Disease Blog: Arthritis

Arthritis is the inflammation of one or more of your joints. Most kinds of arthritis cause pain and swelling in your joints, the space in which two bones meet. There are many types of arthritis. For example, there is osteoarthritis, which is the most common type of arthritis. It usually happens as a result of an injury or old age. 

Symptoms of arthritis include fatigue, joint pain, joint tenderness, joint swelling, joint redness, joint warmth, and joint stiffness. You will also experience decreased range of motion. Some types of arthritis can be caused by uric acid crystals, infections, or underlying disease, such as psoriasis or lupus.


If you have these risk factors, then you are susceptible to getting arthritis: family history of arthritis, old age, are a women, past joint injury, and obesity.

The treatment depends on the type of arthritis you have. For all arthritis in general, analgesics help reduce pain and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs help control both pain and inflammation. There are also many over the counter counterirritants that help with pain, as well. Physical therapy can be helpful for improve range motion and strengthen the muscles surrounding joints. 

Alternative remedies with little evidence include acupuncture, glucosamine, electrical nerve stimulation, yoga, and massages. These remedies have only been reported to work but is not scientifically proven to help.

Weight loss, exercise, heat and cold application, and assistive devices can improve your lifestyle if you have arthritis.

Reference:
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/arthritis/basics/definition/con-20034095

Career Blog: Athletic Trainer

Athletic trainers (ATs for short) are health care professionals work with physicians to provide preventative services, emergency care, clinical diagnosis, therapeutic intervention and rehabilitation of injuries and medical conditions. They treat professional, college, secondary school and youth athletes, dancers, musicians and military personnel. Athletic trainers can work in schools, physician clinics, hospitals, and manufacturing plants.

Many ATs include formal instruction in injury/illness prevention, first aid and emergency care, assessment of injury/illness, human anatomy and physiology, therapeutic modalities, and nutrition. Most ATs have bachelors or masters degrees. Over 70% of certified athletic trainers hold at least a masters degree. You must also pass  the test administered by the Board of Certification. When training, trainers must work under the supervision of a physician.

The salary of an athletic trainer is typically from $35,000 to $75,000 a year.

References:
http://www.nata.org/athletic-training

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lack Chapter 21-24

Discussion Questions for Chapter 21-24

Chapter 21

1-What can we deduce from Rebecca's first meeting with Sonny Lacks about his character?

2-Why do Sonny and Lawrence keep repeating "That's a miracle"?

3-What does David Lacks think about all that Henrietta's cells have done?

4-What do the Lacks think that the Hopkins doctors did to black people?

5-What is the Lacks family's biggest complaint about how they have been treated by the Hopkins doctors?

Chapter 22

6-Why didn't the surgeons honor Gey's request to have his body donated to research?

7-Did Gey benefit from research he lent his body for?

8-What was the purpose of President Nixon's National Cancer Act?

9-How did Henrietta's name become public?

10-Should Henrietta's name have been released at all?

Chapter 23

11-How did Bobbette find out about HeLa cells?

12-Why did researchers want DNA from the Lacks family?

13-What was the role of informed consent in the Lack's encounters with the Hopkins doctors?

14-What were Deborah's fears about her mother's cells being alive?

15-What is the significance of Hsu's request?

Chapter 24

16-Why did Rogers go looking for the Lack's family?

17-How did Rogers discover Henrietta's real name?

18-Did George Gey profit from his research with HeLa cells?

19-Why did Deborah start researching her mother's cells?

20-Should McKusick and Hsu have published the information about the Lack's family?