Dealing with Measles

Dealing with Measles by Famhealth

Measles is a highly contagious infection caused by the measlesvirus. Initial signs and symptoms typically include fever, often greater than 40 °C (104.0 °F), cough, runny nose, and inflamed eyes. Two or three days after the start of symptoms, small white spots may form inside the mouth, known as Koplik’s spots.

  • A runny or blocked nose
  • Sneezing, watery eyes and swollen eyelids
  • Red eyes that may be sensitive to light
  • A high temperature which may lead to 40C (104F)
  • Small greyish white-spots in the mouth
  • Aches and pains
  • A cough and loss of appetite
  • Tiredness, irritability and general lack of energy.

Treatment

There is no specific treatment for measles, but the condition usually improves within 7 to 10 days. Stay away from school or work for at least four days.

If the symptoms of measles are causing discomfort for you or your child, there are some things you can do to treat these while you wait for your body to fight off the virus.

Dr. May advise some medicine to reduce a high temperature (fever) and relieve any aches or pains if your child is uncomfortable.

If your child has a high temperature, make sure they drink plenty of fluids as they may be at risk of dehydration.

Vaccination

The measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine is routinely given at 12 to 15 months of age, followed by a booster shot before entering school at the age of 4 to 6 years.

To read more on Baby care, click on the link below,

New Born

Disinfecting Your Home

Disinfecting Your Home

Disinfection is very important in imparting general hygiene in home environment specially if  your family member has just undergone a surgery, and are at risk of getting infection easily. Following are some measures to be carried out at home to reduce the spread of pathogens…

  • Washing hands with warm water and soap (preferably liquid soap) and drying them properly (with a paper towel) will remove germs . Alcohol hand-rubs are useful in the home.  Follow the steps after touching any surface  in your home and before taking foods.
  • Keep your fridge temperature between 2 and 4°C.  Make sure the seal on your fridge door works and the door closes properly.
  • Cloths, mops, towels and sponges also spread germs around..so you need to change the cloths, mops, towels and sponges frequently and wash them at 60ºC, preferably in a washing machine.
  • Hot steam-ironing helps to reduce any germs left over from washing. Don’t wash soiled clothes by hand. If you can’t avoid this, you should wear rubber or disposable gloves. never wash soiled clothes in the kitchen.
  • Should get a special sharp-objects box from your local health centre which you can give back when it is full. Keep the needles and sharp objects stored safely.
  • Clean floors, carpets and other surfaces everyday using a vaccum cleaner. You should use detergent and hot water to clean all surfaces .can also use a good quality household bleach.
  • Clean the kitchen before the bathroom and clean the sink and shower first and the toilet last. You should also have separate cleaning cloths for the kitchen and bathroom, and for the toilet and  the bath/sink.
  • Try not to keep any dirty tea towels in your kitchen. Clean your toilet bowl regularly with a lime scale remover.
  • If you use water filters for drinking water, change them regularly. If you have your own private water supply such as a bored well, you should have it tested once a year to check for germ levels.
  • You should follow the manufacturer’s instructions if you use chemicals for disinfection.

To read more on Patient Care, click on the link below.

Patient Care

                                                                 

Burns

First Aid: Dealing with Burns by Famhealth

What are burns?

Burns are damage to skin and deeper tissue caused by contact with fire, heat, electricity, radiation, or caustic chemicals.

Burns are classified according to the depth and extent of the skin damage, in the following way.

  • First-degree burns: the skin is red, painful and very sensitive to touch. The damaged skin may be slightly moist from leakage of the fluid in the deeper layers of the skin.
  • Second-degree burns: the damage is deeper and blisters usually appear on the skin. The skin is still painful and sensitive.
  • Third-degree burns: the tissues in all layers of the skin are dead. Usually there are no blisters. The burned surface can appear normal, white, black (charred), or bright red from blood in the bottom of the wound. Damage to the sensory nerves in the skin can mean that third-degree burns may be quite painless as the burned skin lacks sensation to touch. A skin graft is usually necessary for significant areas of third-degree burns.

First aid for burns

The first thing to do is to limit the extent of the damage, and prevent the burn from becoming worse.

  • Taking care that you do not put yourself at risk from the cause of the burns, move the person away from the danger area. Smother flames with a blanket or douse the person with water but beware of electricity or caustic chemicals.
  • Remove clothing or jewellery from the burned area but don’t try to peel back any clothing that is stuck to the skin.
  • The burnt area must be cooled by being placed under tepid running water. The water should not be unpleasantly cold.
  • Keep the damaged area under running water for at least one hour, or longer if the pain has not stopped. Up to four hours of this treatment can be beneficial. However, in severe burns it is more important to get the person to hospital for treatment, so don’t let this delay calling the ambulance.
  • Meanwhile keep the person warm a lot of heat can be lost from large burns so put a blanket or clothing around the non-injured areas.
  • First-degree burns, eg mild sunburn, may not require this treatment although it may help to soothe discomfort.
  • Put cling film or a plastic bag over the burn before moving the person to hospital, but don’t wrap the cling film tightly round a limb.
  • Do not put any creams on the burn at this stage, but you can give the person simple pain relief such as paracetamol.

What complications can occur?

  • When skin is burned, it loses its ability to protect, which increases the risk of infection. So it is important that the damaged area be thoroughly cleansed within the first six hours and that the area is kept clean while it is healing.
  • If, after a few days, there are signs of an infection – ie the skin is becoming increasingly red, hot, and swollen, and the victim experiences a throbbing pain or feels generally unwell or has a fever – contact a doctor or your practice nurse.
  • Severe burns can cause scarring.
  • In cases of extensive severe burns, the body may lose large quantities of fluid. This can disturb the blood circulation and cause problems with the body’s salt balance. As a result the person may go into ‘shock’ with a low blood pressure and rapid pulse. Such injuries should be assessed at your local Accident and Emergency department.
  • Heat exhaustion and heatstroke can also occur if the body temperature rises too high (for example, after excessive exposure to hot sun, often with sunburn). Watch out for extreme tiredness, rapid pulse, headache, and confusion. Help the person to cool down in the shade, with tepid water to drink and get urgent medical help if you are worried.

What can be done to prevent burns?

Be fire-conscious in the home. The kitchen is the most dangerous room in the house, and the most likely place for burns and scalds to occur. If you have small children in the house, fit a safety gate to keep them out of the kitchen.

When cooking, keep small children away from hot drinks, pans and kettles, barbecues and other open flames. Always put pans to the back of the hob if possible and turn handles to the back away from where small hands might reach.

Never throw water over oil fires, such as in a chip pan, because this will cause a fire explosion that can have severe consequences. Instead the fire should be smothered by covering the pan with a damp cloth.

Buy a proper fire-smothering blanket and keep it somewhere in the kitchen where it is easily accessible.

Hot water in the bathroom is another risk – so when there are small children in the house, fill baths by running the cold tap first. Fit a mixer to the taps and never leave a child alone in or near the bath.

Always used a fixed guard around open fires in the house.

Bonfires and camp fires are another cause of serious burns.

Never light them by throwing petrol and a lighted match at them. Behave responsibly around them and keep young children well away.

It’s become a popular game among young people at music festivals to throw gas cyclinders from barbeques into the camp fires.

This is extremely dangerous and has resulted in some very serious burn injuries, sometimes among innocent bystanders.

Festival goers should be warned against this behaviour.

Take standard advice to protect yourself from sunburn – Slip, Slop, Slap!

Slip on baggy clothing such as an oversized T shirt, slop on suncream and slap on a hat.

Keep children in the shade especially in intense sun in the middle of the day, and frequently reapply high sun protection factor (SPF) suncream especially if they are in and out of the swimming pool

To read more on First Aid, click on the link below.

First Aid

First Aid for Thorns and Glass

First Aid for Thorns and Glass by Famhealth

Stop the Bleeding

  • Apply direct pressure on the area.

Clean and Protect

  • Clean the area with warm water and gentle soap.
  • Use tweezers cleaned with rubbing alcohol to remove the object.
  • If the object is under the surface of the skin, sterilize a clean, sharp needle by wiping it with rubbing alcohol. Use the needle to gently lift or break the skin over the object. Lift the tip of the object out and grasp it with your tweezers.
  • Squeeze the wound gently to allow bleeding to wash out germs.
  • Apply an antibiotic ointment to reduce chance of infection.
  • Put a sterile bandage on the area.

Follow Up

  • For a minor cut, remove bandage after a couple of days to promote healing.
  • See a health care provider if the cut doesn’t heal or shows signs of infection, including redness, swelling, pus, or excessive pain.
  • Having said all this do not forget to take TETANUS immunization BY DOCTOR.

To read more on First Aid, click on the link below.

First Aid

AIDS

AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency
Syndrome)

Syndrome) AIDS is an aggressive form of HIV. HIV is an infection caused by HIV
virus which affects the immune system to an extent that the affected
person may become susceptible to minute infections.

AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome)

AIDS is an aggressive form of HIV. HIV is an infection caused by HIV virus which affects the immune system to an extent that the affected person may become susceptible to minute infections. A person can live with HIV infection if he/she takes appropriate treatment therapy and takes appropriate care. But if proper care and treatment is not given the infection may spread and an exaggerated form of HIV infection results in AIDS.

Anti retroviral therapy is the treatment choice for HIV infection; which in combination with other medicines can prolong the life span of a person infected with the infection.

According to World Health Organization (WHO) person living with HIV can resume a high quality of life with treatment

What is a HIV infection?

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a virus that attacks immune cells called CD4 cells, which are a type of T cell. These cells are white blood cells which protect the body against infections. When HIV targets and infiltrates these cells, it reduces the body’s ability to combat other diseases. When HIV infection occurs, the risk of many infection increases and this can even lead to death of the affected person.

What is AIDS infection?

AIDS is an exaggerated form of HIV infection. In case infected person does not take treatment for HIV infection is likely to develop into AIDS as the immune system gradually weakens. However, if HIV infection if flares leads to the AIDS infection.

What causes HIV infection?

Risk of HIV infection occurs through

  • Infected blood
  • Infected semen
  • Infected vaginal secretions
  • Infected anal fluids
  • Infected breast milk

HIV infection also happens due to sexual intercourse with an infected person. Sharing infected needles, syringes, HIV infection can also transfer from infected mother to child

Factors on which HIV infection spreads to AIDS

The risk of HIV progressing to AIDS varies widely between individuals and depends on many factors, including:

  • Age
  • Body’s internal immune system
  • Health care and proper ART therapy
  • Transmission of other infections

Symptoms

  • For the most part, infections by other bacteria, viruses, fungi, or parasites cause the more severe symptoms of HIV.
  • These conditions tend to progress further in people who live with HIV than in individuals with healthy immune systems. Normally, if internal immune system is strong it fights infections, and HIV disrupts this process. To be precise HIV virus attacks our immune system

Prevention

Preventing is the only way to prevent transmission and getting the chances of having a HIV infection. Aside from managing HIV viral load with medications, a person who lives with the disease must take precautions, including the following steps:

  • Do protected sex, wear condoms to prevent other STIs.
  • If one is HIV infected stay protected from infections talk to your doctor and take appropriate ART therapy
  • Avoid foods that are at risk of contamination, such as undercooked eggs, unpasteurized dairy and fruit juice, or raw seed sprouts.
  • Drink safe and clean water. This minimizes the chances of gastric infections
  • Antibiotic, antifungal, or antiparasitic infections can be prevented with appropriate treatment therapy

Sources:

https://www.hiv.gov/hiv-basics/overview/about-hiv-and-aids/what-are-hiv-and-aids

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hiv-aids/symptoms-causes/syc-20373524

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hiv-aids/expert-answers/early-hiv-symptoms/faq-20058415

https://medlineplus.gov/hivaids.html