Republicans for Satan. Health News and Information

EMERGENCIES: CUTSThey need careful attentionThere is rarely permanent damage from shallow, minor cuts (or lacerations) in which the wound is limited to the skin and the fatty tissue beneath it, and they usually can be treated easily at home.In most minor cuts, bleeding is slow and stops on its own after a few minutes. Slightly deeper cuts can reach the veins, and cause steady blood flow that is slow and dark red. Pressure on the wound usually stops bleeding after a short period. The most serious type of external bleeding, however, is from a cut that strikes an artery. Bleeding is profuse and can be difficult to control even with pressure on the wound. Blood will be bright red and come in spurts as the heart beats. A person with severe bleeding can slip into shock.Stitches are usually not necessary if the edges of the cut can be pulled together with a bandage or sterile adhesive tape — except on the face, where scarring maybe a problem. However, your doctor may suture (or stitch) cuts in areas subject to frequent movement, such as a finger; in young children, who would pull off bandages; or when a cut is more than one inch long, deep and with jagged edges. Suturing should take place within eight hours of injury for best results. Call your doctor if you’re not sure whether you need stitches.What you can do control severe bleedingDial 911 or your local emergency services number. While waiting for help to arrive: Have the injured person lie down with their head slightly lower than their body. Elevate their legs and the site of the bleeding.Keep the person warm to lessen the possibility of shock.Remove large pieces of dirt and debris from the wound, but only if it can be done easily. DO NOT remove any impaled objects or try to clean the wound.Place a clean cloth over the wound and apply direct, steady pressure for 15 minutes. To avoid transmission of blood-borne infections, use your bare hands only if necessary.DO NOT apply direct pressure if there is an object in the wound or a bone is protruding or visible. Apply pressure around the wound instead.If the first cloth becomes soaked with blood, apply a fresh one over it while continuing steady pressure. Do not remove used bandages.If bleeding does not slow or stop after 15 minutes, apply firm, continuous pressure on a pressure point between the wound and the heart to restrict blood flow through the major arteries. Pressure points are located on the inside upper arms and on the upper thighs in the groin area.Give prompt attention to minor woundsApply pressure on the wound for 10 or 15 minutes to stop bleeding, if necessary.Gently clean the cut with soap and water or 3% hydrogen peroxide, and a clean cloth. Be sure to remove dirt, glass and other particles. Antiseptic creams are not necessary and will not lessen the risk of infection or speed healing.Keep the cut uncovered and exposed to air if possible.If the wound is slightly gaping, pull the edges of the wound together with a regular or butterfly bandage. If necessary, cover the wound with dry gauze and tape. Change gauze daily, but don’t take the butterfly bandage off until the wound is knit together.If you must cover a cut that doesn’t require a butterfly bandage, apply antibiotic ointment to a gauze pad and tape the pad over the wound. Change the dressing once a day, or whenever it gets wet.
Watch for signs of infectionThorough cleansing of the wound is the best way to prevent infection and speed healing. Infection is more likely when a cut occurs in an area that is difficult to keep clean and dry, such as on a hand, foot or near a child’s mouth. Signs of infection may begin about 24 to 48 hours after the injury. They include redness around the area or red streaks leading away, swelling, warmth or tenderness, pus, fever of 101° F or higher and tender or swollen lymph nodes.Final notesDeep cuts can sever or damage major blood vessels, nerves or tendons, so it is important to know the signs of a serious laceration. In general, beconcerned more with cuts to the face, hands, chest, abdomen or back, which have the potential to be more critical than lacerations to other areas*9\303\2*

BDD – SUGGESTED GUIDELINES FOR FAMILY MEMBERS AND FRIENDS:  DON’T GIVE REASSURANCEReassurance seeking is the BDD ritual that most often involves other people. It’s also one of the most frustrating for family members. If the questioning is reassurance seeking because they realize how bothersome it can be. But others simply can’t—the urge is irresistible. Parents of a 20-year-old woman with BDD told me, “We don’t know how to cope. No matter what we say, the questioning persists. We love our daughter and want to reassure her that she looks fine. She thinks we’re lying but we’re not. We don’t know what to do.”The best response to this ritual—as to all others—is to not participate. In other words, don’t reassure the sufferer that they look okay. Even though they look fine, telling them this just feeds the BDD and keeps it going.The typical—and understandable—response is to provide the reassurance the BDD sufferer seeks. After all, the person with BDD looks fine, so the natural tendency is to say so. Common responses include “You look fine!” “I can’t see it at all,” “It’s hardly visible,” or “It’s not as bad as you think—it’s hardly noticeable!” The problem with these responses is that although they’re true, they don’t stop the questioning for long, if at all. Furthermore, reassurance doesn’t put an end to the appearance concerns.Paradoxically, responding to questioning with a reassuring reply can actually perpetuate the reassurance-seeking behavior. If the response does temporarily decrease the BDD sufferer’s anxiety, this transient relief fuels their attempt to obtain more relief by asking the question again. While it might seem cruel to refuse to respond to requests for reassurance, it isn’t. Refraining from providing reassurance may actually stop this time-and energy-consuming behavior.*406\204\8*

REFLEXOLOGY: THE APPROACH OF REFLEXOLOGYThe approach of reflexology is to treat the individual as a whole in order to create a better harmony between the mind, the body, and the emotions, thereby helping to restore some of the lost energy and re-establish a more positive attitude towards the world. Reflexology relaxes tension, improves nerve and blood supply and restores balance to the body. If you have a long standing disorder that does not seem to have been helped by orthodox medical treatment, then give reflexology a try. It is a therapy that is safe and also very effective, but remember if your disorder has been with you for a long time it cannot be rectified overnight. Your body has the ability to heal itself once the process has been set in motion.It is medically accepted that 75 per cent of all disease is caused by stress, and the greatest benefit you can receive from reflexology is relaxation. It has a dynamic effect on the body in its ability to relieve stress and tension. As a means of diagnosis reflexology is quick and accurate. By testing the reflexes of the feet, the degree of tenderness gives an accurate indication of any area that is out of balance. Effective results are to be found even after two or three treatments. Reflexology creates a feeling of well-being, enabling those suffering from anxiety states some respite from their symptoms.*171\326\8*

IBS AND EVERYDAY POISONS: THE CUP THAT CHEERSBy now you will probably feel like using this book for firelighters -one deprivation after another, you might say. ‘Does alcohol have to go too? I don’t drink much.’ Only temporarily; when your bowel has recovered you could resume moderate drinking habits if you wish, except of course if you are known to be allergic to it, or if you have had a drinking problem in the past.Alcohol and the Irritable Bowel SyndromeIt is unrealistic to expect bowel symptoms to improve until you have given up alcohol. Apart from feeding Candida and making blood sugar levels unstable, it also interferes with the absorption of nutrients essential for the healthy functioning of the bowel.AlcoholismReactions to alcohol vary in a similar way to reactions to nicotine or tranquillizers, in that some people can just stop – even after years of heavy drinking – and have no problems, while others are dramatically physically and emotionally ill when they abstain.*45\326\8*

EPILEPSY AS A PSYCHO-SOCIAL DISEASE: THE CHILD’S SELF-PERCEPTION – WHAT SHOULD YOU DO?Age-appropriate discussion of epilepsy, of your child’s particular type of seizures, and of the reason for taking medication is an important first step in an understanding and an acceptance of his condition. In one study, many children still believed they could swallow their tongues during a seizure. They feared that they might die. Unfounded apprehensions seem to be more damaging than the reality. Shielding your child from the facts to prevent him “from being scared” is more likely to lead to worse, but unspoken, fears than an honest and open discussion.Your attitude toward your child and his seizures will affect his own. If you are frightened, he may be too, even if he doesn’t understand why. If you are overprotective, he may respond by either becoming dependent or rebellious Understanding that he is normal most of the time and honest calmness on your part will allow your child to get on with the process of developing independence and competence.It should be the job of your physician and the team to assure that issues of honesty, overprotection, and dependency have been discussed with you and your spouse, and that you have come to terms with them. The epilepsy team should also discuss the seizures, medication, and reasonable restrictions with your child and make sure that you also have discussed them with him in age-appropriate terms.Remember, ultimately epilepsy is your child’s problem. If the seizures continue or if he must continue to take medication, then he will have to assume responsibility for his condition and its treatment. If your child is given a sense of control from the beginning, he will feel more responsible for his future life. We try to have these discussions with children when they are as young as five or six years of age. Responsibility clearly increases with age, but participation can rarely begin too early.*212\208\8*

HYPERTENSION AND COENZYME Q10Every cell in your body contains coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), also known as ubiquinone. It is involved in the manufacture of energy in the mitochondria, the powerhouses of the cells. Since your heart is your most metabolically active organ, CoQ10 is naturally more concentrated in this organ. Your body produces its own CoQ10, yet deficiencies are common, especially in patients with hypertension and other cardiovascular diseases. Low levels have been noted in 39 percent of patients with high blood pressure, and heart biopsies of cardiac patients show deficiencies of up to 75 percent when compared with CoQ10 levels in normal heart tissue. Not surprisingly, supplemental coenzyme Q10 has astounding effects on the heart.One of my patients, 24-year-old Bill, was admitted to the hospital with severe cardiomyopathy, or degeneration of the heart muscle. His lungs were filled with fluid and his heart rhythm was completely erratic. His ejection fraction (an indication of the heart’s pumping capacity) was only 17 percent (normal is above 50 percent). Bill’s prognosis was dismal – only half of the patients in his condition survive one year. On my recommendation (not that of his cardiologist, who wasn’t even familiar with this nondrug therapy), Bill started taking large amounts of CoQ10, as well as other nutritional supplements. Much to his doctor’s surprise, he fully recovered. He was able to finish college and is now leading a normal, productive life. He has no activity restrictions, nor is he taking any medications.The medical literature is full of studies documenting similar “miraculous” recoveries in patients with cardiomyopathy and congestive heart failure after taking CoQ10. A number of important studies confirm the value of CoQ10 in controlling hypertension as well. In a 1994 study conducted at the University of Texas, Dr. Peter Langsjoen and colleagues treated 109 hypertensive patients with an average dose of 225 milligrams of CoQ10 daily, in addition to their prescribed drug regimen. Within five months, a remarkable 51 percent of the patients were able to come off from one to three antihypertensive drugs. In addition, 9.4 percent of the patients were found to have “highly significant” improvements in their diastolic function and the integrity of the left ventricular wall of the heart, the area most affected by hypertension.Most physicians are still in the dark about CoQ10, even with sufficient evidence showing that low tissue levels of this coenzyme are linked to cardiovascular disease. CoQ10 has tremendous clinical value in the treatment of hypertension, congestive heart failure, cardiomyopathy, and mitral valve prolapse. There were excellent results with this supplement and absolutely require my hypertensive patients to take it, in a dose of 180 to 200 milligrams per day. CoQ10 must be taken with fat for proper absorption. Take it with a meal that contains a little healthy fat, or purchase oil-based CoQ10 gel-caps or chewable CoQ10 wafers that contain a small amount of fat. Be patient – it may take four to twelve weeks before the effects of CoQ10 are noticed.*82/313/5*

CARDIAC DRUGS: NITROGLYCERINE – AN EFFECTIVE WAY TO STOP THE PAIN This is very effective in stopping the pain of angina pectoris. Some preparations of nitroglycerine are swallowed, but usually a small white pill is placed under the tongue and allowed to dissolve. If the pain is relieved and then recurs, a second or third nitroglycerine pill may be taken. If the pills are taken too close together, the blood pressure may fall and the person will feel faint. This can be remedied by lying down until the effect of the drug wears off.When the typical chest pain of angina begins, a pill should be taken. There is no advantage in waiting one, two, or five minutes. Some patients hesitate to use nitroglycerine because they fear that they will become addicted to it or that it will lose its effectiveness. If the pill does lose its effectiveness, it is usually because the disease in the coronary arteries has progressed beyond the point at which this type of medicine will help. The patient has not developed a tolerance to the drug, and addiction to nitroglycerine does not occur.Nitroglycerine tablets begin to deteriorate within six months after they are exposed to air. Some patients note that when they take a nitroglycerine tablet they feel a throbbing in the head. If this sensation does not occur several months later, it may be an indication that the drug has lost its effectiveness.*33/309/5*

HIV: ON LIVING-TAKING CONTROL: POSITIVE DENIALPeople who focus on hope rather than despair may seem to be denying the facts. But whether denial is positive or negative depends on what you are denying. Denial is negative only if people deny the facts of their infection and live inappropriately: drink too much, take drugs, practice unsafe sex, avoid seeing a doctor, or preventing a person with AIDS from talking about sickness or death.     Denial that admits both the realities of today and the unpredictability of tomorrow is positive. Alan, who bought a new car on a five-year finance plan, is denying not infection, only knowledge of the future. No one knows what will happen or when. No one knows how any one person’s body will handle HIV infection. No one knows how long he or she will live or what she or he might die of. “You really have to deny some of this stuff,” Alan says. “I’m sad when I lose a friend, but I’m careful not to connect that death to mine. Death happened to my friend, and I’m sad about that. But it still hasn’t happened to me.”     Positive denial is nearly essential in dealing with this disease. If you don’t know the future, you have a certain distance between yourself and the disease: you are much more than someone affected by HIV. Your life has many aspects, many parts to it, many things you are interested in, many things and people you love; and HIV, though important, is only one aspect of your life. “I’m not denying I’m sick,” Dean said. “But I’ve made up my mind not to act sick, not to just sit around being a sick person.”     Positive denial also helps people feel feisty about the disease. They feel like they are not just victims of some virus; they are people who have some say in how their lives are run. “I’m going to fight until I can’t any more,” says Dean.*245\191\2*

DIAGNOSIS FOR ANTHRAXClinical diagnosis of anthrax requires a high index of suspicion. During the recent postal-related outbreak of anthrax in the United States, the CDC used surveillance case definitions, which established a confirmed case of anthrax as a patient with a compatible clinical illness combined with either isolation of B. anthracis from a culture or laboratory evidence of infection based on at least two supportive tests (polymerase chain reaction [PCR], immunohistochemistry, or serology). A suspected case was defined as a patient with a compatible clinical illness combined with either a single non-culture laboratory test or epidemiologic linkage to a source.Gram stain and culture of B. anthracis can be obtained from blood, cerebrospinal fluid, vesicular fluid, and biopsy material from a cutaneous specimen. Growth of the bacillus is usually noted within 6 to 24 hours, and it is non-motile and non-hemolytic and demonstrates spores in nutritionally deficient media. Serologic testing requires the acquisition of acute and convalescent specimens and is not commercially available. Confirmation of identification can also occur with PCR, direct fluorescent antibody analysis, or immunohistochemical testing, which are generally available only through public health laboratories. Nasal swabs have been used in epidemiologic outbreak investigations but have no clinical utility in making treatment decisions. Although community laboratories can provide presumptive identification, confirmatory testing is available only through state health department laboratories.*208/348/5*

CAUSES OF INFECTIOUS ARTHRITISThere are a number of causes of infectious arthritis. Gram-positive aerobes are implicated in the majority of cases of infectious arthritis and are seen in an estimated 70% to 80% of patients. Staphylococcus aureus is the most common pathogen in this group and is responsible for about 60% of infections in the joint space. The organism can also cause an acute septic bursitis following trauma. Streptococcal infections are also common and may be due to group A B-hemolytic streptococci as well as groups В, C, and G streptococci.Gram-negative bacilli are responsible for about 9% to 20% of cases of infectious arthritis. These infections typically occur in the elderly and in patients with comorbid conditions such as immunocompromised states or chronic arthritis. Pseudomonas aeruginosa is often the underlying cause in intravenous drug users with sternoclavicular or sacroiliac infections. Brucella can also cause arthritis of the sacroiliac joint in patients exposed to unpasteurized dairy products. Pasteurella multocida should be considered in patients who present with an animal bite to a joint.Neisseria gonorrhoeae remains the predominant cause in adults younger than 30 years of age. Disseminated gonococcal infection often manifests as a triad of polyarthritis, dermatitis (vesiculopustular skin lesions), and tenosynovitis. Synovial cultures yield the diagnosis in less than 50% of patients. N. gonorrhoeae can be recovered from pharyngeal, rectal, urethral, or cervical cultures. Gonococcal infection can also result in a monoarticular purulent arthritis without skin involvement. Synovial cultures are more often positive in these cases.Chronic monoarticular arthritis of the large joints, most commonly the knee, can be present in the later stages of Lyme disease. The organism, Borrelia burgdoferi, is rarely detected in synovial fluid, and the diagnosis is made through serologic testing.Mycobacterial infections can manifest as a more indolent and progressive monoarthritis. Tendon sheaths can be involved as well, particularly in infections with atypical mycobacteria. Potential organisms include Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Mycobacterium kansasii, and Mycobacterium marinum. Diagnosis is primarily made through culture of the synovial tissue.Chronic monoarthritis can occasionally be caused by fungal organisms, usually in immunocompromised patients. Disseminated coccidioidomycosis, blastomycosis, and sporotrichosis (particularly in people exposed to soil) have all been reported. Candidal infections may also occur, typically via hematogenous seeding, and are more acute in onset.Arthritis can be a significant feature of a number of viral illnesses. Polyarthritis can occur in patients with infection with mumps and parvovirus B19. It has also been reported during the preicteric period in patients with hepatitis B. Infections with rarer arthropod-borne alpha viruses endemic to East Africa, such as Chikungunya and O’nyong-nyong fever, are abrupt and can cause severe pain in large joints.*134/348/5*