The Handoff: Your Week in Endocrinology News – 3/3/17

The Handoff is a weekly roundup of endocrinology and general medicine news covering various developments in subspecialties, as well as pharmaceutical industry, association, and society news.

–The fight to repeal the Affordable Care Act has taken a sharp turn. New York Times op-ed columnist David Leonhardt wrote, “Many Americans have come to realize that the care part of the law matters much more than the Obama part.” Does the GOP still have a clear path to repeal?

–Research published in the March issue of Obesity found that chronic exposure to elevated levels of cortisol is linked to “markers of adiposity…with the persistence of obesity over time.”

—The Atlantic set out to examine our “tortured” love of vitamin D, touching on fads from Schlitz Brewing Company’s failed Sunshine Vitamin D Beer to vitamin D supplemented milk to Vitamin water. But is the obsession justified?

—Prevention magazine sat down with Tara Allmen, MD, author of Menopause Confidential, and Mary Jane Minkin, MD, clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Yale University, to discuss their top tips for reducing memory loss during menopause.

–New research published in JAMA examines the likelihood of complications — including diabetic kidney disease, retinopathy, and peripheral neuropathy — in young adults and adolescents diagnosed with type 1 or type 2 diabetes during childhood.

–Can a fad diet actually be healthy? Researchers set out to answer that question. Live Science provides a quick overview the top fads, and the full study was published earlier this week in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

–In the wake of 2016’s EpiPen pricing surge, one physician is fighting back — with innovation. Cathleen London, MD, a family physician in Maine, built her own epinephrine auto-injector. As insulin prices continue to surge, is a DIY diabetes solution on the way?

—Endocrinology Advisor will be covering the American College of Cardiology’s 66^th Annual Scientific Sessions & Expo, which takes place March 17-19. Keep an eye out for our conference kick-off article, coming soon.