Health News resources and information

Severe sunburn is treated like any other burn, and you should see your doctor immediately. In addition, young children are highly susceptible to dehydration, and this also needs prompt medical attention. If your child has only minor redness and soreness, and his skin feels warm, keep him indoors. Paracetamol given according to directions can help to reduce the pain. Encourage your child to drink a lot to replace fluid loss due to the burn. Showers may only aggravate the pain, so gentle bathing in tepid water is preferable. Avoid using soap on the area of the burn.

Commercial preparations available over the counter which claim to soothe sunburn usually contain some local anaesthetic, and we do not recommend their use. Never put butter on a burn — this can actually worsen the burn and lead to infection.

• if blisters break open or the fluid inside them is murky;

• if your child has a fever, or is listless;

• if you cannot control your child’s pain with the measures outlined above;

• if there is marked swelling in the area of the burn, or the burn itself looks infected.

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It is possible to store breastmilk for a short period of time, but you need to take great care because it can easily become contaminated. Make sure that your hands are clean before you handle breastmilk, and sterilise all containers prior to use. Plastic containers are preferable to glass, as these are easier to handle. Make sure that you do not fill the container to the brim as the milk will expand when frozen. Carefully label each container with the amount expressed and the date. After sealing, place the container in the refrigerator first to cool, then transfer it to the freezer. The maximum storage time for breastmilk in the freezer compartment of a two-door fridge is 2 weeks. It can be stored for up to 2 months in a deep freezer. If you place it in the refrigerator, it will only be good for 24 hours. To defrost breastmilk, place the container in warm water; never use a microwave as it can overheat the milk, thereby reducing its nutritional value.

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“We used to always get a sitter and go out,” said the wife. “Now we get a marriage sitter. The sitter makes us dinner and puts the kids to bed for us. We just live in our house. The sitter does dishes and everything. Why waste a sitter on the kids? We should get taken care of, too.”

Marriages can learn to enjoy themselves at home as well as outside the home. I assigned a marriage sitter to all of the couples, and they reported it helped in organizing the house and provided a respite from the constant and hectic daily schedule. It’s a good idea to get the marriage sitter during the week. He or she might be able to help the kids with homework, too, while you two sit and do nothing or take your walk together. If you are very courageous, you might go up to your privacy place and put in a little practice time on the posture of the future while the marriage sitter protects your privacy for you.

“I think at first it blew her mind,” said one husband. “We had her come over one Thursday a month. She made dinner for all of us, put the kids to bed, and answered the phone. We had her do one household chore that we both hated, like fold clothes or something. She stood lookout for us while we were in the bedroom. She never said a thing, but I’ll bet her parents heard about those perverts who stayed home when the babysitter was there and even went into their bedroom alone. We got some strange looks from her mother at the grocery store the other day.”

It takes courage to make a super sexual marriage. You have to be willing to stand out as a marriage, to break away from the established pattern. After a time, however, my couples found that other marriages were coming to them for,guidance. In effect, they were being asked to expand their sex clinic. I told them to avoid telling anyone what to do, but to enjoy their new advisory status by talking about what they did in their own marriage. Tell them anything you like, but keep the posture of the future a secret. Although it does serve as a marital attention-getter, it’s a symbol for more basic and substantial marital and sexual changes. It might help others become curious enough to make their own changes and open their own sex clinic.

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Touch, hold, embrace, contact, but do not have intercourse. Do not use intercourse as the ultimate negotiable item, the key criterion in the relationship. Be sexual, have sex, but don’t mistake coitus for intimacy and closeness, or use it as some type of substitute or shortcut.

“I swear they have a chart pinned inside their door. Each man’s name is written in over this type of body chart. They mark where the man left off. . . like, Fred at the knee, Al at the breast, Steve at the nipple. They give it a little at a time.” This report from a husband recalling his courtship shows clearly the immaturity of the whole situation, the bartering instead of bonding.

There are people you will want to touch right away, to hold, to be close to. There are other people with whom handholding is a major sacrifice. Let the person and your feelings be your guide, not some sex chart of cultural or gender expectations. Once we learn that sex is more decision than impulse, start teaching that in the family, in church, and at school, then we will be free to touch instead of have “foreplay,” to experience sex as a process instead of a goal.

“I didn’t want to be a tease. I loved making out, but I stopped at that. The boys thought I was terrible. I would love to just kiss all night, and they would complain that they could die from this, perhaps from some type of internal genital explosion. One night I told a boy to go ahead and masturbate, and that when he was finished, we could go back to kissing up a storm. He thought I was nuts. He called me one of the ultimate names of the day, a ‘prick tease.’ I guess he felt I was only teasing that part of him, as if it had a mind of its own. It’s strange that you never hear much about a clit tease.” This report from one of the wives about her early courtship shows the degree to which we have genitalized our lovemaking.

As it is in courtship, so it may be in marriage. If we cling to the “time bomb” theory of sex, that once the fuse is set, there must be an ultimate explosion, we miss out on some of the most exciting and intimate experiences of human interaction: the freedom to touch and kiss and hold just for the sake of doing only that.

One of the wives reported, “Now that our therapy is finished, do you know what we like to do? I know this sounds strange, but we go out in the car at night and neck. Just neck. We get so turned on that the windows steam over like the old days. That’s all, we just do that. It’s great.”

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The earlier tetanus develops then the worse the outcome and the longer it takes to develop then the better the likely result.

The tetanus germs produce a poison or toxin which affects the nervous system.

The first symptoms are often restlessness and agitation which is then followed by spasm of the muscles.

The jaw muscles are often the first affected and so the patient has difficulty in opening the mouth — the old name for tetanus was lock-jaw.

Eventually all the muscles go into severe cramps or spasms and breathing may be affected and the patient may then die of lung or heart failure.

The modern treatment of tetanus is to sedate the patient heavily with massive doses of diazepam, a tranquilliser and a curare-like muscle relaxant drug used in anaesthesia.

A tracheotomy, or opening of the windpipe is made and the patient is put on a breathing machine and breathes artificially.

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Potassium is often given in the form of tablets particularly when taking large doses of diuretics.

Some newer drugs have a mild diuretic action and a potassium-sparing effect as well. These are often added to the diuretic to prevent the excretion of potassium and so no added potassium is necessary.

We now believe we have somewhat over-reacted to the reports about the need to add extra potassium when using diuretics.

When the diuretic is used to control high blood pressure, there is usually no need for extra potassium. It may be necessary in treating heart failure if digitalis is used as well.

In liver and kidney disease, regular blood tests, will determine whether potassium is low, and when the supplements are necessary.

Although there is little risk from taking extra potassium if it is not needed, the real problem is that the normal dose is six tablets daily. This extra load on top of those prescribed to treat the condition may make some people give all their tablets away or take a reduced dose.

Better patient compliance seems to go with fewer tablets and the less often they need to be taken during the day.

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As bow legs are common before the age of two, so knock knees are common in the age group two to five.

As with bow legs and in-toeing, there is little functional impairment from this condition but the appearance is unattractive and may require treatment.

Knock knees are thought to be due to posture and sleeping habits, although some researchers doubt this.

Sleeping on the back with the legs and feet rotated outwards like a frog, may be the cause. Or a child may sleep on his face with the legs extended and the feet turned in, but apart from each other.

Knock knees usually do not require treatment unless the child, standing with knees together, has the ankles at a greater distance than 10 cm (4 in).

Normally, if treatment is required, the legs can be placed in splints during sleep. Rarely are operations necessary.

It is wise for parents to avoid “folk lore” treatments, such as making the child wear his shoes on the opposite feet. This doesn’t work.

If parents are worried by their children’s feet and legs, medical advice should be sought. Most cases will not require treatment and will spontaneously revert to normal.

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Radiation is of course a problem with all forms of X-rays. The tavs are not completely harmless. Unlike light and the other forms of electromagnetic radiation, X-rays are a form of ionising radiation.

This word ‘ionising’ means that the X-rays are capable of damaging the actual molecules of substances that they pass through. The amount of damage depends on the ‘strength’ of the X-rays and the length of exposure. There is no amount of radiation that can be guaranteed as absolutely safe but it is believed that the amount of radiation involved in taking X-rays has only a very minute chance of causing problems such as cancer in the future. Every effort is made to keep the radiation to a minimum. Much research has gone into developing equipment that will take good X-rays with the least possible amount of radiation going through the patient. The rays only pass through you for a very short time while the machine is turned on. Your doctor and X-ray specialists between them should ensure that X-rays are taken in such a way that they get the maximum information for the least possible amount of radiation. Ask them about this if you are worried. They should tell you why the X-rays are being taken, what information they will give, and why it is important to have this information.

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Divorce or separation. Like bereavement, divorce or separation has the potential for great psychological disruption to an individual’s life. Again, during this time, lifestyle requirements suffer as the need for health sinks lower in an individual’s hierarchy of needs. Again, the primary concern is to deal with the psychological anguish associated with the primary cause rather than attempt to impose yet another stressor on the individual. There are some indications that women cope with divorce or separation better than men. Because they often have better coping skills, it might be predicted, therefore, that a woman’s gain in body fatness after these periods may be less than that of a man’s, although there is little scientific evidence to support this.

Myth-information. ‘Fat-burning’ tablets are a figment of the marketers’ imagination. No tablets (especially those sold without prescription) will have a permanent, long term effect on fat loss, and many can be counter-productive.

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How long should I wait before resuming walking and tennis after having a hysterectomy?

Most women who have had a laparoscopic or vaginal hysterectomy can walk short distances within a week and longer distances after about three weeks. For abdominal hysterectomy, add a further two weeks. From then on, be guided by how you feel. By all means play tennis if this does not unduly distress or tire you.

I had a hysterectomy with removal of the uterus and cervix two years ago when I was twenty-eight Am I still ovulating? What is happening to the eggs?

The ovaries should not be affected by removal of the uterus and cervix and so they are probably still releasing eggs. These pass into the abdomen where they quickly disintegrate. It is, however, not possible to give a categorical answer about what is happening to your ovaries. Even though they have not been removed, they may have been adversely affected by the hysterectomy, perhaps because of adhesion formation or perhaps due to some disturbance to their blood supply. Ovarian sex hormone production and release of eggs may diminish and menopause may occur four or so years earlier than expected.

If I have an endometrial resection, will I still have heavy menstrual periods?

After this procedure about 25% of women have no periods afterwards, 60% are having light or normal periods a year later, and 15% continue to have heavy bleeding. Within four years of an endometrial resection about 20% of women experience heavy bleeding again. Many of these women go on to have a hysterectomy.

Will I still be fertile after an endometrial resection or ablation?

Pregnancy is unlikely. If it occurs, however, the risk of complications will be above average.

Is there an increased risk of uterine cancer after endometrial resection or ablation?

There is no evidence of any increased risk at this stage. Follow-up studies to date have been reassuring although they have been of relatively short duration (covering a period of four to six years since the operation). In order to watch for any pattern of adverse effects and to study the outcome of treatment, consideration should be given to the establishment of a national register in Australia of women who have had an endometrial resection or ablation.

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