a flag for those whose scoliosis affects their respiratory function based on this scoliosis flag! the pink stripes represent the lungs and chest wall muscles and the blue stripe represents air/breath.
my scoliosis distorts the anatomy of my chest, which reduces my lung capacity and weakens my chest muscles. i've been struggling a lot with my breathing problems recently so here's my reward lol.
flag id: a flag with 9 stripes, with the fourth, fifth, and sixth being one-third the size of the rest. in order, they are faded green, soft teal, very light yellow, light red, very light blue, light red, very light yellow, soft teal, and faded green. end id.
banner id: a 1500x150 teal banner with the words ‘please read my dni before interacting’ in large white text in the center. end id.
this might just be me being up past an acceptable sleep time and therefore being upsetti, but i hate being a disabled person who’s not “clean”. i’ve got some lung fuckery that means my airways are almost always blocked by phlegm/air pockets, and i hack and snort and cough and make this gross “cuuur” sound when i clear my throat all the time. and that’s annoying enough, but honestly?
people look at me strange. they give me disgusted looks when i hack or cough (especially in the middle of dead silence). i’ve been asked to leave the room because i was too loud. had people move away from me on trains because they think i’m contagious. my (well-meaning) friends and strangers have laughed at my noises. had people complain about my phlegm-y tissues being gross, like i’m gonna wash my hands every time i breathe.
and no, it’s not the worst thing in the world, and i understand (i think it’s gross too!) but it also really fucking sucks.
Considering this is the second (kind of third) time I've seen a respiratory infection in leopard geckos, I figured I'd quickly mention the most obvious signs of respiratory issues
Sitting with an elevated head for extended periods of time, often whilst really pressed down onto their heated area
Eyes somewhat clenched, rather than just closed
Gagging and/or sneezing (both could occur several times in a row, or just one at the time)
Drawing full breaths into the lungs (can be seen behind the front legs) appear strained and more shallow than normal
Clenching eyes whilst appearing to swallow and wiggling their or forcefully turning head towards the shoulders (discomfort, "it feels like there's something in my throat")
Sounds during breathing (can be heard when holding them to your ear). Wheezing, clicking, "wet" sounds
2/3 we've had respiratory infections were from losing power for several hours - this shouldn't be too much of an issue for most leopard geckos, but if they happen to be hanging out in their moist hide during that time, the combination of the cold and humidity triggered them. I've made a mental note that we'll remove moist hides during power cuts from now on. The last respiratory infection was a result of parasites burrowing into the lungs, at which point neither antibiotics nor parasite medication helped (an ultrasound was needed to actually see this).
If you see any signs of respiratory issues in a leopard gecko, call a vet, crank up the temperature of the thermostat slightly, and increase their humidity a little by misting their moist hide thoroughly and/or put a container of some moist soil somewhere over their heat mat.
Was listening to the news this morning and they had a doctor on who explained who comes into the “at risk” category for Covid-19 in a super easy to understand way. If you are eligible for a free flu jab in the UK you count as “at risk” (I’m using quotations as everyone is at risk this group are just at a higher risk). Thought people might find this helpful and thought it might help some people feel like their worries are more valid, it certainly helped me as I had quite a big freak out at the start of all this.
To a body that doesn't smoke, smoke is smoke. It doesn't matter that it's beneficial when you smoke it.
1. Breathing second-hand smoke from tobacco, also called passive smoking, is harmful to the lungs. People who breathe second-hand smoke often have symptoms such as coughing, wheezing and a tight feeling in the chest. Even the smell of smoke on clothes can trigger asthma symptoms in someone with sensitive airways.
2. Secondhand smoke can irritate the lungs and can cause respiratory illnesses and breathing difficulties. It can even casuue decreased lung functions that are traceable to secondhand smoke exposure.
Even if you think it's bullshit, when someone asks you to not smoke somewhere, just don't. Step outside. Smoke in designated areas.
A new invention helps sick babies breathe easier. It looks like a tiny lifejacket and it avoids the mask and tubes that get in the way of breastfeeding.
This is one in a series presenting news on technology and innovation, made possible with generous support from the Lemelson Foundation.
Babies that are born sick or prematurely often have lung problems. Many need help just to take a breath. There are machines to help these infants. But using them can come at a cost. “[Their] masks and tubes often leave babies with deformed noses,” notes Doug Campbell. And, he adds, “The wires and machinery mean their mothers can’t hold or breastfeed them.”
Campbell is a pediatrician in charge of an intensive care unit for babies at St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto, Canada. He thought there must be a better way to bring life-saving support to these babies. His team has just begun testing one promising alternative.
Called NeoVest, it looks a bit like a tiny lifejacket. Campbell’s team fits the vest around a baby’s belly. The vest is airtight, so when it pulls away from the baby, it creates a vacuum. That, in turn, gently pulls on the belly. This motion draws air into the baby’s lungs.
Elsewhere, such babies would be hooked up to another type of mechanical ventilator. Such machines push air into a baby’s tiny body. The air enters through a tube attached to a mask that is sealed over the nose. These devices continue to breathe for the infants until they are strong enough to do it themselves.
NeoVest avoids the mask and all those tubes and wires that can get in the way of a baby bonding with its mother. In June, the team tested the vest on the first baby. It worked well. Shortly, the researchers plan to start testing the vest on more babies.
This better resembles what a newborn on a ventilator looks like. The tubes, and possibly other associated wires, could make it hard for parents to quickly bond with their babies.CREDIT: Sergeyryzhov/iStock/Getty Images Plus
Ventilation — a special problem for preemies
Ordinarily, a newborn figures out how to breathe at birth. But in babies born prematurely, the lungs may not be fully developed at birth. Many newborns also develop lung diseases, such as an infection, that impairs their ability to breathe well. To help these children, hospitals often use mechanical ventilators.
These have proven to be life-savers. But they can have side effects. Besides the mask, tubes and wires, a traditional ventilator is unlikely to match the precise rhythm of air intake and exhalations that a baby’s body would normally develop. To compensate, doctors need to sedate babies as a way to help them deal with the severe discomfort of the ventilator being out of sync with their natural breathing rhythms.
NeoVest’s co-creator is Jennifer Beck. She works at St. Michael’s Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science. As a physiologist, she studies how the body functions. Her specialty is the science of breathing.
In healthy people, explains Beck, the brain sends a signal to a muscular wall just below the lungs. It’s known as the diaphragm (DY-uh-fram). Signals from the brain tell the diaphragm to contract, bringing in a breath. Other signals tell it when to relax, releasing a breath. When patients are very sick, however, the diaphragm may not respond properly to those brain signals about when to breathe.
Working with her research partner and husband, Christer Sinderby, Beck came up with a solution. A sensor attached to the baby’s feeding tube picks up the brain’s breathing signals. These signals match the NeoVest’s rhythms of expansion and contraction to the baby’s natural breath.
Adults on ventilators may have the same problem with mismatched ventilator breaths. However, the problem is bigger in babies. Why? They breathe faster and tend to have a less regular rhythm. This makes it even harder for a ventilator to match what would be their natural breathing patterns. Beck and Sinderby’s invention solves that problem.
Still a work in progress
The new vest also solves another important problem with traditional forced-breath ventilators, says Michael Dunn. He’s a pediatrician at nearby Sunnybrook Health Sciences Center in Toronto.
“Pushing gas in is not natural and carries a risk of injury to the lungs,” he explains. “Drawing a breath in is more natural,” he says. By encouraging the body to draw air in, he says, “NeoVest has great potential as a way of protecting the lung from injury.”
Still, there are potential drawbacks, he notes. Babies, especially premature ones, have very sensitive skin. The rhythmic pulling on the skin might injure the skin underneath the vest.
That is one of the things Beck will be watching for closely in the St. Michael’s tests. She also will be watching to make sure the vests are properly sealed so they do in fact create a vacuum when they pull away from the baby’s belly.
“We don’t usually think about breathing,” says Beck. “It’s an automatic process. But what happens when you can’t breathe? I want to help the oldest patients down to the tiniest, most vulnerable ones.”
