INDIANAPOLIS – At Riley Hospital, caution lights will hover over the snoozing patients at the Children’s neonatal intensive care unit. This device will flash when the sound levels go beyond the normal level. As the decibels go up, the colors on the new monitoring system will automatically change from green to yellow to red, indicating the chatting parents or visitors to keep quiet so that the babies get adequate rest for their growth.

A sound level indicator of the Sonicu system hangs from the ceiling of the neonatal intensive care unit at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis, Wednesday, March 19, 2008. The unit measures noise and displays a visual representation of measured sound levels. As decibels rise, the colors change from green to yellow to red, hushing chatty parents or doctors so the babies get the rest they need to develop.
(AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Associated Press

“A noise which is little bit louder than the normal level can cause the hearts of sick or premature babies to beat slowly or quickly”, said Dr. William Engle at Riley hospital. Disturbing the babies’ sleep or vital signs can slow down their growth and healing because their bodies do most of the work while they sleep.

continue reading Sound Monitors Protect Premature Babies

Recently launched “Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT)” would be an advantageous treatment for people who are suffering from certain typical illness and health conditions.

‘Bumrungrad International’, a Bangkok, Thailand based hospital and regional referral center has introduced this new technique in order to derive maximum therapeutic benefits helping the sufferers.

HBOT is a typical high pressure treatment which is completely non-invasive and painless. The course of HBOT treatment was originally developed for scuba and deep-sea divers who often have to face a dangerous health problem called “Decompression Sickness” or the “Bends”.

Subsequently HBOT was found to be equally effective with several other health related problems. HBOT plays an important role in reducing effects of toxic substances; it helps in alleviating the gas-bubble obstructions and promotes faster healing of the wounds. HBOT is also immensely helpful in enhancing the oxygen levels among the injured tissues. Improving infection control is one more function that HBOT facilitates in.

continue reading New Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) Introduced To Treat Multiple Illness

Prolonged exposure to the ‘Ultra-Violet (UV) Radiations’ could be a major cause for developing skin cancer despite the health advantages of vitamin D. Health experts at the ‘American Academy of Dermatology (AAD)’ accept that vitamin D is essential for optimal health of a person but the risks coupled with the UV-source is far more severe and it requires a cautious approach.

Health experts and dermatologists are of the view that appropriate amount of vitamin D can easily be obtained from natural sources like vitamin D enriched foodstuffs, fortified foods, vitamin-rich beverages, and varieties of multi-vitamin supplements. Any deliberate attempt to get exposed to the ultra-violet radiations would be harmful instead.

The exposure to the ultra-violet radiations could be natural as well as artificial. Sun is the natural source of ultra-violet radiations and various types of man made devices including tanning devices are among the artificial sources of ultra-violet radiations. Both these sources provide good amount of vitamin D to the human body but they are the safer ones, according to the ‘American Academy of Dermatology (AAD)’.

continue reading Be Sun Smart to Avoid Risk of Skin Cancer

MCG Health, Inc. is a not-for-profit corporation and a health care provider, has presented a study recently warning the golf lovers to be cautious as pollen has attacked the south again.

Looking at the situation, they have already predicted that pine pollen will blanket the area in yellow, including the greens, about a week before the prestigious Masters Tournament. The people prone to allergy have already started experiencing the symptoms. Fortunately pine is a weak allergen however soon late-blooming trees and new grass would release more powerful pollen, which could be dangerous to the golf spectators.

Dr. William Dolen, an Allergist and Immunologist for MCGHealth, and a past President of the ‘American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology ‘specially warns the visitors form up North to be more careful as they are more prone to allergy due to its still being cold there. Since they have yet not confronted any seasonal changes as the people have already in South, they might not think to bring any anti allergens.

continue reading Pollen Attacks South, Doctor Warns the Golf Lovers

As the sun is high in the sky and spring season sets on a milder weather, it is time to come out of winter hibernation for many people specially the young ones.

It is time when the sports grounds including basketball, baseball, tennis, and soccer start looking crowded. Children can bee seen dribbling down the driveways and shooting three pointers in the parks everywhere.

As the spring is springing, active sports season is springing as well and it becomes a busy period for foot and ankle surgeons. For them it is “Ankle Sprain Season”.

“Ankle Sprain” is one of the most common sports injuries. This injury ranks at the top among NCAA basketball players. It affects both men and women players equally. Getting injured with an ankle sprain is not only painful but also stops a person from performing many routine functions.

continue reading Protect Yourself from Ankle Sprain This Spring Season

A new research study, based on the review of available information, has thrown new light on the almost unacknowledged effects of “Chronic Schistosomiasis”.

Charles H. King and his team of researchers have conducted this study at the Center for Global Health and Diseases, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, and the Columbia University. Revelations of this study have also been published in the current online issue of the journal “Chronic Illness”.

Main objective of this study was to summarize all available knowledge about the range of diseases that occur because of ‘chronic schistosomiasis’ and to examine in detail for all other related aspects. This includes the debilitating burden of light and heavy infection also. Outlining the basic objectives for disease prevention with age specific strategies relevant in present context becomes more important in this perspective. Researchers also looked in to the possibility of creating extended programs focusing on the prevention of transmission of this disease.

continue reading Recognizing Effects of Chronic Schistosomiasis

Scientists have recently concluded a six week ‘Neuromuscular Training Program’ specifically targeted at the athletes. As a result of this training program the athletic performance measures of select athletes were observed to be improved. Performance was also reported as improved with changed movement patterns during jumping tasks among these participants.

Dr. Jonathan D. Chappell at Wake Orthopedics, Raleigh, North Carolina and Centinela Freeman Hospital Biomechanics laboratory, Los Angeles, California and Dr. Orr Linpisvasti at Centinela Freeman Hospital Biomechanics Laboratory and Kerlan Jobe Orthopedic Clinic, Los Angeles, California conducted this training program to study the effects of neuromuscular techniques on the kinetics and kinematics of select jumping tasks in select female collegiate athletes.

Findings of this program have been published in the current issue of the “American Journal of Sports medicine”. Altered motor controlled strategies have been spotted as major reasons for increase in risks for female athletes. These risks include non-contract anterior cruciate ligament injuries. This focused training program has demonstrated positive outcomes in decreasing risks of cruciate ligament injuries.

continue reading Neuromuscular Trainings Improve Performance and Reduce Risks of Cruciate Ligament Injuries among Athletes

“Diagnosis Coding” is a known method for reporting why a particular medical service is required for a particular patient. It is a type of specific language. Accurate diagnosis coding report is very important for payers as it explains the reasons for providing particular service to the patient.

In order to promote the international comparability in the collection, processing, classification, and presentation of mortality statistics specific “International Classification of Diseases(ICD)” have been designed and published by the “World Health Organization(WHO)”.ICD provides specific format for reporting causes of death on the certificate of death. Medical conditions reported in the death certificate subsequently transformed in to medical codes with the help of classification structure of ICD along with the selection and modification rules included in the respective applicable revision of ICD.

ICD helps in selecting a single reason for death. This can be done with the help of reported sequence of conditions.ICD coding rules also help in improving the usefulness of mortality statistics. It is mainly because of a preference given to specific categories. This single identified cause of death is termed as the ‘underlying cause of death’. All other reasons reported constitute the ‘non-underlying causes of death’. Combined together they are known as ‘multiple causes of death’.

continue reading ICD-10-M, the New International Classification of Diseases

A pregnant mother’s teeth and gums can affect the health of the unborn baby. Infection or disease in the mouth during pregnancy can lead to premature birth and low birth weight. The unborn baby may be put at risk for conditions such as cerebral palsy, mental retardation, blindness, and early childhood caries. What can you do, as a pregnant mom?

• Discuss with your doctor, midwife, or nurse and make an appointment to see your dentist.

• Keep your dental appointments and get dental treatment before delivery.
• Brush your teeth at least two times a day, or after you eat.
• Floss your teeth everyday.
• Drink water or low-fat milk. Avoid carbonated drinks during pregnancy.
• Choose fruits rather than fruit juice.
• Chew Xylitol-containing gum after eating.
• Mix a teaspoon of baking soda in a cup of water to rinse your mouth after vomiting.

Early detection of “Oral Cancer” is an important aspect while fighting with the disease. This always helps in identifying precancerous calls in advance before the cells become cancerous. In the United States alone, almost 35,000 people have been diagnosed having oral cancer. About 8,000 of these affected people have lost their lives in the year 2007 alone.

A regular dental checkup will be more helpful in such early detection of this deadly disease, according to the “Pennsylvania Dental Association (PDA)”. Oral cancer simply means the cancer located in any part of mouth. It involves lips, gum tissue, soft parts, and hard parts of the palate. It could even be an affected pharynx or the top portion of throat.

According to the findings of several research studies, adults with an age of 40 years and above are more prone to such disease. The rate of impacting is almost double in case of men compared to the women. People who are below the age of 40 years have almost five times the risk of elders for the oral cancer. Habitual tobacco users and specially the ones who mix tobacco with alcohol are at exceptionally high risk of developing oral cancer.

continue reading Early Detection and Regular Checkups Help Preventing Oral Cancer