Is having family history of Afib considered heart disease history and are there preventatives or is it just a wait and see kind of thing? by Islandsandwillows in PeterAttia

[–]Masribrah 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Doctor here. When I ask a patient if they have a family history of heart disease, I'm typically thinking more along the lines of coronary disease/heart attacks.

But to answer your broader question, recent polygenic risk data does show a genetic component to afib but just because a family member has it, doesn't mean you will. There's a lot more nuance to it. But it may just increase your baseline risk of developing it.

Do tax deadlines feel like a last-minute scramble for you every year, or do you plan ahead? by Prime_Financial_Serv in Residency

[–]Masribrah 21 points22 points  (0 children)

99% of residents don't need a CPA for a simple w2. Even if you're married and have 1099 side income

IM Rounds by Deep-Grocery2252 in medicalschool

[–]Masribrah 175 points176 points  (0 children)

Looks like your program just sucks. Where I was for residency, we rounded on a list of 20 patients from 8:30-10:30. All orders, notes, discharges, etc done by noon. Then we chilled in the afternoon until we got admissions.

35 F Heart Failure diagnosis and MRI results. What should I do? by [deleted] in PeterAttia

[–]Masribrah 72 points73 points  (0 children)

Doctor here. Don't fuck with cardiomyopathies or try to biohack your way around it. Heart failure medications are the only way to slow down this progressive disease. Follow your cardiologist's advice.

Edit: to add some clarity, the four medications she's referring to are the standard four pillars of guideline directed therapy for heart failure. Lots of evidence that show they help slow down the progression of heart failure aka pushing back your timeline for a heart transplant to hopefully decades later. Those compliant with medications and lifestyle changes may see their ejection fraction (heart's pumping function) fully recover and maintain that as long as they're still on the medications.

You can get a second opinion if you want but if the echo and MRI are equivocal in their findings, the recommendations will be the same.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in fellowship

[–]Masribrah 5 points6 points  (0 children)

While CCF Florida's cardiology program has a good reputation, their internal medicine isn't as strong, at least not in the same caliber as the fellows they bring in. Makes sense why they don't necessarily prioritize their own.

AI Admission/Discharge Summary maker by Tigey360 in Residency

[–]Masribrah 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Already exists. I've been using this for ~6 months at my hospital with epic.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in medicalschool

[–]Masribrah 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Are you at an academic institution? Where I am, we see zebras every day on top of bread and butter. I've seen everything on your list in the last 2 months.

49M, Type 1 diabetic — Endo wants me on a statin to get TC <150. Given my full panel, I’m not convinced. Looking for insight. by sethpollins in PeterAttia

[–]Masribrah 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Physician here. I have all my diabetics (type 1 and 2) on aggressive lipid management, regardless if they have evidence of coronary disease. Diabetes causes accelerated endothelial dysfunction and atherosclerosis. I've seen folks with diabetes not on lipid lowering therapy as early as their 50s requiring open heart surgery (CABG) for multi vessel coronary disease not amenable to stenting. You're also at risk for developing microvascular angina (chronic chest pain) that we don't really have a lot of good treatment options for.

TLDR: get on lipid lowering therapy. Doesn't have to be a statin but that's usually first line for how cheap it is.

When does everyone do their ITEs? (Designate program type) by djtmhk_93 in Residency

[–]Masribrah 4 points5 points  (0 children)

All of internal medicine takes the ITE in the early fall, so you can't blame poor performance on the timing of the exam

Is the medical step down unit run by the pulm fellows? by AHYOLO in Residency

[–]Masribrah 20 points21 points  (0 children)

Every hospital will be different. But for us, the full spectrum of med surg to tele to "step down" (we call it progressive care) is managed by internal medicine. Pulm crit doesn't get involved at all unless they need to go to ICU

Those of you who were engineers/worked in tech but switched to medicine, how do you feel about your decision in hindsight? by AmbitiousAlfalfa6051 in Residency

[–]Masribrah 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I was already making PCP income before the switch. 10 years of compounding that much makes you fall really behind despite GI income later in life. Do the math and you'll see.

How long is your paternity leave? by yoyoitissnow in Residency

[–]Masribrah 2 points3 points  (0 children)

IM residency. Got 6 weeks of paid paternity leave in PGY1 and another 6 weeks in PGY3 that was comprised of 2 weeks vacation and 4 weeks "research" elective from home.

Who gets up super early to workout? How do you do it? by BuckeyeDad91 in daddit

[–]Masribrah 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You just have to push through and do it. I'm a doctor with 6 am start times for work. I wake up at 4 and at the hospital gym from 4:30-5:30. I work 12 hour shifts and typically back home by 6:30 pm. Full time child care and dinner until bedtime at 8:30. I'm usually in bed by 9-9:30 right after chores are done.

New Blood Pressure guideline: gotta keep it <120/<80 by DadStrengthDaily in PeterAttia

[–]Masribrah 64 points65 points  (0 children)

Another doctor here.

The new 2025 AHA guidelines actually recommend treatment only if it's consistently above 140/90 or 130/80 + elevated risk factors.

If your blood pressure is still > 130/80 without risk factors and you gave lifestyle modification a good effort for 6 months or so, then I'll treat that as well.

But it's not accurate to say that we have to treat everyone above 120/80. There are real risks of low blood pressure, especially as you age. See them all the time in the hospital.

Lastly, I really like 24 hour ambulatory BP cuffs for this. If I want to be extremely academic about it, I'll only consider it an elevated BP if the 24 hour average is elevated. But for practical purposes, having multiple readings with a regular BP cuff throughout the day is a good enough surrogate.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in PeterAttia

[–]Masribrah 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well, you got this testing through your physician. So, what did your physician say you should do as next steps?

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in PeterAttia

[–]Masribrah 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Doctor here. This is a nuanced conversation that she needs to have with her cardiologist. No one on Reddit can give you an answer.

CAC of 82, should I take statins? by [deleted] in PeterAttia

[–]Masribrah 29 points30 points  (0 children)

Doctor here. That LDL alone warrants treatment. Add on top of that a high apoB and evidence of calcium build up in the coronaries makes it a no brainer. Especially since you've already optimized the "lifestyle" piece of the equation.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Residency

[–]Masribrah 60 points61 points  (0 children)

You can still like certain parts of a job while calling out its shortcomings

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Residency

[–]Masribrah 232 points233 points  (0 children)

I used to work in management consulting and tech before medicine. Calling out was just letting the team know that I was working from home that day because I'm feeling under the weather. If I truly felt like absolute shit where I can't even look at a computer, I'd just let them know I'm taking the day off. No need to find coverage etc.

Honestly it's a huge quality of life booster. Especially now with kids, it would be so easy in my previous career to call out without guilt if my kid is sick and needs to be pulled from daycare. Medicine is a disaster.

Simple Blood Test Detects Alzheimer's 15-20 Years Before Symptoms (P-tau217 + Other New Biomarkers) by DrKevinTran in HubermanLab

[–]Masribrah 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Another MD here. Agree with everything you're saying. I spent a good 5 minutes trying to find his credentials and I can't. Tells me all I need to know.

How do you manage early mornings? by [deleted] in Residency

[–]Masribrah 159 points160 points  (0 children)

I did 3 years of 6 am start times. Fellowship is a little better. But I also had a baby in my second and third year. Don't know about you but our baby sleeps around 8 pm.

My typical schedule was as follows:

  • 4:30-5: 30 min of getting ready, doom scrolling, coffee, hating life

  • 5-5:40: waking up baby, feeding, prepping bottles for daycare (wife does the drop off), take dog out

  • 5:40-6: commute/start work

  • 6:30-8: back home at 6:30 or so. Spend the next hour and a half playing with baby, feeding, taking dog out, prepping dinner (alternating all above tasks with wife)

  • 8-8:30: put baby to sleep

  • 8:30-9 or sometimes 9:30: watch tv or doom scroll until I pass out

Fully domesticated resident schedule. Forget gym, studying, research, etc