Cure Urinary Tract Infections with Baking Soda

Most urinary tract infections are caused by E. coli bacteria, which are normally found in the rectum. A urinary tract infection can also be caused by an infection of the bladder or urethra. Symptoms of a UTI include frequent and urgent needs to urinate, painful urination, cloudy urine, lower back or abdominal pain, and blood in the urine. A good way to cure a UTI is to use baking soda. Baking soda makes the bladder more alkaline, which prevents bacteria from multiplying. Mix 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda with 8 ounces of water at the first sign of symptoms of a UTI and drink once or twice a day until you see a doctor and start taking antibiotics.

Prevent Cavities with Apples

The popular saying "an apple a day keeps the doctor away" may be true or at least they can keep cavities away. Apples increase the flow of saliva, which washes away sugars from food and reduces bacteria buildup. Saliva is good at decreasing mouth acidity and washing away food particles.

The Facts of Therapeutic Substitution

There currently are pharmacies that are practicing therapeutic substitution when it comes to filling prescription medications. Therapeutic substitution happens when a drug that is considered to be therapeutically equivalent to a second drug, even though it might not be chemically equivalent to the prescribed drug, is given to the person filling the prescription without their permission or acknowledgment. That means that a pharmacy can change your prescribed medication to a different one without asking for your permission or letting you know beforehand. It can happen due to costs to the insurer, changes in insurance coverage, new drugs on the market that can treat the same condition, a medication is no longer covered by the insurance company, when your doctor wants you to switch to a drug that might be more effective, and when another drug is available at a lower cost. Pharmacies can also do a substitution if the drug you are prescribed is not on the pre-approved list that insurance will cover.

There are negative sides to therapeutic substitution because the new drug might not work as well or might differently that the one originally prescribed. It could have side effects that you are not aware of or might have a negative interaction with other prescriptions that you make take. The new drug might have a dosing schedule that could be inconvenient for you.

It is recommended to check the label of your medication after it is filled to make sure that it is the one that was originally prescribed. If you have questions or feel unsure about something, don't feel afraid to talk to your pharmacist.

Heart Doctor Pioneer Michael DeBakey Dies

Dr. Michael DeBakey, the famous cardiovascular surgeon that pioneered the bypass surgery and inventor of many devices to help people with heart problems, has died at the age of 99 from natural causes at the Methodist Hospital in Houston, TX. In 1932, while he was still in medical school, he invented the roller pump, which later became the most important part of the heart-lung machine. The machine takes over the responsibilities of the heart and lungs during surgery. He was also the pioneer in the development of artificial hearts and heart pumps to help people waiting for transplants. He had helped to create more than 70 surgical instruments in his lifetime.

In the 1950s, DeBakey was the first person to perform the replacement of arterial aneurysms and obstructive lesions. He had developed bypass pumps and connections to replace parts of diseased arteries.

He had performed more than 60,000 heart surgeries in his career that lasted 70 years. His patients had included the Duke of Windsor, the Shah of Iran, King Hussein of Jordan, Turkish President Turgut Ozal, Nicaraguan leader Violetta Chamorro, President Kennedy, President Johnson, and President Nixon. He was a consultant when Russian President Boris Yeltsin had surgery.

He served as the chairman of the President’s Commission on Heart Disease, Cancer, and Stroke during President Johnson’s administration. He had helped to establish the National Library of Medicine and was the author of more than 1,000 medical reports, papers, chapters, and books on surgery, medicine, and similar topics.

In 1953, he performed the first Dacron graft to be able to replace part of occluded arteries. In the 1960s he started coronary artery bypasses. In 1966, he was the first person to successfully use a partial artificial heart. In the 1990s, he helped to create the Michael E. DeBakey Heart Instititute at Hays Medical Center.

Vegas Clinic Sickens Thousands of Hospitals

Almost 40,000 people learned this week that a visit to their local doctor may have made them sick. A Las Vegas clinic has been found to reuse syringes and vials of medication for almost four years. This situation may have led to the outbreak of hepatitis C and exposure to HIV. This discovery has led to the biggest public notification operation in U.S. history. It has caused demands for investigation and has caused lawyers to seek out patients at risk for infections. The surgical center and five affiliated clinics have had to be closed.

Thousands of patients are being advised to be tested for viruses. Six acute cases of hepatitis C have been confirmed

Hospital Fined After Operating on Wrong Side of Body Again

A Rhode Island hospital was fined $50,000 and reprimanded by the state Department of Health Monday after their third situation this year of a doctor performing brain surgery on the wrong side of a patient’s head. The most recent situation happened on Friday when the chief resident started brain surgery on the wrong side of the head of an 82 year old patient. The patient is okay, but back in August, a patient died a few weeks after a doctor performed brain surgery on the wrong side of the head. After that the hospital received an independent review of its neurosurgery practices and it has to have better verification from doctors of its surgery plans. The hospital says that it is currently working with the Department of Health to reduce the risk of medical errors. They also say they are re-evaluating their training policies and providing more oversight by giving the nursing staff the power to make sure that the procedures are properly followed.

Along with the fine, the state has ordered the hospital to make a neurosurgery checklist that has information about the location of the surgery and the patient’s medical history. They also have to make a plan to train the staff of the new checklist.

Doctors Create Schizophrenic Mice

It is reported that scientists have created the world’s first schizophrenic mice so that they could have a better understanding of the illness and be able to develop treatments. The mice were created by modifying their DNA to mimic a mutant gene first found in a Scottish family with a high incidence of schizophrenia. The egg cells of mice were genetically changed by injecting a gene associated with schizophrenia into their DNA. The eggs were fertilized and grown into baby mice using surrogate mothers.

The mice’s brains were found to have features similar to humans with schizophrenia, such as depression and hyperactivity.