Sleep Apnea

What is Sleep Apnea?

OSAS, or Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome, is a condition that occurs when people sleep. OSAS is characterized by excessive snoring, lack of breath, the inability to breathe, sleep paralysis, and excessive daytime sleepiness. Simply put, the back of the throat collapses from relaxation during sleep, and the person cannot breathe, resulting in de-oxygenation of the blood, and severe interruptions in the sleep cycle (note the closed airway in the illustration). 

Side Effects:

Long-term side effects of sleep apnea include a very heightened risk of heart attack and seizure from the long-term lack of oxygen. The short-term effects are sleepiness, dry mouth or sore throat in the morning, headaches, forgetfulness, depression, sweating profusely at night, restlessness of the legs and grinding jaws, snoring, sexual dysfunction, extreme difficulty awakening in the morning, gasping or choking in the night upon awakening, and pauses or absence of breathing while asleep.

Causes of Sleep Apnea:

 Some causes are not genetic within sleep apnea, which is sometimes attributed to obesity. However, scientists have discovered a lot of apnic patients do have genetics that correlate with sleep apnea. The genetic factors that contribute to sleep apnea are craniofacial structure, body fat distribution, and neural control of the upper airway muscles. OSAS was identified first just 40 years ago, and is becoming increasingly more prevalent with it’s discovery. Only 2-4% of middle-aged men and 1-2% of middle-aged women have this disease, however the majority of affected individuals remain undiagnosed.

Treatment:

There are several treatment methods, however, that are effective. There are the “simple” solutions, such as losing weight, avoiding alcohol at night, sleeping on your stomach or side, using nasal sprays, but if the patient does not just have “mild” sleep apnea, a CPAP machine is required. The concept of the CPAP machine is simple, it is a machine that is connected to a hose, which leads to a mask in which the user wears on the face with straps, and the machine blows air into the tube in order to keep the airway open. Patients that have used the CPAP machine have shown drastic improvements. It also reduces blood pressure from the ease of oxygenation of the blood.


Sources:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/sleep-apnea/DS00148/DSECTION=causes
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2699830/
http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/guide/understanding-obstructive-sleep-apnea-syndrome
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/cpap/

Is Antibacterial Soap Really More Effective?

Dial says that there antibacterial soap is ten times more effective at killing disease causing germs than a regular liquid hand soap. To a consumer, a soap that has the ability to kill more germs seems more effective. However, a variety of research has shown that antibacterial soaps can be harmful and can lead to problems such as dry skin and superbugs. Professionals are now starting to think that antibacterial soaps are no better than regular soaps when it comes to household use.

Antibacterial products have become more popular than the traditional products for household use. They have become so popular because they wipe out more germs than regular soap. This means that they should lower a person's chance of getting sick. In addition to killing germs, antibacterial products are also easier to use than traditional products. Hand sanitizers are a great example. Instead of using soap and water, the person simply puts a dab of hand sanitizer on his/hers hand and the germs disappear like magic. But as we know, there is no magic in science.

So how does this magic happen? Well to understand how antibacterial products work, we have learn how soap works in general. Soap consists of an acid and a base. The acid, triglycerides, mixes with the base, sodium hydroxide. This mixture makes the fatty acid separate from the triglycerides and fuse with the hydroxide ions. This forms the salt we call soap. Soap has the ability to decrease the surface tension of water and bind to dirt and germs. These qualities allow soap to cling to unwanted dirt and wash it away easily.

While soap does a good job of removing dirt and germs,  it does not do a good job of killing all the bacteria. Antibacterial soaps are made with triclosan, some even include triclocarban. These agents are antibacterial and target certain bacteria. This means that antibacterial soaps are stronger than the traditional soaps and can wash away more germs and bacteria. Researchers believe that triclosan targets a gene in Escherichia Coli bacteria, trying to prevent bacteria from reproducing. This limits the amount of bacteria present on a person's skin. So in theory, this should help lower the risk of illnesses.

Despite triclosans intentions, it could cause serious problems for users. Studies have shown negative attributes for antibacterial products. Triclosan does not kill off all the bacteria, it only kills weak bacteria leaving the stronger bacteria to reproduce. Inhibited by an enzyme in fatty acid biosynthesis, triclosan produces a gene called FabL. This mutation in the FabL gene causes resistance to bacteria. Meaning that antibacterial products are strengthening bacteria rather than killing them off.

A problem with antibacterial products is the creation of superbugs. It is the nature of bacteria to adapt so that it can survive. The bacteria with the ability to survive antibacterial soaps reproduce, making bacteria as a unit more powerful. Researchers fear that after years of killing off weak bacteria, all that will be left is a powerful bacteria that we are not able kill off. The sterile environment created by antibacterial washes might be more conducive to more powerful germs. In addition to strengthening bacteria, dermatologists say that overuse of antibacterial soap can spread certain skin diseases. Antibacterial soaps can dry out skin which can lead to open sores. When someone shakes other peoples hands with those open sores, that person could spread more bacteria than if they would have just used regular soap. However, since hospitals are an environment that is so encouraging for bacteria, the use of use of antibacterial products have been proven effective in those types of places. The problem is that the antibacterial soaps are so readily available to consumers, that they are being abused in homes.

In conclusion, antibacterial soaps are more trouble than they are worth. They are useful in hospital type places, but at home they are no more effective than regular soaps. Many researchers believe the problem of spreading germs actually falls on improper hand washing. Most people don't wash their hands thoroughly or long enough. As a result, germs are spread through handshakes and everyday contact. Studies of antibacterial soaps prove that there is no absolute way to prevent the spread of bacteria. Instead of trying to wipe bacteria altogether, we should just work on limiting our exposure to too many bacteria with regular products.

Recoures:

How Stuff Works Site

Health at OZ site

United States Health and Human Services

Germ Smart site

Doctors Guide

Nurse Week Article 

MSNBC Report 

Dial Soap Site

Phantom Limb Syndrome

The ability to sense our environment is something that many of us take for granted. It's the simple, general things that we encounter every day; this pillow feels soft, the concrete is hard, snow is cold. But what if you were feeling things with a part of you that wasn't there?

No, this isn't something from a science fiction show, it's a real disorder that often occurs in amputees called phantom limb syndrome. And it's more common than you probably think; 80 percent of amputees will experience this phenomenon at some point. 

Symptoms

The symptoms are very straight forward – if a person can feel something from a part of the body where a limb is not present, then they have phantom limb. The types of sensations are divided between non-painful and painful. Non-painful sensations are very much like the feelings described above. They can range from feeling differences in temperature to itching. The latter subdivision includes pains such burning and prickling.

The painful feelings are unfortunately the most common sensations related to phantom limb syndrome. Oftentimes the pain is intrusive and debilitating. It can severely interfere with daily life and is difficult to effectively cure.

Cause

Normally the body is able to interpret sensations through sensory receptors under the skin. These receptors create electrical signals that are able to be carried from the peripheral nervous system to the central nervous system, where it can be interpreted and responded to accordingly.

Amputees obviously do not have these receptors. So what’s triggering the brain’s response?

Scientist Vilayanur S. Ramachandran believes that the syndrome has something to do with neurons changing connections in the brain (a process called neuroplasticity). Basically, certain sections of the brain are used for specific areas of sensory input. When area is lacking any sort of stimulation because of the amputation, other parts of the brain are connected to this area.

For example, in one of Ramachandran’s experiments he discovered that an arm amputee was receiving signals from sensory receptor in the face. The section of the brain used for interpreting messages from the arm was not receiving any input, so neurons connected to the sensory receptors for the face.

Treatments

A very basic form of relief for those that suffer from the painful effects of phantom limb is pain medication. Of course this is not very helpful for those that suffer from non-painful effects and even those on medication may not fully be pain free.

An interesting outlet for relief can be found in a very specific type of acupuncture. This traditional medical technique has been used for thousands of years for a variety of ailments and disease. In phantom limb specifically, a small, precise prick of the ear has been known to alleviate pain. There are also a few pin pricks on the scalp, but the ear is the key. This treatment is usually supplemental to medication.

Mirror treatment

 A newer treatment that is now commonly associated with phantom limb relief is mirror-box therapy. It requires patients to insert their intact limb in a box with a mirror where they cannot see their amputated limb. The effectiveness is questionable, but has been noted to help at least 60 percent of patients in two different studies. 

Sources:  

http://www.amputee-coalition.org/inmotion/mar_apr_07/phantom_treatment.html http://www.wellcome.ac.uk/en/pain/microsite/medicine2.html 

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/455097/phantom-limb-syndrome

Picture sources:

http://protomag.com/assets/making-connections

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-15938103