Valsalva

View from my deck at home...

2007-04-10T16:27:00.000-10:00

I'm looking forward to meet the tenants when I get home. My sister will be in Hawaii also, it'll make this more of a homecoming for me. I'll just have to lather on the sunblock! This island boy is white.

Almost home

2007-04-03T18:15:00.000-10:00

Due to operational security concerns and personal matters, I've been unable to continue to update this blog. Thank you to family and friends who have supported me throughout this deployment. Coming home soon...

Day off?

2007-02-19T04:05:00.000-10:00

A quick calculation reveals that over 7 months, there are over 60 Saturdays and Sundays... 60 days of freedom! This experience will sure make me appreciate weekends so much more.I didn't realize it was President's Day until I received an email from my Aunt mentioning it. Funny how holidays lose their the bargaining power when you don't get a day off work!Here's a picture of me with my 3

Hawai'i

2007-02-17T15:02:00.001-10:00

Not Iraq. Definitely not Iraq. I'm dreaming of mountains, waterfalls, lush foliage, sandy beaches, and the ocean. In K-Bay, I was fortunate to have the extraordinary privilege of being able to go surfing on my lunch breaks! 5 minutes to change out of my flight suit into surf shots... a 5 minute drive to North Beach... grab my board and run down to the beach. I could be in the water in about

Marine tender

2007-02-14T16:42:00.001-10:00

Marines have a reputation for being "hard"... an apt word to describe them. Emotionally blunted, vulgar, phsyically fit, trained killers. At least that's the usual stereotype. They're also often teased by the other services as being a little, well, slow. Jar head is used to describe the shape of their heads, and thickness of skull. But Marines continue to impress me with their compassion,

Siesta!

2007-02-13T03:36:00.000-10:00

MedPageToday reports good news coming out of the University of Athens Medical School. Turns out napping at least 3 times a week for 30 minutes decreases death rates from coronary artery disease!

CASEVAC Corpsmen

2007-02-12T07:58:00.001-10:00

Two Navy corpsmen were among those killed in the 46 crash last week. Here's a news article I found on one of them, Petty Officer 1st Class Minjares Jr. Notice this was from a local newspaper website, certainly not not mainstream media. I finally saw the video that was broadcast initially on Al Jazeera and then on MSNBC. I htink you can find it on YouTube actually. If it turns out the

Monday web bytes

2007-02-12T05:49:00.001-10:00

A lot of great posts over at KevinMD today: There's this story from the WSJ about mothers in London who schedule c-sections early in the month to secure thier spots on private school wait lists, prozac for dogs, and others... Good news for the UK this Valentine's day: Viagra to be sold OTC ??? More trouble for the Osprey's: the Marine Corps fleet was grounded due to a computer chip

A doctor draft?

2007-02-11T12:14:00.001-10:00

A flight surgeon buddy of mine forwarded me a link to this point paper, posted at the U.S. Medicine Institute for Health Scinces website, written by the formerSurgeon General of the Navy, Vice Admiral Harld Keonig MD (ret). In it, he details the history of military physicians since World War II, and paints a particularly grim picture for both recruiting and maintaining quality physicians in

Irony

2007-02-10T07:21:00.001-10:00

"I'd rather lose 200 Anna Nicole Smith's than one of those Marines." A blunt statement by one of our pilots, but the sentiment is clear. Here we are, lamenting the loss of 7 more servicemembers, including a female helicopter pilot who's personal character, values, and accomplishments put most people to shame ... and when we turn on the news, it's all Anna Nicole. It's astonishing how much

Prescription diet pill now OTC

2007-02-09T20:59:00.001-10:00

Xenical just gained approval by the FDA for OTC use, albeit at decreased dose. Via Medgadget.

Purple Foxes

2007-02-09T03:16:00.001-10:00

In December, I took a trip to TQ for two weeks to participate in real-life casualty evacuation missions with Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 364, the Purple Foxes. I helped train some of the CASEVAC corpsmen back in Yuma over the summer... on their last day of classes, we had them sprint about 100 yards to two moulage patients with simulated trauma injuries. Sucking chest wounds, through and

Web bytes

2007-02-08T23:50:00.001-10:00

Good news, Gmail is now open to everyone. No need to provide a telephone number for verification. The worlds fattest countries, via KevinMd. I think I would have used this online study tool extensively back in the day.

Close to Home

2007-02-08T01:18:00.001-10:00

It's a pretty safe bet that something happened when you get a "River City" email. When the base is in River City, all internet, email and phone access is limited to very secure channels, to control the information in and out. I'm not opposed to such a system, not only is it smart from an operational security perspective, it also protects families from hearing bad news through the wrong channels

Refueling

2007-02-02T21:12:00.001-10:00

This was a pretty cool picture that one of the pilots took the other day. I was outside helping to refuel the aircraft, and he took this from the right pilot seat looking out the left cabin window.

Groundhog Day!

2007-02-01T19:37:00.000-10:00

We've got the DVD running on loop in our Ready Room... it's a tribute to a great movie and a great representation of what life is like out here. The feeling that you're living the same day over and over again is not unique to the military, by no means, but when you're deployed, every facet of life is regimented, and there's almost no variation in schedule. There is no movie theater, shopping

"Attention Al Asad..."

2007-01-22T00:26:00.001-10:00

The Big Voice reaches every parcel of open air in the entire camp. Unless you're jamming indoors with your headphones on (it's not allowed to wear headphones outside), you cannot escape it. While it's relatively rare to hear the Big Voice, with it's volume and eerie omnipresence, it's intimidating enough. Naturally, a message passed on the Big Voice must be important, and everybody pays

Water intoxication

2007-01-16T20:37:00.000-10:00

So this woman in the news, Jennifer Strange, died of hyponatremia, or water intoxication. Very sad story, just goes to show how something seemingly as harmless as drinking water can have dire consequences. Sadly, she was trying to win a Nintendo Wii for her kids in a contest.I drank myself to relative hyponatremia a few months before deployment. It was actually part of a class on hydration I

Mythbuster fans

2007-01-06T09:14:00.001-10:00

For those champions of empircial evidence and healthy skepticism in the face of heresay and the supernatural... Here's a link to a nice summary of all the Mythbuster's Results.

It's freakin freezing in here Mr Bigglesworth

2007-01-06T08:43:00.001-10:00

Ever use a portojohn in 20 degree weather? The toilets in the heated outhouse have overflowed, again, so we're back to the protojohns. Bowel habits vary, but most folks have a BM once a day. However, when faced with the prospect of getting half-naked in a cold, dark portojohn, most people can stretch that out to once every 2 or 3 days.The shock of your bum hitting cold plastic isn't that bad,

Web Bytes

2007-01-04T17:57:00.001-10:00

Good stuff from MedPageToday: 2006 Cardiology Year in ReviewBig ups for Crestor, treating "pre-hypertention", and Waltzing-for-exercise in heart failure patients. Thumbs down for trans-fat, Pfizor's HDL-booster, and Green Tea. Mixed results for the drug-eluting stent debate. And intercessional prayer dealt another blow, this time for recovering bypass patients. Changes to Childhood

New Years Day, Iraq

2007-01-01T14:09:00.001-10:00

It was still dark as I made my way home this morning, New Years Day. Above me, the black sky was lit suddenly by two small bursts of light, which fell from a point in the sky, then fizzled out quickly. Not fireworks, not here. I might even have been apprehensive about a possible indirect fire attack, but I knew precisely the source of the light. Despite a soundless, invisible sky, there was an

Angels

2006-12-30T18:00:00.001-10:00

Almost 3000 servicemembers killed in Iraq so far. How do these soldiers and Marines get home? I imagine it's a long chain of custody, that starts from where the servicemember was pronounced dead, until they reach their final resting place.Sometimes we are a link in that long chain. On occasion, we'll be tasked on an "Angel" flight, a euphemism for the servicemember who gave the ultimate

a Merry Christmas

2006-12-25T15:10:00.001-10:00

As much as we would like to feel sorry for ourselves, we had fun in spite of ourselves. While far from family, we were surrounded by family of another kind. Holiday spirit was bountiful, at least for one night and one day. A brief respite from the daily grind.I cringed when some of the Marines filled up a kiddie pool outside with water, mind you it was 35 degrees out, and had a polar bear swim

Residency Bound!

2006-12-25T14:29:00.001-10:00

The GME-2 selection list came out earlier this month, and I was very pleased to find out I was selected for Ophthalmology residency in San Diego next year! I'm extremely happy and relieved to know what I will be doing next year.I can't take credit for the following graphs... but they very nicely demonstrate the spread of the residency selection this year.

A word on mishaps

2006-12-12T16:54:00.001-10:00

This is a dangerous business, and the Navy and Marine Corps spends a great deal of time and money on controls to prevent mishaps. My one and only mishap in the past 2.5 years with my Squadron occured just 2 weeks after I checked in. Luckily it was just a "Class C" mishap, the least severe. But in many ways it was my baptism into the flight surgeon's world. 3 straight weeks of closed door

Another test...

2006-12-12T16:13:00.001-10:00

The military doctor paradox

2006-12-10T01:25:00.001-10:00

Here's a thoughtful little article from the NYTimes: "A Heart that Needed Fixing, a Mind that Said No". Talk about a difficult decision. (hat tip: KevinMD) Of late I've been contemplating my role as a physician in a military unit. In medicine and in warfighting, people lives are at stake. In both cases, decisions are made that affect the life and death of real people. In medicine,

More interweb bytes

2006-12-06T01:04:00.001-10:00

Cellphone <--> Cancer link finds little support in this study. (via MedPageToday) JSF ready for its maiden flight. I hadn't realized how much this project has cost. (via DefenseTech) Another very cool piece at DefenseTech about the Laser Beam pain weapon. David Hambling makes a very strong case for showcasing this potential weapon in a reality/celebrity TV show. I think it's a genius

around the interweb...

2006-12-04T07:25:00.001-10:00

Some interesting things I've been saving up: The Chainless Bicycle. (via CoolTools) Last TO-DO's of the year. (via Lifehacker) Make your own custom photo-stamps. (via CoolTools) This is a wild idea that might work: A device marketed for the elderly and/or (presumably) those not technologically inclined... plug in a regular phone jack and it prints out emails, pictures, etc. A condition called

Hoax or psych disorder?

2006-12-04T07:01:00.001-10:00

I thought this was too cool not to post... from KevinMD. Take a look at this photo and see if you can find the artist's psychiatric disorder... Don't spend too much time, apparently this might be a hoax... The image is an imperfect reproduction of a particular postcard dated 1972. A blogger (in Russian) claims his psychiatry professor found one aspect of this eerie painting that reveals the

an unusual Thanksgiving

2006-12-04T06:56:00.001-10:00

For the first (and probably only) time in my life, I missed Thanksgiving dinner. From what I hear, the line to get into the chow hall was pretty long, but heck they had the full spread. It happened to be a particularly busy evening for me at work, and I didn't get back to the barracks until about 9pm. It's been a hectic few weeks for me... I had a few days where I was really down, but I'm

Megapixels don't really matter...

2006-11-21T19:29:00.001-10:00

Evidence suggests that you shouldn't bother buying a camara more than 5 megapixels. You just can't tell the difference between the prints. My first digital camara was a 3.2 megapixel Sony Cybershot, and this was 4 years ago. The camara is long gone, but the pics I took look fantastic, even today. The difference in quality compared to those taken with my new 6.0 megapixel Canon really

Gift ideas

2006-11-21T18:41:00.001-10:00

For the winter, how about the perfect snowball maker? For the culinary inclined, this looks like a wonderful resource. For the photo tech geek, the GorillaPod tripod for digital camaras. A couple gag gifts: How about soap that looks like poop? Or, you could go for the anti-hemorrhoidal toilet paper.

Fwd: Another test

2006-11-19T20:22:00.001-10:00

I came to Iraq with 40 dollars in cash, just about two months ago. I still have a little over 5 bucks left. The only money I'm really spending is online, at least to the vendors who can ship to APO addresses. I bought this skateboard for $130... yes it was somewhat frivolous, but it's been a nice diversion.

Daylight and AnySoldier

2006-11-18T20:56:00.001-10:00

This was right before my first flight with a little daylight.... the sun was dropping fast though, so I didn't get to see as much of the countryside as I was hoping. But I finally switched to the day schedule. I think I'm the only one that was on nights for as long as i was. maybe that's why i was in such a foul mood of late... and since i've been back on days i've felt much better. some

YGTBKM

2006-11-16T19:24:00.001-10:00

I couldn't believe my eyes when I read this article. At least it's nice to know ridiculous medical lawsuits happen somewhere else.

Happy Belated Birthday, Marines

2006-11-14T18:45:00.000-10:00

We celebrated the birthday of the Marine Corps a few days ago, as we do every year. The Marine Corps Birthday Ball is a very formal but enjoyable anual event, typically hosted at a beautiful venue, and featuring an elaborate presentation that highlights Marine Corps history in some fashion. Blue Delta or Dress Blue uniforms for the Marines, and for us Navy folk, we either wear dinner dress

Winter in Iraq

2006-11-11T15:58:00.000-10:00

It got cold here, fast. I think we missed Fall entirely. Just a month ago it was blazing outside, and now it's almost freezing temps at night. What gives? Makes me wish I brought some warmer clothes with me. Good for our helicopters... engines always operate with more power at lower temps. But the flights are getting downright frigid. So far nowhere near as cold as those flights up in

Fwd: Test

2006-11-10T08:14:00.000-10:00

Seeing if I can embed an image, email to my gmail account, then post... -- Peter LombardDeployed address:HMH-363 MedicalUnit 44165FPO AP 96607-4165valsalva.blogspot.com

44 seconds

2006-11-05T12:15:00.000-10:00

That's how long it takes to clean a portojohn. Yes another portojohn post. I was actually inside the john, making friends with the sandbag and cinder block inside that presumably keep the thing from blowing away in heavy winds, when I heard the small flatbed chortle up. Luckily I was just about to take my leave anyway. Stumbling out the door (and it always feels like a stumble), I was greeted

Web Bytes

2006-11-05T11:30:00.000-10:00

This looks like a very handy resource: GetHuman.com. If you're sick and tired of talking to a machine when you make a phone call to your bank, phone company, etc. Homeowners: get organized with OrganizedHome. Easy to use website with a plethora of ideas on how to get your home in order. Complete with free printouts, calendars, organizers, etc. Another study showing the promising benefits

another glorious sunrise

2006-11-03T13:45:00.000-10:00

We're feeling the tedium of doing the same thing day in and day out. Gotta keep it fresh and new, somehow, so we don't get complacent. We're fortunate here to be so isolated... other places seem to get hit with mortars more frequently. There hasn't had an attack here since before we got here, as far as I know.It's the little things that start to wear on people, I'm finding. It's easy to lose

Woman delivers full term baby- never knew she was pregnant.

2006-11-01T13:52:00.000-10:00

Believe it.

Boo

2006-11-01T13:44:00.000-10:00

Ah Halloween. October 31st came and went with about as much excitement as Leap Year. Notable events include: more bad weather, magnetic darts games, Chuck Norris, and a visit from the Super Friends. Either it's calm and clear outside, or it looks like Seti Alpha 5. There's no in-between days, as Jack Johnson likes to call 'em. Thunderstom cells roll in like a tidal wave. These cells are a

Best Neighborhoods to Trick-or-Treat

2006-10-31T09:33:00.000-10:00

I've played around with Trulia.com for a little while now... focusing on San Diego, where I will probably be moving next summer. If you're in the market to buy or sell a house, this is a truly remarkable website. They have these "heat maps" that show you the listing prices for all homes in a given area.On Halloween, this can be exploited for finding the "rich" neighborhoods for

stoopin'

2006-10-30T17:10:00.000-10:00

After work we kick it on the stoop old school with some cold brewskies. Near-beer, really, the non-alcoholic kind. Tastes almost like real beer, if by "almost" you mean "absolutely nothing at all". They actually have this stuff available at the chow hall, and they go faster than the lobster tails on Tuesday nights. I wouldn't put it past some Marines to try to get drunk off the stuff.Speaking

Breakfast

2006-10-30T16:10:00.000-10:00

Breakfast. Or dinner. Not sure what you call it when you eat in the morning, but are going to bed right afterwards. Oatmeal, frech toast sticks, fruit, yogurt, and pastries. Those french toast sticks are DE-LISH! Those cans of "RIP IT" are quite popular... I'm stocking up on those to take to back to the room. I pack a couple of those with me on our flights for a quick energy and caffeine

Med web bites

2006-10-27T15:22:00.000-10:00

Chronic Cough? Maybe it's a vampire tooth lodged in your lung. (via MedPageToday) Ever what to see Chest X-Rays of Sword Swallowing? Coming soon: Implantable RFID chips to detect blood sugar. (via MedGadget) Two beers daily, a good thing? (via MedPageToday) "Compared with non-drinking men who followed a healthy life style, men who consumed an average of two alcoholic beverages a day

portojohn love

2006-10-25T13:49:00.000-10:00

A funny thing happens when you use a portojohn for long enough.? You get used to it.I never really expected this to happen.? And realization never fully set in, until I saw someone walk in there with a book.? A BOOK!? Egads.? What fell madness has?taken us?Like most people, I used to avoid portojohns like, well,?the plague.??It's suffocating inside?those plastic cubicles of human waste; it feels

6 word short stories

2006-10-25T12:46:00.000-10:00

Wired has compiled six-word short stories by various authors.? Genious!My fav's: "Computer, did we bring batteries?? Computer?" -Eileen Gunn "Machine.? Unexpectedly I'd invented a time" -Alan Moore "Epitaph: Foolish humans, never escaped Earth" -Vernor Vinge "I'm your future, child.? Don't cry." -Stephen Baxter "The baby's blood type?? Human, mostly."?-Orson Scott Card

Fall in Iraq

2006-10-24T17:24:00.000-10:00

The temperature is most certainly falling!? It's very refreshing.? Some of the warm-blooded folks are starting to wear long sleeves and watch caps at night!? We actually had a huge sandstorm tonight, with rain.? A ton of it.? It dumped on us and they said there was hail also but I took one peek outside and wasn't going to take a step any further.? It reminded me of that planet that Captain Kirk

around the inter-web: use the Google!

2006-10-24T16:03:00.000-10:00

How about a urinal sculpture? Check out the price tags on those fine pieces of porcelain. You've got to check out this piece at Unbounded Medicine about the limb-to-crotch transplant. Looks like it was a limb-saving procedure! Warning- pictures are a little graphic. Good news for the little ones: the flu vaccine has been proven (again) to be safe and effective for kids aged 6-23 months.

if you can't jog 1.5 miles...

2006-10-24T15:05:00.000-10:00

Ellipse OptionNAVADMIN 293/06 provides another cardio option to pass the Navy's Physical Readiness Test.? For years, there's been a swimming equivalent for the 1.5 mile run.? Now the Navy introduces the Elliptical Trainer equivalent. BEGINNING WITH THE SPRING 2007 PHYSICAL FITNESS ASSESSMENT (PFA) CYCLE, USE OF THE ELLIPTICAL TRAINER IS APPROVED AS AN ALTERNATE CARDIO RESPIRATORY TEST OPTION FOR

Thank you!

2006-10-23T18:13:00.000-10:00

Just a quick note to thank family and friends for their continued support!? You guys are the BEST!

My Name

2006-10-22T15:21:00.000-10:00

I would have guessed a lot more... HowManyOfMe.com There are: 17 people with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name? I thought this was a very cool fact until I tried my sister's name and it came up with "0". Her name is Japanese, but still. What gives?

too cute!

2006-10-18T16:11:00.000-10:00

Around the Inter-Web

2006-10-18T16:04:00.000-10:00

First, a pic of my humble abode.My rack is the one on the left. There are two more bunks behind me not in the picture. Except for being flattened out and slanted, the mattress is great!Not pictured, just out of the frame is the makeshift "gutter" used, presumably, to collect water from a leaky roof. We haven't had any significant rain here except for a few windy dust showers, but I suspect

Marine phone home

2006-10-18T14:37:00.000-10:00

They've made calling home extraordinarily simple out here.There are designated phones in the work spaces that are "DSN"lines, which allow us to call all over the world to other military installations. A certain amount of time is allotted for "morale" calls, whereby you can call a military operator, say at Hickam AFB in Hawaii, and they can connect you to any local number (808) or to any toll

Super Warriors

2006-10-18T14:21:00.001-10:00

It's official . The Department of Defense announces mandatory anthrax vaccinations are back. Each service department has a couple months to come up with plans to implement the new policy. Basically that gives me 2-3 months to figure out how to break the good news to my Marines. I usually go with the "super-warrior" approach, that however small the risk, this vaccine will make them less

this is how i roll...

2006-10-18T14:21:00.000-10:00

Don't act like you're not impressed. Why go for a dual suspension, rugged mountain bike when you can have a girls beach cruiser with dual white fenders? Seriously though, everyone laughs at me when I ride by. Builds character, like the boy named Sue. I've been riding back and forth for a week now, and though the bus is tempting, I'm going to try to keep this up, especially since it's getting

Iraqi Sunrise

2006-10-18T14:19:00.000-10:00

Every morning, I leave work and see this beautiful sunrise.

Day ?

2006-10-18T14:17:00.000-10:00

We've been settling into our new barracks, and it's quite an improvement over Circus Circus (pictured).For most officers, there are 4 to a room. CO gets his own room, and the Majors are 2 to a room. I think the junior enlisted are actually 8 to a room. Each room has 4 bunk beds, so in our case, we sleep on the bottom and throw all your junk on top. It's actually a fair-sized room. There's an

Anthrax, Russian Healthcare, and Homer Simpson

2006-10-17T08:02:00.000-10:00

Looks like Anthrax may again be a mandatory vaccine for servicemembers. It was made mandatory in the Clinton administration but it was changed to a voluntary vaccine in 2003. Nothing official yet, but this article from the Washington Post indicates it's coming down the pike.This article paints a dismal picture of healthcare in Russia. Hat tip to KevinMD.And finally, my friend Mike says I need

From the air

2006-10-12T15:33:00.000-10:00

NY to LA flights these days are what, 5 hours or so? Kinda miserable sitting there in your seat for that long isn't it. Most of our flights are at least 5 hours long. And instead of spending those 5 hours reading in-flight magazines, watching movies, or sipping on cocktails, the pilots and aircrew must sustain the highest level of alertness possible throughout the entire flight. Not only do

I hate Spam

2006-10-12T08:59:00.000-10:00

"Your ARM Rate Aboult to Gol Higher"This was one of 40 messages in my Spam Folder in Gmail. Sometimes the headlines are fun to read with their usually purposeful spelling and grammatical errors. Most are either pornographic, or about Viagra or Cialis. The spammers must not know I'm in Iraq.Somehow I went from getting no more than 5 in my Gmail Spam box daily, to over 40! Gmail does a fairly

Iraq Musings, Days 13-15

2006-10-09T17:07:00.000-10:00

We had a mass-casualty-drill a couple days ago, I think it was Sunday about noon. The "Big Voice" boomed over the base, "THIS IS A DRILL, THIS IS A DRILL. MIKE CHARLIE. MIKE CHARLIE. THIS IS A DRILL, THIS IS A DRILL. I was not-so-sound asleep in Tent City, and was none-too-happy about crawling out of bed, getting dressed in flak and kevlar, and walking down to the surgical hospital to attend a

Iraq Musings, Day 12

2006-10-06T17:09:00.000-10:00

The full moon was spectacular tonight. I went for a moonlight jog at 2am and it was just beautiful out.This place feels old. Not quite like the feeling you get standing at the Colosseum or the Pantheon. It feels ancient. So ancient that grains of sand have been worn to a fine dust. Mesopotamia, the cradle of human civilization. That mantra from elementary school is inescapable. I couldn't

Useful Google Maps Mashups

2006-10-06T13:02:00.000-10:00

Here's a great new mash-up that plots disease outbreaks all over the globe: www.healthmap.org. This site mines data from WHO, ProMED mail, and EuroSurveillance. Oh and Google News (ahem).Find the cheapest gas in your neighborhood with the CHEAP GAS FINDER MAP! What's going on with gas prices these days? Coincidence that my Squadron gets deployed to this war-torn oil-rich region of the world,

Iraq Musings, Day 11

2006-10-06T09:42:00.000-10:00

The 'ol circadian rhythm put up a good fight, but is finally losing ground. Hopefully I can avoid a repeat of what happened last night - my XO walked in on my asleep at my desk. Umm ya not good.One of our pilots thought of this deployment as "retreat", of sorts. No distractions (other than work), a time to make sacrifices, to devote oneself to personal goals without interference from all those

around the inter-web

2006-10-05T16:04:00.000-10:00

This is scary. Not sure how "cute" these masks would be to a 5 year old coming out of anesthesia! Nightmarish. Star Trek teleportation research is progressing in Denmark. From MedPageToday: According to researchers in Scotland, Children Inherit Higher IQ from Mom's Brains, Not Her Milk . A Hay-Fever Vaccine? Use Flomax or Cardura to help your patients pass those renal stones. And

Day 10

2006-10-04T17:25:00.000-10:00

Ten days in. WOOT. Only 200 to go. I have the "Countdown" widget on my Google homepage. Kind of depressing, not sure how long it will stay there.I'm trying out a new web service called writetomyblog. So far I like it. I like any website that is not firewalled... especially if it's useful. I'm not a web design pro, but there seems like a ton of gadgets to spice up these posts. Looks like I

Iraq Musings, Day 9

2006-10-03T18:12:00.000-10:00

These dust storms can be debilitating, particularly for rotary wing aircraft. A "mild" dust storm rolled in tonight... it went from 5-10 miles visibility down to 2 miles down to .25 miles *quick*. I've seen pictures of real dust storms, and I hope we don't have to experience too many of those. I'm getting the sensation of time standing still in the rest of the world. Or that it's punctuated

Iraq Musings, Days 4-8

2006-10-03T17:29:00.000-10:00

One week down, just 30 to go.I read a piece of the "Space Blog" by Anouhseh Ansari, the space tourist who just returned to the Earth Planet. Her top two complaints appeared to be the lack of internet, and the lack of showers. I can't much complain about the shower situation out here, other than that they don't drain well. I don't like to think about why they don't drain well. But at Circus

Iraq Musings, Days 1-4

2006-10-03T17:26:00.000-10:00

Day 1 This day keeps draggin on. We're going on 48 hours since beginning this journey back in K-Bay. Except for a 5 hour delay leaving Oahu, everything has progressed without any major hiccups. 8 hour flight to Minneapolis, 2 hour layover, 8 hour flight to Germany, 2 hour layover, 4 hour flight to Kuwait, and we'll be here a good 12 hours before pushing to Iraq. First impressions of

Select List for Staff O-4, 2006

2006-08-09T09:43:00.000-10:00

Hot off the desk of the honorable Mr. Rumsfeld...2006 Staff O-4 Select List.Promotions should start in October! Congrats to the new O-4's!

GME-2 Application Instructions

2006-06-20T13:48:00.000-10:00

Hear ye! Here ye! The GME-2 Application Instructions for 2006 have been released. Go to the Navy GME Website when you're ready to start your login session (takes 30 minutes). You can download the pdf of the instructions by right-clicking here.

PRK on USNA midshipmen- Article in NYTimes

2006-06-20T09:02:00.000-10:00

349 of 993 midshipmen in the Class of '06 got PRK! Better candidates for flight school, but other communities are suffering, esp nukes, NFO's. So much so they're offering a 15K bonus to go subs.Online article here.Perfect Vision Is Helping and Hurting Navy By DAVID S. CLOUD Published: June 20, 2006 BETHESDA, Md., June 17 — Almost every Thursday during the academic year, a bus carrying a dozen

the HPV vaccine

2006-06-20T06:29:00.000-10:00

In case you missed it, the FDA approved the first HPV vaccine, manufactured by Merck, called Gardasil. SmithGalaxoKline also has one in the works, but it only targets HPV serotypes 16 and 18, not 6 and 11. This will likely be a costly vaccine, it will be intersting to see how soon military medicine can begin vaccinations. From Medpagetoday: ROCKVILLE, Md. June 8 — The FDA today approved

FY-07 Staff O-4 Approval Timeline

2006-06-19T13:27:00.000-10:00

Watch the progress of the "Release and Approval Process" (ROP) here.This is pretty cool... you get to see the list get approved up to the CNO and SECDEF and finally to the Senate. Promotions should begin in October 06.

the fisherman

2006-06-19T13:03:00.000-10:00

I got this story from a friend...A boat docked in a tiny Mexican village. An American touristcomplimented the Mexican fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took him to catch them. "Not very long," answered the Mexican. "But then, why didn't you stay out longer and catch more?" asked the American. The Mexican explained that his small catch was sufficient to meet his

Great website for photos of boats, planes, guns, etc...

2006-05-08T14:27:00.000-10:00

Check out CombatIndex, a non-official site that has thousands of pictures and fast-facts for air, land, and sea platforms, firearms, missles... whatever.Here's the page for CH-53.Here's the USS Fort McHenry.Here's the M-16.

In the news: HIV testing proposal, Dirty Keyboards

2006-05-08T13:59:00.000-10:00

CDC proposal for new HIV screening (via MedPageToday)Under the new guidelines, HIV screening would be "routine in all medical settings for patients ages 13 to 64." Routine, meaning... every visit? The proposal is drawing fire from a number of groups, saying it doesn't protect patient privacy, and may lead to mismanagement of positive test results.The goal, the CDC said, is to broaden the scope

not in the MOOD

2006-05-07T09:09:00.000-10:00

I pulled the Medical Officer of the Day duty here at the branch medical clinic. I come in for 2 hours Saturday and Sunday, from 0800-1000. On average I'd say we only treat 2-3 patients over two days. Hmmph.There's a crying baby down the hall, being seen by the contracted Family Practice doc that also comes in to see the dependents. If I had to guess, it's probably a 2 or 3 year old boy, and

Downsizing

2006-05-04T22:59:00.000-10:00

Anyone notice a trend in this slide?It's no secret that HPSP has been falling short of its recruiting goals of late. Why? There's a simple answer to that question: Iraq. Deploying to a hostile country doesn't quite make up for an all-expense paid trip through medical school. It's also a reason why many of my flight surgeon/GMO colleagues are electing to not stay with military medicine.The

A step in the right direction...

2006-05-03T13:59:00.000-10:00

The nation's soft-drink makers have agreed to stop selling soda's in schools. This deal was brokered by a collaboration of the American Heart Association, and yes, the William J Clinton Foundation. Under the terms, elementary and middle schools will sell only water, unsweetened juice, and low-fat milk. High school may continue selling diet soft-drinks.

WHO Child Growth Standards PDF's

2006-05-02T23:07:00.000-10:00

Nice PDF's for viewing and printing...Girls percentiles [pdf 10.54Mb]Boys percentiles [pdf 10.57Mb]Motor development milestones [pdf 505kb]

Tequin Being Discontinued

2006-05-02T10:12:00.000-10:00

Military docs know Tequin (gatifloxicin)... it's the only fluoroquinolone one of the only FQ's on our core formulary that we don't have to jump through hoops to prescribe, at least in the outpatient setting.While they're not pulling Tequin off the shelves... Bristol-Myers Squibbs is discontinuing the production and sale of Tequin due to concerns over blood sugar abnormalities. In February the

Tech update

2006-05-01T23:25:00.000-10:00

Web 2.0 is moving too fast for me. Well I'm not using Google calendar nearly as much as I thought I might. Despite some great features (like text-messaging reminders and email integration) I tend to rely on my Treo calendar, since I have it on me all the time. I did come across this idea to utilize Google Calendar in a doctor-office setting so that patients can see when there are free slots

Medical News from the ACP Conference

2006-05-01T23:19:00.000-10:00

ACP: A Look at What Works in Chronic ConstipationACP: Internists Reinvigorate Drive to Overhaul Residency TrainingACP: Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Chronic Constipation: Costs and CharacteristicsACP: Nonpharmacologic Treatments Effective for Some Sleep DisordersSee all the topics at MedPageToday.

Milder than normal flu season ending

2006-05-01T23:04:00.000-10:00

"Milder", in part because the vaccine was a pretty good match, at least for the Influenza A component. From the CDC Website:Antigenic Characterization:CDC has antigenically characterized 629 influenza viruses [458 influenza A (H3N2), 43 influenza A (H1), and 128 influenza B viruses] collected by U.S. laboratories since October 1, 2005. Of the 458 influenza A (H3N2) viruses, 355 (77.5%) were

Parents: New Child Growth Standards!

2006-05-01T22:36:00.000-10:00

WHO releases new growth standards for kids. First update in about 30 years. The new Standards are the result of an intensive study initiated by WHO in 1997 to develop a new international standard for assessing the physical growth, nutritional status and motor development in all children from birth to age five. [snip] Since the late 1970s, the National Center for Health Statistics / WHO growth

Military pay hike of 2.7 percent is recommended for fiscal 2007

2006-04-28T09:00:00.000-10:00

Via Stars and Stripes:A House subcommittee on Wednesday recommended a 2.7 percent base pay increase for all servicemembers in fiscal 2007, significantly above the 2.2 salary boost defense officials have been seeking.

Gettysburg Address Powerpoint Presentation, by Abe Lincoln

2006-04-26T17:23:00.000-10:00

Ever wonder what PowerPoint would have done to the Gettysburg Address? Well, me neither... but Peter Norvig wondered, and here's what he came up with.Good stuff. Here's why and how he did this... a pretty funny read.Here's an email reply Peter received from a reader:Dear Abe, A few graphics, woodcuts or pen sketches, would have added a nice touch. Also, the color scheme is a bit odd. Why not

"Scientists find secret to gas-free beans"

2006-04-26T14:49:00.000-10:00

Oh yes. Thank you, Marisela Granito of Simon Bolivar University in Caracas, Venezuela. Thank you.Gas-free beans is a great starting point, but we ALL know that one person... be it an old friend from high school, your college roommate, or heaven forbid your spouse... who seems to get gas no matter what he/she eats. Let's hope Simon Bolivar University gets a huge grant after publishing these

Guest Blogger: LT R.J. Matyas

2006-04-25T15:08:00.000-10:00

Ever come across a medical record that states "PPD Converter" (which should preclude further PPD placements) but they test negative on an "inappropriately" placed PPD?Motivated Flight Surgeon Extraordinaire RJ Matyas offers this guidance to his colleagues regarding TB testing:1. If someone is or has been exposed to TB they will give a positive TB test unless one of the following exists:a. they

"Iowa Mumps Tops 1,100 Cases"

2006-04-25T15:03:00.000-10:00

Via MedPageToday.Notably, the fraction of cases in individuals who received the recommended 2 doses of MMR is decreasing. Still, it's quite high at 53%.

Drink Coffee by the Gallons?

2006-04-24T14:03:00.000-10:00

When it comes to coronary artery disease, big-time coffee drinkers (6 or more cups per day!!!) actually have a slightly decreased risk of developing coronary artery disease than moderate to light coffee drinkers, according to this study published in JAMA. Lots of power in this study with over 128,000 men and women enrolled, covering 20 years.Interesting results... I routinely counsel people that

Of all the things to do with your money...

2006-04-22T11:05:00.000-10:00

This Air Force One graffiti hoax was covered by AP and Stars and Stripes. The guy responsible, Marc Ecko of stillfree.com, rented a 747 and painted it in the likeness of Air Force One, then staged the whole thing. Not a cheap stunt, for sure... purportedly done to make a statement about the value of freedom of speech. Clever idea, well executed... but what does this really prove? What does it

Shock shock shock?

2006-04-19T23:13:00.000-10:00

The ACLS guidlines have changed. Apparently there is a "Core" class that all providers will have to take to ensure they have been properly educated about the changes. I'm teaching an ACLS course today and tomorrow.Cliff notes:Big focus is on adequate CPR. The compression/breath rate has changed to 30/2.The old mnemonic "Shock shock shock everybody shock little shock big shock..." no longer