April 19th, 2008 by Dr. Val Jones in Uncategorized
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The polls are open until May 6th… Head on over to the Webby Awards to see which websites were nominated this year.
My friends Cooper Monroe and Emily McKhann, co-founders of themotherhood.com, have been nominated. So please check out their website. If you’re a mom (or if you’ve ever had a mom) and are reading this message… you know what you have to do. Register at the Webby Awards and vote now for The Motherhood – it’s a vibrant, real mom community. We can’t let an encyclopedic content provider win can we? 
This post originally appeared on Dr. Val’s blog at RevolutionHealth.com.
April 15th, 2008 by Dr. Val Jones in Uncategorized
Tags: News
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My sister’s 1 year old baby had a sudden dilated pupil in only one eye, confirmed by two witnesses and lasting several minutes. I blogged about the event here, and have been quite perplexed ever since. Unequal pupils are fairly rare and don’t have all that many potential causes – some of which are life threatening (shhh).
As with many patient histories, the devil’s in the details. Although I asked my sister if there was any possible way that her baby could have gotten a strange chemical in her eye (and she assured me that nothing of the kind could have happened) my mom outed her to me via phone.
“Oh yes, they had their floors resurfaced the day prior [to the pupillary event,] and the babies were crawling all over that new floor.”
Hmm… so there WAS a potential chemical exposure after all. “Ah hah!” I thought. So I decided to do a Medline search for cases of chemical exposures causing anisocoria (pupils of different sizes). I soon realized that I’d forgotten to constrain my search to human studies, but was most amused by some factoids that I turned up.
My favorite study title was this:
“Anisocoria in the dog provoked by a toxic contact with an ornamental plant.” Surely the ornamentality of the plant is irrelevant to its toxic properties? What sort of provocation could the plant have inspired in this innocent canine? Well, it was a French study – perhaps something was lost in translation.
The runner up is this one:
“Clinical and necropsy findings associated with increased mortality among American alligators of Lake Griffin, Florida.” Apparently, different pupil sizes don’t bode well for alligator longevity, especially in Lake Griffin, Florida. Note to self – if I’m about to be attacked by an alligator, look him straight in the eye to find out if he has a chance of winning.
Honorable mention goes to:
“Liberalized screening for blunt carotid and vertebral artery injuries is justified.” Which tells me that some folks may not even notice or recall a blunt force injury to the neck – so we should be on the lookout and ready to screen people liberally for this concerning and under recognized issue.
Sigh. Did I find anything helpful about floor refinishing chemicals and potential eye effects? Nope. My attention drifted off at around study number 300 (I had gone back 10 years in the literature). Though I have to say that many journal article titles are inherently whimsical. So my dear readers – I open the question to you all: Have you ever heard of a floor finishing chemical causing a pupil to dilate?
Come on, I’m dangling a nice case report out here for you…
(And yes, we’ll keep an eye on the baby for any signs of a more ominous cause, stay tuned).
This post originally appeared on Dr. Val’s blog at RevolutionHealth.com.
April 11th, 2008 by Dr. Val Jones in Uncategorized
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Last year I had the opportunity to participate in a cooking contest to promote awareness of celiac disease. As it happens, I was paired up with Chef Rock (he went on to win the TV cooking show “Hell’s Kitchen” and is apparently enjoying himself now in Las Vegas). CNN anchor Heidi Collins was one of the judges, and although our dish didn’t win (it should have! Who can resist shrimp and grits in a creole sauce? Is coriander encrusted skate really superior to that? No, I’m not bitter. He he.)
This year’s cooking spree is TONIGHT and I’m really excited. I’ve been paired with a chef from Cafe Atlantico, one of my favorite restaurants in Washington, DC. Many thanks to the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness for organizing the event. It may be televised (on a channel with a really high number I think), so keep an eye out for Dr. Val and her desperate efforts to take home first prize for all the people out there suffering from gluten intolerance!
Not sure what celiac disease is? Most docs don’t know either – so check out my interview with world-renowned gastroenterologist, Dr. Brian Fennerty, for more information.
I’ll let you know if we win – of if we just have a really good time!
This post originally appeared on Dr. Val’s blog at RevolutionHealth.com.
March 21st, 2008 by Dr. Val Jones in Uncategorized
Tags: Cancer, News, Relationships, Research, Surgery
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This week I was honored to be featured as the first post in the line up at Polite Dissent’s Grand Rounds. Over the past couple of weeks Revolution Health’s bloggers have been doing their part to contribute to health knowledge. Here’s my round up of the best of their recent posts:
Health tips
Spring break is coming up for millions of children and teens. Dr. Stacy Stryer has some health tips for sun and water safety.
Stretching is an important healing technique for some injuries and conditions. Dr. Jim Herndon explains what we know about the use and value of stretching exercises.
Does an affair mean your marriage is over? Mira Kirshenbaum has some suggestions for healing after infidelity, and a group to help you do it.
Some people feel regret after prostate cancer surgery. Dr. David Penson offers some empathy and advice.
What’s new in prostate cancer treatment? Dr. Mike Glode give a short synopsis.
Meditation might decrease your sleep requirements. Dr. Steve Poceta reviews this claim.
Did you know?
Men hate to apologize. Relationship expert Mira Kirshenbaum has some ideas as to why that might be.
Teen scientists are contributing to colon cancer research. Dr. Heinz-Josef Lenz discusses what his daughter and a Junior Nobel Science Award-winning teen have in common.
Toenail fungus is very common in the elderly. Dr. Joe Scherger explains why this is so, and why it’s so difficult to treat.
Overweight menopausal women may suffer more severe hot flashes. Dr. Vivian Dickerson explains why.
An anti-snoring shirt has been developed to help people remain on their sides while asleep. Dr. Steve Poceta explains how sleep position is related to snoring.
Human growth hormone doesn’t actually strengthen your muscles, it just makes you retain water. Dr. Jim Herndon reviews the latest research.
There’s a new clinical trial designed for women with metastatic colon cancer. Dr. Heinz-Josef Lenz explains what the scientists are hoping to learn from the research study.
Baby-naming is an art. Dr. Stacy Stryer discusses the history of finding just the right name for your child.
Patient advocate Robin Morris discusses her opinion of Larry King’s recent autism-focused show.
How should a doctor share bad news with a patient? Neurologist Larry Leavitt explains.
***
Happy Easter weekend everyone!
This post originally appeared on Dr. Val’s blog at RevolutionHealth.com.
