Archives: Commentaries

After a patient has a transient ischemic attack (TIA) or minor stroke, the risk of having another is alarmingly high — 10% to 20% will have another stroke within 3 months and most events occur within 2 days.1-3  Both the...

The recommended treatment duration for a first episode of unprovoked venous thromboembolism (VTE) is, at a minimum, 3 months with extended anticoagulation favored for those who are not at high risk for bleeding.  However,...

Many clinicians are questioning the role pharmacists should play in anticoagulation therapy management as direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) increasingly replace warfarin for a variety of indications. When we say...

To treat acute asthma exacerbations in children, how about a single dose of dexamethasone and your done!  Sounds simple, easy, and convenient.  But is it too good to be true?  Early administration of systemic...

Monoclonal antibodies (mAb) are used to treat many disorders — from cancer to age related macular degeneration. These agents consistently come with a very high price tag often costing more than $200,000 per patient per year in...

Clinical practitioners have used calculators such as the Framingham Risk Score to assess the probability that a patient will develop coronary heart disease (CHD) and to guide primary prevention therapy for decades.1  In...

Stroke is responsible for 1 in 19 deaths in the United States each year and is the leading cause of long-term disability — arguable an outcome worse than death.1 More than 36 billion was spent on stroke treatment and...

Every health professional takes an oath to serve patients. To fulfill this covenant, patient trust must be earned. Without trust, patients are unlikely to share sensitive, personal information, hindering our ability to provide...