February 2012
55 posts
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Night and Day Transformation
Long before reading break.
A: Is it just me or have you not shaved or gotten a haircut for a while?
B: You aren't imaging things. I just have been too busy with studying, you know? I can go without.
Week of reading break.
C: Wow, you're so clean shaven! And your hair is so short!
B: Yeah...I had to...My partner's coming up to visit.
Collective nod of understanding.
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cranquis asked: That matroshka doll questioner should go for BIG NERD POINTS and add a lymphatic layer! :)
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alyxjacobs asked: Hi I'm making an "anatomically correct" russian nesting doll set and need to know the order inside, out that these : skeletal, muscular, digestive, nervous, and cardiovascular, go in. Searched the web but couldn't find a straight answer! Thank you!
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“In the everyday world, you don’t see the people who end up on psychiatric...”
– Tanya Marie Luhrmann, “Of Two Minds.”
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Scientist Who Discovered Hepatitis C Has Now... →
The word “poetic” could not have been a more apt description for this story. Michael Houghton from the University of Alberta, who led a team of scientists to the discovery of Hepatitis C in 1989 announced earlier today that he has discovered the vaccine. With the diversity of hepatitis C strains, it was long thought to be impossible to develop a vaccine that could target all of them....
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“Classic.”
– The running joke in PBL when discussing classical presentation of pathology and prognosis for various conditions, now extending into daily routines and other one-off events of conversation.
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marxsparty asked: I work in EMS and am currently majoring in biology as an undergrad, I've noticed a difference in pronunciation between professors and those in the field in regards to systole/diastole. I know it's correctly pronounced sis-tol-ee, but I'm curious if those who teach in medical schools are sticklers about it, and if doctors use the two pronunciations interchangeably.
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Clinically assessing suicide risk
A new mnemonic tool we learned today for assessing suicide risk is SAD PERSONS by Patterson et al.:
Social support (lack of)
Age (<19 years old and >45 years old)
Depression
Previous attempts
Ethanol abuse
Rational thinking loss
Sex (male)
Organized plan
No spouse
Sickness (chronic or debilitating)
A clinician quickly pointed out that while this is an excellent framework, the...
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“The patient does not care about your science; what he wants to know is, can you...”
– Martin H. Fischer
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medtechema asked: What do you think is the best way or style to memorize the name of drugs? I don't want to hate pharma :)
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The Anatomical Art of Dr. Frank Scali →
I aspire to produce work that will outlive me and live by the statement of Ben Franklin, “Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing”. Trained in science, I objectify uncertainty from a logical perspective. My artistic side allows me to reveal answers to scientific questions from an imaginative angle. With these character traits, I am able to weave within the web of the...
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epplesandbenenes asked: First off, I’d like to tell you that your blog is so informative and inspiring. It makes the anticipated journey so much more real. How harsh will it be to try and handle a single mom/med school life?
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When Chronic Illness Interrupts the Rhythms of... →
Lily Altavena reflects on the challenges she faces going to college with a Crohn’s disease, an inflammatory bowel disease. I know a number of people who have inflammatory bowel disease, either Crohn’s or it’s sister ulcerative colitis; I know of people in who have other chronic illnesses; I know such people both outside of school and inside. It is an added challenge they face on...
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He's an expert
Doctor: Alright, so the next patient is in for their vitamin B12 shot. We should be in and out in no time.
Me: Sounds good.
Doctor: Have you given any injections before with your last preceptor?
Me: Only a handful. I did not get to do a flu vaccine clinic.
Doctor: Hm. Okay, well that's alright. We'll try to get you some more practice.
Enter the room
Doctor: Good to see you again VR. This is Tom, he's a medical student. He'll be giving you your shot today. He's an expert so you're in good hands. Tom, go ahead and get set up.
Patient: Really? That's wonderful!
Me: *Heart races as all eyes fall on me.*
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A New Way to Repair Bone Fractures →
University of Georgia Regenerative Bioscience Centre has been working busily developing a new method for repairing bone fractures. The team of researchers have concocted a “fracture putty” that dramatically decreases healing time by stimulating rapid bone formation. So far they have demonstrated accelerated healing in sheep and mice, in the order of a few weeks.
While they are hoping...
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Anonymous asked: Not sure if you've addressed this question before, but how do you think healthcare reform will affect you once you're out in the field?
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“Have you ever seen those television commercials for medications? Have you ever...”
– A guest speaker reflects on the state of advertising for pharmaceuticals.
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theanatomy asked: I'm in my last year of school, and I am going onto my AS/A2's next year, I'm set on Medicine. Is there any specific experiences, extra curricular activities you recommend?
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“We must all die. But that I can save him from days of torture, that is what I...”
– Albert Schweitzer (1931)
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Anonymous asked: how's med school? is it like grey's anatomy?
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Anonymous asked: Just wondering, my friend told me that we have to take a CPR class before we can like go into medical school? Sorry, but thank you. :)
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“I remember when I was in medical school, I thought I could learn everything I...”
– A guest lecturer tries to calm the class after putting up case study radiographs that nobody could interpret resulting in panic.
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5 or 6 Cups
R: Did you want a cup of coffee?
Me: I think I will pass. I'm not a big coffee drinker.
R: Are you sure? I heard it's good for the prostate.
Me: Really?
R: Yeah, like 5 or 6 cups a day. That's why I drink so much.
Me: ...R, you don't have a prostate.
R: ...It's good for your prostate.
Me: ...Did you just put that out there to justify how many cups of coffee you drink?
R: Maybe.
Me: ...Just to be clear, you don't have a prostate.
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Providing for Those Who Have Too Little by Dr.... →
In the New England Journal of Medicine, tucked away in the September 2011 issue, is a perspective piece by Dr. Margaret Seton. In it, she recounts her time as a student from Boston practicing a rural rotation in Arkansas. It vividly portrays the stark contrast between rural and urban care, the necessity for quick thinking, and the challenges of bridging a cultural gap. Things that may be taken for...
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Anonymous asked: What if I got a good GPA (>3.7) but had almost no volunteer work/extracurricular activities/research experience/physician shadowing? Do I still have a chance to get into Medical Schools?
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A Report on Visual Agnosia
Excerpt from “The Man who Mistook his Wife for a Hat” by Oliver Sacks:
I had stopped at a florist on my way to his apartment and bought myself an extravagant red rose for my buttonhole. Now I removed this and handed it to him. He took it like a botanist or morphologist given a specimen, not like a person given a flower.
“About six inches in length,” he commented....
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In a large artery acute ischemic stroke...
2 million neurones;
14 billion synapses;
12 kilometres of myelinated fibres;
Are destroyed each minute.
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Are you sure you haven't done this before?
C uses the bone saw to remove a layer of bone to gain access to a deeper part of the dissection. The instructor comes by to check the work.
Instructor: Very nicely done C. Nice clean cut and it doesn't look like you went too deep or destroyed any of the underlying tissue.
C: Good to hear.
Instructor: Are you sure you haven't done this before?
C: Well, I wasn't planning on being a surgeon by any means, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.
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Layers of Your Scalp
An acronym for the layers in your scalp is amusingly, SCALP:
Skin
Connective tissue (Dense)
Aponeurosis
Loose connective tissue
Periosteum
Well that is one less thing to worry about I guess. Next concept!
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Personal Best by Atul Gawande →
Dr. Atul Gawande, a endocrine surgeon, reflects on the art of coaching in this piece for the New Yorker. An excerpt:
I watched Rafael Nadal play a tournament match on the Tennis Channel. The camera flashed to his coach, and the obvious struck me as interesting: even Rafael Nadal has a coach. Nearly every élite tennis player in the world does. Professional athletes use coaches to make sure they...
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Anonymous asked: How significant has a background in mathematics been in medical school?
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Go with the Flow
I went to the wards to follow a doctor for a few hours. Who, I did not know; no name had been provided to me on my schedule. I would have to ask the nurses for whoever was available.
Checking in at the desk early, the nurse pointed me to the head nurse, who quickly directed me to Dr. A who was sitting at his desk writing a note. He happily took me on but had to leave quickly to see a patient as I...
Anonymous asked: Hi Tom! I just wanted to know what you think about using tablets as a study source. With the apps that it provides and other functions that are useful for studying, do you think that its better for medical students to use tablets? What do you think is the advantage and disadvantage? And what is your personal opinion on it? Thank you :)
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Glasgow Coma Scale: Verbal 3/5
A verbal score of 3/5 corresponds to the patient uttering inappropriate words. A simple example.
A: Do you know where you are?
B: Trucks.
A: B, Do you know where you are?
B: Sandwich.