“Doctors” advice for preventing brain injury
“The Doctors” offer free advice every
weekday on their syndicated series (3 p.m. on KWTV-9 in Oklahoma City).
Last week’s helpful information included life-saving tips on how to prevent brain injury.
Dr. Neil Martin, chief of neurosurgery at UCLA Medical Center, joined the show’s four hosts — Dr. James Sears (pediatrician), Dr. Travis Stork (E.R. physician), Dr. Lisa Masterson (obstetrician and gynecologist) and Dr. Andrew Ordon (plastic surgeon and reconstructive surgery expert) — to discuss the recent death of actress Natasha Richardson and explain how an epidural hematoma can lead to brain death.
“This was such a freakish accident,” Dr. Stork said of Richardson’s fall during a ski lesson. “But by and large, closed head traumas can be treated if you act quickly.” (Richardson refused medical treatment until she started having headaches about three hours later).
“The Doctors” check list of how to quickly diagnose and prevent a brain trauma injury:
••• Treat Blows to the head seriously – A lot of people hit their head and are stunned by the injury and will say they’re fine because of embarrassment. Without overreacting to every bump on the head, take time to access how you feel and know the symptoms of possible brain injury.
••• Look for warning signs – Youngsters bump their heads all the time, and usually everything is fine. Parents should look into the eyes of their children and make sure they are acting completely normal. Warning signs to look for are slurred speech, drowsiness, nausea, lethargy and strange repetitive speech.
••• Time is critical – If someone exhibits behavior listed above, take that person to the emergency room immediately. If a person loses consciousness for any period of time, it is imperative to go to the ER.
••• Wearing helmets is the best prevention – Wear helmets when doing any activity that is potentially dangerous and where falls are common. Parents should wear helmets, too, or else their kids won’t want to wear them.
For additional information — or to ask the doctors a question on another topic — go online to www.thedoctorstv.com.
–Penny TV
If you enjoyed this post, please consider to leave a comment or subscribe to the feed and get future articles delivered to your feed reader.
I don;t have a comment I have a question.
I have a keloid on my left nipper, and it is causing me pain, I am writing to see what it is I need to do about it.