52. Who Gets a Heart Disease Test?

In the newest show from the Freakonomics Radio Network, host Zachary Crockett explores the hidden side of the things around us. This week: One creature’s trash is another’s cash. (Or, how one man found profit in pee.) 

A sneak peek at Bapu's new book, Random Acts of Medicine, available now from Doubleday, and an announcement about the show. 

Couples get divorced for all kinds of reasons. Is having kids one of them? Bapu talks about research that investigates what happens to parents who unexpectedly have twins. Plus, an announcement about the future of the show. 

It’s now relatively easy to get tested to see if you carry the antibodies for Covid-19. Urgent Care centers and many doctor’s offices are offering the tests widely. But the science is still out on whether or not people who have had Covid-19 become immune to it. Not to mention the ... Show More

Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic was declared, we’ve heard a lot of talk about coronavirus tests. But how do tests for such a new virus work and what do the results really tell you? If your test comes back negative, what do you do? And what kinds of tests will help us in the futu ... Show More

Where does a medical cure come from? 100 years ago, it wasn't uncommon for scientists to test medicines by taking a dose themselves. As medical technologies get cheaper and more accessible, patients and DIY tinkerers are trying something similar—and mainstream medicine is racing ... Show More

The COVID-19 public health emergency has ended, but millions across the globe continue to deal with Long COVID. Researchers are still pursuing basic questions about Long COVID — its causes, how to test for it and how it progresses. Today, we look at a group of researchers studyin ... Show More

How reliable are at-home COVID-19 tests? Are there shortcomings to “testing out” of vaccine mandates? IDSA members Dial Hewlett, MD, FIDSA of the Westchester County Health Department and Nira Pollock, MD, FIDSA of Boston Children’s Hospital join us to discuss the latest on COVID- ... Show More

What do doctors actually do? Are they Sherlockian detectives, hunting down obscure clues to solve intractable cases? Are they virtuosic experts, training for half a lifetime to bring the latest science to bear to cure disease? Or are they clerks, whose main job is to collect and ... Show More

What are the indications for a stress test?  How to choose stress protocol in a stress test?  How to choose diagnostic imaging in a stress test?  How do we interpret results from stress tests, and how should this be communicated to patients? For full transcript, infographic and s ... Show More

Host: Darryl S. Chutka. M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Ashima Makol, M.B.B.S. Guest: Matthew J. Koster, M.D. Rheumatologic problems are some of the most common health conditions we see as primary care professionals. In many cases, taking months and sometimes years to properly diagnose, ... Show More

We usually have to wait days to get the results from our nose-swab PCR tests, and meanwhile, we might be spreading the virus without even knowing it. What if instead we could all be tested twice a week and know the results in just minutes? CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanj ... Show More