MEDICAL MATTERS

[Stanley]

Good Ian! Mine is always OK but since I stopped smoking it has very gradually improved even further. Any chance I could live for ever?

[PanBiker]

Unfortunately not but another 30 might be doable.

[Stanley]

After that conversation yesterday I did BP and HR. Best figures for a long time, in particular the last time I had heart rate down at 67 was in 2013!

[plaques]

in particular the last time I had heart rate down at 67 was in 2013!

Down to 45 = top athlete.
At 35 = time for a pace maker.
At zero. You've got big problems.

[Stanley]

[PanBiker]

I'm ticking at 57 to 62 at the moment from my current observations.

[Tizer]

I don't have my own `normal' pulse rate or blood pressure. In 1995 I had a bad influenza-like respiratory infection which left me with a chronic neurological problem affecting my autonomic nervous system. The result is my pulse rate, blood pressure, blood sugar etc `wander' and can change suddenly even when I'm at rest. Unfortunately there will be people who survive covid-19 but end up with chronic, life-long side-effects.

[Stanley]

Tiz! I was just beginning to cheer up about Susan and Mick and now you have given me something else to worry about!

[Tizer]

If they looked after themselves and avoided severe stress then they'll be OK. It's when people try to carry on working under pressure when they should be in bed letting their body heal them that the danger of side effects rises.

[Stanley]

No danger of that Tiz, they are too damaged and out of work anyway.
It raises the question, how does a person as poorly as that start to claim any benefit due to them? Will any claim they make be back dated?

[Big Kev]

Got an email from my medical insurance company,

At AXA PPP healthcare, our priority is to be here for you, our members. That's why we're giving you unlimited access to 24/7 video and phone appointments through our online GP service, Doctor@Hand¹.

We're offering this service at no cost to you in the hope that it will relieve pressure on the NHS and free up vital resources as they battle the coronavirus, while supporting you with other conditions.

That's handy then, not that I need one at the moment...

[Stanley]

I just email Hassan updates. Like you Kev, I don't need a doctor at the moment.
I was talking to the kids yesterday and we were discussing medical matters. I told them that if and when they offer me cystoscopy and more treatment, I shall refuse it if there is no reliable vaccine. The danger of contact on a hospital visit is greater than the cancer. After all, nobody could tell me how long I had the one they found. They agree with me.
It's almost as though the doctors don't recognise that when you're heading towards 90 death can't be far away. So let's get there in as much comfort as possible! (And that doesn't include hospital visits for endless tests!)

[plaques]

It's almost as though the doctors don't recognise that when you're heading towards 90 death can't be far away.

Don't give up so easily, you could be the next Captain Tom.

[Stanley]

I'm not giving up P! Just recognising reality and the fact I have better things to do with my life than trail to hospital for endless appointments. Remember I have never had a single symptom of the cancer and have absolutely no problems now.
It's a couple of years since I raised the question of whether there are too many tests these days. I know that many doctors are asking the same question. It has long been recognised in a profit based system like that in the US that the more tests and procedures there are, the more income for the doctors.
So, after careful thought and consulting with my kids I shall bet on my own opinion! That's not giving up, it's being positive and constructive.

[Tizer]

This could be a game changer...
`Malaria 'completely stopped' by microbe' LINK
`Scientists have discovered a microbe that completely protects mosquitoes from being infected with malaria. The team in Kenya and the UK say the finding has "enormous potential" to control the disease. Malaria is spread by the bite of infected mosquitoes, so protecting them could in turn protect people. The researchers are now investigating whether they can release infected mosquitoes into the wild, or use spores to suppress the disease. .'.

[Wendyf]

How is Mrs Tiz getting on with her eye drops Tiz? I asked my ophthalmologist to change my prescription to the preservative free version after I realized that the constant sore throat I had been suffering for over 2 months could be linked to the drops. After about 10 days of using the Monopost drops my throat cleared as did the red eyes and eyelids.

[Tizer]

Thanks for asking, Wendy. She's lucky, she gets a slight tingling but nothing to warrant attention. Another test is due in September. I'm glad you've been able to get a better version for your eyes.

[Stanley]

That's good news Wendy. Interesting that you had to trigger the change... Well done.

[Stanley]

Thinking about others I am so lucky. I wish you all the very best! As part of my Covid strategy I am sending Hassan my GP updates on health including BP and HR figures. I am happy to report that the recent ones after my smoking disaster are the best I have had for years, all hovering around 120/80. I must be doing something right!
I put a lot down to keeping active mentally and keeping up with my walking, I am convinced that the half hour's walk each morning in the clean fresh air is the foundation. Would I be as disciplined if it wasn't for Jack? Possibly the best reason for having a personal trainer!

[Cathy]

Remember when babies would be put outside in their prams, until they stirred. Does that still happen?
(I’ve never seen it in Australia.)

[Stanley]

How about this Cathy, fresh air taken to extremes. Very common in the 1930s.

[Cathy]

Yes that extreme, I was thinking more of the baby in the pram, all rugged up and maybe with a cat net.

[Tizer]

Today, photos like that would cause mayhem on social media!

[Stanley]

Times change. Mothers who did that in the 1930s in crowded towns were seen as being very forward thinking. Actually it makes a lot of sense, it's only the fear of heights that damages the concept.

[Tizer]

We first heard about this back in April when a few children were affected in the UK. Now it's also showing up in the US, Spain, Italy, France and the Netherlands. It's an inflammatory syndrome that appears to be a rare reaction in young children to the covid-19 virus and is thought to be a delayed over-reaction by the body's immune response.
`Children affected by rare inflammatory reaction' LINK