Michael Tam

Michael Tam is a Staff Specialist at the Academic Primary and Integrated Care Unit (APICU), South Western Sydney Local Health District and Ingham Institute of Applied Medical Research. The Unit provides targeted primary care services to vulnerable populations in South Western Sydney, medical education, research, and health services development, especially in integrated care. He is also a Conjoint Senior Lecturer of the School of Public Health and Community Medicine, UNSW Sydney. Michael's clinical interest is in comorbid substance use disorder and mental health disorders. His research interests are in integrated care, preventive health, and medical education.

Most commented posts

  1. Glucosamine and/or chondroitin for osteoarthritis — 2 comments
  2. Incidence and progression of thyroid dysfunction in elderly — 2 comments
  3. Daily aspirin on long-term risk of death due to cancer — 1 comment
  4. Is glucosamine effective for osteoarthritis pain? — 1 comment
  5. Zinc for the common cold — 1 comment

Author's posts

Oct 11 2019

Palmitoylethanolamide (PEA) as treatment for knee osteoarthritis pain

Steels E, et al. Inflammopharmacology 2019 Jun;27(3):475-85.
Palmitoylethanolamide (PEA) cannot be recommended as a routine therapy for knee osteoarthritis in Australian primary care,

Permanent link to this article: https://evidencebasedmedicine.com.au/?p=1787

Jul 12 2019

Duloxetine as treatment for knee osteoarthritis pain

Osani et al. Korean J Intern Med 2019 Mar 15
Duloxetine (60-120 mg daily) appears to have a small to moderate beneficial effect on knee osteoarthritis pain and function at 3 months, compared to placebo.

Permanent link to this article: https://evidencebasedmedicine.com.au/?p=1782

May 09 2019

Isopropyl alcohol nasal inhalation for nausea in adults

Beadle et al. Ann Emerg Med 2016 Jul;68(1):1-9 e1.
Nasal inhalation of isopropyl alcohol provides clinically important relief from acute nausea, of at least a short duration, in community ambulatory patients

Permanent link to this article: https://evidencebasedmedicine.com.au/?p=1768

Mar 11 2019

EMDR as treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder

Bisson et al. Cochrane database of systematic reviews 2013 Dec 13(12):CD003388
Eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing (EMDR) appears to be effective for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms.

Permanent link to this article: https://evidencebasedmedicine.com.au/?p=1762

Jan 07 2019

Oral cimetidine as the treatment of common warts

Yilmaz et al. J Am Acad Dermatol 1996 Jun;34(6):1005-7
The limited research evidence does not support the use of oral cimetidine as the treatment of common warts

Permanent link to this article: https://evidencebasedmedicine.com.au/?p=1756

Oct 19 2018

The combination of magnesium, riboflavin, and coenzyme Q10 for migraine prophylaxis

Gaul et al. J Headache Pain 2015;16:516.
The evidence for combination magnesium, riboflavin, and CoQ10 is at best equivocal for migraine prophylaxis

Permanent link to this article: https://evidencebasedmedicine.com.au/?p=1752

Aug 21 2018

Is oral orphenadrine beneficial for acute low back pain?

Friedman et al. Ann Emerg Med 2018 Mar;71(3):348-56 e5
Orphenadrine provides no benefit when used in addition to naproxen for acute low back pain

Permanent link to this article: https://evidencebasedmedicine.com.au/?p=1747

Jun 25 2018

Do statins prevent dementia?

McGuinness et al. Cochrane database of systematic reviews 2016 Jan 4(1):CD003160
Statins should not be used as a prophylaxis against dementia, as the only indication. The limited evidence from high quality randomised trials suggests no effect.

Permanent link to this article: https://evidencebasedmedicine.com.au/?p=1742

Apr 30 2018

Does vitamin B3 (nicotinamide) prevent non-melanoma skin cancer?

Chen AC, et al. NEJM 2015 Oct 22;373(17):1618-26
Nicotinamide (vitamin B3) has a small-modest effect as prophylaxis against non-melanoma skin cancers

Permanent link to this article: https://evidencebasedmedicine.com.au/?p=1737

Feb 22 2018

Do oral sweets reduce injection pain in children?

Harrison et al. Cochrane database of systematic reviews 2015 May 5(5):CD008408
The effect of oral sweets on injection pain in children is unclear. Much of the data were from small studies with conflicting results. There is better evidence for other approaches (e.g., distraction).

Permanent link to this article: https://evidencebasedmedicine.com.au/?p=1733

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