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CHILDREN'S ORTHOPEDICS
Health: Early childhood habits die hard 26.NOV.08
"As a parent, you are teaching your young children a lifetime of healthy or unhealthy habits each day of their lives. Exercise habits start very early and affect a person’s health throughout his or her life."
Children need vitamin D 21.JAN.09
"Their grandparents were sent out the door in the morning, and came in only for lunch, before going back outside to play until suppertime. No sunscreen. Today’s youngsters aren’t exposed to such “neglect.” They get to stay inside in air-conditioned comfort, watch Sponge Bob Square Pants, and play with their Playstation 2."
Improve water safety; encourage swimming 27.MAY.09
" Summer is here. The kids are out of school, and the days are heating up. Time to enjoy the water -- pools, water parks, lakes, and the Gulf. Unfortunately, this is also a time that both emergency rescue workers and news reporters dread. Every summer, we have a few tragic drownings in the Greater Houston Area."
Genetic brittle bone disease [Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI)] 03.FEB.10
"When most people think about fragile bones, they tend to think of osteoporosis and older ladies whose hips can break with an unexpected step, causing them to fall. Because of bone density testing and new osteoporosis medications, this once feared orthopedic condition is now able to be treated rather successfully. There is another fragile bone disease that you may not be familiar with."
Backpacks: Health issue, not fashion statement 25.AUG.10
"Teaching youngsters to shop the sales for back-to-school clothing is a great idea, but not such a good idea for the backpack. While your sons or daughters will be looking at the backpack as a fashion statement, parents need to look at it with an entirely different set of eyes. In January, 2010, the medical professional journal, "Spine," reported on a recent MRI study regarding the effects school backpacks have on healthy children's spines. "This is the first upright MRI study to document reduced disc height and greater lumbar asymmetry for common backpack loads in children." The conclusion supported what has been suspected by pediatricians and orthopedic surgeons for a long time: "Backpack loads are responsible for a significant amount of back pain in children, which in part, may be due to changes in lumbar disc height or curvature."
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ATHLETES & SPORTS MEDICINE
Athletes and pre-season training 25.FEB.09
"Spring is approaching, and the billboards and yard signs are now appearing around town notifying parents it is time to sign up for a variety of organized youth sports teams again."
Off Season Conditioning 10.JUN.09
"It is much easier to get back into shape for your fall sports if you never let yourself get too out-of-shape this summer. You also will be reducing your chances of getting injured next season and not being able to play at all."
New standards set for sports head injury (Part 1) 29.JUL.09
" 'Getting your bell rung' is a common way to explain that an athlete has sustained a head injury playing a collision or contact sport. All traditional contact sports, as well as individual sports, including gymnastics, cheerleading, dance, ice skating, extreme biking, and skateboarding, carry the risk of a head injury."
New standards for sports head injury (Part 2) 05.AUG.09
"Until 2006, some believed that neck resistance training might help protect the brain in collision and contact sports. Kinesiologists at Temple University studied this, and found that it did not help. Resistance training is fine. Just don’t do it thinking it will make any difference in the potential for Traumatic Brain Injury."
“Energy” drinks are not sports drinks 19.AUG.09
"Do you know the difference between a “sports drink” and an “energy drink”? The two are very different. One can be good for you under certain circumstances and one is not - not under any circumstances."
The diabetic athlete 30.SEP.09
"It is often thought that diabetic patients cannot be athletes, but this is not true. Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler and three-time USA Olympian Swimmer Gary Hall, Jr. are only two of many well known athletes who have not let their diabetes take them away from their sports."
Cheerleading: A sport or not? 28.JUL.10
"A Federal District Judge in Connecticut recently ruled that cheerleading is not a sport. Reaction to this seems to depend upon one's personal experience. Cheerleading has always been an athletic activity. I entered West Point with great upper body strength from lifting my high school cheerleading partner many times a day, five or six days a week, during my high school senior year; yet during my last year as a West Point cadet, we Rabble Rousers (cheerleaders) were really only responsible for Corps 'spirit.'
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SHOULDERS
Students are now the teachers 25.MAR.09
"If you have ever had a shoulder dislocate, you knew it immediately. An initial shoulder dislocation is usually a traumatic injury, commonly affecting young men and women while competing in contact sports, gymnastics, volleyball, swimming, and cheerleading."
Shoulder injuries: Empowering the patient 08.APR.09
"How many people do you know who complain about their shoulder hurting? Many will say they have a rotator cuff tear. That is a rather common term most people have heard of and it does convey that something has been hurt in the shoulder region."
ELBOW, WRIST, HAND, & FINGERS
Healthcare: Finger injuries 05.MAY.10
"You are playing ball and the ball hits dead on the end of your finger. Perhaps you are cleaning out the garage, and your finger gets crushed, perhaps even in the garage door itself. Maybe you are working in the kitchen when a knife slips, cutting your finger deeply.
Most people will correctly apply immediate first aid, including ice and elevation. Unfortunately, too many stop at that point, without seeking professional medical treatment."
LEGS & KNEES
Shin Splints: Pain in the lower leg 16.DEC.09
"You’ve heard the term 'shin splints.' You may have even used it to describe your own lower leg pain. But did you know that 'shin splints' really is a catch-all term to describe three different painful conditions of the lower leg?"
Treating painful knee problems 21.APR.10
"Knees take a lot of use and abuse during our lifetimes, and yet, until they start hurting enough to alter our daily habits, we tend to take our knees pretty much for granted.
Osteoarthritis (including cartilage damage), meniscus tears, and ligament injuries are your primary knee concerns. All three can usually be handled initially with conservative care. It is only a rare exception, and always involving extreme trauma, where these diagnoses should require immediate or urgent surgery."
FEET & ANKLES
Walking all over with ‘friendly’ shoes 07.JAN.09
"Each one has at least 26 different bones and 33 separate joints, all held together by 107 ligaments, 20 muscles, and many tendons and nerves. It also has about 125,000 sweat glands, responsible for sweating about one pint of water from your body in a normal day."
Why do my feet hurt? 14.JAN.09
"The foot is really a very complex part of the human body, with its numerous different and interdependent parts. If you have been careful about your shoes and how they are fitting your feet, but your feet still hurt, there could be some other explanations
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EXERCISE, SAFETY, & IMPROVED OVERALL HEALTH
Physical fitness of teenagers 03.DEC.08
"Old habits are hard to break. That’s true even if the habits are good habits. Last week, we talked about developing a healthy exercise routine in young children. It is important to continue that habit into adolescence as well. But, it’s during the teenage years when physical fitness patterns diverge into two separate paths: the recreational athlete, and the competitive athlete."
Exercise a must for young adults 10.DEC.08
"Over the last few weeks, I’ve been telling you about the need to get kids moving. Not only can sports be fun, but they also can create a lifetime of healthy habits. This week, we’re growing up just a bit. As kids stop being kids and become young adults, lots of things change. These changes lead to new habits, both good and bad."
Weekend warriors 17.DEC.08
"Do you work hard all week and reward yourself by playing hard on the weekend? Does your brain still remember how great it was to be 20, but your body no longer responds the same way? Those few extra pounds you’ve put on since your younger days probably aren’t helping either. The problem is now you have jobs and responsibilities which consume your time during the week. The only time you have to do the things you love is on the weekend or days off work. You have become a Weekend Warrior."
Seeking the fountain of youth 24.DEC.08
"As we age, moving further and further away from our youth, the more we seek that elusive ‘Fountain of Youth.’ A recent study at Stanford University School of Medicine has confirmed that regular lifetime exercise habit is as close to those ‘magical waters’ as we can have."
Keeping resolutions without money 31.DEC.08
"We do it every year. We promise ourselves we’ll spend more time with family and friends, get into better physical shape, and lose some weight. We also start to look at all those bills which arrive at our doors along with the holiday mail. Fortunately for us, we can keep those New Year’s Resolutions at little or no cost."
Hot summer nights 08.JUL.09
"Summer is definitely here. The daily highs in recent weeks have been reaching or exceeding 100 degrees, with the humidity also being quite high. The lows are not falling below the mid 70s and even then not until just before sunrise. This means that if you want to walk or ride your bike, it is very tempting to do so in the cooler night air -- when drivers are already contending with reduced visibility."
Pedometer, light tool for exercise and weight loss 23.JUN.10
"A few weeks ago, we joined about 30 of my West Point classmates on a mini-reunion cruise. Cruising is a great way to travel, to visit with friends, and to relax. But it is a hard way to control weight! I knew I would be in the ship’s gym every day, and my wife -- that same lady who told me years ago that she wasn’t an athlete when I married her and she wasn’t going to become one now -- showed up with a pedometer."
GENERAL ORTHOPEDICS
Osteoporosis supplements 04.FEB.09
"OK, it’s just 6 bucks a month or so for me. But when I am multiplied by the 20 million people in the United States who have osteoarthritis, suddenly what all of us together spend on glucosamine and chondroitin supplements amounts to almost $900 million a year!"
Hot summer may aggravate orthopedic injuries 09.JUN.10
"Last summer, the Pacific El Nino helped protect us from the extremely hot temperatures and Gulf Hurricanes that normally grace the Houston area. Unfortunately, many weather experts believe we could have higher than normal temperatures along the Texas Gulf coast this summer. Over the last 23 years, I have noticed a correlation between extremely hot summer conditions and an increase in orthopedic injuries the following fall. The reason is simple."
GENERAL MEDICINE
Shingles, not a tile, but a vaccine 28.JAN.09 By JOANNIE PARR
"When did you last search the web about something medical? People do it all the time.....like somehow the web is going to be their best source for medical information. Well, it is at least immediate, if not completely off base. If you search for information about 'shingles,' you are going to get more information about repairing your roof than sound, scientific medical advice."
Medicare vs. Medicare Advantage 11.FEB.09
"Did you know there are different kinds of Medicare? Did you know that even though you have a Medicare card in your wallet, it is possible to no longer be covered by the government’s Medicare plan?"
Food for thought 22.APR.09
"Even young folks can walk in to a room and realize they don’t remember why they went in there. Even the young and beautiful can have trouble remembering where they put their keys. But those of us in the older set always have just a little nagging worry when things like this happen that, perhaps, just maybe, we are ‘Losing It.’"
Swine flu, pandemic or paranoia 29.APR.09
"If you’ve been watching the news in the past week, you’ve heard a lot of talk about a new strain of swine flu. Before you go run out to stock up on surgical masks, remember that there is a big difference between news hype on television and any valid scientific reasons for alarm in our communities."
Medicine in Mexico 13.MAY.09
"During the past few weeks, there has been a lot of talk in the news, at work among coworkers, on cell phones between friends, and even among strangers standing in line at the post office about the potentially serious flu which originated in Mexico. In time, epidemiologists will learn the sources and related factors permitting the rapid spread of the H1N1 (“swine”) flu.
Meanwhile, Mexico’s medical system is being taxed, and I’m concerned that Mexican physicians and other Mexican health care workers are not receiving the credit they are due in their efforts to fight this outbreak."
How to take control of your own health care 24.JUN.09
"Our current health care system is definitely confusing. The health insurance industry actually has 51 different regulatory bodies -- one for each state, for individuals who buy their own health insurance, and one in the U.S. Dept. of Labor for employer-provided health insurance. Then there are a variety of federal health systems: Medicare, federal employee, active duty and retiree Military, and the VA. Add to that the various health programs which are a combination of federal and state, such as Medicaid,and you are looking at a rather bewildering mess even to the most knowledgeable of us."
Keeping diabetes under control 16.SEP.09
"If there is any one disease Americans can control to make a big difference in their long term well-being, while reducing their personal health costs, it is diabetes."
Importance of keeping a current medication list 21.OCT.09
"Do you have a list in your billfold or purse stating ALL the medications you are currently taking? Do you always remember to tell your doctor about both the medications which are prescribed by a physician AND about all the over-the-counter and herbal medications you take? Do you remember to include vitamins?
Both your physicians and pharmacists need to be aware of all the drugs you take at all times."
Seasonal and H1N1 flu vaccines 04.NOV.09
"This time each year, we have discussions across the country about whether or not to take the annual flu shot. There are those who will stand in a line for a long time to get a flu shot, and there are those who refuse to get it, even if it is given free in their place of work. This year, we have two very different flu vaccines, and it will take both to give an individual a reasonable degree of protection."
Problems with antibiotic abuse 18.NOV.09
"One of the world’s growing health problems is the ongoing problem of bacterial infections becoming resistant to antibiotics. This problem has greatly increased in recent years. There are a number of reasons for this. In the United States where antibiotic medications are tightly regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), antibiotic resistance occurs because of misuse of medications."
Kick the habit, quit smoking 06.JAN.10
"When recovering from an injury or surgical procedure, patients want to return to normal as quickly as possible. Some factors that change the speed of healing are beyond one’s control, such as genetics or general health at the time of the injury or surgery. However, other factors are completely within your control, including nutrition, following your rehabilitation program, and smoking. Healing and good blood supply are inseparable."
Obesity stabilizes, but still high 20.JAN.10
"In general, generalities are not useful. But, in general, America is suffering from television and internet and fast food disease. And it is getting worse. Only a generation ago, children were free to be out in their neighborhoods playing with other children without constant parent supervision. They routinely walked or rode their bikes to school, to parks, and to the stores."
Set reasonable goals to ‘lose it’ 17.FEB.10
"Have you noticed all the magazines in the grocery checkout lines that mention personal fitness or weight loss on their covers? Their headlines sound so very positive! Sadly, when you look inside, the pictures don’t even begin to look like you! They are always of young, agile bodies without an ounce of fat demonstrating exercises in positions that most of us could not possibly get into without hurting ourselves. It’s enough to discourage the most committed of us."
How to find a good doctor 17.MAR.10 By JOANNIE PARR & THOMAS PARR, M.D.
"Living in the Greater Houston area provides you with a very large selection of highly qualified physicians, both primary care and specialists. In a very good way, this is a nice problem to have, but it also can be overwhelming when you are looking for a doctor for you or a member of your family."
All you want to know about mountain sickness 19.MAY.10
"Our Fort Bend summers are hot and humid, and we love taking vacations to “cool places,” such as to the mountains. For those of us who live somewhere between about 50 feet and 90 feet above sea level, understanding how to adjust to the high altitudes of the mountains can make a difference in a good trip or a bad one."
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