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	<description>Opinions from a Family Doctor</description>
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		<title>Overrated Medications Series: No. 5 Antibiotics for Sore Throats</title>
		<link>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/05/31/overrated-medications-series-no-5-antibiotics-for-sore-throats/</link>
		<comments>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/05/31/overrated-medications-series-no-5-antibiotics-for-sore-throats/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 01 Jun 2010 02:22:43 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Robert Lemmon</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Family Medicine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Overrated Medications]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[antibiotics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sore throat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[strep throat]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[streptoccocal]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://bittersweetmedicine.com/?p=195</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I probably should have started with this topic in my series on overrated medications.  The number needed to treat, even if the patient has streptococcal pharyngitis, is about 1 million, higher still if they don&#8217;t have strep throat.  This makes the doctor using Crestor in primary prevention for patients with normal LDL and elevated hsCRP [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=bittersweetmedicine.com&amp;blog=12162266&amp;post=195&amp;subd=doclemmon&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/05/31/overrated-medications-series-no-5-antibiotics-for-sore-throats/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>6</slash:comments>
	
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		<title>Overrated Medications Series: No. 4 Cholinesterase Inhibitors for Alzheimer&#8217;s Dementia</title>
		<link>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/04/22/overrated-medications-series-no-4-cholinesterase-inhibitors-for-alzheimers-dementia/</link>
		<comments>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/04/22/overrated-medications-series-no-4-cholinesterase-inhibitors-for-alzheimers-dementia/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 23 Apr 2010 03:47:50 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Robert Lemmon</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Family Medicine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Alzheimer's dementia]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[aricept]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cholinesterase inhibitors]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[donepezil]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[exelon]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[rivastigmine]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://bittersweetmedicine.com/?p=182</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Alzheimer&#8217;s dementia is a tragic disease and there is no effective treatment for it.  Families watch their loved ones become more confused, initially suffering short-term memory loss, then long-term memory loss and finally becoming withdrawn and requiring total care.  Eventually patients stop eating and drinking.  Along the way many patients become irritable, even violent.  Others [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=bittersweetmedicine.com&amp;blog=12162266&amp;post=182&amp;subd=doclemmon&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/04/22/overrated-medications-series-no-4-cholinesterase-inhibitors-for-alzheimers-dementia/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
	
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		<title>See Our Country&#8217;s Future: A Look at Massachusetts Healthcare</title>
		<link>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/04/10/see-our-countrys-future-a-look-at-massachusetts-healthcare/</link>
		<comments>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/04/10/see-our-countrys-future-a-look-at-massachusetts-healthcare/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 11 Apr 2010 00:05:06 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Robert Lemmon</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Health Care Reform]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[future]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[insurance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[insurance premiums]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Massachusetts]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://bittersweetmedicine.com/?p=166</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Nicole Kurokawa writing at the Independent Women&#8217;s Forum may prove prescient.  She says Massachusetts health care reform is very similar to what we will soon face on a national scale.  She examines recent events in Massachusetts where the major insurers facing price controls and having suffered $100 million dollar losses are refusing to issue new [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=bittersweetmedicine.com&amp;blog=12162266&amp;post=166&amp;subd=doclemmon&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/04/10/see-our-countrys-future-a-look-at-massachusetts-healthcare/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
	
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		<title>Overrated Medications Series: No. 3 Bisphosphonates To Prevent Hip Fractures</title>
		<link>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/04/06/overrated-medications-series-no-3-bisphosphonates-to-prevent-hip-fractures/</link>
		<comments>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/04/06/overrated-medications-series-no-3-bisphosphonates-to-prevent-hip-fractures/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 07 Apr 2010 04:54:57 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Robert Lemmon</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Bisphosphonates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Overrated Medications]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Actonel]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Alendronate]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Fosamax]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fractures]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hip fractures]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Reclast]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Risedronate]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Zoledronic Acid]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://bittersweetmedicine.com/?p=156</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Bisphosphonates are well-known among post menopausal women.  Examples of these drugs are Fosamax (Alendronate), Boniva (Ibandronate) and Reclast (Zoledronic Acid).  These drugs treat osteoporosis and increase bone density by inhibiting the resorption of bone by osteoclasts.  By increasing bone density,  they reduce hip fractures and vertebral fractures.  The drugs do work.  Like the other medications [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=bittersweetmedicine.com&amp;blog=12162266&amp;post=156&amp;subd=doclemmon&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/04/06/overrated-medications-series-no-3-bisphosphonates-to-prevent-hip-fractures/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>8</slash:comments>
	
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		<title>Overrated Medications Series: No. 2 Statins For Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Diseases</title>
		<link>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/26/overrated-medications-series-no-2-statins-for-primary-prevention-of-cardiovascular-diseases/</link>
		<comments>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/26/overrated-medications-series-no-2-statins-for-primary-prevention-of-cardiovascular-diseases/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 26 Mar 2010 05:47:18 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Robert Lemmon</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Family Medicine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Overrated Medications]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Statins]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Cestor]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cholesterol]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[coronary artery disease]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heart attack]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heart disease]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Lipitor]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Pravachol]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[primary prevention]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[statin]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Zocor]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://bittersweetmedicine.com/?p=139</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Facts are stubborn things, but statistics are more pliable. &#8212; Mark Twain This post is blasphemy.  Fortunately I am in good company.  I offer nothing new here for well read physicians and patients.  I have no original ideas to present.  My hope is to help spread the word.  I, like most primary care physicians, had [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=bittersweetmedicine.com&amp;blog=12162266&amp;post=139&amp;subd=doclemmon&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/26/overrated-medications-series-no-2-statins-for-primary-prevention-of-cardiovascular-diseases/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>5</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">doclemmon</media:title>
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		<title>Cetaphil Skin Cleanser For Head Lice</title>
		<link>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/24/cetaphil-skin-cleanser-for-head-lice/</link>
		<comments>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/24/cetaphil-skin-cleanser-for-head-lice/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 25 Mar 2010 00:50:42 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Robert Lemmon</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Alternative Medicine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Cetaphil]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[head lice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[malathion]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://bittersweetmedicine.com/?p=134</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I was delighted to find this benign treatment for head lice on a blog titled Well at The New York Times.  This is legit and published in the journal Pediatrics.  The protocol explained in the article gives a cure rate over 3 weeks of 95%, exceeding that of more toxic treatments like Malathion.  I look [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=bittersweetmedicine.com&amp;blog=12162266&amp;post=134&amp;subd=doclemmon&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/24/cetaphil-skin-cleanser-for-head-lice/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	
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			<media:title type="html">doclemmon</media:title>
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			<media:title type="html">457px-Fig._1._Male_of_head_louse</media:title>
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		<item>
		<title>Overrated Medications Series: No.1 Weight Loss Medications</title>
		<link>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/21/overrated-medications-series-no-1-weight-loss-medications/</link>
		<comments>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/21/overrated-medications-series-no-1-weight-loss-medications/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 22 Mar 2010 04:08:10 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Robert Lemmon</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Family Medicine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Medications]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Overrated Medications]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Alli]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fenfluramine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hCG]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Meridia]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[obesity]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[phentermine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Releana]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[scam]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[weight loss]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://bittersweetmedicine.com/?p=122</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[This is the first in my series on overrated medications.  I am not trying for a definitive ranking of these medications, but rather I am simply trying to show my readers some of the most hyped and overrated drugs on the market.  It will help people make better decisions, avoid waste and improve their health. [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=bittersweetmedicine.com&amp;blog=12162266&amp;post=122&amp;subd=doclemmon&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/21/overrated-medications-series-no-1-weight-loss-medications/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>5</slash:comments>
	
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		<title>ACCORD BP Study Shows Best Guesses by Experts Wrong</title>
		<link>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/15/accord-bp-study-shows-best-guesses-by-experts-wrong/</link>
		<comments>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/15/accord-bp-study-shows-best-guesses-by-experts-wrong/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 15 Mar 2010 05:10:05 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Robert Lemmon</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Blood Pressure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Clinical Guidelines]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Family Medicine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ACCORD study]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[diabetes]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://bittersweetmedicine.com/?p=117</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetics (ACCORD) study shows that intensive blood pressure control with a target of 120 mmHg is of no benefit in reducing fatal and nonfatal cardiovascular events.  Results were released at the American College of Cardiology&#8217;s Scientific Sessions in Atlanta Georgia and published online in the New England Journal [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=bittersweetmedicine.com&amp;blog=12162266&amp;post=117&amp;subd=doclemmon&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/15/accord-bp-study-shows-best-guesses-by-experts-wrong/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	
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		<title>Coumadin and Tooth Extractions</title>
		<link>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/11/coumadin-and-dental-extractions/</link>
		<comments>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/11/coumadin-and-dental-extractions/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 12 Mar 2010 02:03:33 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Robert Lemmon</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Coumadin]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[dental extraction]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[tooth extraction]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[warfarin]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://bittersweetmedicine.com/?p=110</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[On several occasions dentists have asked that I stop patient&#8217;s Coumadin prior to dental extractions.  I have always complied with this request.  However, a cardiologist told one of my patients this was not necessary.  I decided to investigate this and found it true.   Extractions while on Coumadin are very safe, even if INR is above [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=bittersweetmedicine.com&amp;blog=12162266&amp;post=110&amp;subd=doclemmon&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/11/coumadin-and-dental-extractions/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
	
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		<title>Mammogram Screening: Why Physicians Should Review USPSTF Guidelines with Patients</title>
		<link>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/08/mammogram-screening-why-physicians-should-review-uspstf-guidelines-with-patients/</link>
		<comments>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/08/mammogram-screening-why-physicians-should-review-uspstf-guidelines-with-patients/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 08 Mar 2010 05:12:55 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Robert Lemmon</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Clinical Guidelines]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Family Medicine]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mammogram]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mammogram screening]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[US preventative services task force]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[USPSTF]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://bittersweetmedicine.com/?p=93</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[For years now, I have routinely referred my female patients of age 40 years and older for mammograms.  I have actually known for some time that evidence of benefit was weak.  But, like most physicians, ordering the mammograms was habit and my patients expected it.  When the US Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF) released their [...]<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=bittersweetmedicine.com&amp;blog=12162266&amp;post=93&amp;subd=doclemmon&amp;ref=&amp;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://bittersweetmedicine.com/2010/03/08/mammogram-screening-why-physicians-should-review-uspstf-guidelines-with-patients/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
	
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