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Category Archives: Public Health
Straight, No Chaser: The Grief of it All
It’s never easy discussing death. Bereavement is the state of mourning and sadness we endure after the death of a loved one. Grief is that process we endure, either in antici
Straight, No Chaser: The Battle of Antioxidants and Free Radicals
We engage in a lot of fads and off the wall activity to pursue health instead of following tried and true principles of basic science. One thing that I wish didn’t fit that t
Straight, No Chaser: When Allergies Strike
Bee stings. Medication reactions. Food allergies. Latex. Animals. Dust. Cosmetics. What do these things have in common? You get allergic to them, and in differing d
Straight, No Chaser: Ulcers – I Can’t Believe You Ate the Whole Thing…
Peptic ulcer disease (PUD) has an increasing incidence in the general population and particularly so in the elderly, due to a liberal use of NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory
Straight, No Chaser: Emergency Room Adventures – The Risk of Rabies
You can’t make this stuff up. It’s another busy night in the ER, and back-to-back patients come in, not related but dealing with the same issue. One’s a child bitten
Straight, No Chaser: Quick Tips for The Newborn Addition to Your Family
You’re excited. You have a newborn, or maybe you’re a new grandparent caring for the baby for the first time. I get more ‘deer in the headlight’ looks from these folks than
Straight, No Chaser: Lactose Intolerance – It's Explosive!
So I’m at dinner with a group of friends, and somehow the topic gets to lactose intolerance. For 15 minutes. They were really into it. At dinner! You know what it is. Everyone se
Straight, No Chaser: Learn The Physical Signs of Child Abuse
We need an army to protect children against child abuse. I will intermittently be discussing various forms of abuse, but to start with, I’d like to help you recognize physica
Straight, No Chaser: When That Headache is More Serious Than a Migraine
All headaches are not created equal. Earlier we discussed migraines, but there’s a lot more to headaches than those. In fact, when you come to an emergency room with a histor
Straight No Chaser: Myth Busters Edition – Migraine Headaches Fact vs. Fiction
There are 30 million migraine sufferers in the U.S. alone. Women are thrice as likely to have them, but both sexes have to address the issues raised by them. Here are some impo
Straight, No Chaser: Can You Get Chicken Pox Twice? Emergency Room Adventures: Introducing Shingles
It’s another interesting night in the ER. My nurses are hounding me because there’s a patient with a rash, and they don’t know what it is. They’re so good that they rar
Straight, No Chaser: Spider Bites – Emergency Room Adventures, Part I
And I thought I was done with stuff biting you for a while… Everything’s bigger in Texas, they say. I recall the first time I saw a banana spider. The thing seemed to be as
Straight, No Chaser: Alcohol Facts and Fiction – The Myth Busters Edition
I’m going to put my personal spin on an old favorite: Alcohol Facts vs. Fiction. Here’s your six-pack (plus one for the road) of common myths just waiting to be busted. 1
Straight, No Chaser: Do You Drink Too Much?
It’s one of those Straight, No Chaser (literally) days. I haven’t addressed substance abuse much yet (and you know I will), but the problems with most intoxicating substances
Straight No Chaser: Human Bites
I have had weird experiences with humans biting humans, as have most physicians. There are several different types of human bites, which can range from harmless to surgically serio
Straight, No Chaser: National Minority Organ Donor Awareness Month
August is National Minority Donor Awareness Month, which brings attention to the more than 118,000 people nationwide waiting for lifesaving organ transplants. Of the these men, wom
Straight, No Chaser: Trauma Quick Tips and The Week In Review
This week in Straight, No Chaser, we reviewed multiple topics related to Trauma, the #1 cause of death between ages 1-44. Here’s the Week In Review and featured Quick Tips.
Quick Tips on Elderly Falls
Introduction This post is about elderly falls Are all of you DIYers (do it yourself) ready for a weekend project to help a loved one? Here you go. First, let’s start with some no
Straight, No Chaser: Your Questions on Treatment of Fire Related Injuries
Questions, you’ve got questions (Why are you so shy about posting them?). Here we go. Today, your focus is on the aftermath and treatment of fire related injury. 1) W
Straight, No Chaser: The Roof Is On Fire – The Trauma of Residential Fires
As Trauma Week winds down on Straight, No Chaser, we work our way back home, which sadly is the site of most traumatic injuries. In fact, about 85% of all U.S. fire deaths occur
