CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) published the 2009 guidelines for the use of influenza vaccine for the prevention and control of seasonal influenza on July 30th, 2009. These guidelines are for seasonal flu, for which there are vaccines, and not swine flu, though clinical trials are underway for the H1N1 virus.
“Flu season” generally runs October – May. During these months, the CDC collects and publishes weekly influenza surveillance reports, like the one shown above. In fact, you can even get flu updates sent to your phone.
Who needs the seasonal flu vaccine? Health care workers, for one, as well as young children, the aged, pregnant women and people with chronic medical conditions. LSUHSC – NO usually offers flu shots for a small fee during the month of October.
More flu information from the CDC.
The 2010 edition of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention?óÔé¼Ôäós Yellow Book includes new or expanded sections on medical tourism, traveling safely with chronic diseases and conditions, and expert perspectives on popular travel itineraries worldwide. The updated book, which is a definitive guide for healthy international travel, is now available online.
July is full of space anniversaries, from the moon landing (July 15th) to the establishment of Cape Canaveral (July 24th), but what did this mean for medicine?
To understand the history of a medical subject, I sometimes check out its history in MeSH. The current subject is Aerospace Medicine and has been since 1980, but it was Aviation Medicine from 1966-74 and Space Flight from 1975-79. If a comprehensive historical search is required, it is always good to check out the Online & History Notes in MeSH.
Check out this article by SE Parazynski, a former astronaut and a physician, entitled “From model rockets to spacewalks: an astronaut physician’s journey and the science of the United States’ space program.” This article is freely available to the general public through PubMed Central.
July 21st is National Junk Food Day, but try not to go wild. According to the CDC, Louisiana went from having under 15% obesity rate in 1990 to a rate of 25-29% in 2008. If you’re going to celebrate today, just try to be smart and eat healthy the rest of the week.
The NOLA.com website just released a story on LSUHSC’s own Eduardo Davila. Dr. Davila, assistant professor pediatrics, has been awarded a $1.3 million grant over 5 years by the National Cancer Institute to study new immunotherapies, including a vaccine, for cancer. Read the LSUHSC press release for more information.
Looks like Louisianans haven?óÔé¼Ôäót been eating prepackaged Nestle Toll House refrigerated cookie dough and thank goodness.
As of Tuesday, June 30, 2009, 72 persons infected with a strain of E. coli O157:H7 with a particular DNA fingerprint have been reported from 30 states (None in Louisiana!). Of these, 51 have been confirmed by an advanced DNA test. More information is available from the CDC.
From Abbot’s tube (A long double-channel intestinal tube inserted through a nostril) to Zimmermann-Laband syndrome (an extremely rare inherited syndrome of gingival fibromatosis), whonamedit.com has it covered.
A biographical dictionary of over 8294 medical eponyms (people after whom something is named) and counting, whonamedit.com was created by a Norwegian group, and has been around since 1994.
What I really like about this site is the ease of use. Eponymns are listed alphabetically and by category, so if you want a list of all epoynms associated with the brain, it is quickly accessible.
There are also a fair number of biographical entries, which can be browsed by country and last name. There is a separate list of female entries. Many biographical entries also include bibliographies, which makes my little librarian heart flutter.
BOTTOM LINE:
Whonamedit.com is a great source to check synonyms and definitions of medical conditions, and offers a fair number of biographical entries for physicians. It’s layout makes it very easy to use as a quick reference source.
Here’s an anatomy site that is fun and educational at the same time.
WinkingSkull.com is an online study aid for anatomy. It’s provided through Thieme publishing, which also provides online atlases to our library users.
Offering several levels of access (my personal favorite is FREE), Winking Skull features stunning illustrations from Atlas of Anatomy, based on the work of Michael Schuenke, Erik Schulte, and Udo Schumacher. Once you’ve created a user name and password, it’s fast and easy to create exams based on region of the body. There’s a self study mode as well as a timed assessment feature, and your statistics are saved so you can see what you need to work on.
246 images are offered at the free level, but if you personally own either Atlas of Anatomy or Anatomy Flash Cards: Anatomy on the Go, you get access to the “Plus” version: 363 images from Atlas of Anatomy. For those who really want an extra anatomy study aid, there is a “Pro” account available for a monthly subscription. Freaking out about that anatomy exam? There’s even a 24 hour “Panic Package”
BOTTOM LINE
Winkingskull.com features a witty name, a 246 free anatomy images, and a great interface with wonderful pictures. Next time you’re bored in lecture, check out this game instead of MineSweeper.
DETAILS
-Requires creation of user profile (free)
-Free version offers 246 images
This post is simply an FYI and should not be taken as a product endorsement.
FYI, There’s been some drama about Clinical Reader and it’s unauthorized use of images in recent days. MK
A blog post from EBM and Clinical Support Librarians@UCHC alerted me to Clinical Reader, a new site developed that brings you research articles, news and multimedia in one place.
Developed by a junior doctor and a small group programmers spread across London and Toronto, the site uses ISI journal impact factors and Google analytics to choose material for the site.
Readers can browse TOCs from popular clinical journals like NEJM, Gut, Clinical Radiology, BMJ, Pediatrics, and more in a highly visual format, and there are sections for medical students, and medical education, among many others.
LINK:
Clinical Reader: http://clinicalreader.com/
Next week on Wednesday, July 1st the various schools of LSUHSC will be offering screening for high blood pressure, diabetes, depression, lung function, colorectal cancer and oral cancer, as well as vaccinations and education on a variety of health topics. The event will take place from 1 – 6 p.m. at Grace Episcopal Church, 3700 Canal St. It is part of the Congressman Cao AAA Health Care Initiative. For more information, see the official LSUHSC press release.
The FDA has just released a warning for consumers to not eat “prepackaged Nestle Toll House refrigerated cookie dough due to the risk of contamination with E. coli O157:H7.” They recommend that all dough be discarded because handling the dough to cook it could spread the bacteria.
This month AJN, American Journal of Nursing features a case study of a patient that proves this point. A severely disabled man received such poor oral care from nursing home personnel that his oral and nasopharyngeal secretions built up (?óÔé¼?ôinspissated?óÔé¼?Ø), and he died from asphyxia. The lead author, Joseph A. Prahlow, was the pathologist in charge of the autopsy; the article features graphic photos of the thickened secretions that blocked his airway. A companion article by two dentists, Pamela S. Stein and Robert G. Henry, gives nurses suggestions on how they can overcome barriers to providing oral care to patients.
Here is a link to other articles on the subject of oral hygiene of the elderly or patients in long term care.
Hospital sign: “All Patients Go Here” in multiple languages
An article from ACRL News pointed me to a new resource offering health information translations:
Health Information Translations
This resource, sponsored by several medical centers in Ohio, provides education and procedural instructions about health topics for patients with limited English proficiency. Search by keyword or language and retrieve a short document in English about that particular health issue followed by the translation of the article. Some documents have audio files. For example, the document on ?óÔé¼?ôbreast biopsy?óÔé¼?Ø explains the different kinds of biopsies, the procedure the physician will follow and instructions for the patient, all in Spanish. This is a source for timely, accurate medical vocabulary as well as practical application, since the translation of common procedures and instructions into Spanish is ready to be handed out to the patients. Includes translations of disaster preparedness plans. Access: http://www.healthinfotranslations.com/.
One of the best things I like about it are the common hospital signs with multiple translations (see photo above). The signs are available for download in PDF format for free on their site.
The city of New Orleans has been chosen as one of the 100 sites for the Healthy Start Program.
According to The Gambit’s Blog of New Orleans, “Healthy Start is a federally-funded initiative that was introduced in 1991 to lower the alarmingly high rate of infant mortality in the United States by addressing the disparity in prenatal care afforded women at different economic levels.”
Take the time to learn more about this great initiative providing prenatal and postnatal care to the women and children of our city.
You can now easily track disciplinary action against physicians and other licensed health care professionals in Louisiana through the Louisiana State Board of Medical Examiners homepage.
http://www.lsbme.louisiana.gov/
There is even an RSS feed available, so you could set up a folder in your Microsoft Outlook email to track who’s been reprimanded, warned or summarily suspended from practice in our fair state. More info on setting up RSS in Outlook here.
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