DocTalk

Re: DocTalk at your service

What is the real danger of the staph infections at the High School and AAU levels in reference to what was reported on ESPN outside the lines the last couple of weeks ? What can coaches, staff and players do to avoid this serious problem ?

 

Re: DocTalk at your service

Staph infections, specifically MRSA (methicillin resistant staph. aureus), happen pretty routinely. It is an expected injury from wrestling due to close contact between participants and because of contamination on the mats. Once upon a time in the ER, skin infections were almost always due to strep, but it is now routine to cover for both strep with a drug like cefadroxil and add Bactrim to cover the potential of MRSA.

How do you prevent infection? Keep wounds covered, clean equipment and wash hands and shower aggressively. AS well, all athletes should be checked by game officials and/or coaches to make certain skin is intact and any sores are appropriately cared for.

Hope this is helpful. Thanks for asking.

 

Re: DocTalk at your service

I should be good. I always shower aggressively.

 

Re: DocTalk at your service

Cleanliness is next to godliness (and according to John Wesley, slovenliness is no part of religion).

And for skin infections from the athletic arena, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Showering after competition is a good thing.

 

Re: DocTalk at your service

One of the perks of being an elite athlete is access to almost unlimited medical care (or at least while still being productive on the field). This can cause some unrealistic expectations for people in the real world. Right or wrong, every patient does not need the latest, greatest test. And that's the topic of the latest DocTalk entry on the website:

http://www.mddirect.org/blog/index.php


Thanks for reading.

 

Re: DocTalk at your service

My 1996 Pathfinder required significant investment this week, needing a new water pump, radiator and axle rod. I'm not certain what's wrong with it, but I think that the truck has the case of "old" . Regardless, I hope that it was worth the investment to get a couple more years service.

It seems that I spend more time and effort worrying about my truck than I do about my body, so it was time to add another entry to the website. Thanks for reading.

http://www.mddirect.org/blog/index.php

 

Re: DocTalk at your service

No need for me to read medical journals anymore. I picked up the USA Today and found stories on public health, unsound research fro new drugs, long term effects of disease and behaviors that change risk factors for disease.

There is a ton of material to read in medicine and plenty of classes to attend to keep up with the explosion of science. I was told in my first year of medical school that half of what I would be taught would be proved wrong in my career. They just didn't know which half.

Read on.

http://www.mddirect.org/blog/index.php

 

Re: DocTalk at your service

One of the joys of working in a teaching hospital is watching the residents mature and grow into competent, trustworthy colleagues. The downside is that every July, there is a changing of the guard, with graduation and the arrival of the new guard. And while the new medical school graduates are excited and apprehensive about joining a new hospital, the medical teaching staff also has the same feelings of wonder and worry.

The National Resident Match happened a coupe of weeks ago. It's the equivalent of the NFL draft for docs and it's the topic of the latest web entry.

http://www.mddirect.org/blog/index.php

 

Re: DocTalk at your service

They are invisible. Even when in full view, they are faceless, nameless and quickly forgotten because others claim the spotlight. They train in the hope of never being used but when called to duty; they rise to the challenge and quickly retreat to the sidelines.

The carnage at Virginia Tech left too many dead, but also many that needed to be saved. The disaster activated an emergency medical response that allowed the victims to get the help they so desperately needed. The medical command center on the scene, the triage, the ambulance transport, the hospitals that awaited the injured, did not happen by accident. In a medical system where ERs have patients stacked in hallways and hospital beds are full, the ability of the Blacksburg, Roanoke and other communities to respond to the number of critical patients is a testament to their years of planning. The invisibles had risen to the occasion.


If you're interested, there's a little more on the website.

 

Re: DocTalk at your service

Sometimes I forget that people abuse drugs everyday. Not just the illegal variety, but the routine ones that are ever present in our food and drink and the shelves of our supermarkets. I almost forget that the most common intentional overdoses are of aspirin and Tylenol (acetaminophen) and that they are just as deadly as any other poisoning or ingestion.

A new billboard campaign brings home the message better than I ever could. It's refrigerator with a tag line that says kids get their beer right next to the milk. Another has a full medicine cabinet and says it this is where kids get their drugs.

Another take is on my website. www.MDdirect.org/blog/index.php

 

Re: DocTalk at your service

The latest web entry visited palpitations or irregular heartbeats. It was coincidence that it appeared at the same time Ron Santo was admitted to the hospital with that diagnosis.

 

Re: DocTalk at your service

After spending these many months learning and reading on this board, I know the answer to this question: If the pressbox has a nice buffet for the press, will that affect your coverage of the team?

Tomorrow, the New England Journal of Medicine will publish an article that implies the relationship between doctors and drug companies adversely affects the patient. How irritated do I get when my integrity is questioned? I think those who know me will know that answer.

Read the website for more.