Page 21 - Florida Sentinel 4-14-17

Health
FAST
RICE
Shorter May Be Better
With so many tongue-twisting words and terms, it’s no wonder doctors use shortened versions -- acronyms -- to get through the day. Here are some common and not-so-common ones you might hear at your doctor’s office or a hospital.
MIND
MRI
DNR
BRAT
BMI
This stands for body mass index. It’s an estimate of your body fat based on your weight and height. Online tools can help you make your own BMI calculation. But it’s a rough way to tell if you’re at a healthy weight. Talk to your doctor if your BMI number suggests you could be
over -- or under -- a normal weight.
This machine records the electri- cal activity of your heart and graphs it. It helps your doctor see if there’s a problem with your blood flow or heart rhythm. ECG stands for elec- trocardiogram -- the E is from elec- tro, C from cardio, and G from gram.
It’s often called an EKG because it was first made in Germany, where it was called the elektro-kardiographie.
A urinary tract infection happens in the part of your body that gets rid of liquid waste (pee). That includes your kidneys (which filter the waste from your blood), your bladder (which holds the pee before it’s re- leased), and the tubes that help move it out of your body (the ureter and
urethra). Symptoms include pain, a burning feeling when you pee, and blood in your urine. Women get it more often than men. It’s usually treated with antibiotics.
This is an easy way to remember signs of a stroke, which can come on quickly. F is for face drooping: Does one side droop, or is it numb? Is your smile uneven? A is
for arm weakness. When raised, does one arm drift down? S is for speech difficulty: Is it slurred or dif- ficult to understand? Is it hard to speak? T is for “Time to call 911.” If you or someone else has any of these symptoms, make the call right away.
This is a diet of bland food -- bananas, rice, ap- plesauce, and toast -- some doctors recommend if you have diarrhea or an upset stomach. These low-fiber
foods make your poop firmer. (Fiber makes it looser -- helpful if you’re constipated.) And they have nutrients your body may need after you’ve been vomiting or had diarrhea, like the potassium in bananas.
A computerized to- mography scan takes X- rays from different angles of your body and puts them together to make a more detailed picture than a single X-ray. It’s
often used for quick, detailed exams when someone has been in a car accident or had other serious trauma. It can also help tell if you have certain dis- eases and plan for some kinds of cancer treatments.
Remember this one when you strain a muscle or sprain your ankle. R for rest -- but not too much. You should move around as soon as you feel up to it. I for ice as
soon as possible after your injury. C for compress -- pressure -- with an elastic wrap or bandage. And E for elevate the body part you’ve injured -- try to hold it above your heart to keep swelling down.
This stands for Mediterranean-DASH Diet Intervention for Neu- rodegenerative Delay -- quite a mouthful. It may help protect you against brain diseases like
Alzheimer’s. The diet includes vegetables -- espe- cially green leafy ones -- nuts, berries, beans, whole grains, fish, chicken, olive oil, and wine (one glass a day). And you’ll need to cut back on red meat, butter, cheese, pastries, sweets, and fried and fast food.
Magnetic resonance imaging uses radio waves and powerful magnets to make detailed 3-D images of the inside of your body. They can be looked at
from many angles so your doctor can get more in- formation. It’s often used to take pictures of your joints, spine, and inside your skull to look for in- juries, bleeding, tumors, and certain diseases, like Alzheimer’s.
EKG or ECG
CT Scan
UTI
It stands for “do not resuscitate,” and it means doctors shouldn’t use spe- cial equipment to revive someone if their heart or breathing stops. This order is usually for someone who is close to death because of age or disease. A doc- tor writes the DNR order after talking with the person who’s ill. If the ill per- son isn't able to make decisions, the doctor will talk with a family member, typically a spouse, child, or parent.
ADHD
ication can help.
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder can make it hard to pay at- tention or focus and cause impulsive behavior and hyperactivity. There are several types, and symptoms are dif- ferent for each person. Talk with a doctor if you or your child has any of these symptoms. Therapy and med-
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