August 21st, 2010 by Peggy Polaneczky, M.D. in Better Health Network, Book Reviews, Health Tips, Humor, Opinion, True Stories
Tags: Antibiotics, Bladder Infection, Eat Pray Love, Elizabeth Gilbert, General Medicine, Gynecology, Health Tips for Travelers, Honeymoon Cystitis, International Travel, Macrodantin, Post-Coital Cystitis, Primary Care, Reproductive Health, Safe Sex, Sexual Activity, Sexual Health, SMTP, Sulfamethoxazole with Trimethoprim, Travel Habits, Urinary Tract Infection, Urology, UTI, Women's Health
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I really didn’t expect to like Eat, Pray, Love. In fact, since its publication in 2006, I’d been avoiding it like the plague. “Typical new-agey, Oprah-y, girly-book,” I thought. Nothing in it to speak to me.
Then I saw the trailer for the movie, and I was hooked –- probably because I, like mostly everyone, love Julia Roberts. I immediately downloaded the book on my iPhone using the Kindle App and began to read.
First, let me say that Elizabeth Gilbert writes exceptionally well, and the book is actually a joy to read. I, of course, loved the Italy eating part. But more surprising to me, I wasn’t turned off by the whole yoga, Guru, find-yourself stuff. This is because Gilbert writes it all with a reporter’s curiosity and a skeptic’s eye, and frames it not as a belief system, but as a tool for self-discovery and peace. (Plus, I’m really good at skimming if I get bored.)
Too bad Gilbert’s curiosity and skepticism does not extend to the healthcare she receives while in Bali. She accepts the curative powers of a warm leaf placed on an oozing, infected cut without even wondering what leaf it might be or how it might have worked. Was it the heat (most likely) or something else (possibly)? I was dying to know.
She Xeroxes pages and pages of traditional medical treatments without sharing a single one with us in any meaningful way. While I’m pretty sure 99 percent of what was in there was bunk, there might be a few gems that would serve medical science. Unless Lizzie made a second copy, we’ll never know, will we?
But it was the UTI that really got to me. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at tbtam*
August 21st, 2010 by Edwin Leap, M.D. in Better Health Network, Humor, True Stories
Tags: Chest Pain, Demanding Patients, ED, Emergency Department, Emergency Medicine News, Emergency Room, ER, Medical Humor, Medical Staff, Medicine Story, Patient Control, Power of the Patient, Powerful Patients
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Here’s my column in the August edition of Emergency Medicine News. A person who seems powerless may hold an entire emergency room hostage!
Magic Words: ‘I Have Chest Pain’
Propped in her bed, frail and weak, the little grandma sighed. Her complaints were legion: weakness, poor appetite, poor sleep, joint pain, cough, dry mouth. Her daughter, eyes rolling, was trying to balance three reasonable emotions. She desperately wanted to go home and rest after spending the day in the ER. She truly wanted to avoid her mother’s admission to the hospital, and she was, graciously, sympathetic to the physician who brought the bad news.
‘Mrs. Adkins, I know you feel poorly, and I’m sorry. But I have to say, I can’t find any reason to admit you to the hospital. You’re right as rain. Isn’t that great?’
‘You mean, I’ve been here all this time, and had a gallon of blood drawn, and all them x-rays and a CAT scan, and there ain’t nothing wrong? I can’t believe that. I feel terrible.’ When she said the word terrible, she smacked her lips and looked away. She propped her hands on her lap and intertwined them; and she managed a subtle, but expressive, sniffle. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at edwinleap.com*
August 21st, 2010 by AndrewSchorr in Better Health Network, News, Research, True Stories
Tags: Advances in Cancer Treatment, Andrew Schorr, Cancer Diagnosis, Head and Neck Cancer, Head and Neck Surgery, Michael Douglas, Oncology, Patient Power, Robotic Surgery, Throat Cancer, Treatment For Cancer
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There’s news that Hollywood star Michael Douglas, 65, is undergoing treatment for throat cancer. Reporters say his doctors say he is expected to make a full recovery. But, believe me — when someone is diagnosed with any kind of head and neck cancer, as this is, it’s not an easy go.
My first encounter with it was with my friend Bob Moore, a former sales rep for a major pharmaceutical company. He was a positive, yet realistic guy. The disease and the toxic treatment a few years ago eventually took its toll and he passed on.
My dear friend Mike Piller, famous as writer and co-executive producer of the Star Trek television series, had a similar diagnosis. He did his research and traveled to the best centers. Surgery and radiation took away part of his jaw and his ability to taste and swallow. Of course his speech was affected. He was a trooper, but he never recovered.
In both cases the doctors did what they could to cut out or zap the cancerous tissue tucked away around a lot of critical structures. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Andrew's Blog*
August 20th, 2010 by Steven Roy Daviss, M.D. in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Humor, News, Opinion, Research, True Stories
Tags: Addiction Medicine, Controlled Substances, Drug Abuse, Drug Control, Herbal Incense, Home Chemists, Homemade Soap, JWH-018, K2, Medical Humor, Methamphetamine, Pharmaceuticals, Poison Control, Pseudoephedrine, Red Devil Lye, Research Labs, Spice, Substance Abuse, Substance Manufacturing, Synthetic Cannabinoid
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By ClinkShrink
There’s always something new, even in the world of substance abuse. Lately I’ve been reading a lot in the media about K2, a synthetic cannabinoid that’s being sold (and outlawed) in many states. It’s commonly mixed with herbal incense and smoked. Nicknamed “spice,” it was originally created by scientists and called JWH-018.
Apparently some states’ poison control centers have been getting calls about it due to the physical symptoms it can cause, specifically palpitations and GI problems. The part of the story that I thought was interesting was the fact that originally only 250 milligrams of the stuff was created, in an “official” research lab, but that home chemists quickly took up the experiment and it’s now a part of our national drug culture. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Shrink Rap*
August 20th, 2010 by Happy Hospitalist in Better Health Network, Humor, Opinion, True Stories
Tags: Biology, Bodily Organs, General Medicine, Healthcare Economics, Heart, How Organs Work, Kidney, Lungs, Medical Humor, Most Important Organ, Organs in the Body, Skin
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My medical student has apparently had a discussion with his classmates regarding which is the most important organ in the body. Is it the heart? The lungs? The kidneys? What do you think?
My medical student thinks it’s the kidney because of the complicated functions it must perform. I think it’s the skin because it holds everything together and keeps our economy going. What do you think? What is the most important organ in the body and why?
*This blog post was originally published at The Happy Hospitalist*
