Good morning! Postcall here, popping into your inbox as enthusiastically as a pair of scientists who’ve discovered “the secret of life”!

71 years ago this morning, Watson & Crick discovered the 3-D structure of DNA.

❓Trivia Question❓: But who was the third researcher in the race to find the structure of DNA, whose contributions sparked the "eureka moment" that led Watson and Crick to find the double-helix solution? (Answer at the bottom of today’s issue!)

Time for some stories!

Table of Contents

• Things your attending might pimp you on 🙋🏽‍♀️👨‍ …

  • Do oral antidiabetic agents slow non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)?

  • Transcatheter vs. surgical aortic valve replacement (TAVR vs. SAVR)?

  • What are the risks of cardiovascular (CV) events from ADHD meds?

• DTx: 2024’s New Cash Cow?

• Heidi’s Tech Bites

  • Want to use AI instead of just reading about it? T …

• Quick Bites

• Postcall Picks

• 🕹️ Game ⛳️

• ❓Trivia Answer❓

  • Share Postcall, Get Merch! 🐕

What happened in the markets this week?

Things your attending might pimp you on 🙋🏽‍♀️👨‍⚕️ 

1. Do oral antidiabetic agents slow non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)?

In a retrospective study of 80K people with diabetes and presumed NAFLD, SGLT-2 inhibitors, thiazolidinediones, and DPP-4 inhibitors were associated with 99%, 70%, and 45% higher probabilities of NAFLD regression compared to sulfonylureas. The NAFLD regression was significantly more likely with SGLT-2 inhibitors, and this was the only medication associated with lower risk of adverse liver outcomes.

2. Transcatheter vs. surgical aortic valve replacement (TAVR vs. SAVR)?

The NOTION trial has dropped its 10-year outcomes. Why is it significant? It provides the longest available follow-up data involving 280 patients aged >70 who were randomized to SAVR vs. TAVR. At a 10-year follow-up, there was no significant between-group difference in the composite of death, stroke, or myocardial infarction (66% for both groups) or any of the individual components. 

3. What are the risks of cardiovascular (CV) events from ADHD meds?

In a Swedish case-control study, stimulant use for ADHD was associated with hypertension (but not arrhythmia or ischemic heart disease). In a nutshell: the longer you take stimulants for ADHD and/or the higher your dose, the higher the risk for “any CV disease” (adjusted odds ratio, 1.23 for >5 years exposure). Specifically, hypertension accounted for nearly all the excess CV risk and no significant association was noted between ADHD drug exposure and arrhythmia, ischemic heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, or heart failure. Of note, these results do not apply to non-stimulants used in ADHD.

DTx: 2024’s New Cash Cow?🐄

The next medication you prescribe may already be in your pocket. 

What’s trending: Digital therapeutics (DTx) are evidence-based software products for treating health conditions through web and mobile apps, VR, and video games. Investors seem DTF with DTx, as its market is set to explode with a 25.2% CAGR from 2022-2030. 

Why it’s interesting: What sets DTx apart is its clinical validation and specificity, tackling addiction, depression, chronic illnesses, and more with cognitive behavioral therapy, coaching, and remote monitoring. These scalable, cost-effective solutions could empower individuals and provide valuable insights to healthcare providers. 

DTx’s Green Flags:

• Software-based, avoiding medication-related issues.

• Accessible anywhere via smartphones or tablets.

• Studies say Better Therapeutics and Fitterfly’s DTx significantly slashed blood sugar in Type 2 diabetes.

• Akili's game tech improved ADHD, lupus, and depression symptoms.

• Luminopia’s VR helped treat lazy eye in kids.

• Adding to the momentum, last week, Better Therapeutics secured FDA Breakthrough Device Designation for their CBT platform.

But:

• DTx presents challenges for tech-challenged patients or those without electronics/home internet.

• DTx's goldmine of patient data raises concerns about security and misuse (recall our 23andOops coverage).

• DTx’s rules and regulation are still changing, lacking clear guidelines for ensuring safety, effectiveness, and quality.

• Smoothly fitting DTx into regular healthcare systems is crucial for patient care.

Bottom line: If virtual care is already your thing (check out our tea on it), ongoing studies suggest delivering treatment virtually might be the next big move. Maybe, by 2030, our phones will be more than just a meme-scrolling gadget. 

Heidi’s Tech Bites 🤖 

1: 💊 UnitedHealth’s tech unit, Change Healthcare, was hacked last Wednesday. The company said they took “immediate action,” but cannot estimate how long the hacking took place, or the extent of their actions. Pharmaceutical companies in the US say processing insurance claims and refilling prescriptions are issues they’ve experienced due to the attack.

2: 🌚 For the first time since 1972, a US spacecraft has landed on the surface of the moon. Odysseus, a lander from a Houston-based private company, landed last week… and promptly tipped over on the uneven moon surface. “Chill, we’re all a bit rusty” was the response when we asked what happened.

3:🚗 After ten years, the Apple car titled “Project Titan” has been canceled. It’s rumored the decision came after Apple struggled to bring something new to the electric car world. The choice to scrap the project has now put about 1,400 employees at risk of losing their jobs.  

4: The University of Waterloo in Canada is pulling 29 snack vending machines from its campus due to a discovery that they've been secretly using cameras to monitor students (sparked by a student's Reddit post).

Want to use AI instead of just reading about it? Try Heidi, the only free AI scribe.

Speed Reads 🚤 

1: 💉 A paper on the supposed harms of COVID-19 vaccines is being retracted from medical science journal Cureus because of incorrect claims and misrepresentations. Which begs the question: how did eight reviewers miss the incorrect claims and misrepresentations to begin with? 🧐

2:💸 Students at Albert Einstein College of Medicine are receiving free tuition after former professor Dr. Gottesman donated $1 billion. The money was donated on behalf of her late husband who was an investor in Berkshire Hathaway. The hope is that the money will allow students to pursue great ideas and advance their learning.

3: 🪧 Almost 9,000 South Korean medical residents have walked out of hospitals in response to the government’s push to increase medical school seats by 65% annually to solve a doctor shortage. South Korea has 2.1 physicians per 1,000 people (3.7 is the average among developed countries), as well as an aging population.

4:🔥The Texas Panhandle is currently experiencing “devastating” wildfires, causing Gov. Greg Abbott to declare a disaster declaration for 60 counties. Officials have not said what caused the fire, but this is the second-largest wildfire in Texas history. As a result nuclear weapon plants in the area and schools have been closed until the fires are contained. 

5: Fertility experts are currently in discussions with the Biden administration, exploring potential measures to maintain access to in vitro fertilization. Meanwhile, legal authorities believe that the administration might have certain restricted abilities to help.

Postcall Picks ✅ 

📺 Watch: In honour of Black History Month, check out this video about the origin of the month and why we celebrate it today!

💳️ Buy: As wildfire season comes early this year, grab an air filter (like this Dyson that’s $150 off) while there’s still stock.

🤣 Learn: whether Stygimoloch is a muscle or a dino:

alimentaryschool

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🕹️ Game ⛳️

Last week’s average time: 9:39. Either the puzzles are getting harder, or more people have been taking bathroom breaks while playing 🙃

First question: A baby might have this head deformity if they don't get enough tummy time!

❓Trivia Answer❓

Rosalind Franklin was a X-ray photographer expert whose photographs gave Watson & Crick fundamental ideas about the structure of DNA. According to Today in Conservation, “had she not died from ovarian cancer in her late thirties, today we might be talking about Watson, Crick and Franklin as three, not two, scientists credited with the discovery.”

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