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Amaryllis Progress and Other Notes
I have a few messages to pass on today. This is the last day of November and the Amaryllis plants are doing so well Sena had to brace the tallest one using a Christmas tree stake and a couple of zip ties. It’s over two feet tall! I’m not sure what to make of almost…
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Clozapine REMS Program May Go Away
The Psychiatric Times published an article about the large majority of FDA committee members recently voting to dismiss the Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) for clozapine. That reminded me of my short post about Cobenfy, a new drug for schizophrenia. It has side effects but none of which necessitate the need for a REMS…
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University of Iowa Psychiatrists Publish Huntington Disease Study Results
I ran across a fascinating story about a study on Huntington’s disease published by members of the University of Iowa Health Care. The study examined how the Huntington’s disease gene might enhance brain development and function early in life prior to the onset of the devastating disease. It was published in The Annals of Neurology:…
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Reading My Old Book in a New Light
Sena bought me a wonderful new lamp to read by and it improves on the ceiling fan light I wrote about the other day (And Then a Light Bulb Went Off).” The new lamp even has a nifty remote control with which you can choose the ambient feel. There are several selections, one of which…
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U.S. News & World Report Ranks Iowa City Hospital in 9 Specialties
The University of Iowa Stead Family Childrens Hospital in Iowa City has ranked in 9 pediatric specialties, including pediatric behavioral health by U.S. News & World Report!
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Thoughts on the Big Mo Pod Show “Funkin’ Down the Highway”
This is a post about the Big Mo Pod Show we heard last night on the KCCK FM radio dial 106.9. Incidentally, the KCCK fund drive was enormously successful this year, earning $100,000 in donations, according to Big Mo (aka John Heim) himself. One item is the cover by Buddy Miles of the song “Tobacco…
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FDA Approves Antipsychotic with New Mechanism of Action for Treatment of Schizophrenia
I just noticed the FDA announcment of the approval of an antipsychotic with a new mechanism of action for the treatment of schizophrenia. The drug is Cobenfy and it interacts with cholinergic rather than dopaminergic receptors. It has a number of side effects which are anticholinergic. This could lead to psychotic symptoms that consultation-liaison psychiatrists…
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Notes on the Blues and Rivers of Whiskey
I listened to the Big Mo Blues Show last night on KCCK radio (88.3 on your dial) as I usually do on Friday nights. It runs from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm and you can learn a lot from Big Mo (aka John Heim) about the blues. He also has a podcast called the Big…
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The Incredible Shrinking Headshrinker
Last week we saw the 1957 movie “The Incredible Shrinking Man” on the Svengoolie show on the MeTV channel. We’ve never seen it before and it actually got pretty good reviews back in the day. The main character, Scott Carey, was played by Grant Williams. You can watch the movie for free on the Internet…
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Can Artificial Intelligence Learn from My Book?
Recently the publisher of a book co-edited by me and my former psychiatry chair Dr. Robert G. Robinson asked me to sign off on a proposal to involve Artificial Intelligence (AI) in using the work. The book, “Psychosomatic Medicine: An Introduction to Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry,” is 14 years old now, but is still a practical tool…
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