In My Lungs

An informative blog on all things science, uncanny, strange, and unusual.

[bilateralpleurodesis]

A mass casualty incident occurs when the number of casualties and rate of severity overwhelm the amount of emergency medical personnel on scene.

Usually backup is called, and patients are triaged (catagorized in injury severity) depending on their level of injury. For instance, “walking wounded” = green tagged, “delayed” = yellow tagged, “immediate” = red tagged, “deceased” = black; the protocol followed is that of the START system (Simple Triage and Rapid Treatment) in North America.

Identifying and treating immediate life-threatening injuries is vital, as well as calling for rapid transport for said patients/victims.

Some examples for MCIs are the 9/11 terrorist attacks, severe motor vehicle collsion (such as a bus), large scale earthquakes, etc.

[bilateralpleurodesis]

In Denmark, risk of epilepsy was increased in children with hospital-diagnosed pertussis infections compared with the general population; however, the absolute risk was low.

In what is believed to be the first study to have examined the risk of epilepsy following whooping cough, a team of researchers from Aarhus University Hospital in Denmark reviewed the health history of 4,700 patients born between 1978 and 2011 who had been diagnosed with whooping cough before they had turned 6 months old. Results revealed that at 10 years old, children who had never had whooping cough had about a 0.9 percent risk of epilepsy, while children who had experienced the condition had a 1.7 percent risk for epilepsy. Children who were diagnosed with whooping cough after age 3 were not at increased risk for epilepsy.

[bilateralpleurodesis]

Uncanny Mysteries of Medicine: The Fear That Is Spontaneous Pneumothorax

It’s such a long term. A long term with a lot of meaning behind it, “spontaneous pneumothorax” is the term used when an accumulation of air builds between the lungs and the chest cavity, which causes the balloon-like organs themselves to collapse. It may be the right lung, left lung, or both. It may happen due to trauma to the chest area, or “randomly” when taking a deep breath. Medical professionals don’t really know the reasoning behind spontaneous pneumothoraxes, only that:

1)      It is more common in men than women

2)      It occurs in thin, tall individuals

3)      There is an estimated 13-60% chance of reoccurance

4)      There are theories in place involving folliculin, the protein responsible for repairment in

5)      connective tissue, altering the folliculin on lungs, therefore causing air pockets or “blebs” to cause collapsing

6)      Smoking increases risk of pneumothorax

It causes both chest pain and shortness of breath; pain when moving, and treatments include pleurodesis, VATS surgery, among others.

Sources:

http://www.medicinenet.com/pneumothorax/article.htm#facts

http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition/primary-spontaneous-pneumothorax

[rumagin]

I had this on my left lung in 2009. It’s harsh. But if things go good you can bounce back about 99%. I play sports, run and mountain bike to levels equal to what I did before hand. The only diff for me is sometimes when I’m run down or over doing an active life it aches. The ache is only on the side where I had the pneumothorax. I’m tall and thin. I had blebs. I smoked a little. I was in the States when it happened. Had insurance. They pumped me full of drugs. I had a talc pleurodesis. Got two little scars on my side. Also,sometimes when I’m on a flight it will feel tight. Like the lung is pulling the skin/chest wall or vice versa. Not sure if this is in my head or not.

[bilateralpleurodesis]

Glad you feel better! I know my spontaneous pneumothorax kicked my butt.

[lexlexpdx]

Middle aged man, walking with an open pocket knife, trips on a wire, and inadvertently impale himself with the knife. Alert, oriented, no neurological deficits, small amount of venous bleeding (blood in the picture is clotted). Trauma system entry straight to OR. The knife was found to be penetrating 13 mm into the temporal lobe. Missed any major structures and vasculature. 45 minute surgery. Got to see him the day after, and he is walking, talking, absolutely no neurological deficits. He is one lucky son of a bitch.

[fuckyeahcardiology]

Cardiomegaly

The term “cardiomegaly” most commonly refers to an enlarged heart seen on chest X-ray before other tests are performed to diagnose the specific condition causing your cardiomegaly. You may develop an enlarged heart temporarily because of a stress on your body, such as pregnancy, or because of a medical condition, such as the weakening of the heart muscle, coronary artery disease, heart valve problems or abnormal heart rhythms.

[humanoidhistory]

ESO concept art by L. Calçada shows how Pluto could look, with areas of pure methane and the distant Sun appearing a 1,000 times fainter than on Earth.

(European Southern Observatory)

[brainsandbodies]

From Anatomy In Motion

Beautiful: The Inside of the Heart! Tissue-paper thin but tough, the valves of the human heart open and close to pump 6 quarts of blood a day through 60,000 miles of vessels. That’s equivalent to 20 treks across the United States from coast to coast.  Info & Photo from Natural Geographic

[bilateralpleurodesis]

An EKG chart illustrating which wave represents certain areas of electrical events within the heart.

[humanoidhistory]

The size of Pluto and its moon Charon compared to Earth: “Recent measurements obtained by New Horizons indicate that Pluto has a diameter of 2370 km, 18.5% that of Earth’s, while Charon has a diameter of 1208 km, 9.5% that of Earth’s.”

(NASA-JHUAPL-SWRI)

[bilateralpleurodesis]

An arteriovenous (AV) fistula is used for hemodialysis and is considered an abnormal connection between an artery and a vein, in order to create blood flow throughout the body for patients with kidney disease and/or failure. It also may be due to a congenital disorder, trauma or erosion of an artery.

[thought-cafe]

A couple GIFs from Crash Course Anatomy & Physiology, because we heart you! ❤️  https://youtu.be/X9ZZ6tcxArI

[humanoidhistory]

False-color images from NASA’s New Horizons probe reveal details of Pluto and Charon. (NASA)

[morbidology]

In May 1996, Beck Weathers survived 18 hours in sub-zero temperatures in the “death zone” of Mount Everest after becoming disorientated. He managed to make his way back to camp, suffering from corneal lacerations, hypothermia. He also had a very severe case of frostbite and as a result, had to have his right arm amputated along with the fingers on his left hand. He then had to have portions of his feet and his nose amputated. His nose was then reconstructed with tissue from his forehead and his ear. Eight other climbers weren’t as lucky and perished on Mount Everest. His ordeal is narrated in the novel, Into Thin Air.

[bilateralpleurodesis]

Foot binding is a common practice in China, a painful and traditional custom done on young girls in order to obtain the ideal three inch foot. This was done by bending the arch and breaking the toes under the sole of the foot. 

[morbidology]

On 4 February, 2010, Joseph McStay, Summer McStay and their two children, 3-year-old Joseph McStay and 4-year-old Gianni McStay, disappeared from their home in Fallbrook, California. A few days later, their abandoned car was found near the Mexican border and a security camera picked up the image of a family which resembled the McStay family, leading police to believe the family had disappeared on their own accord and were safe. Sadly, this was not true. On 11 November, 2013, their remains were found in two shallow graves in a desert in Victorville. They were positively identified by dental records and it is believed their cause of death with blunt force trauma. It is theorised that they were killed in their own home and then they were transferred to the desert and dumped. The following year, Charles Merritt, Joseph’s business partner, was arrested for the murders.

[bilateralpleurodesis]

So crazy to have this written from somebody in Ireland. This case took place in my homestate in California and their bodies were found in the neighboring city of my hometown. It was actually on the border of Victorville and Apple Valley, the secluded/eerie part of the desert. Many bad things have happened in that area of town, including this tragedy. The community came together and put up crosses in memorial for the McStay family. 

The fact that a dirtbike rider found one of the remains of the McStay’s is crazy and it could have been any one of my family members or friends to have experienced it. So sad. Rest in Paradise.

[scienceyoucanlove-deactivated20]

Collecting trash in space

A satellite that gets rid of space junk could help prevent devastating collisions in Earth orbit

BY SID PERKINS

PITTSBURGH, Pa. — Satellites play big roles in modern life. Some look downward to monitor environmental conditions on Earth. Others look outward in search of major solar flares that can disrupt the transmission of electrical power to homes and businesses. Some spy on our enemies. Others relay communications around the globe. But all of these million-dollar marvels of technology can be knocked out by a collision with space junk — debris from satellites and other Earthly technology orbiting high above the planet. Now, a teen from Jordan has designed a satellite to chase down space junk, collect it and then dispose of it.

NASA is the U.S. space agency. It and other organizations are tracking about 500,000 pieces of space junk that are currently orbiting Earth. Many come from satellites or rockets that have blown up and shattered. The objects being tracked are the size of a marble or larger. About 20,000 are at least the size of a softball (some are as large as a refrigerator). Most are too small to detect from Earth’s surface. In all, some 100 million pieces of debris likely orbit Earth today, says 15-year-old Dana Arabiyat. She attends Alridwan Schools in Amman, Jordan

Even bits of space junk as small as flecks of paint pose a threat, says Dana. That’s because this debris orbits our planet at speeds up to some 28,200 kilometers per hour (17,500 miles per hour). That’s about 7.8 kilometers per second! Such blistering speed explains why tiny paint flecks have chipped the windshields of space shuttles so badly that they needed to be replaced.

Researchers have come up with many ideas for getting rid of space junk. Some have suggested vaporizing small bits with lasers. Others have proposed launching satellites to collect the debris. Dana’s design falls into this category.

Here’s how hers would work: A radar system aboard the satellite would scan for and find a piece of space junk. Then, thrusters would change the satellite’s orbit so that it could chase down the errant object. As the satellite closed in on its prey, cameras would keep it on target.

At the last minute, a door that leads to a bulletproof container would open. This container needs to be strong so that it doesn’t break apart when the satellite swallows the space junk, Dana explains. In some cases, she notes, the difference in speed between the satellite and the debris could still be pretty big.

Finally, when the trash container was full, it would be lowered toward Earth on a kilometers-long cable and it contents released into the upper atmosphere. There, the space junk would harmlessly burn up just like a meteor does. Meanwhile, her satellite would reel the container back up so that it could collect more trash

read more 

[bilateralpleurodesis]

Hiroshi Ouchi, a Japanese radioactive plant worker, was tragically exposed to high levels of radiation at his job in a uranium reprocessing facility in Tokaimura, a city northeast of Tokyo. At first, doctors in the intensive care unit noted that Ouchi looked and acted relatively well for an individual exposed to such high levels of radiation. Over time, however, his body gradually deteriorated due to the radioactivity breaking down the chromosomes in his cells. The doctors managed to keep him alive for 83 days; his body was in a continuous vegetative state until his death due to the effects of the radiation on his body.

A documentary on his death titled “A Slow Death: 83 Days of Radiation Sickness” highlights the circumstances surrounding the tragedy.

Source: 

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2009/01/11/books/book-reviews/learning-life-lessons-in-83-days-of-death/