Because Good Medicine Deserves Better Explanations
Behind the HeadlinesHe wasn’t lazy. He was fighting a chronic disease no one had words for. In this first episode of The Heart of Power, we explore the personal cost of medical blind spots—and the legacy of a misunderstood patient. “It took four men to pull the president from the bathtub.” The newspapers had a … Read more
He wasn’t exactly a poster child for heart health. He loved steak, hated vegetables, and didn’t care much for doctors. His LDL-cholesterol hovered around 200 mg/dL (5.17 mmol/L) for most of his adult life. Yet, at age 88, his arteries were clean—and his mind sharper than ever. Meanwhile, his neighbor—an avid cyclist with “perfect” cholesterol—underwent … Read more
He’s just poured his first cup of coffee. The house is quiet; the day just beginning. A minute ago, he noticed a light sweat along his back — strange but easy to ignore. Then it hits. A tightness in his chest, deep and growing. A wave of nausea. His skin turns cold and clammy. He … Read more
Most of what I write here on Doc’s Opinion sticks pretty closely to cardiology — that’s my usual beat, after all. But every now and then, a study comes along that pulls me out of that lane. This is one of those. The paper published recently in Nature Metabolism looks at how a mother’s diet … Read more
Coronary artery calcium (CAC) scoring has quietly become one of the most valuable tools we have in preventive cardiology. It’s quick, non-invasive, relatively inexpensive, and remarkably informative. For those unfamiliar with the test itself, I’ve written an overview explaining what CAC scoring is and how it works— you can read it here. When someone’s CAC … Read more
