Family Medicine Initiative

APRIL 9, 2024

Demand for new obesity medications like semaglutide (GLP-1 analogs) is high, but availability is low. So, which patients should get them first? What are the true benefits and side effects? Patients ask me these questions fairly often, so I know it’s important for GPs to know the key facts. I therefore reviewed the main research studies and guidelines and tried to summarize them briefly and clearly in this article. 1.

Diabetes 130

Diabetes Patients Medical DO 130

Family Medicine Initiative

APRIL 10, 2024

Family medicine is neither the most prestigious nor the highest paid medical profession. Is that appropriate, or should it be the opposite? Should GPs actually be treated as the stars of medicine? As a general practitioner and primary care researcher, it was always fascinating for me to delve into the scientific literature to investigate this issue.

Family Physician 130

Family Physician Families Family GP 130

Family Medicine Initiative

MAY 7, 2025

As you might have noticed, I often use the Number Needed to Treat (NNT) to communicate research results. While I strive to write evidence-based but easy-to-understand articles, I believe the NNT is a research concept every GP should know. What is the NNT? It’s the number of patients you need to treat to prevent one bad outcome. How to calculate it? 1 divided by the “absolute risk reduction” (= the risk in the control group minus the risk in the intervention group).

GP 130

GP Screening DO Family Medicine 130

Family Medicine Initiative

APRIL 25, 2025

As early as 1897, Hill and Barnard called for standardization of blood pressure measurements, since arm position affects the results (see BMJ 1897 ). Yet, a review in 2014 showed that guidelines and studies still recommend and use different arm positions. So, here is a “standard”… What do the current ESC guidelines from 2024 recommend?

DO 130

DO Family Medicine Patients Families 130

Family Medicine Initiative

APRIL 28, 2025

Some media outlets reported enthusiastically that, Lecanemab was recently approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. However, I find the actual data underwhelming… Here’s why. What is Lecanemab? Lecanemab is a monoclonal antibody that binds to soluble Aβ protofibrils and reduces the accumulation of beta-amyloid.

Clinic 130

Clinic DO Family Medicine Patients 130

Family Medicine Initiative

JULY 17, 2025

A chronically exhausted patient hopefully asks for a high-dose vitamin C infusion. Where does this belief come from, and what does the science say? The evidence base is thin. Nevertheless, vitamin C has experienced a remarkable renaissance since the pandemic, as Google search queries show: This article separates historical myths from evidence-based medicine – and tells a fascinating story in the process.

General Practitioner 130

General Practitioner Community IT Family Medicine 130

Family Medicine Initiative

APRIL 29, 2025

In November 2024, two new RCTs were published that investigated whether atrial fibrillation screening using an ECG is effective. Both showed no significant benefit. Nevertheless, it is recommended in the new ESC guidelines. Why? Here are some insights. New Study 1: GUARD-AF Participants: 12,000 primary care patients (average age 75) in the USA Intervention: Screening with a 2-week ECG monitoring vs. standard care Outcome: Atrial fibrillation (AF) was diagnosed more frequently in the screening gr

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Screening DO Family Medicine Primary Care 130