, housestaff, students and most of all our patients. It’s time now though for us to come back home; to return with a renewed sense of purpose and a new appreciation for our institution.
As the East River lapped over…
