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Category Archives: Respiratory/Lungs
Straight, No Chaser: Cigar Smoking
It’s the latest, greatest, coolest past-time. Endorsed and practiced by celebrities the world over, cigar smoking has clearly and successfully marketed itself as a convenience
Straight, No Chaser: The Frustration of Acute Bronchitis
Imagine what it looks like when someone gets hit in the jaw. There’s the redness, swelling from excess fluid in the area, warmth and pain. Those are the components of inflammatio
Straight, No Chaser: COPD
November is COPD Awareness Month. You already know a lot about COPD without realizing it or even having to think about it. You’ve seen patients walking around with the oxygen ta
Straight, No Chaser: Lung Health – Know The Signs of Danger
I would suggest you should be in complete awe of your lungs. Did you know you take over 20,000 breaths a day? Your lungs bring air into your body and eliminates waste (carbon dio
Straight, No Chaser: Great American Smokeout – Quick Tips to START Smoking Cessation
The Great American Smokeout is a great time to get serious about smoking cessation. Don’t wait to make it a New Year’s resolution. Do it now. Can’t do it now? Do it M
Straight, No Chaser: Does Cuba Hold the Key to Lung Cancer Treatment and Prevention?
For many, some of the first things that come to mind when you think of Cuba are smoking and cigars. For many others, the one of first things that come to mind when you think of cig
Straight, No Chaser: Life Begins (To End) at 40 (Unless It Doesn’t) – The Cardiopulmonary (Heart and Lung) System
The fourth part of this series looks at your heart and lungs. Click here for the post on changes in your skin. Click here for the post on changes to your musculoskeletal system. C
Straight, No Chaser: Hookahs and Health
I love the responses I get from you. Even the spam is entertaining. Most recently, when I posted this, the most common response was some variation of this theme: “What’s a hook
Straight, No Chaser: Understanding Asthma – Toothpicks and Snot (Part 2 of 2)
As we move into discussing asthma treatment, remember that asthmatics die at an alarming rate. I mentioned yesterday (and it bears repeating) that death rates have increased over
Straight, No Chaser: Understanding Asthma – Toothpicks and Snot (Part 1 of 2)
Asthma concerns me. I’ve had many close friends and family suffer with the disease. In fact, a very good friend died of an attack while in medical school, because he didn’t ha
The Meaning of High Risk Asthma
Introduction This post answers a question related to the meaning of high-risk asthma. Read this post for basics about asthma triggers and symptoms. Read this post for basics about
Straight, No Chaser: What Will You Do If Your Baby Starts Choking?
We’ve previously discussed how to address choking in adults. Today, we address the twin horrors of needing to save a baby’s life (those younger than 12 months old) from choking
Straight, No Chaser: What Will You Do If You See Someone Choking?
So … what would you do if someone around you starting choking. Or if they choked, then lost consciousness? What would you do if you choked and no one else was around? Don’t you
Head/Eyes/Ears/Nose/Throat, Hematology & Oncology/Blood Disorders/Cancer, Neurology, Respiratory/Lungs
Straight, No Chaser: The Medical Issues You Encounter While Flying
This week’s Straight, No Chaser posts have focused on the dangers presents by blood clots. Flying long distances presents a specific risk for development of blood clots. Howe
Straight, No Chaser: Why Are Athletes At Such Risk For Pulmonary Embolus?
Let’s begin today’s Straight, No Chaser by being sure not to overstate the case. All things being equal, young healthy individuals and superbly conditioned athletes have di
Straight, No Chaser: Pulmonary Embolus (A Blood Clot in the Lungs)
When I was a young, wide-eyed medical student, I learned that in a large number of cases, when people died from unexplained cases, the autopsies would often show the patient died f
Straight, No Chaser: Blood Clots in Your Legs – Deep Venous Thrombosis (DVT)
If you’re a sports fan, you’re likely aware of the death of a 52-year-old former star of the NBA’s Portland Trailblazers, Jerome Kersey, followed two days after
Consequences of Inappropriate Antibiotic Use
Introduction This Straight, No Chaser discusses inappropriate antibiotic use. Whenever physicians attempt to discuss inappropriate antibiotic use with patients, too often fear repl
Straight, No Chaser: The Frustration of Acute Bronchitis
Imagine what it looks like when someone gets hit in the jaw. There’s the redness, swelling from excess fluid in the area, warmth and pain. Those are the components of infl
Straight, No Chaser: COPD
November is COPD Awareness Month. You already know a lot about COPD without realizing it or even having to think about it. You’ve seen patients walking around with the oxygen ta
