We Restore Hope -

Gary Reinbach died last week. The 22-year-old British man had been denied a liver transplant because he was too sick to prove he could stay sober. Reinbach had the worst case of cirrhosis that doctors had ever seen in a man of his age but they refused to give permission for a transplant.

Guidelines in England say that to qualify for a donor organ, a potential recipient must prove he can stop drinking and remain abstinent for six months. This is to make sure there are no more cases like that of George Best, the soccer legend who continued to drink after receiving a liver transplant. Best died not long after that liver transplant.

A daughter may outgrow your lap, but she will never outgrow your heart. ~Author Unknown

Too much alcohol often causes trauma, complicates with the assessment of injuries, and interferes with patient care. Despite the fact that 20 to 37 percent of accident cases in trauma centers are alcohol-related, some trauma patients are reluctant to self report their drinking.

A new study has found that testing for alcohol biomarkers – particularly blood alcohol levels – can identify high-risk patients admitted to trauma centers who had denied excessive drinking. Results of the study will be published in the October issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research.

“Alcohol use is associated with higher rates of motor vehicle accidents, falls, injuries inflicted by weapons and workplace injuries than in persons not using alcohol,” said Michael F. Fleming, professor of family medicine and author of the study. “In addition, patients processed through emergency may not be aware of their injury severity until alcohol is out of their system, and in persons suffering from head trauma it is difficult to assess changes in mental status.”
“Alcohol is the single most robust risk factor for physical trauma,” said Jean-Bernard Daeppen, professor of medicine at Lausanne University Hospital in Switzerland.

“An elevated blood alcohol level is not just having a glass before trauma. Most patients admitted with positive blood alcohol levels after trauma have an alcohol-use disorder, often severe.”

Too much alcohol often causes trauma, complicates with the assessment of injuries, and interferes with patient care. Despite the fact that 20 to 37 percent of accident cases in trauma centers are alcohol-related, some trauma patients are reluctant to self report their drinking.

A new study has found that testing for alcohol biomarkers – particularly blood alcohol levels – can identify high-risk patients admitted to trauma centers who had denied excessive drinking. Results of the study will be published in the October issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research.

“Alcohol use is associated with higher rates of motor vehicle accidents, falls, injuries inflicted by weapons and workplace injuries than in persons not using alcohol,” said Michael F. Fleming, professor of family medicine and author of the study. “In addition, patients processed through emergency may not be aware of their injury severity until alcohol is out of their system, and in persons suffering from head trauma it is difficult to assess changes in mental status.”
“Alcohol is the single most robust risk factor for physical trauma,” said Jean-Bernard Daeppen, professor of medicine at Lausanne University Hospital in Switzerland.

“An elevated blood alcohol level is not just having a glass before trauma. Most patients admitted with positive blood alcohol levels after trauma have an alcohol-use disorder, often severe.”

You can dance anywhere, even if only in your heart.

The larger the island of knowledge, the longer the shoreline of wonder. ~Ralph W. Sockman

A 4-year-old girl in Tampa was taken to the hospital after eating candy that was tainted with Oxycontin. The girl was with her grandparents, driving home Monday from Tampa International Airport, when she became lethargic. Her grandparents took her to the hospital where she was treated and released.

Police found several pills mixed in with the Skittles, and say the bag had been resealed. Airport police chief Paul Sireci says officers pulled about 30 bags of Skittles off store shelves as a precaution.

Sireci says it is possible someone gave the candy to the girl, or she picked up the bag from a random spot at the airport. An investigation is in progress.

I find that a great part of the information I have was acquired by looking up something and finding something else on the way. ~Franklin Adams

A toxicology report determining the cause of Michael Jackson’s death is expected next week. However, a preliminary autopsy report points to a powerful drug Jackson never should have had access to, may have been what killed him. And abuse of this drug is a growing problem.

Doctors call it “milk of amnesia.” Its real name is Propofol or Dipravan, a powerful anesthetic used in surgeries to sedate patients. It can induce unconsciousness in 30 seconds.

“It’s given through an IV and it’s designed to produce deep sedation or coma,” said Dr. Omar Manejwala, a fellow of the American Psychiatric Association.

Sophisticated equipment to monitor the patient’s respiration and heart rate is required so the drug is never given outside a medical facility. Yet, just days after Jackson’s death, investigators found Propofol inside his home. Last week, police raid the office of Jackson’s doctor looking for evidence that he administered Propofol to Jackson.

Jackson’s former nurse says he asked for the drug to help with insomnia.

“I understand it,” said Thane Flora, who abused Propofol. “I understand that desperation.”

Flora is now in recovery. But she abused Propofol in the 1990s while working as a nurse anesthetist. She used it to fight insomnia brought on by an an addiction to painkillers.

“It’s real simple,” Flora said. “You use it to go to sleep. Wake up a few minutes later and use it again.”

That is because the drug wears off in about five minutes, leading addicts to constantly inject themselves.

“The patients we’ve seen who used Propofol will often self inject 50 or 70 times per day,” Manejwala said.

And despite the short term effect, most addicts report experiencing a sense of euphoria when they wake up.”
“What makes sense to an active addict makes no sense to someone that’s not an active addict,” Flora said.

Almost all Propofol addicts are medical professionals. They have easy access to the drug because it is not controlled and tracked like narcotics.

In 2008, the FDA reported 43 Propofol related deaths. In the previous decade, there were an average of 22 deaths per year.

A hug is a great gift – one size fits all, and it’s easy to exchange. ~Author Unknown
A doctor in Hawaii who ran a website called DIAL-A-DOC has pleaded guilty in federal court to four counts of dispensing drugs without a legitimate medical purpose.

Dr. Harold Spear III also pleaded guilty last week to a similar additional charge filed in Alabama. He agreed to forfeit money seized in that investigation.

Spear faces a possible maximum sentence of 85 years in prison and $4.2 million in fines when he is sentenced on October 26. The U.S. Attorney said Spear admitted illegally prescribing methadone to a patient in Hawaii four times in 2005 and 2006. He also illegally prescribed hydrocodone in the Alabama case.

Never apologize for showing feeling. When you do so, you apologize for the truth. ~Benjamin Disraeli

A researcher at Baylor University has discovered a set of genes that regulates stress responses that could cause some people to take drugs, especially alcohol. Dr. Doug Matthews, a professor of psychology and neuroscience, authored the study. he found a small section on chromosome one that is responsive to a particular type of stress in animals. The researchers then identified the genes in this region that could be responsible for the behavioral response to stress, like alcohol consumption.

“This study gives us insight into a common genetic pathway for stress that might be critical in modulating behavior, especially alcohol consumption, since many people report drinking alcohol to reduce stress,” Matthews said.

Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

More than one thousand people died recently of overdoses from heroin cut with fentanyl. Fentanyl is used after surgery or to treat severe pain. It is 50 to 100 times stronger than morphine and can be deadly when abused.

The deaths began early this year in the mid-Atlantic states before spreading to the Midwest, with many deaths in Chicago and Detroit.

Because people can unknowingly purchase heroin that is cut with fentanyl and not adjust the amount heroin accordingly, this abuse trend is particularly dangerous. There have been reports of deaths caused by people “eating” fentanyl patches.

If you’re going through hell, keep going. ~Winston Churchill
Drug addiction is a societal problem that has become front-page news recently. The questionable death of Michael Jackson illustrates that no one is immune to the effects of addiction.

The Atlanta Recovery Center was originally started as a treatment program for non-violent offenders. Their conclusion is that fewer people go back to drugs or criminal behavior after completing the program than if they had gone to jail instead. National data shows this to be the case.