Over the past two decades, benzodiazepine prescriptions have increased by almost 70%. Not surprisingly, overdose deaths involving benzodiazepines have increased 10 fold. How can we use these medications to aid our patients, while curbing the current opioid epidemic? Background Benzodiazepines are inherently one of the safest drugs available. In the 1970s, diazepam (Valium) was by…
As we write this piece, Covid-19 as a virus and our understanding of it, is at its infancy. The first case has been hypothesized to be transmitted somewhere in the third week of November 2019. Since then, our evaluation, confirmation, and distribution of scientific findings regarding the virus has lagged behind the spread of the…
Condensed sodium vs. coffee Makino et al. studied this hypothesis in a double-blind randomized clinical trial, with 30 participants. Each subject held (with an appliance) a hydroxyapatite pellet on the lingual side of the mandible for two hours, allowing for pellicle formation. The appliance was later submerged for 48 hours in a coffee solution. Following…