Comments on: Cardiologists accused of implanting cardiac stents that weren’t needed

By: Carolyn Thomas

Carolyn Thomas — Sun, 17 Aug 2014 02:29:46 +0000

Perhaps you know more about Redding than this congressional report indicated?

By: W. Sharar

W. Sharar — Sun, 17 Aug 2014 01:50:29 +0000

Information about what happened at Redding Medical Center were at a superficial level. Don’t take as factual–shouldn’t have been included.

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By: tom reigelman

tom reigelman — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 15:37:18 +0000

Dr Petrella is involved in a lawsuit against Medicor Associates and Hamot Hospital, in Erie, PA :
http://www.goerie.com/article/20120122/NEWS02/301229939/Federal-suit-claims-Hamot-heart-doctors-defrauded-Medicare

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By: Carolyn Thomas

Carolyn Thomas — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 15:34:58 +0000

Don’t know.

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By: David Godfrey

David Godfrey — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 15:11:22 +0000

Is Dr. Richard Petrella of Hamot Hospital in Erie, PA also being investigated?

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By: Norman Halverson

Norman Halverson — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 22:18:52 +0000

Why isnt any of these people going to jail, seems to me this is one of the most dastardly crimes anyone can commit

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By: Bud Auger

Bud Auger — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 17:58:13 +0000

Nurse Nancy – So true. Doesn’t this make sense for all medical treatment decisions? If treatment is not proven to prolong life or reduce symptoms, why on earth would doctors recommend any invasive procedure like this? There seems to be only one reason: MONEY.

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By: Kay Potter

Kay Potter — Sat, 09 Oct 2010 19:43:03 +0000

“…Cardiac surgeons have seen their annual incomes dwindle to an average $425,000, down from $1.02 million in 1990, after adjusting for inflation…”

If the New York Times has this right, I think we should feel sorry for these poor cardiac surgeons. Maybe we’ll now see a big increase in bypass surgery to help bring their incomes back up to normal?

Love your website, thanks for this.

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By: Carolyn Thomas

Carolyn Thomas — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 23:40:08 +0000

Thanks for this Harvard link, Nurse Nancy. This part leaped out at me:

“There are only two reasons for undergoing any treatment: TO FEEL BETTER OR TO LIVE LONGER. If you aren’t having chest pain or other symptoms, angioplasty to open a narrowed artery can’t make you feel any better. And studies show it won’t help you live any longer.”

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By: Nurse Nancy

Nurse Nancy — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 08:59:28 +0000

“…some cardiologists like them so much that they are implanting stents into patients who don’t need them…”

We now have research showing MOST people who undergo angioplasty/stents may not actually need them, unless they suffer debilitating cardiac symptoms or a heart attack is imminent. Five year outcomes for patients treated medically (just medications) are actually better than for patients who have had arteries opened with stents. So it might even be argued that most cardiologists who implant stents – not just Dr. Midei – are doing so with patients who don’t need them. But patients like the idea of a metal tube keeping a formerly blocked artery open, so it’s an easy sell for cardiologists.

Here’s a link to a Harvard website with more information suggesting medications alone work just as well for people with “Stable Angina”: http://www.health.harvard.edu/fhg/updates/medication-vs-stents-for-heart-disease-treatment.shtml

Thanks Carolyn – love your site.

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By: Topsy.com

Topsy.com — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 18:03:39 +0000

[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter: Cardiologists accused of implanting cardiac stents that were: n't needed: http://wp.me/pD9Pq-Nj […]

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