Dr. Deb

My purse holds so much that I would surely win on Let’s Make a Deal. One deal I never planned on was poisoning a child or pet with seemingly innocuous items in that purse.

Do you know what poisons are in your purse?

1. Pill Box-

One third of the poisonings reported among children under age six are from prescription drugs commonly used by grandparents like high blood pressure, heart pills and diabetes pills.  Just one of these pills can cause severe problems, even death, in a child. Some think, “My doctor would never prescribe anything that is dangerous.” Any medication in the wrong dose has the potential to be dangerous. Child resistance only means that it took more than 5 minutes for 85% of children to open, it does not mean child proof.

A little flip box with over the counter medications like Tylenol or cold medicines can cause agitation or even fatal liver damage. Birth Control pills for new Moms or babysitters may look like candy and are easy to access but very dangerous. Iron in vitamins or particularly alone, in high dose tablets, can also be deadly.

2. Eye and Nose Drops-

Normal Saline is safe but drops with medication like Visine can be very dangerous to children and adults. Ingestion of the active ingredient, Tetrahydrozoline HCl 0.05% can cause serious side effects including:

Lowering body temperature to dangerous levels
Difficulty breathing or dropping blood pressure
Nausea and vomiting
Seizures or Coma

One common urban myth is that it will cause diarrhea (which is does not.) Those who thought were using Visine in a harmless prank have caused serious problems and even death.

3. Cigarettes and lighters

Cigarettes are toxic with second hand smoke but if ingested can cause severe stomach upset or vomiting. Lighters are colorful, like a toy, and many children accidently burn themselves or start fires. Ultimately you are setting the worst example for your child, as cigarettes are the most common cause of preventable death.

4. Alcohol Products:

Hand sanitizer, mouthwash and perfume contain alcohol and children have actually become drunk by drinking large amounts.

5. Manicure Products

Nail polish and nail polish remover can irritate the eyes, skin and mouth and upset the stomach if swallowed.  A metal nail file can easily become a weapon and should be substituted with an emery board.

6. Choking Hazards:

Mints and toothpicks from restaurants often end up in the purse and can cause significant choking hazards. Even batteries may cause choking as well as severe irritation or burns if chewed.
Other hazards include hairspray, toothpaste, baby powder, pens, insect repellents, hand cream and pens that can all cause stomach irritation.  Xylitol in Sugarless gum can cause insulin spikes in a dog with only 6 pieces resulting in liver failure.

What Do You DO if there is an accidental poisoning?

True confession: when my twins were little I had called poison control so many times that I used a fake name. Since that time, I have learned that they don’t keep track. It is open 24 hours, free and confidential.

1. Stay Calm
2. Call 911 if they are unconscious, convulsing or having difficulty breathing
3. Call poison control at 1-800-222-1222

Use a free app on your iphone if you don’t have the number

Do not give anything until you have called Poison Control

Accidental poisonings do happen and I know how embarrassing it is but always call, even if you don’t think that it is a big deal. Small things in your purse right now could cause big problems in the future.

Take care,

Dr. Deb

The rainiest April has forgotten that it is now May, as once again we have a severe weather threat with potential flooding. Louisiana, Texas, Arkansas and now Memphis have recently had record-breaking damage as the result of weather. If your state is next, are you prepared?  Here are a few safety tips that everyone should have in place.

Dr Deb’s Safety Tips for Floods

1. Identify Utilities:

Know where gas, water and power lines are now so that you can turn them off quickly if you have to suddenly evacuate.  Now this is something that I never would have thought of and will likely require a call to your utility companies so get those numbers handy. Know where you water safety valve is and have a wrench ready too.

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If don’t want to get sick, stay out of the hospital. It was true when I was in residency and even more so today.

Medication errors, infections and other hospital errors are 10x ‘s more common that previously thought according to a new study in the April issue of Health Affairs.

Medical errors may occur in up to one- third of hospital admissions.

Here are a few tips to help keep you safe and protect you from Medical Mistakes.

Dr. Deb’s Tips to Protect You from Medical Mistakes

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I live in Cincinnati and like most Midwestern towns we pride ourselves on being nice and caring people. I was shocked to learn that Cincinnatians are less than half as likely to perform CPR compared to the National Average. Only 11.5% of Cincinnatians know and are willing to perform CPR compared to the national average of 25% according to the University of Cincinnati.

If your family member were having a heart attack, would you know what to do?

Nearly 80% of Heart Attacks occur in the home and most people that survive a heart attack had CPR started before emergency care arrives.

Here is a quick overview that you can do today. Everyone should take a class from the Red Cross who has a plethora of options, but a one-hour class could save a life.

If you are not trained in CPR and see someone go down here is the quick rundown so you don’t just stand there.

CPR Steps

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When the Cincinnati Bengals do well, there is cause for celebration. Perhaps since that does not happen as frequently as we would like, the Bengals know how to put on a show in the end zone.

Well before Ocho Cinco Shenanigans there was the Icky Wood’s shuffle. We love our hometown heroes, so when Icky Wood’s son, 16 year old Elbert Jovante Woods, died from a severe asthma attack earlier this week, it hit us all with great sadness.  Joe was a promising football player himself and more importantly, a great student and all around nice guy according to his fellow teammates.

We are sad for not just the Woods family but also a little scared because we all know a child that has asthma and wonder if this could happen to us.

7 million or 1-2 out of 10 children have some asthma. Asthma causes 4,000 deaths per year in the US and over 250,000 deaths worldwide.  It is the 3^rd cause of hospital admissions in children and African Americans are three times more likely to die from asthma.

Should I let my child with asthma play sports? Absolutely! According to the American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology one in every 6 Olympic athletes have asthma. There are many faces of asthma including Jackie Joyner-Kersee, David Beckham and Jerome Bettis.

What is asthma? (more…)