Say Goodbye to Surgical Scrubbing

       Surgical scrubbing means  doing a systematic routine of washing hands and arms following specific number of strokes. It involves lathering, soaking, and brushing one hand and arm and then the other. My students always do that before they start preparing the sterile field for the surgery. I remember doing that and counting the strokes in my mind at the same time.

       But when I when I went to duty last Monday, I noticed that the scrubbing area did not have that canister that contained the surgical scrub brushes. I looked for it but all the 3 scrubbing areas did not have that canister. I even thought that the staff of the previous shift did not just have the time to prepare it.

       Then, I was told that we were not using that anymore. There will be no surgical scrubbing done anymore in this hospital. Instead, a surgical handwashing solution replaces the surgical scrubbing procedure. All we need to do is wash our hands and our arms thoroughly with this solution and then we are already sterile enough to start wearing our surgical gown and gloves.

      
      Then I learned that hospitals from other countries also followed the same method. I was told that there are researches conducted which stated that surgical scrubbing breaks the integrity of the skin and predisposes us to infection. I will have to research on that to learn more.

       So, there will no be surgical scrubbing in this health facility. But still, the principle of Asepsis will be strictly followed.

Watching my Niece Grow.. A G6PD Baby.

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My cousin told me her baby was diagnosed with Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency  or G6PD deficiency.. It's a rare inherited condition where the body does not have enough glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase. This helps the red blood cells (RBC) of the body to function well.

My niece got  this deficiency from her mother or her father. This is hereditary which is passed as along in genes of either one or both parents to their child. But the gene responsible is accounted on the X chromosome as it is a  X-linked recessive hereditary disease.

This condition means that the RBC's of my niece have no much protection and can easily be damaged. This is the main function of G6PD. The bones marrow attempts to compensate the reduction of RBC's and when it fails, hemolytic anemia occurs as response also to other causes such as infections, food, medicines or chemicals.

My friend and I talked that the most important thing to do is to avoid anything that will cause destruction of the RBCs or hemolysis. In the event that the child may have attacks, blood transfusion may be necessary. But we will not let that happen as we will always see to it that the child will be protected from attacks. We will be keen with the breathing pattern of child as decrease in RBCs mean changes in breathing. If the child seem weak suddenly, we will have to make sure that she conserves her energy by letting her rest.

Prevention is the best tool that we have. The G6PD deficiency my niece had will be one reality we will accept.  But this is something that we can learn much  to make sure she enjoys her childhood like the rest of other kids will.

Obesity is Not a Sign of Progress

Obesity refers to a condition where there is excessive accumulation of body fat resulting to further obesity health problems.  Body Mass Index (BMI) is used to measure a person’s body fat based on his or her height and weight. A person is considered obese when the BMI is greater than30 kg/m2. This condition may lead to obesity health problems such as hypertension, heart and breathing problems.

Obesity in published researches is caused by many factors. It is usually caused by excessive intake of food, less physical activity and sometimes also as a result of medications taken. Obesity is common to people who have sedentary life style where one does not have much physical activity or routine.  People who are emotionally disturbed and psychologically disturbed are prone to obesity as well.  Some consider Genetics to rationalize obesity. Obesity can even be aggravated after one has been diagnosed with certain diseases such as Diabetes Mellitus, Pancreatic Cancer, heart and renal diseases.

Obesity health problems may arise as one disregards treating or preventing obesity. The incidence of stroke and heart attacks is high in obese persons as fats accumulate on the arterial walls of the heart. This makes it difficult for the heart to function and the longer it has this difficulty, the weaker it becomes and the possibility of heart attacks rises. Accumulation of too much sugar resulting to Diabetes Mellitus or Hyperglycemia further aggravates obesity which leads to poor wound healing, dizziness and activity intolerance.

Obesity can be prevented. With its increasing prevalence, there should be measures taken to put this to a minimum and reduce the obesity health problems that come with it. In order to treat obesity, one must adjust diet and engage in exercise.  The reduction of food high in energy, such as fatty foods and high in sugar will be necessary. This is will allow the body to be able to use the stored fat as energy and the more it is used, the lesser it becomes. An increase in dietary fiber is needed for the body to be able to remove wasted regularly. A regular bowel habit means no body waste stored in the body, thus preventing other health problems.

Anti-obesity drugs are prescribed as well to help prevent obesity and the occurrence of obesity health problems. These drugs are given to reduce one’s appetite resulting to lesser intake of food. Some of the drugs prevent fat from being absorbed by the body. In cases of severe obesity, surgeries are performed to reduce obesity risks and danger. These biliary surgeries are done by reducing the size if the stomach in order to accommodate lesser amount of food.  These in return, lessen the food intake resulting to decrease of fat storage.

If obesity will not be taken seriously, it will remain to be the greatest risk factor of many cardiovascular diseases, musculoskeletal problems and even psychiatric illnesses.  It remains to be the easiest problem to acquire as one disregards the diet they follow and the lifestyle to live with. Obesity and being big in size is no longer an impression of wealth and abundance but a sign of health risk and problem. In fact, disregarding obesity and obesity health problems means living a life with a lot of limitations and may be short-lived.