Kaiser study looks to help blacks manage blood pressure
600 black patients at Kaiser Permanente’s Oakland Medical Center are enrolled in a study to reduce blood pressure. It’s working.
Drug Samples in Dermatology: Out of the Closet, Into the Dustbin
Dermatologists tend to prescribe more expensive medications when they also give their patients drug samples, according to a new study from the Stanford University School of Medicine. Kenneth Katz, MD, a TPMG dermatologist, published an editorial pointing out that Kaiser Permanente bans drug sampling and other conflicts of interest related to the pharmaceutical industry.
Pregnancy Weight has “Goldilocks Effect” on Baby’s Obesity Risk
A new study from TPMG's Division of Research, published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, found that women who gain too much or too little weight during pregnancy give birth to kids with an increased risk of childhood obesity.
Good Provider Communication Improves Adherence for Antidepressants Prescribed to Adults With Diabetes
Adult patients with diabetes who trust their provider and feel included in treatment decisions are more likely to take a newly prescribed antidepressant medication, according to our study published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.
Adenoma Detection Rates Linked to Colorectal Cancer and Mortality
The study is the largest and the first in the United States to examine the relationship between detecting adenomas and the future risk of colorectal cancers.
Exclusive: TPMG Calls Price for New $84K Hep-C Drug “Outrageous”
Kaiser Permanente said it is using Gilead Sciences’ new, breakthrough hepatitis C drug, Sovaldi, even though its $84,000 treatment price is exorbitant. “It’s an outrageous price for a therapy that has huge public health implications, ” said Sharon Levine, MD, associate director of The Permanente Medical Group.