RoadtoHealthBlog

The back is literally your body’s support system, made up of more than 30 bones and hundreds of nerves, muscles, ligaments, and tendons. But all those moving parts mean it’s vulnerable to problems, too. (Source: CNN.com – Health)

By: MedWorm: Back Pain

Upper airway obstruction is a common and potentially serious condition in the pediatric age-group. Neonates and young children are particularly susceptible because their immature airways are small in size and much more compliant than those of adults. Children with upper airway obstruction usually present with stridor or apnea, but they could also manifest with chronic problems, such as recurrent lung infections or obstructive sleep apnea, that can lead to growth retardation, chronic respiratory failure, cor pulmonale, and even death. (Source: Seminars in Roentgenology)

Origin: MedWorm Query: “sleep apnea”

ConclusionEarly detection and radical surgical excision at first attempt give best results. Radiotherapy could be considered only in unresectable recurrences. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck, 2012 (Source: Head and Neck)

By: MedWorm Query: tinnitus

While millions of us take medicine daily, few pay much attention to the time of day we take it. Yet a growing number of health experts say this is much more important than patients think. (Source: the Mail online | Health)

Credit: MedWorm Query: heartburn

It is recommended that a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan should be obtained before the placement of epidural steroid injections. On the other hand, studies have shown that radiologic imaging does not improve outcomes in most patients with low back pain. Cohen et al performed a multicenter randomized controlled trial to determine whether MRI improves outcomes or affects decision-making in patients with lumbar radiculopathy referred for epidural steroid injection. (Source: Seminars in Spine Surgery)

Source: MedWorm: Back Pain

Authors: Chao ST, Thakkar VV, Barnett GH, Vogelbaum MA, Angelov L, Weil RJ, Rasmussen P, Reuther AM, Jamison B, Neyman G, Suh JH Abstract Purpose of this study is to determine the types, incidence, and severity of acute complications of intracranial stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS), specifically Gamma Knife (GK). Patients who had never had previous SRS were eligible for this prospective IRB-approved study. The questionnaire used applicable questions from CTCAE v.3.0, the Brief Pain Questionnaire (Short Form), Brief Fatigue Inventory, and the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory. Questionnaires were obtained prior to Gamma Knife (GK), 1 week, 1 month, and 2 months to assess complications. Seventy-six eligible patients (median age of 62 years) had complete data and were analyzed. Diagnoses inc…

By: MedWorm Query: tinnitus

Authors: Patel VB, Wegner RE, Heron DE, Flickinger JC, Gerszten P, Burton SA Abstract The purpose of this study is to evaluate the difference in clinical outcomes for patients with metastatic spine disease treated with a whole versus partial vertebral body contouring approach. A retrospective study was performed for the clinical outcomes of 154 metastatic lesions to the spine in 117 patients treated with stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) using the Cyberknife(TM) Robotic Radiosurgery System. Each patient was treated with a single session of radiotherapy using either a whole (WB) or a partial vertebral body contour approach (PB). The primary endpoint was re-treatment rate and the secondary endpoints were pain status, neurologic status, toxicity, tumor control, and survival. …

Credit: MedWorm: Back Pain

The association of pediatric obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) with mortality and respiratory diseases was demonstrated in a recent study . We encountered a pediatric intestinal posttransplant recipient with OSA in whom continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy may have a preventive effect on respiratory tract infection. (Source: Sleep Medicine)

Origin: MedWorm Query: “sleep apnea”

Conclusion: Gaviscon(R) was non-inferior to omeprazole in achieving a 24-h heartburn-free period in moderate episodic heartburn, and is a relevant effective alternative treatment in moderate GERD in primary care.Trial registrationISRCTN62203233. (Source: BMC Gastroenterology)

Credit: MedWorm Query: heartburn

Conclusions: Our results suggest that OSA is associated with an increased risk of subsequent psoriasis or psoriatic arthritis. (Source: Sleep Medicine)

Credit: MedWorm Query: “sleep apnea”

Abstract  Shichimotsukokato (SKT) is a Kampo formula, comprising astragalus root, phellodendron bark, rehmannia root, peony root, cnidium rhizome, Japanese angelica root, and uncaria hook. It is prescribed to hypertensive patients who complain of a sensation of a rush of blood to the head, shoulder stiffness, tinnitus, and dull headache. We investigated the effects of SKT on renal hypertension in Wistar rats subjected to a 5/6 nephrectomy (Nx). Systolic blood pressure (SBP) increased markedly after surgery and remained high in the Nx rats. Oral treatment of SKT extract at dosages of 0.75 and 1.5 g/kg/day (corresponding to 5- and 10-fold human dosages, respectively) caused a significant suppression of the increase in SBP in Nx rats. Plasma concentrations of nitric oxide…

Origin: MedWorm Query: tinnitus

Conclusions: These results demonstrate that minocycline effectively inhibits acetic acid-induced acute abdominal nociception via the inhibition of neuronal p-ERK expression in the spinal cord, and that minocycline may have therapeutic potential in suppressing acute abdominal pain. (Source: Molecular Pain)

By: MedWorm: Back Pain

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS Spinal hydrogen peroxide is specifically and largely responsible for formalin‐induced pain, and DAAO inhibitors produce analgesia by blocking spinal hydrogen peroxide production rather than interacting with spinal d‐serine. (Source: British Journal of Pharmacology)

Source: MedWorm: Back Pain

GOLFER PÁDRAIG Harrington has called for antacid medicines to include a warning that persistent heartburn and reflux can be early signs of oesophageal cancer. (Source: The Irish Times – Health)

Origin: MedWorm Query: heartburn

That Beethoven suffered from deafness is well known, but how did the progression of the condition affect his composition? In this 8-minute video the Isola string quartet demonstrate how his style changed over time: Read about the science behind the video in the paper, Beethoven’s deafness and his three styles, from BMJ. Switch to lower notes Details of Beethoven’s hearing loss can be derived from his own letters. His left ear was affected first, and he reported bilateral tinnitus, high tone hearing loss associated with poor speech discrimination, and recruitment with loud noises. After 1812 people had to shout to make themselves understood. In 1818 Beethoven started to communicate through notebooks. There are no reports that he could still understand spoken conversation after …

Source: MedWorm Query: tinnitus

AbstractAlthough the pathogenesis of interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome remains unknown, there is a significant correlation of interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome with other chronic pain disorders, such as irritable bowel syndrome, endometriosis and fibromyalgia syndrome. In this review, we highlight evidence supporting neural cross‐talk in the dorsal root ganglia, spinal cord and brain levels, which might play a role in the development of chronic pain disorders through central sensitization. In addition, we focus on transient receptor potential V1 and transient receptor potential A1 as the receptor targets for chronic pain conditions, because transient receptor potential V1 and transient receptor potential A1 act as a nocisensor to mediate not only an afferent signal to…

Hat Tip To: MedWorm: Back Pain

Introduction/Objective: Using overnight polysomnography to diagnose obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is labor intensive, time consuming, and costly, particularly for patients with little or no insurance. Population-based symptom questionnaires have been developed to assess OSA among Caucasian and African American populations, but have yet to be developed for Spanish-speaking Hispanics. The purpose of the study was to examine the overall utility of the English to Spanish translated and validated Sleep Habits Questionnaire (SHQ) items used to assess subjective OSA in the Sleep Heart Health Study as a diagnostic tool with underserved Hispanic populations in clinical settings. (Source: Journal of the American Medical Directors Association)

Hat Tip To: MedWorm Query: “sleep apnea”

Abstract: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a sleep disorder with a high prevalence that causes pathological changes in cardiovascular regulation during the night and also during daytime. We investigated whether the treatment of OSA at night by means of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) improves the daytime consequences. Twenty-eight patients with OSA, 18 with arterial hypertension, 10 with normal blood pressure, were investigated at baseline and with three months of CPAP treatment. Ten age and sex matched healthy control subjects were investigated for comparisons. We recorded a resting period with 20min quiet breathing and an exercise stress test during daytime with ECG and blood pressure (Portapres). The bicycle ergometry showed a significant reduction of the diastolic blood pres…

Hat Tip To: MedWorm Query: “sleep apnea”

While we treat the elderly as a set of symptoms and problems, we ignore what we will be one dayAndrew Motion has written a poem for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s new website, A Better Life, part of a five-year project to promote a positive agenda for older people. The poem distils fragments of lives past: red varnished toenails on a Llandudno honeymoon; “defending the realm” as a soldier then slaking its thirst as a brewer; Rowena who likes “a slice of sponge cake”. Well intentioned, the poem comes over with as much bounce as a mattress with its springs taken out.Ageing undoubtedly has its problems, many of them created by those who have yet to cross the threshold and don’t believe they ever will; the invincibility of youth. And yet, ironically, being reminded of the process of decline …

Via: MedWorm: Back Pain

A 30-year-old white man with established Barrett’s esophagus (BE) and continued symptoms of chronic severe heartburn, persistent cough, throat irritation, and asthma was referred for surveillance EGD at the VA Boston Healthcare System. During retraction of the endoscope, a pink circular lesion () was observed under white light endoscopy in the upper esophagus (spanning 20-22 cm from the incisors). Three-dimensional endoscopic optical coherence tomography (OCT) images were obtained of the region under direct visualization with white light by passing the probe through the standard accessory channel. An en face projection image () at 400-μm depth underneath the tissue surface showed columnar epithelium consistent with a cervical inlet patch (CIP) and surrounding normal squamous epithelium (S…

Credit: MedWorm Query: heartburn