Physical Therapy: Overview

Physical therapy deals with treating problems with the musculoskeletal system. According to the American Physical Therapy Association, physical therapists are “experts in the science of healing and the art of caring”. From infants to seniors, many people can benefit from physical therapy. The main goal of physical therapy is to promote whole body function. This can include restoring mobility, improving mobility and managing pain. Treatment is designed to give the best possible body function to each individual patient. Physical therapy can help people return to independence after a serious injury or illness. On the healing side, physical therapy is used … Continue reading →

Open MRI vs. Closed MRI

A friend of mine who had an MRI a few years ago described it as being inside a garbage can while someone pounded the outside with a rubber mallet. The noise, he said, was the worst part. Most people you ask find the closeness to be a problem. My grandmother — who has been ordered several times to have an MRI by various doctors — refuses because she is afraid to be enclosed in the machine. An open MRI is sometimes an option for people who are too large to fit in a closed MRI, or too claustrophobic to undergo … Continue reading →

My Life as a Lab Rat: Finding a Study

I’ve been interested in clinical research trials for a while now. You may remember that my grandmother — who has Alzheimer’s disease — took part in a medical trial for the Excelon patch, a new delivery method for an Alzheimer’s drug. In oral form, the medication often causes severe gastrointestinal side effects; in patch form, the side effects are dramatically decreased. Although that particular medication didn’t benefit my grandmother much, her participation in the trial will help make the medication available for Alzheimer’s patients all over. But I was curious about research trials before that. Back home in New Jersey, … Continue reading →

History of Anesthesia

Surgical anesthesia makes many medical procedures possible — without anesthesia, many procedures would be too complicated or painful to perform on conscious patients. But for a long time, medical personnel didn’t have access to any sort of anesthesia. Before the 1840s, surgery was only attempted when it was absolutely necessary. Operations were mostly limited to amputations and removal of external growths. Most patients remained conscious and in pain during the procedure, though alcohol or drugs were sometimes used to help relieve discomfort. Can you imagine undergoing surgery wide awake with NO painkillers? I can’t. In 1846, a dentist demonstrated the … Continue reading →

New Hope For Needlephobics

I am deathly afraid of shots. The mere sight of a needle (regardless of whether is meant for me or not) sends shivers down my spine. When my daughter was getting immunized and I had to help hold her 2-year-old body on the examining table, the nurse commented that I shook more than my child did. My phobia only worsened when I underwent sinus surgery. The doctor used my arm as a pincushion as he searched for a vein to put the IV in. It was horrible. I was poked with the needle more than a half dozen times before … Continue reading →

Total Serum Protein Test

Why would you want to measure the total amount of protein in your blood? A total serum protein test can check liver and kidney function, help doctors determine the causes of swelling in the abdomen or ankles, and test for rare blood diseases. Your blood contains two major types of protein: albumin and globulin. Albumin is made in the liver and helps keep the blood from leaking out of blood vessels. It also helps carry medicines and other substances through the blood. Globulin is made in the liver and in the immune system, and has many different functions. Some globulin … Continue reading →

Tonometry (Glaucoma Tests)

There are four different types of test that can help detect glaucoma. Each test measures the pressure inside your eye, also known as intraocular pressure, by determining the resistance of your cornea to indentation. Nothing says fun like getting poked in the eye! Non-contact tonometry, also known as pneumotonometry, uses a puff of air to flatten your cornea. This is the least accurate but easiest tonometry test out there. It basically screens only for high intraocular pressure. If you’ve been in for an eye exam, you’ve probably had the air-puff eye test. Personally, it’s my least favorite part of the … Continue reading →

Help For Women Who Want Children Later In Life

In a previous blog I addressed the topic of conception and how “Procreation Vacations” are becoming increasingly popular with couples struggling to conceive a baby. Well, this blog highlights another segment of the population that also wants to conceive, but wants to do so on their own schedule… even if it means waiting until after the prime years for childbirth. Women who want children, but want to put off pregnancy until they are ready have a new option these days. A process called egg freezing allows women to put their biological clocks on hold. Doctors say that women in their … Continue reading →

Nicotine May Help Depression

Let me just say this first: don’t start smoking just because you’re feeling blue. However, researchers at Duke University Medical Center have been studying the effects of nicotine on symptoms of depression. In a recent study, they took non-smoking volunteers with symptoms of depression and asked them to wear a patch. Some had a nicotine patch; others had a drug-free placebo. The participants were given questionnaires over the course of the study. Those who wore a nicotine patch for at least eight days reported a significant decline in depression symptoms. The folks at Duke University Medical Center want to make … Continue reading →

At-Home Blood Tests–Good or Bad?

My head hurts. My side aches. Is my liver functioning properly? Do I have kidney problems? Sound familiar? If it does you aren’t alone. There are many people (myself included) who may feel under the weather, but would rather skip the expensive trip to the doctor. Now there is a new way you can skip the trip to the doctor’s office, yet still get tested for an illness. New diagnostic tests let you order your own blood work, without ever seeing a doctor. You can check everything from your red blood cell count to your cholesterol levels through a medical … Continue reading →