June 14, 2007
A few random yet useful tidbits I learned:
- Body Mass Index=(Weight in pounds X 703)/(Height in inches, squared)
- Lots of stuff about pharmacology, which may not even apply when I am prescribing, because meds change so often.
- Poison ivy is only contagious when you come in contact with the oils from the plant. Once you wash off the affected area, it is no longer contagious, and you can prevent the rash if you wash it off within a few minutes of exposure. It doesn’t spread, but sometimes it doesn’t all come up at once, so it looks like it is spreading. Touching pets, dead plants and other objects (like your shoes) with the oil on them can spread it.
- ACEIs and ARBs (2 types of heart meds) can be used together and are a good combination to prevent heart damage particularly in diabetics.
- Liver function tests must be done regularly on patients taking statins
- Lung cancer can manifest as recurrent pneumonia
- If a patient is on meds for hyperthyroid, their TSH should be no higher than 2.0, even though the range for healthy patients is much higher.
- Patients starting on Paxil for anxiety or depression may have about 2 weeks of nausea/vomiting, feeling “weird,” but that should clear up on its own. If they start it, they need to take if for a year, because if they stop it too early, they may relapse, and relapse is much harder to treat than the original occurrence.
- The generic statin drugs do not seem to work as well as the brand name ones like Lipitor and Vitorin.
- Less than 50% of patients with Lyme disease present with the bulls-eye rash. In kids, if often presents as psychological and behavior problems with no physical symptoms.
- Many rheumatoid arthritis meds increase the patient’s risk for cancer because they suppress the immune system.
- There is a nasal spray containing calcitonin, a hormone involved in calcium metabolism that can help treat and prevent osteoporosis.
- If patients are complaining of muscle ache, check a vitamin D level.
Things I want to do when I get back home (that I decided thanks to Tennessee):
- Enroll in a pottery class, and then go to Mary’s house in the fall for a wood-firing
- Make a vegetable garden in the back yard (If my landlord says it is ok)
- Get back on top of jewelry making
- Be sure to get into the family track at school
- Hike more often
- Cook more often
- Get arch supports for my shoes so I don’t get back problems like all my patients
- Keep in touch with all the wonderful people I met here
- Visit my dear friends in Tennessee
Thank you for reading.
Sincerely,
Shana Kaplan