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- Exercise-Induced Asthma (EIA)
- Glaucoma-Worth A Look
- Going to the Emergency Room
- H1N1-What You Need To Know
- Insider Tips on Dealing with Doctors
- INSIDER’S TAKE ON BLOOD TESTS
- MEDICINE CABINET CHECKLIST
- Metabolic Syndrome (MetS)
- Radiation Guide
- Staying Alive Q & A
- Surviving A Emergency Room Visit
- Taking Medication Using Medical Sense
- Test On Blood- In A Nutshell
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CDC -Has A New Way to Teach
Posted by Doc in Adult Medical Sense, Child Medical Sense on May 23, 2013
Get the info you need so you and your family can deal with a zombie ‘apocalypse’. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) has embraced pop TV culture using the popular images and stories of zombies to educate on preparedness for hurricanes, pandemics, earthquakes, and terrorist attacks.
Go to the CDC website for this , you will find info in many formats including a blog, posters, site for educators with a kit, even a ‘novella’ entertaining and graphic with a twist in the plot! Rhetoric includes instructions on how to act when coming into site of someone with ‘symptoms’. Recommendations for all the family on plan and supplies needed including cash!
Do not miss the social media page links and e cards! So make a plan, and be prepared and share it with your children and grandchildren.
So make a plan, and be prepared and share it with your children and grandchildren.
Baldness Indicates Heart Disease!?
Posted by Doc in Adult Medical Sense on May 16, 2013
Male baldness can be a telltale sign of heart disease so if you have coronal baldness (crown/vertex of your head) and frontal
baldness you chances are 69% greater that you will have coronary heart disease (CHD) than someone with full head hair. Coronary arteries supply the heart muscle.
Frontal baldness alone is not as tell-tale as crown baldness. So no surprise if your healthcare professional should want to check you for possible cardiac disease. We all know from previous blogs about the risk factors for heart disease, but this is a ‘sign’ you might be at risk. Many decades ago a correlation study suggested another ‘sign’ – the presence of a diagonal crease (fold) on the lobe of the ear to be indicative of heart disease however inconsistent finding were noted in studies since.
Correlation with hair presence or lack of, in a certain pattern was gleamed from a review of studies involving nearly 40,000 men suggests (850 studies, published between 1950 and 2012).
Point for relevance is if you are a man over 60 with severe baldness you are 32% more likely to develop CHD than a man who retained a full head of hair. Interestingly younger men (aged 60 or younger), a similar association emerged.
Tablets for Doctors
Posted by Doc in Adult Medical Sense on May 9, 2013
Did you know the U.S. government has a “Meaningful Use” program that allows a doctor to claim as a Medicare and Medicaid expense the cost of a tablet device. This is allowed as an indirect way to reduce the paper used for patient records. No surprise we see many physicians with iPads or Chrome Books, tablet computers, and smartphones. Yes they are more convenient and bleeding-edge than laptops, which are cumbersome compared to these devices.
A recent study reported that tablets are progressively prevalent among doctors noting, 80 percent of doctors own a portable device capable of downloading Apps, (only about 50 % of U.S. consumers have smartphones, 5 % own tablets). Your Doc might be in the 19% of physicians using their device in a clinical setting.
It’s not just young doctors who are using tablet technology; the use of these devices is practically same by Docs in practice for over 30 years.
There is always a new App to make it easier for doctors and patients.
There are medical apps that can: allow medical folks to read EKGs instantly instead of waiting for paper records, lets doctors scan stroke victims’ brains with their tablet device and so many more. Just think of all the drug, lab test and anatomy reference Apps!
Childhood Obesity-Size Matters
Posted by Doc in Adult Medical Sense, Child Medical Sense on May 2, 2013
A small, randomized study of 1st graders demonstrated that children serving themselves with a full adult sized plate (larger
plate) piled on more calories than when they used a child-sized plate (smaller plate). Other studies have shown same in adults no surprise. Setting was a typical school-lunch with usually foods provided through the school program, however self-serve style was new to the children. As you would expect if a dish was “liked” more was self served. Study details included weighting each dish, using same size serving spoons BUT a full-size dish was twice the surface area/volume as the child-sized plate and unaware their plates were being weighed.
Yes a set up for more child obesity since children loaded more calories a minimum of 58 calories and if a dish was something they liked more calories! Lesson for parents is a reminder that plate size matters in obesity development in the very young age.
HPV
Posted by Doc in Adult Medical Sense, Child Medical Sense on April 25, 2013
HPV - you’ve heard of it – Human PapillomaVirus? What do you think the PAP smears (recommended ages 21-65) are about? Yes, screening for presence of papillomavirus on a woman’s cervix. HPV is most common STD in the US but in 90% of cases our immune system clears it. 74% of infections occur in 15-24 y.o. effecting both sexes.
However if not cleared this virus does not just cause genital warts, cervical and anal cancer but also head and neck cancers. The FDA approved a vaccine that targets 4 subtypes (quadrivalent) that cause cervical cancer (HPV 16/18 and genital warts (HPV6/11). Young adolescents (9-12) should be vaccinated before exposure to this virus from sexual activity (oral, anal included). Remember a vaccine does not treat an existing virus. Only 1/3 of young females have been vaccinated with the 3 dose series. Recommendation have now gone to women up to 26 as the vaccine may possible help prevent cancer in non cervical areas. Ask your medical care provider and complete all 3 vaccines. More info is available on line through many websites including: Center For Disease Control, vaccine maker’s site, not for profit site and more.
Glaucoma
Posted by Doc in Adult Medical Sense on April 18, 2013
Glaucoma is a disease that damages the nerve fibers carrying images from the eye to the brain. The nerve is the optic nerve it is like a cable made up of many fibers (like wires). Once damage occurs blind spots appear in your visual field. As you can imagine it takes time for enough fibers to be damages for recognition of a ‘blind spot’.
Blindness may eventually result. In the USA it is the leading cause. As I hinted once glaucoma causes damages it can not be reversed. However medicated eye drops and laser surgery can reduce pressure and help prevent further damage. In certain people oral medications are also prescribed to ward off blindness. A simple eye pressure measurement is not enough to recognize glaucoma-you need a complete eye exam. There are many types of glaucoma. Please read more details in Doc’s article on line at ‘Healthy Living’-”All the Best Articles About Health”.
Second-Hand Smoke Danger
Posted by Doc in Adult Medical Sense on April 11, 2013
Smoke even second-hand exposure is a bigger risk for heart disease than High Cholesterol is!
Who would have thought? The risk of clogged arteries is greater from secondhand smoke than from several heart disease risk factors, including high cholesterol*.
The overall prevalence of coronary artery plaque in those exposed to secondhand smoke was 24%, which rose to 26% in those with the highest exposure compared with 19% for the general public .
This first study to demonstrate ‘a dose-response relationship’ between exposure to secondhand smoke and the earliest detectable signs of heart disease in non smokers.
So you should be upset when some
one smokes in your air space!
*Hecht HS, et al “Secondhand tobacco smoke in never smokers is a significant risk factor for coronary artery calcification” J Am Coll Cardiol Cardiovas Img 2013.
Doc’s ER Survival Guide – Updated
Posted by Doc in Press, Publications on April 4, 2013
You need to read this! Know your rights, the process and the lingo and much more from an insider DocHandal. Yes at times the ER is a chaotic medical setting all the more for you to know about the goings-on.
Doctors and nurses are making decisions in a fast-paced, stressful environment. Mistakes can and do happen. So the more people know about what to expect the less likely one of those mistakes will happen to them. Reading this book is like having Doc Handal at your side when you need her the most. Have a quick listen to a trailer on this book
H7N9 Virus
Posted by Doc in Adult Medical Sense on April 3, 2013
New mutated virus from the known H7N9 has been identified in China – yes a relative of the H5N1 Influenza A subtype, you may recall from ‘avian flu’ outbreak in China from 2006-2008
However features of this bird flu strain make it more dangerous:
-injected poultry do not show signs of illness
-can spreads to other animals, found already in pigs
-spreads to humans, severe pneumonias in those that have contact with injected animals.
-deaths have started to be recorded in China’s eastern province
The good news – if you can think of any aspect of this as such – China has already shared with the global medical community the virus genetic sequence. Watch news for more on this mutated virus.
Medical Diagnosis Testing -Not Always Needed
Posted by Doc in Adult Medical Sense, Child Medical Sense on March 28, 2013

You may often thought do I really need all those tests – well finally medical professionals from 17 medical societies have addressed this issue.
They have identified tests and procedures that are likely unnecessary for the 26 medical specialties. Examples of unnecessary tests from the specific medical society include:
American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP): Antibiotics for apparent viral respiratory illnesses such as sinusitis or bronchitis
American Academy of Neurology (AAN): Electroencephalography (EEG) for headaches
American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO): Antibiotics for pink eye
American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP): Population-based screening for vitamin D deficiency
American Urological Association (AUA): Routine bone scans in men with a low risk of prostate cancer
Society of Hospital Medicine, Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI): PET/CT scans for cancer screening in healthy individuals.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), which is new to the list, recommended against performing annual Pap tests in women ages 30 to 65, since doing so offers no advantage over screening at 3-year intervals
Visit for more information ‘Choosing Wisely’






