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Russia has the highest death rate from cardiovascular disease followed by the Ukraine, Romania, Hungary, and Poland.
It is believed that the Incas used anesthesia. Evidence supports the theory that shamans chewed cocoa leaves and drilled holes into the heads of patients (letting evil spirits escape), spitting into the wounds they made. The mixture of cocaine, saliva, and resin numbed the site enough to allow hours of drilling.
Bacteria have been found alive in a lake buried one half mile under ice in Antarctica.
People with high total cholesterol have about two times the risk for heart disease as people with ideal levels.
Lower drug doses for elderly patients should be used first, with titrations of the dose as tolerated to prevent unwanted drug-related pharmacodynamic effects.