HEALTH

NNT and NNH are Two Medical Terms I Bet You Never Heard Of But You Should Know

Why don’t doctors share these stats?

Has your doctor ever suggested a pill to you and reassured you with something like “There are some possible side effects, but most people tolerate it well?”

I’d be surprised if you said no.

My doctor said something like that to me recently. I was seeing him to complain about getting up too often at night to pee, something that had became more annoying when I reached my seventies. After testing, prodding, and interrogation, my doctor decided that there was nothing wrong with me other than getting older, but offered a pill called “Mirabegron” to cut the urination frequency.

This article is not about Mirabegron and is not offering medical advice. I have no medical training and I did not take this pill. This is about finding more information about any pills your doctor may suggest.

In other words, Mirabegron is treating the symptom, not any particular problem. I shrugged, accepted the prescription, but looked it up on WebMD when I got back home. WebMD told me that Mirabegron may cause nausea, dizziness, fast heartbeat, runny or stuffy nose, headaches, and elevated blood pressure. More rarely, it can cause burning or…