Like all good things, Evidence Based Medicine (EBM), when
taken to far, runs the risk of making us overwrought and becoming cliche. I think we are reaching this point. Given Ioannidis' meta-research findings that most published research findings are false (does he consider the irony that that may apply to his findings too?) the corrupting and corrosive
influence of industry on research programs and guideline construction, the
biases of academic researchers intent on grants, prestige and promotions (as
well as honoraria to supplement paltry academic salaries - I was there once, and I did it too), and the zealousness
of "experts" who wish to interpret the evidence in the form of an
edict for all to follow (euphemistically called "guidelines"), and
several other disturbing trends, it becomes apparent that in the end we must
rely upon our own judgment and logic to discern the proper path to follow. And so it is with Activated Charcoal (AC)
administration, an agent used in overdoses and toxic ingestions that has a remarkable
capacity to adsorb ingested substances and theoretically limit their toxicity. (It is not barbecue charcoal, the photo is tongue-in-cheek.)
