Shout Outs

Updated 3/2017 -- photos and all links (except to my own posts) removed as many no longer active. and it was easier than checking each one.

Dr Anonymous is this week's host of Grand Rounds.   You can read this week’s edition here (photo credit).

Greetings from Atlanta, Georgia which is about 800 miles from Doctor Anonymous World Headquarters in Northeastern Ohio. What am I doing here? Well, I'm attending my first HIMMS conference (which stands for the Healthcare Information and Management Systems) annual meeting.

These are the 37 best posts that the medical blogosphere has to offer this week. In my editors picks, I wanted to highlight what I think are well-written stories. There is also a short excerpt from each of my picks this week…………..

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Dr Val, Better Health, is attending the HIMSS in this week in Atlanta.  Check out the ways to interact with her and the team.

1. Watch live interviews of exhibitors, conducted by physicians on UStream. Tune in to Dr. Val's UStream coverage (beginning at 9:30am each morning at HIMSS, March 1, 2, and 3rd).

2. Follow @drval on twitter.  Tweet your questions to her during the interviews. She may ask the interviewees YOUR questions LIVE.  Follow the Twitter hashtag #HIMSS10 during the event to see tweets from UStream attendees and others.

3. Meet the bloggers at HIMSS. There will be a special panel discussion with Dr. Val and other popular health IT bloggers scheduled in the HIMSS Social Media Center.

4. Blog Talk Radio: HIMSS Wrap Up With Dr. Val and Dr. Anonymous. Tune in to the Dr. Anonymous show at 8pm ET, Wednesday, March 3rd to hear final impressions about the show. Call in to discuss the event with hosts, or join the chat room.

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St. Baldrick's is a fundraising foundation dedicated to raising funds for pediatric cancer research.  Shadowfax is Going Bald Once More

Yup, St Patrick's day is soon approaching, and that means that St Baldrick's day is also approaching…. 

This is my third year doing this, and I do it in memory of my friend Nathan Gentry, who lost his battle with Neuroblastoma at age seven, and in memory of Henry Scheck, who passed away from Medulloblastoma.

Thanks for your consideration.
Click here to donate.

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Dinah, Shrink Rap, critiques the NY Times article on depression in her post: Why Can't We Be Sad?

Today's New York Times Magazine has a really interesting article by Jonah Lehrer called "Depression's Upside." Mr. Lehrer talks about a possible evolutionary purpose for Major Depression…..

So I didn't like the article at the beginning; it relied on anecdotes--the woman who felt so much better with antidepressants that she'd grown complacent in a bad marriage, for example. It doesn't capture all the patients I see, and any way you dice it, if you end up dead from suicide, your productivity comes to a halt. It seems to me that there are some people who suffer in ways that these anecdotes don't explain. I suppose, however, even if we assume that depression is an unproductive, tormenting state, when it ends, is there something to be gained from having gone through it. Lehrer tells us, "Wisdom isn't cheap, and we pay for it with pain." I, personally, think there remains a differentiation between pain and major depression, and that perhaps one can grow through all sorts of suffering, and I'm all in favor of finding my own personal path to wisdom in ways that might not entail so much suffering. Just a thought…….

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From Paul Levy, Running a Hospital, comes more from Haiti:  Dr. Cocchi goes to Haiti

This is a story about and by Michael N. Cocchi, MD, a fellow in Critical Care Medicine in our Department of Emergency Medicine. He joined a group of doctors and nurses recently in a medical relief mission to Haiti. It was his first time on such a mission. When I heard some of his stories, I asked if he would be willing to share them with us…………

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From Dr Wes comes even more from Haiti:  

Dr. Mike Howard - one of our plastic surgeons, is live-blogging from Haiti. Here's a sample:

Looking at the historical course of cases here has been quite interesting. The quake occured on 12 January. Most amputees relate their first operation was not until 19, 20 or 21 January. Most ex-fixes went on between 22 Jan and 3 Feb. There will be a huge need here in 3-4 weeks just taking off exfixes. The scene is bad now 6 weeks out; I cant imagine the traumatic, mangled extremity scene the first week post quake. Thousands of crushes untreated for days.

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Another one from  Dr Wes  is one on a topic many are familiar with:  Occupational Sciatica

Ever note lower back pain that radiates down your leg after standing at a cath lab or operating room table?

Timothy Sanborn, MD, director of cardiology at our institution shared his experience with this occupational hazard in a recent editorial (pdf) from Catheterization and Cardiovascular Interventions and offers an interesting non-invasive remedy short of laminectomy: hyperextension of the lower back using McKenzie exercises (video).

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For those of you who sew or quilt, check out this nice post from  Charlie, It’s Just Me:  Sew, A Needle Pulling Thread (photo credit)

I get asked this question at least once a day, what needle do I need to buy? In turn I ask what type of fabric are you sewing on and what kind of thread are you going to be using?…..

The photo above shows you how a stitch is formed.

The eye of the needle should be 40% larger than the diameter of the thread. When going to a larger size of thread a larger needle should be used. Use the appropriate needle for the type of fabric being sewn. Size 80 needles works great for 40 weight thread, 75 would be great for 50 weight thread. The finer the thread and the finer the fabric that is being sewn, the finer the needle. ……..

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Dr Anonymous’ guests this week will be Dr. Rob from Musings of a Distractible Mind.    Come join us.

Upcoming Dr. A Shows (9pm ET)

3/11 : EMS Podcaster Greg Friese
3/18 : Dr. Lucy Hornstein from Musings Of A Dinosaur