We have all seen on ‘Star Trek™ the ‘tricorder’ hand held device that waved over a person gives tons of vital information. Well it is now here – sort of – MouthLab!
The team of engineers and physicians (Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine) created a device that reports from a simple breath or a fingertip. Yes, no need for applying devices, time, discomfort to find out your vital signs that is heart rate, blood pressure, temperature, breathing rate and blood oxygen.
Big Bonus is its ability to record a basic electrocardiogram (EKG) . Keep an eye out for this at your next medical encounter.
Published the Annals of Biomedical Engineering (9/15)
Media (especially TV shows) portrays cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) as having an improbable outcome – patient wakes up and shortly after walks out of the hospital without any the worse.
Please remember it IS fiction, in real life the odds of having your heart and lungs restarted after a medical crisis is very slim!
A study by USC Davis School of Gerontology researchers watched popular dramas Grey’s Anatomy and House noting performing CPR successfully saved a patient’s life early 70 percent of the time. Half of the fictional patients who received CPR made enough of a recovery to eventually leave the hospital. That’s ‘almost double the actual immediate survival rate of less than 37 percent and four times the real long–term survival rate of roughly 13 percent’, according to experts in end–of–life care.
Are these the expectations people have upon signing directives for end of life care?
TV programs show CPR performed mostly on adults 18 – 65, while in reality more than 60% of CPR is preformed on those over 65. Then there is the other reality – trauma – which can cause one’s heart to stop. Trauma was the cause in the TV shows in this study for approx. 40% of the CPR, but in real life only 2 % of all CPR is done on trauma victims. The study appeared online in the Journal Resuscitation on Aug. 18.
A good service of social media makes going to the ER a bit easier. Besides looking for restaurant and hotel reviews, hospital and urgent clinics have postings on their Yelp pages. Users post much about their personal experience in a specific time, however now government information ( ProPublica, a non-profit public interest group based on patient surveys and data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) can be found.
Yelp lists the data in the upper-right corner of my local hospital profile (image right) and has added a similar box to nursing home and dialysis center pages, find out how many beds and what the odds of surviving are. Not all US medical facilities at this blogging have such information. I am sure you will not use this Yelp information alone to decide upon where to pursue medical care. Many resources including this Medicare site that compares hospitals is well worth checking out.
We all get cuts, scraps from minor injury. Our skin is a barrier and protection once it is ‘violated’ it is up to us to care for it. The following are a few important basic to ‘wound’ care when you are not given specific direction from a medical professional.
Supplies needed:
antibacterial soap (Lever 2000®, Dial®)
Vasoline petroleum jelly (NOT Neosporin® or Bacitracin®)
Q tips
Bandages size to cover wound
Actions till completely healed:
keep wound clean wash with soapy water gently
keep coated with thin layer of ointment
cover with clean bandage
clean at least twice a day and whenever get it wet
cover sun block (SPF30) for one year round to avoid scarring
I like and have repeatedly used Aquaphor® healing ointment (OTC) which protects against infection*, promote healing, avoids scab formation so decreases a scar forming.
*signs of infection increasing redness, swelling, pain or drainage
Synthetic marijuana (some street names include: sK2, diamond, Genie, Dawn, Spice) was never tested in humans, but used for research. It does decrease the flow of oxygen there by mimicking marijuana “high.” Can be smoked mixed with food/drink, it’s banned in many countries but not US at present.
A published study Philadelphia’s Children’s National Health System found in teenagers use can cause serious heart complications. No matter your age low oxygen levels are potentially catastrophic. This would be true even for the young.
Symptoms will include shortness breath, chest pain to name two.
The Partnership for Drug-Free America, Arizona chapter published a one page Marijuana Fact Sheet that you must read! Get the lowdown on synthetic marijuana, it is important!
In the case of accidental poisoning, if time permits, contact the Poison Help Center at 1-800-222-1222. Poison Help Centers operate around-the-clock and can provide you with FREE & confidential advice and treatment options so you can start before reaching the ER.
You can dial this toll free number from anywhere in the US, including American Samoa, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands and Micronesia it will be routed based on your area code and exchange or your location to the one of the 55 U.S. poison centers that is designated to serve your region.
Remember dial 911 if a person cannot be awakened, has trouble breathing, collapses, or has a seizure.
“There’s also a free app that allows you to scan the product barcode, which you can download at the Apple Store and at Google play. webPOISONCONTROL® was developed by poison control experts, and like calling, it’s free and confidential. At present, the app is powered by more than 1000 ingredient algorithms linked to household and pharmaceutical products and barcodes. More algorithms and products are being added every day.” *
*Personal communication with Toby Litovitz, MD?Executive & Medical Director?National Capital Poison Center
There are many reasons why fractures may not heal including:
Immobilization-conservative first round treatment for fractures
ends of the bone are too far apart to grow back together
so much damage to or loss of blood supply around fracture
‘reduction’ alignment of fracture ends is poor
infection
Naturally medical conditions such as diabetes, hypothyroidism, and anemia can contribute to ‘delayed’ slow or non-union. Lifestyle can contributes negatively from smoking, excessive alcohol intake.
Over doing the OTC anti-inflammatories and NSAIDs can decrease the inflammatory reaction as bone tries to get together. Inflammation is the first stage of bone healing (followed by ‘reparative’, and ‘remodeling’). Prescription immunosuppressants, and anticoagulants can also slow bone Every couple weeks an X-Ray is taken to see progress, if after 90 days there is no (‘non-union’) or poor fracture healing (‘delayed’) further treatment methods are necessary.
External Bone Stimulator Device
Treatment recommendations may include a bone stimulator application to fracture site daily. Placing the fracture site within the electronic ‘cage’ borders for 30′ daily (up to 12 weeks in difficult fractures) has been proven (insurance pays for this) to heal fractures.
None of us can say without a doubt that we will never visit a doctor. This blog offers insights for everyone with and without health insurance.
If you are an out of pocket patient, please ask up front for the ‘cash pay rate’ then negotiate terms. Ask about partial payment, schedule, or a discount for all up front. Be sure to get a receipt that says paid in full, so no add-ons are mentioned later. It is smart to have an idea of the cost of medical condition treatments, so go to these 2 websites: clearhealthcosts.com and healthcarebluebook.com. Compare rates and procedures dependent on your location, from MRI to vasectomies.
BE aware that having a procedure/test in a hospital can cost 10-20 times more than at specialized facility out patient center. Many facilities are associated with hospitals but are off-site. Routine tests such as imaging studies, diagnostic procedures such as colonoscopy, gastroscopy can be done safely and efficiently at these facilities. Non-hospital facilities are audited and accredited by the Joint Commission. Ask and check if the facility meets standards for:
Ambulatory Health Care
Surgery Centers
Office-Based Surgery
Imaging Centers
Sleep Centers
Urgent Care Centers
The ordering physicians may have a preference, others will leave it up to you but your insurance has it’s preferences, so ask.
Filling a prescription? – When taking a generic drug, paying cash is more often than not less expensive than the co-pay of your prescription insurance plan. It is well worth checking the list for $4.00 medication on Target,Wal-Mart, Costco websites. Sadly if you are on Medicare you do not have this option. Comparison-shopping can save!
We welcome sharing your experiences from medical encounters.
A new take on stopping someone from bleeding to death is almost here!
Wither traumatic injuries, serious car accidents, street violence, or field combat, large volume of blood loss causes death. In reality it is the leading cause of death in individuals under age 45 in the US.
A recent field test may significantly change how treatment transpires.
By using a biopolymer derived from the shells of shrimp, scientists have developed foam that once sprayed on open wounds becomes solid stopping bleeding. Successful testing on pigs was reported recently (5/29/15) in the Journal ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering. On pigs a 90% decrease in blood loss was noted and pressure application was not needed.
Chitosan the biopolymer is already being used in 2 types of non–foam wound dressings approved by the FDA.
Recent Comments