Is Suppressing a Sneeze Bad For You?

Image courtesy of stockimages at  FreeDigitalPhotos.net Also known medically as the "closed-airway sneeze," it may be socially preferable, but healthwise may be harmful if not dangerous. With a sneeze, tremendous air pressure is created in the lungs which ideally should be released out the mouth... but if internalized to prevent release out the mouth, can cause immense pressure to buildup internally which may cause significant damage ranging from minor to severe requiring hosp…

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Inner Ear Disease Possible Cause for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)?

Image courtesy of Tuomas_Lehtinen at  FreeDigitalPhotos.net A loyal blog reader alerted me to an interesting research suggesting that inner ear disease may be a causative factor of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). Apparently this association  made the news in April 2015. SIDS is when a baby without any obvious health issues inexplicably and suddenly dies while sleeping. This risk is mainly present within the first 12 months of life. Although all new parents are informed to institute…

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Luvs TV Commercials Promote The Hygiene Hypothesis

Why are the more experienced parents in these humorous Luvs commercials allowing their babies to "get dirty"? It's because of a theory that attempts to explain why well-developed countries like the United States have so many more people suffering from asthma and allergies compared to third world countries which suffer almost none. Known as the " Hygiene Hypothesis,"  it conjectures that major improvements in public health and medical technology have led to a clean…

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Doctors Incorrectly Diagnose Symptoms 10-15% of the Time

Although we all like to think doctors are infallible... we are far from it. Studies on doctors' diagnostic skills have consistently shown error rates around 10-15% based on different approaches. Why aren't we better? It's because human biology is complex and doctors are human. When a patient comes in with a symptom... let's take dizziness ... there are numerous possible causes for this particular symptom: stroke, medication side effect, alcohol intoxication, BPPV , Meniere…

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Video of Mast Cell Activation Resulting in Allergy Symptoms

This video actually shows in real-time a mast cell releasing histamine! Thanks to  @allergy for alerting me to this video! Mast cells are the culprit cells that cause the symptoms of allergy when it releases histamine after coming into contact with allergy antibodies (IgE). This release of histamine occurs through a process known as de-granulation whereby little sacs of histamine rupture out of the cell like popping a pimple. Medications like benadryl and zyrtec work by preventing mast…

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Earlobe Crease Associated with Heart Attacks

Check out the Earlobe Crease in this bust of Roman Emperor Hadrian It is a factoid that all medical students memorize and is even tested on exams... at least I remember doing so sometime during my first 2 years of medical school. This findings is also known as "Frank's Sign" named after Dr. Sanders Frank based on a paper he authored in 1973 . This risk of heart attack associated with a diagonal earlobe crease has reported numerous times over the years.  In a 1989 study of 3…

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Why Are So Many Singers Canceling Concerts due to Injured Vocal Cords?

There have been numerous celebrity singers who have cancelled concerts and even tours due to vocal cord injury of some kind. Although many blame poor vocal technique in such pop singers, my feeling is probably a very demanding schedule with no backup and severe financial pressure to perform even if the vocal cords are a bit off when vocal crest would have been preferred. Here's a few singers who have cancelled over the years: • Miranda Lambert - July 2015 •  Meghan Trainor  - July 2…

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Ibuprofen (and Other NSAIDS) Increases Risk of Heart Attack and Stroke

It seems that the longer we study a particular medication on larger numbers of people, the more risks we find associated with taking it. The FDA on 7/9/15 reported that NSAID medications like ibuprofen (but NOT aspirin) significantly increases the risk of heart attack and stroke. This risk of heart attack and stroke with NSAIDs, either of which can lead to death, was first published in 2005. However, this warning will now be strengthened with the following statements: The risk of heart …

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Miranda Lambert Cancels Calgary Show Due to Vocal Cord Inflammation

Image by Dave Hogg of Wikipedia It was only last week that pop singer Meghan Trainor cancelled her shows due to vocal cord hemorrhage. Now country singer Miranda Lambert has done the same, but due to vocal cord hemorrhage. She adds to a growing list of singers who have had to cancel shows/tours due to vocal cord problems: • Meghan Trainor - July 2015 •  Chad Kroeger  - June 2015 •  Sam Smith  - April 2015 •  Nathan Sykes  - April 2013 •  Nicki Manaj  - August 2012 •  Florence We…

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Meghan Trainor Suffers Vocal Cord Hemorrhage and Cancels Concerts

Image by Ronald Woan of Wikipedia Media  reported July 3, 2015 that Meghan Trainor of "All About The Base" fame is canceling upcoming concerts due to a painful vocal cord hemorrhage. Readers may recall that this was the same issue that affected Adele in 2011. She is currently on  voice rest , but I would not be surprised if she ultimately pursues surgery. She joins a number of other singers over the past few years who had to cancel/postpone their tours due to such vocal cord…

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Christopher Chang, MD Doppelgangers

Every once in a blue moon, I ( Christopher Chang, MD ) get contacted meant for one of my doppelgängers who has the same name as me and also a physician. However, I recently received one phone call that was particularly interesting as it came from the surgery department of INOVA Fairfax, a hospital system 45 minutes east of where I work. As I was talking on the phone, mentally I was thinking... What in the world is the person talking about? Plastic surgery? Need to attend a meeting? WHO IS T…

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How Much Can You Insure Your Vocal Cords For?

Image courtesy of phasinphoto at FreeDigitalPhotos.net If you are a professional singer, it could be in the millions... Although neither singer has ever confirmed these rumors... Bruce Springsteen supposedly insured his vocal cords for a $5.7 million policy in 1988. Adam Lambert was rumored to have insured his vocal cords for $48 million. Both policies allegedly provided by Lloyd's of London . I wonder how much mine would be valued at? Given popular singers have been dropping …

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Reflux Medications Linked to Heart Attacks: Not as Bad as You Think

In June 2015, media reported a link between heart attacks and taking a certain class of reflux medications known as proton pump inhibitors (PPI). Such medications include nexium , prilosec , prevacid , etc and are very common to treat heartburn. This reported link was due to a paper published in PLOS One which you can read here . How high is the risk? The research suggested an increased risk of 16%. Although this may sound high, this translates into one heart attack for every 4000 patient…

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