In my latest 1:2:1 podcast, I talk about an issue plaguing academic medicine: the disappearance of the physician-scientist. In the introduction to a new book, …
Author: Paul Costello
New theories on autism: facts vs. myths
New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof opined on Thursday that toxins could be contributing causes to autism. He cited an article (registration required) in the …
What now on health care reform
The headline - "Public Option Support Surging in Senate" - sounded so last fall. But there it was last week on Huffington Post, detailing an …
NIH funding up 3 percent in President's budget
"Whew." That's what you're hearing in research labs across the country today. A collective sigh of relief after the Obama administration's increased commitment to NIH …
Stem cell breakthrough: Science over classical music
Marius Wernig, MD, is a researcher with training in classical music. Today he has a groundbreaking study coming out on stem cells in Nature. He …
Do anti-depressants help only the severely depressed?
A few weeks ago I read of a new study about antidepressants. USA Today characterized it like this: "A small study provides more evidence that, …
Health care hits the shoals. What now Charlie Brown?
A month ago, no one could have imagined that an insurgent Republican candidate for Ted Kennedy's Senate seat would not only topple the apple cart …
Let Me Down Easy: A conversation with Anna Deavere Smith
It's hard to describe the brilliance of Anna Deavere Smith. The New York Times said of her work, she's the "ultimate impressionist. She does people's …
Dr. Nancy
Every consumer of health care should wish they had a Dr. Nancy Snyderman in their life. The Indiana native combines a no-nonsense Midwestern sensibility with …
Incidentalomas
A friend was diagnosed recently with prostate cancer. While his cancer was found to be relatively insignificant, he battled questions about treatment. Some physicians he …
Denialism
OK. So I beat Jon Stewart to an interview with Michael Specter. If you're interested in considering how irrational thinking hinders scientific progress, you should …
H1N1 has peaked but will it return?
According to numbers just posted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, new infections of the H1N1 virus continue to decrease across the …
The NY Times: a medical culture clash
Today's New York Times has two excellent articles that give some depth, analysis and perspecive to what happened this week in the public debacle over …
Effectiveness research ignites prairie fire
Comparative effectiveness research has had a bad week. CER, a scientific analysis to determine what treatments, drugs and medical devices are most effective, has been …
Research on autism is moving in the right direction
I can't imagine the devastation parents must feel when their child is diagnosed as autistic. Ricardo Dolmetsch, PhD, assistant professor of neurobiology at Stanford, faced …
Questions for Dr. Ricardo Dolmetsch on autism
In September 2008, Ricardo Dolmetsch, PhD, assistant profesor of neurobiology, received a National Institutes of Health New Innovator Award to continue his discoveries about the …