DocTalk

Thanks IJAG for the diversion but it's back to medicine. Unfortunately, Skip Caray died this week of heart disease and the complications of diabetes.

Diabetes is one of those silent killers like high blood pressure and high cholesterol. It hangs around lurking in the background, then one day, it rears its head and the accumulated damaged of years of poor care cause organs to fail. More on the website.

And a thank you fro those who write asking for information. It's always a pleasure to help get the medicine right.

www.MDdirect.org

 

One of the interesting medical studies published this week finds that overweight does not equal unhealthy. It seems that what you look like doesn't correlate with what's inside. Sage advice for amny applications. More on the website.

www.MDdirect.org/blog

 

Getting busted for a blood pressure medication seems a little harsh, unless your a Korean shooter and that drug can make you a better marksman. WADA has a long list of sports specific drug no-nos and inderal or propranolol shows up alot. More on the website.

Thanks for reading.

 

Football season is here and orthopedic surgeons around the country are keeping Monday morning open for all the injuries that will show up on their doorstep. It's a violent game and the knee takes its unfair share of trauma. There's more on the website

www.MDdirect.org

It's also time to thank the people who've contacted me with background medical questions. It's always a pleasure to try to help.

 

Not so long ago, it was a rare NFL veteran who lasted into his thirties. After looking at the rosters this weekend, it seems that 35 might be the new 30 (or 28). Just wondering what that says about the regular world and how we live our lives. More on the website.

Ben

 

A little late this week, the downside to 5p-1a in the ER and lecturing. I'm always amazed when people think that I can teach them something. Little do they know!

In the last couple of weeks, Medicare and other agencies have been releasing hospital outcome information; how well do patients do when they're admitted for care. The numbers are hard to interpret and apply to real life, just like statistics sports. More philosophy on the web.

www. MDdirect.org

 

A personal historic note:

Unfortunately, Tom Brady suffered both an ACL and MCL injury. These make up two of the three components of O'Donohue's terrible triad (the medial mensicus or cartilage is the third terrible). Dr. O'Donohue described the injury pattern in 1950.

I had the good fortune to train with Dr. O'Donohue during my residency at OU and turned down a chance to work in developing their sports medicine department. Instead, I can be found nights and weekends in the ER. I'm always amazed at what strange path our lives may follow.

 

So, Doc, any theories to why so many long-term injuries suffered in the NFL already this season? Just bad luck, or is more at play here.

 

My best guess analysis is that there isn't an unusual number of first week injuries. It seems higher profile players have been involved. A pro football career is relatively short and most end early because of injury. Unfortunately, it is hard to use team injury lists as a gauge of the number of players affected. Teams and the league pretend that it is an accurate reflection of the health of the team, but reality and fiction blend well each week.

 

The road to starting quarterback often begins with time on the bench, plenty of practice and patience waiting to play when it really counts. It's not much different for docs who do emergency procedures. Lots of training, lots of waiting and maybe once or twice in their life, they may need to act.

More philosophy of why football and emergencies share similar qualities on the web entry this week.

www.MDdirect.org

 

Living in Wisconsin requires a blood oath to the Packers and when one of the players gets injured, the whole state mourns. This week it's Al Harris and his spleen. Woe to the secondary. More about spleens on the website.

www.MDdirect.org

Thanks for reading and again, thank you to those who have been contacting me for medical backround. My pleasure to help.

 

The talk in the ER this week, aside from the crush of patients too intoxicated to function courtesy of Oktoberfest, was the Al Harris and his spleen story, part two. It seems the press releases suggest he'll return to play in 3-4 weeks, but routine recovery time for spleen injuries is at least 6 weeks and there are no studies that address pro football players.

The science of medicine becomes less scientific when docs estimate recovery times. More on the web.

www.MDdirect.org