Publications by authors named "Joel M Topf"

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in an avalanche of information, much of it false or misleading. Social media posts with misleading or dangerous opinions and analyses are often amplified by celebrities and social media influencers; these posts have contributed substantially to this avalanche of information. An emerging force in this information infodemic is public physicians, doctors who view a public presence as a large segment of their mission.

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The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has spread exponentially throughout the world in a short period, aided by our hyperconnected world including global trade and travel. Unlike previous pandemics, the pace of the spread of the virus has been matched by the pace of publications, not just in traditional journals, but also in preprint servers. Not all publication findings are true, and sifting through the firehose of data has been challenging to peer reviewers, editors, as well as to consumers of the literature, that is, scientists, healthcare workers, and the general public.

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Journal clubs have typically been held within the walls of academic institutions and in medicine have served the dual purpose of fostering critical appraisal of literature and disseminating new findings. In the last decade and especially the last few years, online and virtual journal clubs have been started and are flourishing, especially those harnessing the advantages of social media tools and customs. This article reviews the history and recent innovations of journal clubs.

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Medical media is changing along with the rest of the media landscape. One of the more interesting ways that medical media is evolving is the increased role of social media in medical media's creation, curation and distribution. Twitter, a microblogging site, has become a central hub for finding, vetting, and spreading this content among doctors.

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Background: For 20 years, anemia has been treated with erythropoietin-stimulating agents (ESA). Until recently there have been only two ESA: recombinant erythropoietin and darbepoetin. In 2007 a third agent was approved for clinical use, CERA.

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