Category Archives: Glossary

We can get a good estimation of how much oxygen a person has in the blood by a little device called a pulse oximeter, while clips painlessly on a person’s finger tip (there’s an adapter for a child’s ear lobe).  This can estimate whether our red blood cells (RBCs) are carrying enough oxygen, the wayContinueContinue reading “Oxygen Saturation”

There are a variety of medications for Asthma, that are divided into 2 general types: “Rescue” (or “Reliever”) Medications:  These relax bronchial muscles that become tight.  They work quickly, make you feel better. but don’t last long.  You have to keep using them.  Use these when you feel symptoms.”Controller” Medications:  These don’t have an immediateContinueContinue reading “Asthma Medications”

This is most commonly abbreviated “SOB” in medical charts, one reason we may not want patients to view their charts without explanation.  SOB is a serious symptom, due to a problem with the heart, lungs, the upper airway (rarely), or circulation. Some can be fatal.  However, I’ve seen many patients say they feel “short ofContinueContinue reading “Shortness of Breath — Definition”

We call it “Hyperventilation” when a person involuntarily, and subconsciously, breathes a lot faster than they need to.  “Than they need to” means that nothing is stopping the body from obtaining enough oxygen, like diseases of the heart, lungs, or circulation.  Other conditions may make a person breathe fast, like fever, hyperthyroidism, or too muchContinueContinue reading “Hyperventilation”

This is s specialist of the Gastrointestinal System, including the esophagus, stomach, intestines, and liver and gallbladder (see Diagram).  They perform tests like endoscopies, colonoscopies, and various others, make diagnoses, and treat.  Those who deal with the liver and gallbladder as a sub-specialty are called hepatologists.  None of these specialists do surgery; they refer toContinueContinue reading “Gastroenterologist”

An examination of the large intestine (see Diagram — Anatomy of the Gastrointestinal System).  A tube  is inserted through the anus and threaded all the way up the bowel to the cecum.  Pictures can be taken of abnormalities, biopsies can be obtained, and polyps removed (see below). The exam takes about 20 minutes, and isContinueContinue reading “Colonoscopy”

“Stress” is an overused & easily confused word, medically speaking.  There are several forms, quite different from each other. Physical Stress  —  Running a marathon is physical stress; that’s usually healthy.  Pain from anything is also physically stressful; it’s not healthy per se, but won’t do physical harm in and of itself.  But many diseasesContinueContinue reading “Stress”

On occasion, it’s necessary to obtain a urine collection over a full 24-hour period for certain tests.  Most patients, nurses, even many doctors don’t understand the simple logistics for how to do this.  If you ever need such a test, here’s how to do it. Main Principle  —  We want to collect the urine that’sContinueContinue reading “Urine: 24-Hour Collection”

Ophthalmologists are eye doctors who’ve gone through four years of medical school to become a doctor (M.D.), and then four or more years of residency in ophthalmology (eye specialty).  They can diagnose eye diseases, treat eye diseases, legally prescribe any medications they want, and perform eye surgery.  The surgery they perform is extremely fine, soContinueContinue reading “Eye Doctors”

When screening to see if a patient requires a Covid-19 test before letting them in our office or clinic, we ask about symptoms below that began within the past 1-2 weeks.  Every site and institution has its own way of doing so.  The more symptoms present, the more suspicious we are. fever or chillsmuscle orContinueContinue reading “Covid Symptoms”