Tom Chen, MD

Internal Medicine Physician @uclahealth

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@ZKForTre That middle ground is a tough place when people have addictions and don’t want to risk relapse but also want social connection through participation.

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@bschermd Definitely interesting to think about. Any thoughts @PaulKunnath ?

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@bschermd When we say that ApoB alone is causal for atherosclerosis, we believe that even normal systolic pressures in healthy individuals causes turbulence and shear wall stress that leads to unavoidable endothelial injury and plaque accumulation. Our physiology isn't perfect.

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@elliesmdmba The guidelines do recommend treating aggressively if LDL > 190 mg/dL (or even 160 mg/dL with family history of early ASCVD) regardless of blood pressure, A1c, BMI, etc.

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@MetabolicUncle Citations please

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@ZKForTre Time will tell. If Hughes walks as a UFA in 2027 without helping the Wild win a cup, then pretty mad.

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@ZKForTre @whitfieldlewis6 You still have to treat the patient as an individual though, and many people are capable of losing weight on their own. Prescribing GLP-1's indiscriminately does increase cost and expose many to side effects unnecessarily. Plus, lifestyle trials can (and should be) short.

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@DrSuneelDhand The prevalence of obesity began sharply rising in the 1970s.

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@AnilMakam Perhaps a good example of this...
https://t.co/FRW3QtgTIS

[Michael Albert, MD @MichaelAlbertMD]

🚨 New CV outcomes signal: Semaglutide vs Tirzepatide
- - -
A recent real-world study reports that semaglutide reduced the risk of 3-point MACE (heart attack, stroke, ACM) by 29% more than tirzepatide in people with obesity and established CVD—despite an average follow-up of only ~9 months. https://t.co/xm3g7gjqPM

This raises some critical questions:
❓ Are we seeing molecule-specific benefits unique to semaglutide?
❓ Or is the effect primarily mediated by weight loss?

The early divergence of survival curves in the SELECT trial hinted at weight-independent cardioprotection. If true, semaglutide may offer distinct cardiovascular benefits beyond weight loss alone.

I’m not fully convinced yet—but this is further reinforcement that semaglutide is not just a weight-loss drug. It may be one of the first obesity therapies with robust, reproducible CV outcome benefits.

🧬 Obesity care is evolving. Are we ready to treat it as a true cardiovascular disease intervention?
#ObesityMedicine #GLP1 #CardiovascularHealth #Semaglutide #Tirzepatide

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@ZKForTre There is reasonable evidence that microplastics do impact our health. NEJM released a study in 2024 measuring cardiovascular events in those with plastic found in carotid atheromas vs those who don't. (DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa2309822).

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@DrPlantel Single ingredient swaps alone won't make a difference, but strong societal pressures against ultra-processed foods may discourage consumption the same way it did to cigarette sales in the 1980's. Moderation simply hasn't worked on a population level.

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@twelcher15 Spending 9 million on Sam Bennett who reached a career high of 51 points on a championship caliber team will set a very expensive precedent for Holloway and his agent when neither player should be paid more than Thomas/Kyrou.

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@MohammedAlo This is what patients in primary care need. Not simply general advice such as "eat healthy and exercise more." It should be actionable, personalized and supervised. The question becomes how to execute and make intensive therapy scalable for large patient panels.

[Dr Alo, DO, FACC @MohammedAlo]

High Protein Diet & Exercise On Diabetes Remission

After 12 months of intensive treatment, including medication, a high-protein diet, and moderate exercise:

1️⃣ 73.33% Prediabetes → Normal

2️⃣ 86.67% Diabetes → Remission

Lifestyle plays an important role in managing chronic diseases.

@NutritionMadeS3 @DrNadolsky @DrKarlNadolsky @drmatthewnagra @MichaelAlbertMd @MichaelMindrum @BevTchangMD

Study Link: https://t.co/YF3SHhkSvN

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@jprutherford Every forward has at least one point tonight. When was the last time that happened?

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@StevenMBelknap @deportriggers The DOI above didn't register. Do you have a direct link to the article by chance?

Also, what are your thoughts on Mendelian Randomization studies demonstrating a relationship between LDL-C and ASCVD?

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@BevTchangMD @SonalKumarMD @WeillCornell What is your threshold (clinical criteria) to order a Fibroscan for patients with metabolic syndrome?

[Jonathan Shedler @JonathanShedler]

Personality styles are not personality “disorders.” Every company/organization needs these personality styles:

📍Narcissistic personalities have the grand vision. They’re the founders and innovators. They dream the big dreams, attempt what others don’t, inspire others to follow them

📍Obsessional personalities get the work done. They excel at analyzing information and solving logical problems. They pay attention to the details and bring organization and structure

📍Hysterical personalities are natural sales and PR people. They make a good first impression and excel at connecting with others and building relationships

📍Paranoid personalities see around corners that others don’t even recognize as corners. They see what others miss, unearth hidden information, anticipate threats and avert crises

📍A whiff of psychopathic personality has a role. It’s a cutthroat world and it takes a certain Machiavellian manipulativeness and ruthlessness to seize opportunities, exploit advantages, drive the hard bargain, and outflank the competition

Our strengths and weaknesses are cut from the same psychological cloth. Success is capitalizing on strengths and mitigating weaknesses

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@DrPlantel I agree with the above, except for the last sentence. We don’t need companies making us “food.” They will always have an incentive to make their products hyperpalatable. Society needs to shift towards eating evolutionary appropriate whole-foods grown by farmers.

[Tom Chen, MD @tchen091]

@CurrentCs @M_Meyer3 Stenberg isn’t a 4th line player though and having him in that role is suboptimal for his development once he’s ready for the NHL.