I can't get my head around pharmacology

Complimentary medicine (CAM) is controversial, especially when it is offered by the NHS! You only have to read the recent health section of the Telegraph to see Max Pemberton and James LeFanu exchanging strong opinions. Most of the ‘therapies’ available on the market have little to no evidence base to support their use and yet, I believe that it has an important role to play in modern medicine. I believe that CAM is useful not because of any voodoo magic water or because the soul of a tiger lives on in the dust of one of its claws but because modern medicine hasn’t tested EVERYTHING yet and because EVERY DOCTOR should be allowed to use a sugar pill or magic water to ease the anguish of the worried well every now and again. The placebo effect is powerful and could be used to help a lot of patients as well as save the NHS a lot of money. I visited my grandfather for a cup of coffee today. As old people tend to do we discussed his life, his life lessons and his health . My grandfather is 80-something years old and worked as a collier underground for about 25 years before rising up through the ranks of management. In his entire life he has been to hospital twice: Once to have his tonsils removed and once to have a TKR – total knee replacement. My granddad maintains that the secret of his good health is good food, plenty of exercise, keeping his mind active and 1 dried Ivy berry every month! He takes the dried ivy berries because a gypsie once told his father that doing so would prevent infection of open wounds; common injuries in those working under ground. It is my granddad’s firm belief that the ivy berries have kept him healthy over the past 60 years, despite significant drinking and a 40 year pack history! My grandfather is the only person I know who takes this quite bizarre and potentially dangerous CAM, but he has done so for over half a century now and has suffered no adverse effects (that we can tell anyway)! This has led me to think about the origin of medicine and the evolution of modern medicine from ancient treatments: Long ago medicine meant ‘take this berry and see what happens’. Today, medicine means ‘take this drug (or several drugs) and see what happens, except we’ll write it down if it all goes wrong’. Just as evidence for modern therapies have been established, is there any known evidence for the ivy berry and what else is it used for? My grandfather gave me a second piece of practical advice this afternoon, in relation to the treatment of open wounds: To stop bleeding cover the wound in a bundle of spiders web. You can collect webs by wrapping them up with a stick, then slide the bundle of webs off the stick onto the wound and hold it in place. If the wound is quite deep then cover the wound in ground white pepper. I have no idea whether these two tips actually work but they reminded me of ‘QuickClot’ (http://www.z-medica.com/healthcare/About-Us/QuikClot-Product-History.aspx) a powder that the British Army currently issues to all its frontline troops for the treatment of wounds. The powder is poured into the wound and it forms a synthetic clot reducing blood loss. This technology has been a life-saver in Afghanistan but is relatively expensive. Supposing that crushed white pepper has similar properties, wouldn’t that be cheaper? While I appreciate that the two are unlikely to have the same level of efficacy, I am merely suggesting that we do not necessarily dismiss old layman’s practices without a little investigation. I intend to go and do a few searches on pubmed and google but just thought I’d put this in the public domain and see if anyone has any corroborating stories. If your grandparents have any rather strange but potentially useful health tips I’d be interested in hearing them. You never know they may just be the treatments of the future!  

This anecdote happened many years ago when I was a brand new (read: inexperienced) physician doing my stint in the Colonial Health Service of the former Belgian Congo. I was assigned to a small hospital in the interior of the Maniema province. Soft tissue infections and abscesses were rather common in this tropical climate, but at one time there seemed to be virtual epidemic of abscesses on the buttocks or upper arms. It seemed that patients with these abscesses were all coming from one area of the territory. That seemed rather odd and we started investigating. By way of background let me say that the hospital was also serving several outlying clinics or dispensaries in the territory. Health aides were assigned to a specific dispensary on a periodic basis. Patients would know his schedule and come to the dispensary for their treatments. Now this was the era of “penicillin.” The natives were convinced that this wonder drug would cure all their ailments, from malaria and dysentery, to headaches, infertility, and impotence. You name it and penicillin was thought to be the cure-all. No wonder they would like to get an injection of penicillin for whatever their ailment was. As our investigation demonstrated, the particular health aide assigned to the dispensary from where most of the abscesses came, would swipe a vial of penicillin and a bottle of saline from the hospital’s pharmacy on his way out to his assigned dispensary. When he arrived at his dispensary there was usually already a long line of patients waiting with various ailments. He would get out his vial of the “magic” penicillin, show the label to the crowd and pour it in the liter bottle of saline; shake it up and then proceed to give anyone, who paid five Belgian Francs (at that time equivalent to .10 US $), which he pocketed, an injection of the penicillin, now much diluted in the large bottle of physiologic solution. To make matters worse, he used only one syringe and one needle. No wonder there were so many abscesses in the area of injection. Of course we quickly put a stop to that. Anyone interested in reading more about my experience in Africa and many other areas can download a free e book via Smashwords at: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/161522 . The title of the book is "Crosscultural Doctoring. On and Off the Beaten Path"  

I would like to say "well done, Mark Zuckerberg" as Facebook tops 1 billion active users! But all this is while 1 billion people in the world never see a health worker in their entire lives. The internet is the most powerful tool of our generation and there is no doubt that its influence will increase further in the future. I think we can all recognise the success of an enterprise such as Facebook and it is certainly a commendable feat to bring 1 billion people closer together on a regular basis. Well done Mark Zuckerberg! But does this not highlight some bigger questions? When will we see the internet making a real difference? I don't mean to belittle any enterprise such as Facebook which excites and energises a huge community, but when will we see a movement that has such an impact to save and improve billions of lives every month? The WHO Global Health Workforce Alliance estimates that there are a billion people alive today who will never see a health worker in their lives... Ever! We are not short of the tools to change this. So, how will this movement come about? Will it be a political push? Will it be an established company that walks in the 'right' direction? Or could it come from the grassroots? I believe this is one of the greatest challenges of our generation, and the most exciting challenge I can think of. As a doctor and co-founder of Meducation, we have started a movement in the right direction. Meducation aims to unite the medical community - yes all of it, but we know our limits. You can not make such an impact in one step. Most of the charitable solutions and philanthropic activity takes us huge leaps in the right direction and these are of significant importance, but will we ever see the sort of impact possible if we can't maintain the ability to push forwards with the attrition needed to effectively get this right. I would assume that most of those who have set up an innovative and successful solution to a problem would say that they could not achieve this with an element of freedom to experiment, try different methods and approaches before finding the formula that works. Is it not the same with this problem? The solution is going to grow from the grassroots and for us at Meducation, although we are starting with health workers in the UK, we certainly see the hopeful future where the health workers in the developing countries can gain access to the educational material and support they need from the rest of the community. With the global medical community working closely together, we will be better placed to help the 1 billion people who would have never see a health worker in their lives. So well done Mark.... but there are still bigger fish to fry.  

Many know that engaging in regular physical activity and exercise will tremendously improve one’s health and overall well-being. This goes the same, if not tenfold, for individuals suffering with diabetes. However, before rushing in a high intensity or physically straining physical régime, consult with your diabetes care provider. Make sure to discuss your plans take note of any precautions that may be needed to be made prior or during these activities. It will be interesting to know that individuals with type 2 diabetes who do participate in some exercise (even at work) reduce their risk for heart disease. Remember that a physical examination that focuses on the signs and symptoms of diseases affecting the heart and blood vessels, eyes, feet, nervous system, and kidneys must be made in advance before any extensive work out plan takes into action. Any strenuous strength training or high-impact exercise is generally not recommended for people with uncontrolled diabetes. Such strain caused by these exercises can weaken blood vessels in the eyes of patients who suffer from the common diabetic complication known as retinopathy. High-impact exercise can also injure blood vessels in the feet. In fact, diabetes can contribute to foot problems in several ways: diabetic neuropathy; which is a nerve disorder that causes numbing and pain in the hands, legs and feet as well as damage to internal organs; also poor circulation to the feet is another problem that can be associated due to diabetes. Keeping this in mind it is imperative to keeping your feet healthy, investing in some great therapeutic footwear like these can be a great step in moving toward healthy feet! One thing is for sure, physical activity can increase the health in anyone’s life. Always make sure to take care of your body and take the extra precautions needed in order to maintain proper health.