Surgical Time-Out, circa Year 2050

In the year 2050, surgical time-outs have reached a new level of safety to ensure the utmost care and risk reduction for patients.Unlike the primitive time-outs performed in the the first decade of the 21st century (2000-2012) which involved one designated individual to confirm prior to incision (Basic9), the patient name, surgical site, performing surgeon, allergies, antibiotic administration, positioning, x-ray name confirmation, fire hazards,...

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Dr. Chang a Washingtonian Top Doctor for 2012

For 2012, Dr. Chang was selected as a Washingtonian Top Doctor in the field of otolaryngology (page 120). This year's list was published in the March 2012 issue of the magazi...

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Hiccups and Laryngospasm

So one day I was having some bad hiccups... you know, the obnoxious kind complete with strangled noise and chest jerks.However, this experience unlike the numerous prior episodes of hiccups triggered an intellectual brainstorm about breathing and stridor in general.FACT:Hiccups (aka singultus) are due to brief, intermittent, and involuntary diaphragm contractions against a closed glottis. For the layperson, this means during a hiccup:Your body takes...

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Allergy Shots in the Leg? Abdomen?

It is not uncommon that we have patients that ask if allergy shots can be administered in the leg (or other part of the body) rather than the usual behind the upper arm.Before we answer that question, let's ask why we given it in the upper arm in the first place!1) Easy to access2) Easy to monitor for any adverse reaction3) All the good studies done are based on injections administered to the upper arm4) No good studies performed determining whether...

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Greater Patient Satisfaction At Expense of Better Care?

Much has been made about improving patient satisfaction in the healthcare industry in the belief that greater patient satisfaction equates with better health. To this end, patients are routinely asked to complete a survey based on their impressions on the care they received.BUT... does greater patient satisfaction actually result in or is the result of better care???According to a recent study... higher patient satisfaction actually resulted in:•...

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Skin Patch Immunotherapy for Allergy Cure

Over the years, there have been a variety of systems via which physicians and researchers have attempted to cure patients of their inhalant allergies.These include (click here for a description of each):• Allergy shots• Under the tongue allergy drops (SLIT)• Intra-Lymphatic Injections (ILIT)• Allergy Tablets• Epicutaneous Immunotherapy (EPIT)• Intra-Nasal Spray• Bronchial InhalersWell... we can now add skin patches to the list.European researchers...

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New Video on Newborn Hearing Testing

Given how often we see newborns in need of hearing testing, we have produced a video showing how the two main types of non-verbal hearing tests are performed today: Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR) and Otoacoustic Emission (OAE).Given newborns can not communicate whether they can hear or not, such hearing tests depend on the ability to detect nerve signals transmitting sound information from the ear all the way to the brain. This type of test is much like an EKG which can detect the electrical activity of the heart.Watch the video to see how ABR...

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Adele Speaks About her Vocal Cord Surgery on 60 Minutes

When it was first reported that Adele was undergoing vocal cord surgery in October 2011, there was much speculation regarding what exact vocal cord pathology she suffered from (hemorrhage? polyp?) and what type of vocal cord surgery she underwent for correction (laser? cutting?).During her 60 Minutes interview with Anderson Cooper which aired on February 12, 2012, many details regarding her vocal cord problems have clarified.She apparently suffered...

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What is the Voicebox Doing When You Scream? Yodel?

In the same spirit of a recent TEDMED talk by Nate Bell and re-published on CNN Jan 12, 2012 whereby he performed various beatboxing noises while stroboscopy was performed, I decided to record a similar video with a person performing various unusual human vocalizations to see what happens.For those who don't know what stroboscopy is, click here.Such vocalizations recorded included various types of human screams and a yodel.Check it out here...

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