March 14, 2013
In February 2013, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ ) released the children’s EHR format. Authorized in 2009 by the children’s health insurance program reauthorization act (CHIPRA) and developed by AHRQ and the centers for Medicare and Medicaid services (CMS), the format highlights critical elements of any EHR being used for pediatric care.
Read full story
March 17, 2011
I received the following question via email after my recent post: Depakene is about the only thing that has controlled my child's seizures. But the 23-times greater risk is scary. Do the POLG gene variants cause higher drug blood levels or what? Should those be monitored more often? We'd hate to stop the drug and 'fix' something that's not broken. My daughter's been on Depakene for 4 years with no problems. If she has that SNP genotype, is her risk 23 times higher, or might it be some other amount?
Read full story
February 10, 2011
A research article published in November shows that people who have the 'GT' genotype for the single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the mitochondrial polymerase gamma (POLG) gene have a 23-fold increase in liver toxicity. For those who have two copies 'TT', the risk is even higher. As such, these genotypes confer tremendous risk on about 12 percent of people of European/Caucasian descent, and somewhat smaller percentages of people of Asian or African descent.
Read full story