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This episode is shared from Mayo Clinic Q&A and was recorded in July 2022
Guest: Gregory A. Poland, M.D. (@drgregpoland)
Host: Danielle (DeeDee) J. Stiepan
The BA.5 omicron variant is now the dominant strain in the U.S., and it is leading to a new wave of COVID-19 infections. BA.5 was responsible for nearly 54% of COVID-19 cases in the U.S., and BA.4, a similar variant, accounted for another 17%, according to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Experts are concerned because this particular variant appears to be good at evading the immune system.
"This BA.5 variant is hypercontagious, and right behind it, new variants are coming," says Dr. Gregory Poland, an infectious diseases expert and head of Mayo Clinic's Vaccine Research Group. "We will continue to generate these variants until people are masked and immunized."
Dr. Poland explains that the transmissibility of BA.5 represents the evolution of the virus to become more contagious and able to evade immune protection from previous infection or vaccination.
"Whether you've been vaccinated, whether you've been previously infected, whether you've been previously infected and vaccinated, you have very little protection against BA.5 in terms of getting infected or having mild to moderate infection," says Dr. Poland. "Thankfully, you still do have good protection against dying, being hospitalized or ending up on a ventilator if you are up to date on your vaccinations."
Due to the consequences of reinfection, including the possibility of long COVID-19, Dr. Poland urges people to continue to take precautions to protect themselves.
"The reality is, it's important to be up to date on the COVID-19 vaccinations that are recommended for your age group, health condition, etc.," says Dr. Poland. "Sometime this fall, we may well have a variant-focused vaccine, so get it when it becomes available. And wear a proper mask properly when you are indoors around people who are not your family or in a crowded outdoor venue."
On the Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast, Dr. Poland shares the latest COVID-19 news and answers listener questions.
To claim credit for this episode, visit Mayo Clinic Talks Podcast: Headache Edition - Online CME Course.
Guest: Narayan R. Kissoon, M.D.
Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. (@ChutkaMD)
Headaches are quite common and essentially everyone has experienced them; some have more than others. While most headaches are merely an annoyance, others can be quite debilitating and result in missed work and lost productivity. While tension headaches are the most common overall, migraines are the type most often seen by healthcare providers. While tension and migraines represent the majority of headaches, it’s important for healthcare providers to recognize when a headache falls into the unusual category. This podcast will continue our series on headaches with our guest, Narayan R. Kissoon, M.D., a neurologist and headache specialist at the Mayo Clinic as we discuss unusual headaches.
Connect with the Mayo Clinic’s School of Continuous Professional Development online at https://ce.mayo.edu/ or on Twitter @MayoMedEd.
Guest: Carrie A. Schinstock, M.D. (@caschinstock)
Host: Darryl S. Chutka (@ChutkaMD)
Kidney transplants were initially performed in the early 1950’s; however, most of these early transplants failed due to immune system rejection. Successful transplants were generally limited to those performed in identical twins. With the discovery of immunosuppressant therapy, organ rejection became less of an issue and successful kidney transplants have become more common. Currently, in the U.S. over 20,000 kidney transplants are performed annually. Who is a candidate for a kidney transplant? What is the current success rate and what is the optimal timing for a transplant in patients with end stage renal disease? We’ll discuss these questions in this podcast on kidney transplantation with our guest, Carrie A. Schinstock, M.D., a nephrologist from the Division of Nephrology and Hypertension at the Mayo Clinic.
Connect with the Mayo Clinic’s School of Continuous Professional Development online at https://ce.mayo.edu/ or on Twitter @MayoMedEd.
To claim credit for this episode, visit Mayo Clinic Talks Podcast: Headache Edition - Online CME Course.
Guest: Rashmi B. Halker Singh, M.D. (@rashmihalker)
Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. (@ChutkaMD)
Essentially everyone has an occasional headache and it is usually nothing more than a minor nuisance. However, there are individuals who have very frequent headaches, and they can have a significant influence on that person’s lifestyle and quality of life. The topic for this podcast is chronic daily headache, which represents a description of a variety of both primary and secondary headaches that occur frequently. Our guest is Rashmi Halker Singh, M.D., a neurologist, and specialist in headache medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Arizona. We’ll discuss what types of headaches patients with chronic daily headache tend to have, how this syndrome develops, and how you should evaluate and manage these patients.
Connect with the Mayo Clinic’s School of Continuous Professional Development online at https://ce.mayo.edu/ or on Twitter @MayoMedEd.
Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. (@ChutkaMD)
Guest: Kathy L. MacLaughlin, M.D.
Worldwide, cervical cancer is a very common malignancy for women, although the number of new cases in the U.S. has been declining. The overwhelming majority of cases are caused by infection with the human papilloma virus and due to a combination of HPV immunization and early detection with cervical cancer screening, advanced cervical cancer should be preventable. If it does occur, cervical cancer is one of the more treatable malignancies when detected early. If you perform cervical cancer screening for your patients, you know the guidelines have become a bit more complicated than in the past. To help us sort out who is a candidate for cervical cancer screening, when screening should start, how often it should be performed and when it can stop, we have as our guest for this podcast, Kathy L. MacLaughlin, M.D., a family physician in the Department of Family Medicine at the Mayo Clinic.
Connect with the Mayo Clinic’s School of Continuous Professional Development online at https://ce.mayo.edu/ or on Twitter @MayoMedEd
To claim credit for this episode, visit Mayo Clinic Talks Podcast: Headache Edition - Online CME Course.
Guest: Amaal J. Starling, M.D. (@AmaalStarlingMD)
Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. (@ChutkaMD)
Migraine is four-times more common in women than men and because of migraine predominance in females, it is a significant women’s health issue. Migraine commonly results in loss of productivity and this has a significant economic burden. According to a recent report from the Society for Women’s Health Research, it’s estimated that migraine costs the United States is an estimated $78 billion per year, with women accounting for approximately 80% of the direct medical and lost labor costs. This podcast will continue our series on headaches and will concentrate on migraine in women. Our guest for this topic is Amaal J. Starling, M.D., a neurologist at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Arizona. We’ll discuss why migraine is more common in females, how the prevalence changes throughout a woman’s lifetime and specific treatment recommendations for women with migraine.
Connect with the Mayo Clinic’s School of Continuous Professional Development online at https://ce.mayo.edu/ or on Twitter @MayoMedEd.
Guest: Thomas P. Pittelkow, D.O., M.P.H.
Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. (@ChutkaMD)
Cannabidiol (CBD) is a popular natural remedy used for a variety of common ailments and is one of more than 100 chemical compounds called cannabinoids derived from the cannabis plant. Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the main psychoactive cannabinoid found in cannabis. However, unlike THC, CBD does not have psychoactive properties. There are claims this compound treats not only pain, but a variety of mental health issues, symptoms of malignancy and may even have some cardiovascular benefits. Are all these claims true? What’s been proven? What do we know about the safety of this product? We’ll get the answers to these questions as we discuss Cannabidiol (CBD) with Thomas P. Pittelkow, D.O., M.P.H., an anesthesiologist and pain medicine specialist at the Mayo Clinic.
Connect with the Mayo Clinic’s School of Continuous Professional Development online at https://ce.mayo.edu/ or on Twitter @MayoMedEd.
To claim credit for this episode, visit Mayo Clinic Talks Podcast: Headache Edition - Online CME Course.
Guest: Christopher D. Sletten, Ph.D., L.P.
Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. (@ChutkaMD)
Chronic headache is one of the more challenging medical conditions primary care providers commonly face. Whereas the traditional medical model views pain as a problem to be treated and relieved, this model often fails when dealing with patients experiencing chronic headaches. On the other hand, the bio-psychosocial model fits patients with chronic headache much better and when this model is used in the management, patients often have a much better outcome. This podcast is another in our series of headaches and will address the use of a cognitive-behavioral approach with an interdisciplinary team in the evaluation and management of patients with chronic headaches. Our guest Christopher D. Sletten, Ph.D., L.P., a psychologist at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida.
Connect with the Mayo Clinic’s School of Continuous Professional Development online at https://ce.mayo.edu/ or on Twitter @MayoMedEd.
This episode is shared from Mayo Clinic Q&A and was recorded in June 2022
Guest: Gregory A. Poland, M.D. (@drgregpoland)
Host: Halena M. Gazelka, M.D. (@hmgazelkamd)
As immunity wanes for many vaccinated adults and omicron and its subvariants continue to circulate, it seems that just about everyone knows someone with a case of COVID-19.
The steady increase in COVID-19 infections is due to changing, highly contagious variants, explains Dr. Gregory Poland, an infectious diseases expert and head of Mayo Clinic's Vaccine Research Group. Dr. Poland says it’s still important to take the precaution of mask-wearing in public areas, even if you have been vaccinated and have received your boosters.
"I can’t say it enough. This is so hypercontagious that, regardless of having had three or four doses of vaccine or of having previous COVID-19, you still run an appreciable chance of getting COVID," explains Dr. Poland. "The risk in that case is not of death or hospitalization, but of the complications and long-haul symptoms of COVID-19. And that’s what we’re trying to prevent in people."
For parents, there is positive news this week, as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel voted unanimously to authorize emergency use of the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines for children under 5. For this age group, the Pfizer vaccine will be given in three doses while the Moderna vaccine will be given in two doses.
The FDA panel's recommendation now goes to the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for approval before shots can be administered, possibly beginning as early as next week.
On the Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast, Dr. Poland shares the latest COVID-19 news, answers listener questions, and discusses another infectious disease outbreak: monkeypox.
Guest: Terry D. Schneekloth, M.D.
Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. (@ChutkaMD)
Unhealthy use of alcohol has the potential to affect not only the individual who consumes the alcohol, but a variety of others as well. Alcohol is the most used addictive substance, with an estimated prevalence of 7% of the United States population. Excessive alcohol use has the potential to cause damage to essentially every organ system and is thought to reduce one’s life expectance by approximately 10 years. Whereas treatment is available and has the potential to be very successful, it often requires an ongoing, lifetime of therapy. Our guest for this podcast is Terry D. Schneekloth, M.D., a psychiatrist and addiction medicine specialist at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Arizona. This podcast discusses when you should suspect alcoholism in your patients, how to make a diagnosis and which management techniques have been shown to be effective.
Connect with the Mayo Clinic’s School of Continuous Professional Development online at https://ce.mayo.edu/ or on Twitter @MayoMedEd.
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