'International Lefthanders Day'

From scissors to knives, from can openers to cork screws, Left Handers (also sometimes called Southpaws) can be the brunt of jokes all year long due to their unique hand dominance.

But this is the day to ignore all of that and bring awareness to all of those right handed folks around the globe in celebration of Left Handers Day. After all, as the old saying goes– right handed people operate on the left side of the brain, which means that left handed people are functioning on the right side.

Therefore, only left handed people are in their right mind!



It’s time to take a look at Left Handers Day!

Read more here. . . .

August 13, 2023

 

COVID LEVELS ARE LOW AND RISING MODESTLY NATIONALLY.  WE ARE NOT SEEING A SIGNIFICANT SURGE OF CONCERN AT THIS TIME. THERE IS NOTHING CURRENTLY THAT COMPARES TO THE PREVIOUS SURGES. 

XBB1 IS THE COMMON SUB-TYPE AND EG.5.1, ERIS, IS A RISING VARIANT, BUT IT’S SIGNIFICANCE IS MODEST AT THIS TIME.   THE TALK OF INCREASE IS REAL, BUT NUMBERS REMAIN LOW COMPARED TO PREVIOUS PEAKS.  WORRY FACTOR IS LOW. 

WE CONTINUE TO SEE COVID PRIMARILY IN TRAVELERS AND IN PEOPLE WHO HAVE NOT HAVE COVID YET WHO ARE EXPOSED TO RECENT TRAVELERS. CONSIDER BOOSTING 2 WEEKS OR MORE PRIOR TO TRAVEL…. AND MASKING DURING TRAVEL WILL KEEP YOUR TRIP COVID-FREE.

TIMING OF VACCINATIONS THIS FALL AND WINTER:  

·      FLU SHOT

·      COVID SHOT

·      RSV SHOT

DO NOT GET ALL SHOTS AT THE SAME TIME.

IF YOU WISH, YOU CAN GET FLU AND COVID AT THE SAME TIME. THAT IS PROVEN SAFE AND EFFECTIVE.

IF YOU ARE GETTING MULTIPLE SHOTS, PLEASE GIVE 2 WEEKS BETWEEN SHOTS.

FLU SHOT:  

WHO SHOULD GET IT: RECOMMEND IT FOR EVERYONE OVER 65 AND FOR ANYONE OF ANY AGE WHO DOES NOT WANT TO GET THE FLU.

TIMING: ANYTIME FROM MID-SEPTEMBER ONWARD IS BEST.  FLU SEASON WAS EARLY LAST YEAR, BUT TYPICALLY BEGINS IN EARNEST AROUND THANKSGIVING IN ARIZONA. IT TAKES 2-3 WEEKS FOR THE FLU SHOT TO BE FULLY EFFECTIVE.

COVID SHOT: 

UPCOMING AND CURRENT COVID SHOT VERSION:  

THE NEW COVID VACCINE FOR XBB1, THE DOMINANT VARIANT, IS NOT OUT YET.  

IT WILL BE AVAILABLE, WE ARE TOLD, IN OCTOBER. 

IN THE MEANTIME, THE BIVALENT COVID VACCINE IS AVAILABLE.

WHO SHOULD GET IT:  

IF YOU HAVE NOT HAD COVID YET AND ARE OVER 65, I RECOMMEND YOU STAY CURRENT WITH THE LATEST VERSION OF THE VACCINE. GET THE LATEST VACCINE WHEN AVAILABLE.

IF YOU HAVE HAD COVID, YOU HAVE ADDITIONAL PROTECTION AGAINST FUTURE INFECTION, BUT IS NOT A GUARANTEE. 

I WOULD MAKE SURE YOU HAVE HAD A COVID SHOT DURING THE 2023 CALENDAR YEAR FOR THOSE OVER 65 WHO HAVE ADDITIONAL RISK DUE TO HEALTH ISSUES SUCH AS:  ACTIVELY TREATED HEART FAILURE, LUNG DISEASE, OR DIABETES.

WHEN TO GET THE COVID VACCINE:

I RECOMMEND WAITING UNTIL THE NEW VERSION IS AVAILABLE.  

(EXCEPTIONS ARE THOSE WHO HAVE NOT HAD COVID INFECTION YET AND WHO WERE NOT VACCINATED ANYTIME THIS YEAR…..AND THOSE WHO ARE TRAVELING EXTENSIVELY. YOU CAN GET THE CURRENT VERSION.

RSV VACCINE:  

THIS IS A NEW VACCINE THAT IS AVAILABLE FOR THE FIRST TIME THIS YEAR.

THERE ARE TWO VERSIONS, BOTH SIMILAR, AND THERE IS NO SPECIFIC REASON TO CHOOSE ONE OVER THE OTHER (ONE IS GSK..MAKERS OF SHINGRIX, THE OTHER IF PFIZER…MAKERS OF THE COVID VACCINE)

GETTING THE VACCINE THIS YEAR IS ELECTIVE.  I AM NOT BROADLY RECOMMENDING IT.  SEE BELOW FOR ADDITIONAL DETAILS.

I DO NOT RECOMMEND IT FOR EVERYONE DURING THIS FIRST CALENDAR YEAR OF AVAILABILITY.

I DO THINK PEOPLE AT HIGHER RISK SHOULD CONSIDER GETTING THE RSV VACCINE THIS YEAR IF THEY ARE INCLINED…BUT DON’T FEEL OBLIGATED.   

FOR THOSE OVER 65 WHO HAVE ADDITIONAL RISK FOR SERIOUS ILLNESS AS A RESULT OF HEALTH ISSUES SUCH AS:  ACTIVELY TREATED HEART FAILURE, CANCER, LUNG DISEASE, OR DIABETES.

WHEN TO GET RSV VACCINE:  GET IT ANYTIME…STARTING NOW…THROUGH THE FEBRUARY.

WEST NILE SEASON IS STILL HERE.   USE PROTECTION. IF WE HEAR OF NEW CASES…WILL REPORT TO YOU. NOT CURRENTLY HIGH LEVEL IN TOWN, BUT NOW IS THE TIME.  BY THE TIME WE SEE THE INCREASE WE WILL BE RUNNING BEHIND…. SO BEGIN NOW.

PLEASE USE MOSQUITO REPELLENT DAILY UNTIL THE END OF SEPTEMBER, OR AT LEAST WHEN IN HIGH EXPOSURE SITUATIONS.

ARIZONA IS THE PRIME USA LOCATION FOR WEST NILE DUE TO HIGH WEST NILE VIRUS LEVELS IN RAPTOR BIRDS WHO ARE IMMUNE TO WEST NILE ILLNESS, BUT NOT IMMUNE TO CARRYING THE VIRUS.

 THIS CAN RESULT IN ARIZONA MOSQUITOS WITH PARTICULARLY HIGH VIRUS LEVELS WHEN THEY BITE.

COVID:

THE 4^TH COVID BOOSTER IS AVAILABLE FOR THOSE OVER 65 OR THOSE WHO ARE YOUNGER AND HAVE COMPROMISED IMMUNE SYSTEMS. THIS IS A BIVALENT VACCINE WITH THE ORIGINAL COVID VIRUS & OMICRON VARIANT.

A NEW BOOSTER WILL BE AVAILABLE IN OCTOBER. 

IT WILL CONTAIN THE CURRENT VARIANT XBB.1.5, WHICH IS 99% OF THE COVID IN THE USA.

CONSIDER GETTING AN ADDITIONAL BOOSTER NOW IF:

YOU ARE OVER 65 AND HAVE NOT HAD COVID

YOU ARE AT HIGHER RISK DUE TO ILLNESS/MEDICATION (ANY AGE) AND HAVE NOT HAD COVID.

IF YOU HAVE HAD COVID OVER 4 MONTHS AGO AND WISH TO BOOST YOUR IMMUNITY.

YOU ARE TRAVELING EXTENSIVELY IN THE NEXT 6 MONTHS OR ARE GOING TO LARGE FAMILY EVENTS.

IF YOU HAVE NOT HAD COVID AND NOT HAD 5 SHOTS…AND ARE OVER 65…THE DATA IS COMPELLING THAT ADDITIONAL SHOTS WILL KEEP YOU OUT OF THE HOSPITAL. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS.

 IF GOOD VENTILATION, OPEN SPACES….NO NEED TO MASK AS A GENERAL RULE.

CONSIDER WEARING A GOOD MASK (KN95 OR N95) SELECTIVELY AT BUSY INDOOR LOCATIONS TO STAY HEALTHY …ESPECIALLY IF YOU HAVE NOT HAD COVID. 

LIVE YOUR LIFE AND GO OUT AND ABOUT AS YOU FEEL COMFORTABLE…… AND YOU SHOULD FEEL COMFORTABLE DOING SO.

HOW TO MANAGE AT THIS TIME FOR GATHERINGS:  

PEOPLE ARE GOING TO BE COMFORTABLE GETTING TOGETHER AND THEY SHOULD GET TOGETHER.

TOP PODCAST DONE WEEKLY

BY DR. MICHAEL OSTERHOLM

(UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA)  

He is a world-renowned epidemiologist who was credited with first elucidating TOXIC SHOCK SYNDROME in the 1980’s.

He provides comprehensive and understandable/actionable ideas related to COVID.

Dr. Osterholm Update: COVID-19

August 10, 2023

https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/covid-19/episode-137-variant-soup

'Variant Soup'

In this episode, Dr. Osterholm and Chris Dall discuss national and international COVID trends, record dengue outbreaks around the world, and the updated timeline for the new COVID booster shots. Dr. Osterholm also answers an ID query on leprosy in Florida and shares a moment of joy from one of our listeners.

According to Dr. Osterholm……

• GET YOUR 4th BOOSTER (6th SHOT) IF YOU HAVE NOT HAD COVID OR IT’S BEEN LONGER THAN 4 MONTHS SINCE YOU HAD COVID YOURSELF
• A GOOD MASK, N95 OF KN95, DOES HELP REDUCE TRANSMISSION…. USE IT AT HIGH-RISK LOCATIONS
• GOOD VENTILATION IN ROOMS/HOME/BUSINESSES IS A GREAT WAY TO PREVENT TRANSMISSION
• VACCINE, VACCINE, VACCINE…THIS IS OUR PROTECTION.  ALL VACCINES ARE EFFECTIVE AND WITH TIME WE ARE SEEING THAT THE J&J VACCINE IS PICKING UP STEAM AND GIVES SOLID LONG-TERM PROTECTION.
• BOOST, BOOST, BOOST…THIS WILL BE NECESSARY TO PREVENT RECURRING SURGE AND TO RAISE ANTIBODY LEVELS IN THOSE ALREADY SET WITH THE PRIMARY COVID VACCINE SERIES.
• ANTIGEN TESTING IS USEFUL, BUT OF LIMITED VALUE. DON’T DEPEND ON IT…BUT USE IT.

Know that unvaccinated remain a source of potential infection.  Avoiding unvaccinated persons will reduce your risk of COVID.

For the first time this fall, there will be three different vaccines against the biggest respiratory virus threats: a new Covid booster, the yearly flu shot and two RSV vaccines for older adults.

On Tuesday, state health officials urged eligible Americans to get the vaccines ahead of what many believe could be an intense winter respiratory season, especially after several years of unpredictable viral activity.

"We are very, very concerned about the upcoming pan-respiratory season," Dr. Marcus Plescia, chief medical officer of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, said during a media briefing Wednesday. ASTHO is a group that represents public health agencies nationwide.

What's unclear, however, is when Americans should get the shots, particularly the updated Covid vaccine that will target the XBB virus variant.

The group couldn't say for sure when to get that shot, as it hasn't been approved.

RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, and flu usually spread between Halloween and the end of spring. Covid cases and hospitalizations are already ticking up — well before a typical respiratory virus season.

Read more here. . . .

After you received your COVID vaccinations, please let us know!

We would like to document this information into your chart.



BUT FIRST.......

PLEASE COMPLETE THE INFORMATION ON THE CARD BEFORE YOU SEND IT TO US!

What we need:

1. Your name
2. Date vaccination received
3. Brand name
4. Lot number if available
5. Which dose you have received

**Email your COVID vaccine completed info HERE

At our office, we are continuing to follow CDC guidelines and will strive for ways to keep our patients and staff safe.



We recommend that all unvaccinated and vaccinated patients and visitors entering our office cover their nose and mouth at all times.

To prevent further spread of the Delta & Omicron variants, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its mask guidance on March 21, 2022, to recommend that fully vaccinated people wear masks when in areas with “substantial” and “high” transmission of Covid-19.

We have a limited supply of paper masks and will make these available to patients while they last, however, we encourage you to bring your own facial covering.

There’s a new coronavirus variant topping the leaderboard in the United States: EG.5.

Nationally, EG.5 is causing about 17% of new Covid-19 cases in the country, compared with 16% for the next most common lineage, XBB.1.16, according to the latest estimates from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

EG may sound like a whole new flavor of the virus, but it’s not; it’s a spinoff of the XBB recombinant strain of the Omicron family. And it represents another incremental tweak to the virus rather than a major evolutionary leap like the original Omicron strain.

Compared with its parent XBB.1.9.2, it has one extra mutation to its spike, at position 465. This mutation has appeared in other coronavirus variants before. Scientists aren’t sure exactly what new tricks it enables the virus to do, but variant hunters are paying attention because many of the new XBB descendants have adopted it.

Read more here. . . .

SUMMARY OF A COVID KIT & CHECK LIST:

This is what you should have at home to prepare for possible COVID, to monitor yourself if you were to get infected:

DIGITAL ORAL THERMOMETER: MANY BRANDS ARE FINE…HERE IS ONE EXAMPLE:

https://www.amazon.com/Digital-Thermometer-Reading-Waterproof-Indicator/dp/B087T3S4TR/ref=sr_1_6?dchild=1&keywords=THERMOMETER&qid=1597159324&sr=8-6

PULSE OXIMETER:  TO CHECK OXYGEN LEVELS. MANY BRANDS ARE FINE...HERE IS ONE EXAMPLE:

https://www.amazon.com/Innovo-Fingertip-Oximeter-Plethysmograph-Perfusion/dp/B07YVGZPRZ/ref=sr_1_20?dchild=1&keywords=PULSE+OXI&qid=1597159388&sr=8-20

OTHER ITEMS FROM THE HOME MEDICAL KIT:

·       TYLENOL, ADVIL, OR ALEVE

·       Sudafed 30mg tablets

·       Chlorpheniramine 4mg tablets

·       Robitussin DM syrup

·       Imodium AD

'13 Things Only Left Handed People Understand'

Today we're talking about 13 problems that lefties have to deal with on a regular basis. The Left hand struggles. Hope this gave you a laugh. Stay tuned til the end for extra weirdness. :)