Testing, testing

Left with a long vacation (1 week is long by medical standards), I made my beginner's foray into tablets.
I spent the whole morning researching on the pros (fun factor, medical apps) and cons (cost, time investment) of buying a tablet. The clincher between android vs apple was Nejm - it had no android app to speak of!
Basically I went ahead and bought the cheapest iPad like thing I could find - which was the iPad mini. I know that the specs are subpar compared to other mini tablets. But I didn't mind as long as it did the job - which it did.
Battery life seems pretty good so far although I have only tried reading ebooks and medical apps. And the range of applications (medical or otherwise) really betters android by a mile. I am not sure what they mean by android catching up.
Hopefully this vacation turns out to be fruitful one!

Ignore this post

I haven't ran in so long that my legs are aching after jogging less than 2.4km
The effects reach a maximum day 2 post jogging
But I feel the effects already
Sedentary lifestyle = decreased effort tolerance
Irregular meal timings = increased irritability
Increased irritability + decreased effort tolerance = very pek chek

Notable articles of the week

Something slightly more academic than my usual rants.

Diagnosis and management of carotid atherosclerosis: BMJ 2013;346:f1485; doi: 10.1136/bmj.f1485 - Refer symptomatic patients with 50-99% stenosis or asymptomatic patients with 70-99% stenosis for surgical revascularization. Medical therapy for symptomatic patients using plavix (CAPRIE trial), BP control, statins, smoking cessation, 2.5 of moderate intensity exercise per week. Medical therapy for asymptomatic patients? Not mentioned.

Use of caffeinated substances and risk of crashes in long distance drivers of commercial vehicles: case-control study: BMJ 2013;346:f1140; doi: 10.1136/bmj.f1140 > suggests that consuming caffeine for the purpose of staying awake can reduce the risk of an accident. But results subject to bias (state regulations for work and fatigue and reporter bias).


Use of high potency statins and rates of admission for acute kidney injury: multicenter, retrospective observational analysis of administrative databases: BMJ 2013;346:f880 doi: 10.1136/bmj.f880 > suggests that current users of high potency statins (defined at rosuva 10mg, atorva 20mg, simvastatin 40mg) are 34% more likely than users of low potency statins to be hospitalized for AKI within 120 days of starting treatment.

Nearing the end of the beginning

It has been almost a full 10 months since I graduated and turned into a house officer.
I still remember the nervousness and unease that came towards the end of my final year in medical school. Then, there was a lot of uncertainty over 1. residency 2. exams 3. HOship yada-yada.
Well, that hurdle was overcome.
I went through 4 months of orthopedics (one of my favourite subjects) before plunging into internal medicine - working under endocrine consultants for 5 months! - before jumping into renal medicine for a short 1 month.
My brain is undergoing a constant stress every day I go to work, but I am not sure if my number of brain cells is increasing - I know for a fact that brain cells don't multiply after a certain age.
So I buy lots of supplements for my brain in the form of textbooks which I don't read, exam questions which I don't do, journals which I barely read. Possibly an overt expression of insecurity and maladaptation.

Anyway.
The year of the snake has just begun. Lots of opportunities for self improvement. My advice to self remains: enjoy this year while it lasts. After all, I only get to be a houseman once.