January 16th, 2010 by Toni Brayer, M.D. in Better Health Network, Health Tips
Tags: 40's, Advanced Maternal Age, Challenges, Conception, Fertility, Obstetrics And Gynecology, Pregnancy, Women, Women's Health
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I can’t tell you the number of times women in their mid 40’s come to me and announce “Well, I’m ready to get pregnant”. Putting off pregnancy is understandable in our times. Women are building their careers, moving and traveling, going through a series of “Mr. Wrongs” and looking for the best baby-daddy. Women have thought that fertility was a given and they could get pregnant when the time was right. But, sadly, what they haven’t been told is the cruel trick of nature. Fertility doctors know…after age 29 your chance of having a baby without medical treatment is diminishing every year. After age 40 there is a precipitous drop.
To bring that fact home, check this out. A woman age 19-26 has a 50% chance of getting pregnant during any one menstrual cycle if she has intercourse two days prior to ovulation. For women age 27-34 the chance was 40% and after age 35 it drops to 30%. And at 40 you are only 1/2 as fertile as you were at 35. That is a sharp drop off! Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at EverythingHealth*
January 15th, 2010 by Paul Auerbach, M.D. in Better Health Network, Health Tips
Tags: Emergency Medicine, Injuries, Injury, Knee, Orthopedics, PCL, Physical Medicine And Rehabilitation, Skiing, Sports Injuries
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We’re in ski season and so a few unfortunate individuals will suffer few knee injuries. A while back, a reader asked me to describe an uncommon injury, which is a torn posterior cruciate ligament (PCL).
This injury usually occurs during a fall. As you can see from the drawing, the PCL keeps the lower leg bone (tibia) from moving too far back in relation to the upper leg bone (femur). If a sudden unnatural force is applied, usually a direct blow to the front of the lower leg near the knee while the knee is bent, the tibia is jammed backwards and the PCL may be torn. In the skiing situation, this usually happens during a fall and a tumble, when someone strikes an immovable object, or when the knee is bent or “twisted” and struck forcefully from the side.
The immediate sensation is pain, and there may be a feeling of instability to the knee, particularly when trying to walk or change levels (e.g., walk over the snowpack or on stairs). When the injury occurs, there usually is not the “pop” sensation noted with an anterior cruciate ligament tear. However, the knee will almost always swell, because there is bleeding into the knee joint and/or soft tissue swelling. Read more »
This post, Ski Season, Knee Injuries, And Posterior Cruciate Ligament Tears, was originally published on
Healthine.com by Paul Auerbach, M.D..
January 14th, 2010 by Berci in Better Health Network, Health Tips
Tags: Anonymity, Communications, Facebook, Flirtation, HIPAA, Nurses, Physicians, Proposition, Social Media, Twitter
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Whenever I talk about medical professionals using social media, people are surprised by what I say. Most people think they can hide online and never have to reveal their real identity. I think they are wrong. In the online world, it’s much easier to find out private information about someone who wasn’t cautious enough than in real life. A recent example includes Doctors warned of Facebook flirts (e-Health article):
The Medical Defence Union said it was aware of a number of cases where patients have attempted to proposition doctors by sending them an unsolicited message on Facebook or similar sites. The medical defence body said it would be “wholly inappropriate” to respond to a patient making an advance in such a way. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at ScienceRoll*
January 13th, 2010 by Davis Liu, M.D. in Better Health Network, Health Tips, True Stories
Tags: Advocacy, Cancer, Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Medical Communications, Navigating the healthcare system, Oncology, Orthopedics, Patient Advocate, Phone Call, Primary Care
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I’ve always wanted to be a doctor.
Never a writer.
With a new year and a new decade, I am determined to become a better writer not because of some childhood dream or expectation from others, but because of a near mishap that occurred at the beginning of 2000. A simple phone call changed the destiny of my brother from having a good outcome to having a great outcome. A simple phone call may have been the difference between “you are cancer free” to “I’m sorry to tell you it’s come back.” Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Saving Money and Surviving the Healthcare Crisis*
January 12th, 2010 by BarbaraFicarraRN in Better Health Network, Health Tips
Tags: Advice, Consumer, Empowered Patients, ePatient, How To Take Control Of Your Health, Nursing, Tips
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Empowered health consumers know how to take charge of their health and are proactive in their care.
Whether they’re surfing the web for health information, visiting their doctor or health care professional, or a patient in the hospital; empowered health consumers know how to question and communicate.
This blog is a continuation of the “He Said, She Said” post where I promised to give you tips about how to be an empowered health consumer.
Sabriya Rice, CNN Medical Producer had a similar idea.
Here are my 3 tips to help you become an empowered health consumer: Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Health in 30*
