June 2005 Archives
Children's Hospital Boston, Six West, Room 613.
Click on the + to zoom. Click on Satellite for image.
A prescription, as is well known, is a physician's order for the preparation and administration of a drug or device for a patient. What may be less well known is that a prescription has several parts:
The superscription (or heading) with the symbol R or Rx which stands for the word Recipe, meaning (in Latin) to take;
The inscription which contains the names and quantities of the ingredients;
The subscription or directions for compounding the drug; and
The signature which is often preceded by the sign s. standing for signa, mark, giving the directions to be marked on the container.
There are other words on the prescription. For example, b.i.d. It means twice (two times) a day and is an abbreviation for "bis in die" which in Latin means, not too surprisingly, twice a day. It is one of a number of abbreviations of Latin terms that have been traditionally used in prescriptions to specify the frequency with which medicines should be taken.
Some of the abbreviations of terms commonly used in prescriptions with their meanings are:
a.c. = before meals (from "ante cibum," before meals)
ad lib: use as much as one desires (from "ad libitum")
b.i.d. = twice a day
caps = capsules
da or daw = dispense as written
g (or gm or GM) = gram
gtt. = drops (from "guttae," drops)
h. = hour
mg = milligram
ml = milliliter
p.c. = after meals (from "post cibum," after meals)
p.o. = by mouth, orally (from "per os," by mouth)
p.r.n. = when necessary (from "pro re nata," for an occasion that has arisen, as circumstances require, as needed)
q.d. = once a day (from "quaque die," once a day)
q.i.d. = four times a day (from "quater in die," 4 times a day)
q._h.: If a medicine is to be taken every so-many hours (from "quaque," every and the "h" indicating the number of hours)
q.h. = every hour
q.2h. = every 2 hours
q.3h. = every 3 hours
q.4h. = every 4 hours
t.i.d. = three times a day (from "ter in die," 3 times a day)
ut dict. = as directed (from "ut dictum," as directed)
I find that the word "prescription" also comes from the Latin "praescriptus" and is made up of "prae," before + "scribere," to write, so that prescription meant "to write before." They say that this reflected the historic fact that a prescription had traditionally to be written before a drug could be prepared and then administered to a patient.
More via fda.gov here.
When the surgeon asks for an instrument, Penelope retrieves it from an instrument tray. The robot picks up the instrument with a special gripper and hands it to the surgeon. When finished, the surgeon simply lays the instrument down. Penelope then uses a vision system to locate the instrument and return it to the instrument tray.
The world's first vision-guided, autonomous surgical robot. The Penelope system will save hospitals money and improve quality of care in the operating room.
More via Robotic Surgical Tech, Inc. here.
This artifact featured in the latest issue of Wired Magazine. A mirror that detects your type of cold virus.
"Antivirus Cyborg Edition
Hello Ashley: We regret to inform you that you have contracted: SOL.suXXOR Cold Virus."
Beats waiting for 48 hour cultures!
"When is it getting dark? Are they here yet? Where are they now? When is it getting dark?" Andy said.
He can't wait!
Their trip to Mexico lasted 21 days.
Children’s Hospital Boston Hosts Live Webcast of Minimally Invasive Robotic Assisted Surgery to Correct Obstructed Kidney
On Thursday June 30th 2005 at 3:00 P.M. EDT, surgeons will perform a pediatric robotic assisted laparoscopic pyeloplasty which removes an obstruction from a kidney & reconnects the kidney's drainage system.
More via ORlive here.
We are home!
Abuela Marilu is here with us.
Paulina and Sofía are still in Mexico, we expect them here soon.
'Run away Wife & Daughter?'
No central line and the plan is to finish the 14 day antibiotic treatment.
Sphingomonas paucimobilis is the name of the bug found on Andy's central line. It was last seen on Andy's blood on June 20th. And to commemorate its departure, met the plush microbes! Bugs made of plush.
Ever wonder how bugs look expanded 1,000,000 times?
Buy them via ThinkGeek.com and help Andy.
Meet Propionibacterium acnes, Treponema pallidum, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Steptococcus pyogenes, Porphorymonas gingivalis, Rhinovirus, Orthomyoxvirus, Human Immunodeficiency Virus, Epstein-Barr Virus, Streptococcus, Shigella, Helicobater pylori, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Ebola Virus, Anobium punctatum and ALH 84001.
Buy bugs via ThinkGeek.com here. Once youre on the ThinkGeek.com
website do a search for "Plush Microbes".
Dr. Derek Callaway visited Andy's room.
Dr. Callaway is Andy's doctor at the Jimmy Fund Clinic
Every morning Andy and I wake up and find a new sing on room 611 by Kelli and Lissa the night nurses.
Vote for your favorite sign below!
Click on sign for larger image:
Kelli Windy Man Andy sign
Lissa Charging Bull Andy sign
Kelli Spider Andy sign
Lissa Super Andy sign
The guest book on this website was not working.
Its working now!!.
Sign our guestbook here.
Current origin of guests at the guest book:
Mexico 50% (22)
United States of America 40.91% (18)
Fiji 2.27% (1)
Iran 2.27% (1)
Switzerland 2.27% (1)
Canada 2.27% (1)
Guest books from the past:
Guest book 2000 English here
Guest book 2001 Jan - May English here
Guest book 2001 Jun - Dec English here
Guest book 2002 Jan - May English here
Guest book 2002 Jun - Dec English here
Guest book 2003 to Jan 2005 English here
Guest book 2000 Spanish here
Guest book 2001 Jan - May Spanish here.
Guest book 2001 Jun - Dec Spanish here.
Guest book 2002 Jan - May Spanish here
Guest book 2002 Jun - Dec Spanish here
Guest book 2003 to Jan 2005 here
MRSA
Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus infections can cause a broad range of symptoms depending on the part of the body that is infected.
Infection often results in redness, swelling and tenderness, and can prove resistant to treatment. It has been linked to nearly 1,000 deaths a year.
MRSA - which has been dubbed a superbug - is the most infamous of all the hospital-acquired infections, and has dominated the headlines in recent years.
During the last general election it became one of the key battlegrounds between the parties.
Clostridium difficile
C difficile is a bacterium found in 3% of adults, although it is much more common in the elderly and babies. It is only a problem when certain antibiotics cause an imbalance of the normal bacteria of the gut. Symptoms of infection vary from nothing to diarrhoea, fever, nausea and abdominal pain. Most people make a full recovery after treatment with antibiotics, but occasionally elderly people with other conditions can have a more serious bout which can be life-threatening.
C. difficile picture:
Enterococci
Enterococci is a bacterium found in the faeces of many humans and animals. The commonest cause of infections is urinary tract and wound, but it can also affect the bloodstream, heart and brain. The bacterium is among the most antibiotic resistant. Only two expensive and potentially toxic antibiotics can treat the most serious enterococcai infections. Renal dialysis, transplant, haematology and intensive care patients are the most susceptible to infection.
Acinetobacter baumannii
Acinbetobacter is a type of bacterium that can be found in may sources in the environment, including drinking water, soil, sewage and food. Infection from most strains is rare, but there are a few, including baumannii, which can cause infection in hospital patients who are already unwell.
Such infections can include bloodstream, wound and urinary tract infections, and can become difficult to treat if they become resistant to antibiotics. Orthopaedic surgical site infections. Although not caused by one specific bacterium, orthopaedic (such as knee and hip) surgical site infections have become so concerning that ministers have ordered the number of cases to be monitored.
The results will be published later this year.
A surgical site is the incision or cut in the skin made by a surgeon to carry out the operation.
An infection can occur when bacteria from the skin - one of the most common is coagulase-negative staphylococci - or other part of the environment, which normally causes no harm, enters the cut and multiplies.
This can cause symptoms as the body tries to fight the infection, including pus, inflammation, swelling, pain and fever.
Read full article here.
It was until 6:30 pm when they called us from the OR telling us that they were ready to receive Andy to 'pull' his central line out.
He went in at 7:00 pm and came out at 7:20 pm.
Central line OUT. No more catheter.
He had it for 273 days total.
I asked the OR nurse if I could take the catheter home and she said that I couldnt. I wanted to frame it. First of all they take the tip off for culture and another thing is that they are not able to clean the inside of the catheter and since there's been chemo and other strong chemicals through there, they rather dispose of it properly. But Sofia's stem cells also traveled through that tube...
Here are some of the advantages of not having a central line I told Andy @ the OR prior to anesthesia:
1.- You will be able to take a shower and let the water run down your head!
2.- You will be able to swim!
3.- You will be able to take your T-Shirts on and off by yourself!
4.- You will be able to jump in the bed and land face down!
5.- You wont be carrying those tubes anymore!
6.- You will be able to give big hugs!
7.- No more flushes in the morning and at night.
8.- Mo more heparin locks in the morning and at night.
9.- No shirt, no problem.
10.- You will be able to show your big muscles.
Dr. Sachs is Andys Primary Fellow, she visited a few moments ago.
"Pull it" Dr. Sachs said talking about Andy's central line.
Central line no more!
As soon as there's an available OR Andy will go in and a surgeon will pull his central line out.
SCHOLAR - A person who posesses a great deal of knowledge, usually an academic who specializes in a particular subject area.
I'm currently keeping track of,
Dr. Jordan S. Orange
Dr. Raif S. Geha
Dr. Ashish Jain
Dr. Francisco Bonilla
Dr. Ofer Levy
Dr. Samuel Nurko
Dr. Sung-Yun Pai
Dr. Ronald Samuels visited Andy's room today.
Dr. Samuels is Andy's official pediatrician.
His website here.
Pictures here.
We walked with 'Hanahs Hopefuls' in memory of Hanah Rose Mc Leish, along side Tracy & Rich Mc Leish and Jen Spencer (Andy's nurse)
Abuela Marilu walked 7 miles (1 mile more to the car)!
We're walking for Children's Hospital Boston tomorrow!
You can sponsor Andy for tomorrows WALK here.
This year we decided to join a fundraising team, the 'Hanah's Hopefuls' and our team captains are Tracy & Rich Mc Leish.
Here's Hanah,
We met Tracy & Rich at Six West, the stem cell transplant unit at Children's Hospital. Hanah their beautiful daughter didn't survive her stem cell transplant. Tracy & Rich are one of the strongest parents we've ever met. Tracy & Rich are always smiling and with their smile they helped Paulina and I get through our long stay at Six West with Andy. They are really inspiring. The moment we heard about 'Hanah's Hopefuls' we joined them.
Our fundraising has been slow and if anyone of my two (maybe three)readers would like to help, just click here and make a online donation.
Thank you
Andres
House or Representatives has come out in favour of lifting the ban on the screening of human embryos for genetic diseases.
...it is time Switzerland lifted the ban on PGD. The procedure is permitted in many European countries including Britain, Denmark, Norway, France and Spain.
"We see strong reasons against, but that does not mean we are saying that parents who do it are immoral or are doing something wrong. It’s completely understandable that they would want to save their child," said Rehmann-Sutter.
More via swissinfo here.
It's here!
The title:
"LITTLE SISTER BIG GIFT - How Sofía Treviños stem cells are helping heal her brother"
Matt Cyr, Dream Magazine Editor, just sent me an email letting me know that the magazine arrived today and will be available tomorrow.
Sofía and Andy are on the cover!
Here's a picture of the photographer Mark Ostow taking Sofia & Andy the cover picture:
Children's Hospital Boston is a dream factory. They even have a magazine called DREAM.
Special thanks to,
Michelle Davis
Vice President of Public Affairs
Children's Hospital Boston
Bess Andrews
Director of Public Affairs
Children's Hospital Boston
Matt Cyr
Manager of Communications
Children's Hospital Boston
Mark Ostow
Photographer
http://ostow.com
Javier Amador-Peña
and
Patrick Bibbins
Sofía
"How To End Poverty.
Eight million peopledie each year because they are too poor to stay alive. A provocative on how we can save them."
Andy - First Birthday
"Growing Up Online.
Today's kids dwell in a world of computers and video games. Here's how parents can help them make the right choices."
Andy - Second Birthday
"THE God Gene -
Does our DNA compel us to seek a higher power? Believe it or not some scientists say yes. PLUS: A quiz- How spiritual are you?"
Paulina
"The Fastest Baton in the West.
Chicago's Georg Solti."
Andrés
"China: A Whole New Game.
U.S. Ping Pong Players at Great Wall."
NEPIN stands for The New England Primary Immunodeficiency Network. A group of family and friends of patients with Primary Immunodeficiencies. An independent non-profit organization formed under the umbrella of the Jeffrey Modell Foundation. Works in cooperation with the Immune Deficiency Foundation in the New England Area.
The Graziano family organize NEPIN events and they educate other families and the public and offer support, and they also raise money to support research.
They invited Andy to a Harbor Cruise yesterday.
Andy had a great time. Dr. Raif Geha was there, Dr. Bonilla and Dr. Butte were also there.
Here's a picture of Andy and Stevie,
Paulina & Sofia went to Alfredo & Rebeca wedding in Torreon, Mexico. They will be away until around June 25th. Andy is not allowed to travel on an airplane yet because he has a brand new immune system. Andy and I are home alone...
Two hours after Sofia & Paulina left to the airport yesterday Andy said,
"Dad when are my Mom and Sofia coming back? I miss them.." with a smile on his face.
Then he heard an airplane above and he said,
"Dad! There they go!" while pointing to the airplane through the window.
Objectives for Andy while we are home alone are:
Stay healthy.
Order your new stem cells to produce more new cells to keep you protected.
Eat more, gain weight.
Have fun.
ATF
David Baltimore (Nobel Prize 1975) discovered the NEMO gene in 1980. NEMO comes from the words Nuclear Factor Kappa B Essential Modifier. In part thanks to David Baltimore we found Andy's diagnosis and we thank him for that.
Here's what Harvard wrote about David Baltimore:
One of the world's most distinguished and influential biologists, David Baltimore has been the president of California Institute of Technology since 1997. He shared the Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine in 1975 for pioneering research on viruses, which has contributed to the understanding of AIDS, cancer, and the basis of human immune responses to disease.
Baltimore
For almost 30 years, Baltimore was a faculty member at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where his early research dealt with examining the ability of the poliovirus to infect cells. He served as founding director of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research at MIT from 1982 to 1990. From 1990 until 1994, Baltimore was president and a professor at Rockefeller University, where he received his Ph.D. in 1964.
In the area of public policy, Baltimore played an important role in creating a consensus on national policy regarding the transfer of genetic material from one organism to another. He was an early advocate of federal AIDS research and co-chaired the 1986 National Academy of Sciences committee on a National Strategy for AIDS. From 1996 to 2002, he headed the National Institutes of Health AIDS Vaccine Research Committee. Presently, he is a member of the Independent Citizens' Oversight Committee to the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, which deals, among other things, with using stem cells to replace diseased tissues.
Baltimore was born in New York City in 1938, and received a B.A. from Swarthmore College in 1960 with high honors in chemistry. His numerous honors include the National Medal of Science, awarded in 1999, and membership in the National Academy of Sciences, the Royal Society of London, and the French Academy of Sciences. He holds 15 U.S. patents, and has published more than 600 scientific articles and two books.
More via Harvard Gazette here.
I found this article at MedGadget blog today about a researcher at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem that found a way to control bacterial activity without antibiotics, he interferes with their communication process.
Only recently has it been discovered that the bacteria assembled in biofilms have a network of communication between them called "quorum sensing," which controls their collective activity (or lack thereof). These sensing signals control the physiology and pathogenicity of the bacteria in the biofilms. A boron-based molecule that is produced by these bacteria, called auto inducer-2, controls the signals in this quorum sensing process.
More via MedGadget here.
Here's what they are talking about in Australia regarding PGD.
Do parents have a moral obligation to create perfect babies? And are we ready for a future in which only the "best" are born? Amanda Dunn and Tom Noble consider the argument.
It's an idea that's as discomforting as it is intriguing: that one day, science may identify the genetic basis not only of diseases and conditions, but also of personality traits, appearances and talents. That characteristics such as impulse control, aggression, athletic ability or monogamy may eventually be found to have a basis in the blueprint of our bodies, and that embryos could potentially be screened for vulnerability to them, even before being implanted in the mother's uterus.
Worldwide, several thousand babies have been born after being tested for genetic diseases as an embryo. Australia has produced about 250 such babies, including 110 in Victoria. Cystic fibrosis is the most commonly tested disease, followed by Huntington's disease.
Read the article via The Age here.
How many words?
Word Count:
* Estimated guide
Micro Fiction 100 words
Flash Fiction 100 to 1000 words
Short Story 1,000 to 7,500 words
Novellette 7,500 to 20,000 words
Novella 20,000 to 50,000 words
Novel 50,000 to 110,000 words
Epics and Sequels over 110,000 words
Page Count:
Industry standard preferred length is 250 words per page.
My current word count is 78,349 words and still going...
The book is currently 313.40 pages long!!
IT'S A NOVEL.
Due to package design...
This voluntary recall includes all lots and all flavors of Children's TYLENOL® Meltaways 80 mg packaged in bottles and blisters, Children's TYLENOL® Soft Chews 80 mg and Jr. TYLENOL® Meltaways 160 mg packaged in blisters.
The blister package design, as well as the information on the blister package and on the blister and bottle cartons may be confusing to some consumers and could lead to improper dosing, including over-dosing.
This is what I found at Tylenol's website today
www.tylenol.com
"We cannot allow patients to die," said Marcia Boyle, CEO and chair of the Immune Deficiency Foundation (IDF). "We have an FDA-approved lifesaving therapy that cannot be used in physicians' offices because the MMA reduced reimbursement to the point that the medication isn't affordable. We are counting on Sec. Leavitt to provide immediate relief to the patients before it's too late."
Press release via Business Wire here.
More from the IDF:
Primary immune deficiency diseases represent a class of disorders in which there is an intrinsic defect in the human immune systems(rather than immune disorders that are secondary to infection, chemotherapy, or some other external agent). In some cases, the body fails to produce any or enough antibodies to fight infection. In other cases, the cellular defenses against infection fail to work properly. There are more than 80 different primary immune deficiency diseases currently recognized by the World Health Organization.
Primary immune deficiency diseases are a set of comparatively rare genetic disorders. Nonetheless, the survey suggests that approximately 50,000 persons in the United States have been diagnosed with one of these diseases. Hence, primary immune deficiency diseases are more common in the United States than some better known genetic disorders, including hemophilia (less than 15,000), cystic fibrosis 30,000) and Huntingtons Disease (30,000), among others.
If I understand correctly they are trying to educate the immune system to prevent inflammation. What side effects does this have?
Blood Works by Mary Ellen Egan,
A novel therapy using patients' own blood may reverse a deadly component of heart disease.
The human body is constantly bombarded with foreign microorganisms and antigens, a battle that triggers inflammation responses. If the body were to remain on constant high alert, tissues and organs would wear out. What saves the body over time are naturally occurring anti-inflammatory responses. Vasogen's approach is to trigger more of these responses, keeping the immune system on an even keel.
Called Celacade, the treatment has already been approved for use in Europe and is currently in late-stage trials in the U.S.
Read the article here.
Vasogen is the company who is doing this:
Recent advances in medical research have established the fundamental role of ongoing or chronic inflammation in the development and progression of heart failure, atherosclerosis, and many neurodegenerative diseases. Vasogen's products in development target destructive chronic inflammation.
Vasogen website here.
