Monthly Archives: August 2013

Expanding Disease Definitions in Guidelines and Expert Panel Ties to Industry: A Cross-sectional Study of Common Conditions in the United States

From the Editor’s Summary: “The researchers identified 16 publications in which expert panels proposed changes to the disease definitions and diagnostic criteria for 14 conditions that are common in the US such as hypertension (high blood pressure) and Alzheimer disease. The proposed changes widened the disease definition for ten diseases, narrowed it for one disease, and had an unclear impact for five diseases. Reasons included in the publications for changing disease definitions included new evidence of risk for people previously considered normal (pre-hypertension) and the emergence of new biomarkers, tests, or treatments (Alzheimer disease). Only six of the panels mentioned possible harms of the proposed changes and none appeared to rigorously assess the downsides of expanding definitions. Of the 15 panels involved in the publications (one panel produced two publications), 12 included members who disclosed financial ties to multiple companies. Notably, the commonest industrial ties among these panels were to companies marketing drugs for the disease being considered by that panel. On average, 75% of panel members disclosed industry ties (range 0% to 100%) to a median of seven companies each. Moreover, similar proportions of panel members disclosed industry ties in publications released before and after the 2011 IOM report.” Continue reading

Posted in Fifth Avenue Concierge Medicine, Forensic Neuropsychiatry, Health, keto, News | Tagged , , , |

Folate, vitamin B12, homocysteine, and depressive symptoms in a population sample of older Chinese adults.

12. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2009 May;57(5):871-6. Folate, vitamin B12, homocysteine, and depressive symptoms in a population sample of older Chinese adults. Ng TP, Feng L, Niti M, Kua EH, Yap KB. Source Gerontological Research Programme, National University of Singapore, … Continue reading

Posted in Aging, China, dietary, Fifth Avenue Concierge Medicine, Forensic Neuropsychiatry, keto | Tagged , , , , , |

Singapore: Lower dementia prevalence among ethnic Chinese compared to ethnic Malays and Indians.

Dement Geriatr Cogn Disord. 2010;30(6):492-8. doi: 10.1159/000321675. Epub 2011 Jan 20. Interethnic differences in dementia epidemiology: global and Asia-Pacific perspectives. Venketasubramanian N, Sahadevan S, Kua EH, Chen CP, Ng TP. Source Division of Neurology, University Medicine Cluster, and Department of … Continue reading

Posted in Aging, China, Fifth Avenue Concierge Medicine, keto, Psychiatry/Neurology | Tagged , , , , |

Tea drinking and cognitive function in oldest-old Chinese.

J Nutr Health Aging. 2012;16(9):754-8. doi: 10.1007/s12603-012-0077-1. Tea drinking and cognitive function in oldest-old Chinese. Feng L, Li J, Ng TP, Lee TS, Kua EH, Zeng Y. Source Department of Psychological Medicine, National University of Singapore. pcmfl@nus.edu.sg Abstract OBJECTIVE: We … Continue reading

Posted in Aging, China, Complementary - Alternative Medicine, Fifth Avenue Concierge Medicine, Health, keto, Psychiatry/Neurology | Tagged , , , , , |

Life event stress and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)

BMJ Open. 2012 Nov 19;2(6). pii: e001674. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2012-001674. Print 2012. Life event stress and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD): associations with mental well-being and quality of life in a population-based study. Lu Y, Nyunt MS, Gwee X, Feng L, … Continue reading

Posted in Aging, China, epigenetics, Fifth Avenue Concierge Medicine, Health, keto, Psychiatry/Neurology | Tagged , , , |
Maurice Preter, MD

Maurice Preter, MD is a European and U.S. educated psychiatrist, psychotherapist, psychopharmacologist, neurologist, and medical-legal expert in private practice in Manhattan. He is also the principal of Fifth Avenue Concierge Medicine, PLLC, a medical concierge service and health advisory for select individuals and families.