By now you have probably heard about the MEASLES outbreak that originated in Disneyland last month. At this point, over 100 cases (that span at least 14 states) have been documented since the first of this year…and we have only entered February. If you are my age or older (40-something), odds are good you remember HAVING the measles. In my case, I missed the coveted LAST DAY OF SCHOOL in 7th grade…miserably feverish, coughing, aching and covered in itchy red spots, so that particular event is etched in my middle school memories. I lay in bed sobbing in my self-pity … Read more
Dr. Grimes’ Bottom Line
How Accurate are Flu Tests?
In primary care offices, we do many types of rapid testing to help us diagnose and treat patients– pregnancy tests, urine tests for infection, rapid strep tests, and of course, rapid flu tests. How accurate are these tests? If a rapid flu test is POSITIVE, it is extremely accurate- 98%. This means they are very SPECIFIC tests- if it says you have it, you have a 98% chance that you really do have the flu, so the likelihood of a false positive is very low. If your rapid flu test result is NEGATIVE, however, you might still have … Read more
Flu Without Fever?
Can it be? Should you even wonder if you have the flu if you don’t have a fever? Unfortunately, YES. While it is true that the classic presentation of seasonal flu includes an often HIGH fever, body aches, fatigue, sore throat, cough and abdominal symptoms like nausea, pain or diarrhea, no single symptom is absolutely necessary for a diagnosis. Children under the age of 6 years frequently do not have fever and cough with their flu symptoms. This year in particular, I have seen more cases of flu with purely fatigue and stomach symptoms…including one in our family this week.… Read more
Will You “Cervive” in 2015?
Is 2015 the year you finally truly prioritize YOUR health? The majority of Americans include weight loss and possibly exercise in their New Year’s Resolutions each year…and do really well on their strict diets for a few days or maybe even a few weeks. While I absolutely applaud attention to weight and activity levels, I want to encourage you to think beyond diet and exercise for your 2015 health resolutions. (And I will spend time in future blogs this month talking more about what diets work best, but today I want to shift the focus…)
January happens to be Cervical … Read more
‘Tis the FLU SEASON
It’s that special time of year again…so please give yourself (and your family) the GIFT of a flu vaccine NOW so you are not struck down with this illness at the busiest time of year! Flu shots have been available for a few weeks and seem to be available everywhere. Clinics, schools, grocery stores, pharmacies and many employers are all offering flu shots these days. Add a flu shot to your grocery list- I’ll bet the pharmacy there is stocked and you won’t even have to add an extra stop on your weekly errands.
Who should get the flu vaccine?… Read more
More Dancer Problems…
Dancers pretty much abuse their feet, with repetitive forces in unnatural poses, so it is no surprise that they end up with stress fractures in their feet. When we think about broken bones in the foot, most of us picture a broken toe or a large bone in the middle of the foot (the metatarsals). However, there are two tiny pea-like bones that can also be broken- the sesamoid bones. These little bones are embedded side by side within the tendon that is in the ball of your foot, just beneath the base of your big toe. They act like … Read more
Dancer Problems…
Have you ever had a plantar wart? These are the warts that show up as a painful bump underneath your foot. These unwelcome growths often show up at the site of “trauma”, so dancers obviously most frequently develop them on their feet or toes. Warts are incredibly common, with a prevalence of up to 10% of Americans. In fact, the vast majority of us will develop at least one wart somewhere on our body during our lifetime.
Are warts dangerous? Not really. Warts do not turn in to cancer, and in fact, untreated, will eventually go away on their own. … Read more
Is it Ebola? Or “just” the FLU?
You have a fever, chills, sore throat muscle aches, headache, nausea and vomiting…is it Ebola Virus? Or perhaps that new respiratory virus (Enterovirus 68)? While technically speaking, it is possible for your illness to be caused by one of these dreaded agents, the odds are very much against it. However, you very well may have the FLU.
NOW is the time to get your flu vaccine- please! The flu vaccine is recommended for EVERYONE aged 6 months and older (who does not have a contraindication for the immunization.) We are already seeing cases of flu here in Austin, as … Read more
Shake, Bump & Fives!
The American Journal of Infection Control has the media world abuzz with talks of fist bumps vs. handshakes today, as they released a recent study confirming that a quick greeting of fist bumps “substantially reduce” the transfer of bacteria between people (compared with shaking hands.) This investigation confirms previous similar studies, such as the 2013 report from the Journal of Hospital Infection, Reducing pathogen transmission in a hospital setting Handshake vs. fist bump: a pilot study.
We know that fist bumps (and high fives) are typically very brief- less than a second, versus hand shakes that can last for … Read more
Jellies!
My last blog was about INVISIBLE things that sting, but this one is all about much larger and visible stingers- JELLYFISH. We all know what they look like- bell-shaped, primitive looking soft tops, with variable amounts of tentacles streaming below. Swimmers typically stumble upon these creatures at or near the surface of the water, or washed up along the beach. Do NOT make the mistake of thinking an obviously dead jellyfish washed up on the shore is harmless! The stingers (nematocysts) in the tentacles will release their toxin and sting you- whether the jelly is dead or alive.
Most jellyfish
… Read more