July 27th, 2010 by RamonaBatesMD in Better Health Network, Humor
No Comments »
Thanks to the PSP Blog which linked to the “Culture Map” article by By Douglas Newman — Medical jams: From plastic surgery to cancer to sex changes, it’s been rocked about.
Newman has put together the following list with audio links included in his article. I hope you will pop over and give them a listen. Do you have any to add to the list?
“Heart Doctor” by Lee “Scratch” Perry
This late period track by the legendary (and legendarily kooky) Lee “Scratch” Perry finds the reggae/dub artist and producer doling out “advice” to his patients…
“A Nurse’s Life is Full of Woe” by Billy Bragg
An unreleased track taken from the sessions of Talking With the Taxman About Poetry, “A Nurse’s Life is Full of Woe” finds Bragg taking on the plight of the working class…
Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Suture for a Living*
July 25th, 2010 by RamonaBatesMD in Better Health Network, Humor, True Stories
No Comments »
This past week I learned several new words and phrases. Allow me to share a few with you.
“Speedo sag” –- I learned of this phrase from a tweet from @BAAPSMedia:
Have just seen a cosmetic surgery press release about so-called “Speedo Sag”….Eww.
My first thought was the same as my OR crew, whom I polled. We all thought it had to have something to do with the parts of the male anatomy which should be covered by the Speedo, such as perhaps the scrotum. It doesn’t. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Suture for a Living*
July 22nd, 2010 by RamonaBatesMD in Better Health Network, News, Opinion, Quackery Exposed, Research
1 Comment »
I first saw mention of the “vampire facelift” two weeks ago as a news article listed in the July 9th issue of the Plastic Surgery SmartBrief: “Vampire facelift” uses patient’s platelets and fibrin in dermal filler.”
The article begins:
Instead of a traditional facelift, patients are being offered another option to get rid of wrinkles. It’s called Selphyl or the “vampire facelift,” and it uses a person’s own blood to sculpt the face.
Selphyl, according to the company’s website:
The patented SELPHYL® System enables the safe and rapid preparation of an activated Platelet-rich Fibrin Matrix (PRFM). A small volume of the patient’s blood is collected and the platelets and fibrin are concentrated during a simple centrifuge process. The resulting product (liquid, gel or membrane) can be applied to a treatment area of the face or body to stimulate natural, new tissue growth. SELPHYL® prepared PRFM has been shown to increase skin volume and rejuvenation.
SELPHYL® ensures a preparation of fibrin and platelets, with virtually no red or white blood cells. Studies have shown these platelets to be viable and intact. Platelets will release proteins, which have been reported to trigger cell migration, proliferation and differentiation over time.
With over 45,000 procedures performed world-wide, this technology has been extensively used for soft tissue regeneration in plastic surgery, orthopedics and maxillofacial surgery.
So how does Sephyl create any face-lifting effect? Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Suture for a Living*
July 10th, 2010 by RamonaBatesMD in Better Health Network, Health Tips, Patient Interviews, True Stories
No Comments »
The New York Times has a series called “Patient Voices” which gives insights from the patients with the disease, physical and emotional changes in their lives, and accommodations made. The most recent series is on patients with alopecia (hair loss).
“The Voices of Alopecia” by Tara Parker-Pope (July 6, 2010):
This week, Patient Voices explores alopecia, an autoimmune disease that leads to a few bald patches to the loss of every hair on a person’s body.
To hear what it’s like to live with alopecia, listen to the Patient Voices audio slideshow that features adults, children and their parents who are coping with the condition.
Listen to these seven people tell what it’s like to live with alopecia:
– Matt Kelly, 43, lost his hair at age 38 over a 6 week time span.
– Jennifer DeFreece, 29, developed alopecia totalis as a child.
– Margaret Staib, 42, an artist with three daughters.
– Rafi Wasselman, 16, says his best medicine is his collection of caps.
– Maureen McGettigan, 47, began losing her hair at age 16.
– Annie Kazmi, 33, tells her daughter Noori’s story. Then Noori tells her own. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Suture for a Living*
July 8th, 2010 by RamonaBatesMD in Better Health Network, Health Tips, Research
No Comments »
Your doctor has told you not to use tanning beds anymore. Your skin is beginning to show more aging than your age should have. You have a family history of skin cancer and want to avoid it. Whatever your reason, you have decided to look at self-tanners as an alternative.
I applaud that decision, but remember to use safe sun practices and/or sunscreens as self-tanners offer no protection to your skin from UVA or UVB rays.
According to About.com:Chemistry, self-tanners have been around in some form since 1960:
In 1960, Coppertone introduced its first sunless tanning product — QT® or Quick Tanning Lotion. This lotion produced an overall orange effect. Today’s sunless tanning products produce much more realistic results. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Suture for a Living*
