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Clinical trials Medicine Surgery

When surgical dogma is challenged

From my perspective, one thing that’s always been true of surgery that has bothered me is that it is prone to dogma. I alluded to this a bit earlier this week, but, although things have definitely changed in the 20 years since I first set foot, nervously and tentatively, on the wards of the Cleveland […]

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Clinical trials Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Quackery

A perfect storm of quackademic medicine and bad journalism

I sometimes wonder if the world is laughing at me. Let me explain. A while ago I compiled a list of academic medical institutions that–shall we say?–are far more receptive to pseudoscientific and downright unscientific medicine in the form of so-called complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), otherwise known as “integrative medicine.” I dubbed this list […]

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Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Pseudoscience Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking

How does a scientist or doctor become a crank?

As a physician and scientists who’s dedicated his life to the application of science to the development of better medical treatments, I’ve often wondered how formerly admired scientists and physicians degenerate into out-and-out cranks. I’m talking about people like Peter Duesberg, who was once an admired scientist thought to be on track for a Nobel […]

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Clinical trials Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Quackery

Alternative medicine: Changing the rules after the game has started

Damn Steve Novella. Well, not really, but I always get annoyed when someone comes up with an analogy or description of a phenomenon that I should have thought of first. I don’t really get annoyed at the person who came up with such ideas, but rather at myself for not thinking of something so obvious […]

Categories
Clinical trials Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Quackery

“Integrative” medicine at Yale: A more “fluid” concept of evidence?

I realize that I’ve been very, very remiss in attending to a task that I’ve been meaning to get to since late January. There are several reasons, albeit not excuses, for why I have failed to do this task. Perhaps the most powerful impediment to my overcoming my inertia and just diving in and doing […]