DANGEROUS TESTS, DANGEROUS DRUGS, DANGEROUS SURGERIES |
Each year approximately 2.2 million US hospital patients experience adverse drug reactions (ADRs) to prescribed medications... Approximately 7.5 million unnecessary medical and surgical procedures are performed annually in the US, while approximately 8.9 million Americans are hospitalized unnecessarily. |
Deaths induced inadvertently by a physician or surgeon or by medical treatment or diagnostic procedures [aka 'Iatrogenesis'] in the US annually is 783,936. By comparison, approximately 699,697 Americans died of heart disease in 2001, while 553,251 died of cancer.
US health care spending reached $1.6 trillion in 2003, representing 14% of the nation's gross national product. Considering this enormous expenditure, we should have the best medicine in the world. We should be preventing and reversing disease, and doing minimal harm. Careful and objective review, however, shows we are doing the opposite. Because of the extraordinarily narrow, technologically driven context in which contemporary medicine examines the human condition, we are completely missing the larger picture. |
As few as 5% and no more than 20% of iatrogenic acts are ever reported. This implies that if medical errors were completely and accurately reported, we would have an annual iatrogenic death toll much higher than 783,936. In 1994, Leape [a Harvard University researcher] said his figure of 180,000 medical mistakes resulting in death annually was equivalent to three jumbo-jet crashes every two days. Our considerably higher figure is equivalent to six jumbo jets are falling out of the sky each day.
Our estimated 10-year total of 7.8 million iatrogenic deaths is more than all the casualties from all the wars fought by the US throughout its entire history. |
A 2003 study found that nearly half of medical school faculty who serve on institutional review boards to advise on clinical trial research also serve as consultants to the pharmaceutical industry.
In June 2002, the New England Journal of Medicine announced that it would accept journalists who accept money from drug companies because it was too difficult to find ones who have no ties..... In l981 the drug industry “gave” $292 million to colleges and universities for research. By l991, this figure had risen to $2.1 billion. |
Leape focused on the “Harvard Medical Practice Study” published in 1991........ Why Leape chose to use the much lower figure of 4% injury for his analysis remains in question. Using instead the average of the rates found in the three studies he cites (36%, 20%, and 4%) would have produced a 20% medical error rate. The number of iatrogenic deaths using an average rate of injury and his 14% fatality rate would be 1,189,576.
In 1995, a JAMA report noted, "Over a million patients are injured in US hospitals each year, and approximately 280,000 die annually as a result of these injuries.... An October 2003 JAMA study from the US government's Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) documented 32,000 mostly surgery-related deaths costing $9 billion and accounting for 2.4 million extra hospital days in 2000. |
An analysis by Wald and Shojania found that only 1.5% of all adverse events result in an incident report.
A 2002 study shows that 20% of hospital medications for patients had dosage errors. Nearly 40% of these errors were considered potentially harmful to the patient. In a typical 300-patient hospital, the number of errors per day was 40. |
In a New England Journal of Medicine study, an alarming one in four patients suffered observable side effects from the more than 3.34 billion prescription drugs filled in 2002.
According to William Agger, MD, director of microbiology and chief of infectious disease at Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center in La Crosse, WI, 30 million pounds of antibiotics are used in America each year. Of this amount, 25 million pounds are used in animal husbandry, and 23 million pounds are used to try to prevent disease and the stress of shipping, as well as to promote growth. Only 2 million pounds are given for specific animal infections.... In the US, over 3 million pounds of antibiotics are used every year on humans. With a population of 284 million Americans, this amount is enough to give every man, woman, and child 10 teaspoons of pure antibiotics per year. |
In 1989, German biostatistician Ulrich Abel, PhD, wrote a monograph entitled “Chemotherapy of Advanced Epithelial Cancer.” Abel presented a comprehensive analysis of clinical trials and publications representing over 3,000 articles examining the value of chemotherapy on advanced epithelial cancer. Epithelial cancer is the type of cancer with which we are most familiar, arising from epithelium found in the lining of body organs such as the breast, prostate, lung, stomach, and bowel. From these sites, cancer usually infiltrates adjacent tissue and spreads to the bone, liver, lung, or brain. With his exhaustive review, Abel concluded.... “Many oncologists take it for granted that response to therapy prolongs survival, an opinion which is based on a fallacy and which is not supported by clinical studies.”
In 1974, 2.4 million unnecessary surgeries were performed, resulting in 11,900 deaths at a cost of $3.9 billion. In 2001, 7.5 million unnecessary surgical procedures were performed, resulting in 37,136 deaths at a cost of $122 billion (using 1974 dollars). |
In 1978, the US Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) reported: “Only 10-20% of all procedures currently used in medical practice have been shown to be efficacious by controlled trial." In 1995, the OTA compared medical technology in eight countries (Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, the UK, and the US ) and again noted that few medical procedures in the US have been subjected to clinical trial. It also reported that US infant mortality was high and life expectancy low compared to other developed countries.
In 1983, 809,000 cesarean sections (21% of live births) were performed in the US, making it the nation's most common obstetric-gynecologic (OB/GYN) surgical procedure. In 2001, cesarean section is still the most common OB/GYN surgical procedure. Approximately 4 million births occur annually, with 24% (960,000) delivered by cesarean section. In the Netherlands, only 8% of births are delivered by cesarean section. |
HAVE THINGS CHANGED?
So, the real question here is did Null's study accomplish anything valuable, or is it still business as usual for BIG PHARMA and Corporate Medicine (today that would be virtually all of Medicine)? Thanks to the internet, there is a lot more discussion on these topics and fewer places for the guilty to hide. However, I am not convinced that despite a lot of rules that typically represent massive amounts of government overkill (can anyone say HIPAA?), not much has changed in the last decade or so. If you follow my blog, you already know this. It's just about what you would expect when it comes to "EVIDENCE-BASED MEDICINE".
MORE IATROGENESIS
IATROGENESIS, DEATH BY MEDICINE & DR. OZ
Iatrogenesis is not a pretty topic. The word means 'originating from a physician', and is defined as, "an inadvertent adverse event directly resulting from medical treatment or advice". The medical community's insistence on covering up and fudging statistics on Iatrogenesis is just one more reason why EVIDENCE-BASED MEDICINE is akin to the Hobo's Nirvana, The Big Rock Candy Mountain.
Ever since his landmark study, "Error in Medicine" was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association back in 1994, Dr. Lucian Leape has turned up the spotlight on Iatrogenesis. Leape, a Harvard Professor, retired surgeon, and leading authority on Public Health, is widely known as "The Father of the Modern Patient Safety Movement ". Although Leape's 100-plus papers on patient safety and quality of care have done a great service to his profession, he has unearthed a great deal of disturbing information about the American Medical System that has ruffled some feathers and undoubtedly created some naysayers. However, when a doctor of Leape's stature showed us the compiled studies proving that over 180,000 Americans were loosing their lives each year as a direct result of their medical intervention, the problem of Iatrogenesis could no longer be ignored.
Next came the Starfield Study. According to Dr. Barbara Starfield of the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health, over 250,000 deaths per year are caused by medical errors. Her study, published in the July 2000 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, made Iatrogenesis the third-largest cause of death in the U.S. ---- following only heart disease and CANCER. But the hits kept coming.
Seven years ago, natural health advocate Dr. Gary Null, along with several medical doctors and Ph.D research experts upped the ante when they published their ground-breaking scientific paper called DEATH BY MEDICINE. Dr. Null's team did not do any new research, but instead did an exhaustive review of the existing scientific medical literature in an attempt to better quantify America's hidden epidemic of Iatrogenesis. Why was their study necessary? As you might imagine, virtually every serious study on Iatrogenesis Reporting has shown that Iatrogenic Events are only 'rarely' reported to the proper authorities ---- typically less than 10% of the time (HERE). Null's team, using studies from the most prestigious Medical Journals and Health Organizations on the planet, showed that the practice of "Medicine" is killing in the neighborhood of 800,000 Americans each and every year (HERE IS A SIMPLE GRAPH).
Its always been interesting to me how people are so often scared of the wrong things. For instance, even though ASPIRIN and NSAIDS have been shown to be exceedingly dangerous, and Chiropractic has been proven to be quite safe, I run into lots of people who are terrified of Chiropractic. Likewise, lots of people are absolutely terrified of flying, but think nothing of taking all sorts of prescription and OTC drugs. As you may guess, they are scared of the wrong thing. Aviation is responsible for an average of about 300 deaths a year in the U.S. Dr. Null's team had this to say about your chances of dying in a plane crash, versus dying from Iatrogenic Causes.
"As few as 5% and only up to 20% of iatrogenic acts are ever reported. This implies that if medical errors were completely and accurately reported, we would have a much higher annual iatrogenic death rate than 783,936. Dr. Leape, in 1994, said his figure of 180,000 deaths by medical mistakes annually was equivalent to three jumbo-jet crashes every two days. Our report shows that 6 jumbo jets are falling out of the sky each and every day!"
Now we have a brand new Internet Article that has Dr. Oz weighing in on the subject of Iatrogenesis --- specifically OTC (Over The Counter medications) Iatrogenesis. Some of the highlights include....
Ever since his landmark study, "Error in Medicine" was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association back in 1994, Dr. Lucian Leape has turned up the spotlight on Iatrogenesis. Leape, a Harvard Professor, retired surgeon, and leading authority on Public Health, is widely known as "The Father of the Modern Patient Safety Movement ". Although Leape's 100-plus papers on patient safety and quality of care have done a great service to his profession, he has unearthed a great deal of disturbing information about the American Medical System that has ruffled some feathers and undoubtedly created some naysayers. However, when a doctor of Leape's stature showed us the compiled studies proving that over 180,000 Americans were loosing their lives each year as a direct result of their medical intervention, the problem of Iatrogenesis could no longer be ignored.
Next came the Starfield Study. According to Dr. Barbara Starfield of the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health, over 250,000 deaths per year are caused by medical errors. Her study, published in the July 2000 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, made Iatrogenesis the third-largest cause of death in the U.S. ---- following only heart disease and CANCER. But the hits kept coming.
Seven years ago, natural health advocate Dr. Gary Null, along with several medical doctors and Ph.D research experts upped the ante when they published their ground-breaking scientific paper called DEATH BY MEDICINE. Dr. Null's team did not do any new research, but instead did an exhaustive review of the existing scientific medical literature in an attempt to better quantify America's hidden epidemic of Iatrogenesis. Why was their study necessary? As you might imagine, virtually every serious study on Iatrogenesis Reporting has shown that Iatrogenic Events are only 'rarely' reported to the proper authorities ---- typically less than 10% of the time (HERE). Null's team, using studies from the most prestigious Medical Journals and Health Organizations on the planet, showed that the practice of "Medicine" is killing in the neighborhood of 800,000 Americans each and every year (HERE IS A SIMPLE GRAPH).
Its always been interesting to me how people are so often scared of the wrong things. For instance, even though ASPIRIN and NSAIDS have been shown to be exceedingly dangerous, and Chiropractic has been proven to be quite safe, I run into lots of people who are terrified of Chiropractic. Likewise, lots of people are absolutely terrified of flying, but think nothing of taking all sorts of prescription and OTC drugs. As you may guess, they are scared of the wrong thing. Aviation is responsible for an average of about 300 deaths a year in the U.S. Dr. Null's team had this to say about your chances of dying in a plane crash, versus dying from Iatrogenic Causes.
"As few as 5% and only up to 20% of iatrogenic acts are ever reported. This implies that if medical errors were completely and accurately reported, we would have a much higher annual iatrogenic death rate than 783,936. Dr. Leape, in 1994, said his figure of 180,000 deaths by medical mistakes annually was equivalent to three jumbo-jet crashes every two days. Our report shows that 6 jumbo jets are falling out of the sky each and every day!"
Now we have a brand new Internet Article that has Dr. Oz weighing in on the subject of Iatrogenesis --- specifically OTC (Over The Counter medications) Iatrogenesis. Some of the highlights include....
- Every year 200,000 Americans land up in the hospital because they use over-the-counter (OTC) drugs incorrectly.
- Many people assume that OTC drugs are completely safe since they don’t require a prescription. But this is dangerous thinking.
- Excess medication can cause unwanted side effects and potentially dangerous drug interactions.
- ACETAMINOPHEN MISUSE is the leading cause of acute liver failure. Symptoms of liver failure include abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting and jaundice. The overuse of acetaminophen can also worsen headaches, a side effect known as rebound syndrome.
- Frequent PPI [Proton Pump Inhibitors are the Acid Reflux Drugs] use has been shown to form some sort of drug dependency in as little as a few weeks. Also the low-acid environment created by PPIs decreases absorption of calcium, which increases fracture risk (especially in women) and is also linked to vitamin B12 deficiency, which can cause nerve damage. Use proton pump inhibitors for no longer than 4 weeks. See link below
- The #1 most misused drugs in America are non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory pain relievers, or NSAIDS (Advil, Aleve, Motrin). Too often people use NSAIDs for longer than needed at too high a dosage, which can thin stomach lining and cause ulcers. In fact, NSAID use is the second most common cause of ulcers after H. PYLORI INFECTION. Misuse can also lead to rebound headaches, kidney problems and increased risk of heart problems and stroke.
DEATH BY MEDICINE
A bit less than a decade ago, Gary Null got a group of credentialed medical doctors and Ph.D researchers together and did a "Meta-Analysis" of the scientific data concerning drug errors, side effects, surgical errors, and iatrogenesis (injury or death caused directly by your medical treatment). They did not do any new research themselves, but instead looked at the peer-reviewed research that was already available from the mainstream medical community on the subject.
Many of these studies, I was more than familiar with. For instance, the April 15, 1998 issue of JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association) published a rather shocking study in which they showed how nearly 110,000 Americans die each year of properly prescribed drugs in the hospital setting. They estimated that the total number (outside of the hospital setting) might be closer to double that --- they were far short in their estimation. And lest you forget, the May 2016 issue of BMJ revealed that the practice of medicine was the third leading cause of death in America (HERE).
Dr. Gary Null got together his team of doctors and scientists and began looking through the available scientific literature. Their findings were dumbfounding. In 2004, Null and his team authored a paper titled "Death by Medicine". This study provides compelling evidence that today’s medical system frequently causes more harm than good.
"This fully referenced report shows the number of people having in-hospital, adverse reactions to prescribed drugs to be 2.2 million per year. The number of unnecessary antibiotics prescribed annually for viral infections is 20 million per year. The number of unnecessary medical and surgical procedures performed annually is 7.5 million per year. The number of people exposed to unnecessary hospitalization annually is 8.9 million per year. The most stunning statistic, however, is that the total number of deaths caused by conventional medicine is an astounding 783,936 per year. It is now evident that the American medical system is the leading cause of death and injury in the US."
Whether you think Null is a quack or not is not relevant to the information he provides in this study. His paper is the result of analyzing peer-reviewed studies and data that can be found on any medical database such as PubMed. HERE is much more information on Death by Medicine.
Many of these studies, I was more than familiar with. For instance, the April 15, 1998 issue of JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association) published a rather shocking study in which they showed how nearly 110,000 Americans die each year of properly prescribed drugs in the hospital setting. They estimated that the total number (outside of the hospital setting) might be closer to double that --- they were far short in their estimation. And lest you forget, the May 2016 issue of BMJ revealed that the practice of medicine was the third leading cause of death in America (HERE).
Dr. Gary Null got together his team of doctors and scientists and began looking through the available scientific literature. Their findings were dumbfounding. In 2004, Null and his team authored a paper titled "Death by Medicine". This study provides compelling evidence that today’s medical system frequently causes more harm than good.
"This fully referenced report shows the number of people having in-hospital, adverse reactions to prescribed drugs to be 2.2 million per year. The number of unnecessary antibiotics prescribed annually for viral infections is 20 million per year. The number of unnecessary medical and surgical procedures performed annually is 7.5 million per year. The number of people exposed to unnecessary hospitalization annually is 8.9 million per year. The most stunning statistic, however, is that the total number of deaths caused by conventional medicine is an astounding 783,936 per year. It is now evident that the American medical system is the leading cause of death and injury in the US."
Whether you think Null is a quack or not is not relevant to the information he provides in this study. His paper is the result of analyzing peer-reviewed studies and data that can be found on any medical database such as PubMed. HERE is much more information on Death by Medicine.
Dr. Schierling completed four years of Kansas State University's five-year Nutrition / Exercise Physiology Program before deciding on a career in Chiropractic. He graduated from Logan Chiropractic College in 1991, and has run a busy clinic in Mountain View, Missouri ever since. He and his wife Amy have four children (three daughters and a son).
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