June 8, 2012

Friday Tidbits 06-08-12


When I first read the title “Diabetic Home Care Management”, I thought this could be interesting and presented in a way I may not have read before. The second part of the last sentence in true, but the article was only a rehash of old information that I already was aware of and presented no new ideas. Are publishers so desperate for items to publish that they rehash former articles. No, they are trying to reach new readers, which is good. Read the article here that appeared on May 31, 2012, but is left undated. Read the last sentence as this false. There is not a diabetic diet that is standard although dietitians want us to believe there is.

The second and third articles are about Herpes Zoster or shingles and are not something to be taken lightly. In the first study, they are telling us that we could have eye problems from shingles as well. So make a practice of seeing an ophthalmologist on a regular basis if you have had shingles.

Two significant conclusions were found in the study. First, those that have had the shingles vaccination showed a 51 percent reduced incidence of all herpes zoster disease and a 67 percent reduction in the incidence of postherpetic neuralgia, a potentially devastating complication of shingles.

The study found that patients between the ages of 59 to 70 have the best results from being vaccinated. Those older than 70 had a lower rate of effectiveness. It is still encouraging patients older than 50 to be vaccinated against shingles.

A second study found that the risk of adverse events for a period of 42 days of vaccination of adults 50 and older which was comparable to a large managed care cohort study.  The article also states that the vaccine is well tolerated in adults.

The fourth article for today is not one I like, but one that people need to be aware of and know that this may be the thing for some people. Other than medical reasons, I see no excuse for not exercising as even if you are confined to a wheel chair, you often can exercise. For a small seven percent minority it may increase heart and diabetes risk factors. Yes, for a small percent exercise is a health problem that needs consideration. The adverse responses were not explained by the health status of the participants, or their age, amount of exercise they did, or lack of improvement in cardiorespiratory fitness

The study authors do say they still recommend 150 minutes per week of moderate physical activity, or 75 minutes a week of vigorous activity. They did state that people doing exercise should have regular exams and consultations with their doctor.

The last article speaks to a common problem many of us have with our doctors. This I am agreement with and wonder when the day will come when we don't feel rushed through our appointments. I understand when lab reports are all good or improving that the doctor will not have a lot to do. Nevertheless, when I have questions, I like to ask them. Most of my doctors are now aware of this and know I have a list that I will leave, if they will answer them. One will email me the answers and the rest like to call, but one doctor insists on typing the answers and mailing them. All are acceptable to me.

A doctor's impatience, though, is often driven more by economics than ego. When a doctor has that pressure to see three, four, maybe five patients an hour, they can't wait for the exposition of the patient's story. That is exactly what they should do, but they can't. This is an interesting story of one doctor's struggle.

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