The increased risk is thought to be caused by the sharply reduced levels of acid in the stomach and gastrointestinal tract. This makes it more hospitable for infectious agents such as C. difficile, which then impairs the uptake of the calcium required for strong bones.
]]>The most common type of stretching, “static stretching”, involves holding a muscle in one position for a defined period of time. This produces microscopic tears of muscle fibers and does nothing to prevent injury. It may also weaken the muscle slightly, increasing the possibility of injury.
If you do want to stretch, it should be done after a warm-up or at the end of an exercise routine, because warm muscles are more pliable.
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After a sIx hours wait, she was transferred up to the floor. The nurses there were surly and questioned everything we told them had happened in the ER - including the fact that my mother had still not received her daily insulin. The attending physician and cardiologist we requested were never called, and she was assigned to an on-call internist that she did not know.
On admission she had a creatinine that was .1 above normal, so a renal ultrasound was done - without rechecking the labs first. And 36 hours after admission, I found her in a dark hallway at 9 pm, waiting for tests to rule out a leg thrombosis and a pulmonary embolus, even though she had no leg pain, and was no longer short of breath. I had them cancel the tests and have her returned to her room.
The next day we insisted she be released. My sister went to pick her up, and it took 1 1/2 hours for them to get a wheelchair to the floor to take her home.
I wrote to the hospital to complain about the poor nursing care and the inappropriate and non-medically indicated tests that were being performed. I received a call about a month later from the quality assurance person who told me they would look into it and get back to me. THat was 4 months ago.
It is amazing to me that this is the quality of medical care at one of the better hospitals in Miami. And we had multiple patient advocates at the bedside - all doctors! I would hate to be the poor person who is alone! If they have medicare, they will be shipped around for unnecessary tests to help pad the bill. Our system is broken and needs help!!
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Tanning bed owners state that the tanning beds are a source of vitamin D and that they’re safer than tanning in the sun. The World Health Organization states that this is not true, and that indoor tanning offers minimal SPF protection. They recommend you get your Vitamin D from your diet and not from tanning beds.
It is estimated that about 1 million people in the United States tan at indoor salons on an average day, and 70% of these are women ages 16-29. There are 2.3 million teenagers who tan indoors at least once a year.
The bottom line here is that there is NO safe way to tan in the sun or in a tanning bed. If you do want to look tan, you should stick to the self-tanners, or get one of the spray-on tans offered at most tanning salons.
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Dysport and Botox are both botulium A toxins, and therefore have similar mechanisms of action as a neuromuscular blocking toxin. Dysport however has less of a protein load than Botox. Clinically this means that Dysport will result in the formation of fewer antibodies against it. Antibodies are what our bodies use to detect and destroy foreign substances such as the proteins in the injected medications. Hence the assumption is that with fewer antibodies being formed the clinical effects of Dysport should last longer than those of Botox. One study suggested that, in a ratio of 3 units of Reloxin to 1 unit of Botox, the new product showed slightly faster onset and appeared to last longer. The new drug Dysport can equal the safety and reliability that Botox has boasted over the years and is a very welcome addition to the currently available cosmetic anti aging treatments.
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In the NY Times magazine section on June 21, 2009, there was an article by Gretchen Reynolds about the connection between “core” strength and back pain. Based on studies done in the 1990’s, there was the belief that strengthening the transversus abdominis was the key to core strength. People were instructed to pull in their belly button and press their backs into the floor during crunches.
According to Stuart McGill, a professor of spine biomechanics at the University of Waterloo in Canada, the muscles forming the core must be balanced to allow the spine to support large loads. By concentrating on only one set of muscles within the core, such as the abdominals, you can destabilize the spine and pull it out of alignment. He recommends a core exercise program that will emphasize all of the major muscles around the spine. He suggests the following three exercises:
These two will exercise the muscles embedded along the back and sides of the core
For the abdominals – no sit-ups!
Dr. McGill says that he sees too many people with six-pack abs and a ruined back! He feels that by doing the three exercises listed above on a regular basis will provide well-rounded core stability.
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The American Society of Plastic Surgery recently released data showing the changes in plastic surgery procedures from 2007 to 2008. What they found is that while the numbers of some of the larger surgical procedures has decreased, there has been an increase in non-surgical procedures such as Botox injections and laser.
In a tough economy, people still want to look their best. And one way to achieve this is to do some of the smaller, less invasive procedures such as Botox, laser and fillers. As the economy improves, I am sure we will see an increase in the surgical procedures as well.
Decrease from 2007 – 2008:
Liposuction: -19%
Tummy tucks: -18%
Breast Augmentation: -12%
Facelift: -5%
Increases from 2007 – 2008
Laser skin resurfacing: +15%
Dermabrasion: + 13%
Botox: + 8%
Laser Leg Veins: + 6%
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