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Treating osteoporosis with bisphosphonates, particularly for more than five years, has been linked to some side effects, including atypical femur fractures. Osteoporosis medications are supposed to prevent bone breaks. But if they are taken for too long, the opposite can happen. This video highlights what you need to know as a healthcare professional to educate patients
Common Benign Pain Syndromes--Symptoms and Etiology:
1. Non-specific musculoskeletal pain: This is the most common cause of back pain. Patients present with lumbar area pain that does not radiate, is worse with activity, and improves with rest. There may or may not be a clear history of antecedent over use or increased activity. The pain is presumably caused by irritation of the paraspinal muscles, ligaments or vertebral body articulations. However, a precise etiology is difficulty to identify.
2. Radicular Symptoms: Often referred to as "sciatica," this is a pain syndrome caused by irritation of one of the nerve roots as it exits the spinal column. The root can become inflamed as a result of a compromised neuroforamina (e.g. bony osteophyte that limits size of the opening) or a herniated disc (the fibrosis tears, allowing the propulsus to squeeze out and push on the adjacent root). Sometimes, it's not precisely clear what has lead to the irritation. In any case, patient's report a burning/electric shock type pain that starts in the low back, traveling down the buttocks and along the back of the leg, radiating below the knee. The most commonly affected nerve roots are L5 and S1.
3. Spinal Stenosis: Pain starts in the low back and radiates down the buttocks bilaterally, continuing along the backs of both legs. Symptoms are usually worse with walking and improve when the patient bends forward. Patient's may describe that they relieve symptoms by leaning forward on their shopping carts when walking in a super market. This is caused by spinal stenosis, a narrowing of the central canal that holds the spinal cord. The limited amount of space puts pressure on the nerve roots when the patient walks, causing the symptoms (referred to as neurogenic claudication). Spinal stenosis can be congenital or develop over years as a result of djd of the spine. As opposed to true claudication (pain in calfs/lower legs due to arterial insufficiency), pain resolves very quickly when person stops walking and assumes upright position. Also, peripheral pulses should be normal.
4. Mixed symptoms: In some patients, more then one process may co-exist, causing elements of more then one symptom syndrome to co-exist.
IV cannulation is a skill that has scared a lot of student nurses and even professionals. Perhaps it’s because IV insertion is an invasive procedure, and nurses are too worried that they might hurt their patients. Or maybe it’s because they are just clueless about IV therapy do’s and don’ts–things that one can only fully understand through constant practice.
Paracentesis is a procedure to take out fluid that has collected in the belly (peritoneal fluid). This fluid buildup is called ascites . Ascites may be caused by infection, inflammation, an injury, or other conditions, such as cirrhosis or cancer. The fluid is taken out using a long, thin needle put through the belly.
An amputation is the removal of an extremity or appendage from the body. Amputations in the upper extremity can occur as a result of trauma, or they can be performed in the treatment of congenital or acquired conditions. Although successful replantation represents a technical triumph to the surgeon, the patient's best interests should direct the treatment of amputations. The goals involved in the treatment of amputations of the upper extremity include the following : Preservation of functional length Durable coverage Preservation of useful sensibility Prevention of symptomatic neuromas Prevention of adjacent joint contractures Early return to work Early prosthetic fitting These goals apply differently to different levels of amputation. Treatment of amputations can be challenging and rewarding. It is imperative that the surgeon treat the patient with the ultimate goal of optimizing function and rehabilitation and not become absorbed in the enthusiasm of the technical challenge of the replantation, which could result in poorer outcome and greater financial cost due to lost wages, hospitalization, and therapy.