American Porphyria Foundation Purple Light Blog

Routine visits: Generally, everyone should routinely see their doctor, dentist, and eye doctor for preventive care. Women should routinely see their primary care doctor or gynecologist for gynecologic examinations. People can obtain a schedule of what type of care is required and how often visits are needed from their primary care doctor. Usually, infants and older people need more frequent preventive visits, but frequency also depends on a person's health conditions. For example, a person with diabetes or a heart disorder (or risk factors for them) may need to have checkups relatively frequently. Visits for a problem: When symptoms or other medical problems develop between preventive visits, people may be unsure whether they need to see a doctor. Many symptoms and problems can be handled at home. For example, most routine colds do not require a doctor's attention. Many small cuts and abrasions can be handled by first cleaning them with mild soap and water, then applying an a…

Hospital Patients Rarely Wash Their Hands, May Spread Disease By Madeline Kennedy October 23, 2014 80 comments PrintEmail

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Hospitalized patients who don't wash their hands may be contributing to the spread of hospital-acquired infections, say Canadian researchers. After tracking hundreds of patients in a transplant ward for nearly a year, the study team found that patients washed their hands after less than a third of bathroom visits, and washing or hand-sanitizer use happened only rarely after patients entered or left a room. "We know that certain infections can be spread on people's hands, and hand washing is an important way to prevent those infections," said the study's lead author, Dr. Jocelyn Srigley, associate medical director of infection prevention and control at Hamilton Health Sciences in Hamilton, Ontario. The role of healthcare workers in transferring infectious microbes from place to place and person to person in hospitals h…

Devising a dietDietary recommendations such as those listed above need to be translated into a diet plan for the individual. This is best done with the advice of a physician and the help of a dietitian. It is standard practice for a physician to prescribe a diet for an individual and for a dietitian to assist the patient in devising an individualized meal plan. The following are some considerations in devising a dietary plan to achieve the goals of a dietary prescription. Food intake should be consistent but should take into account lifestyle and physical activity. The total daily energy intake should be distributed consistently with at least three regular meals each day. Total energy intake must be individualized, because it varies with age, sex, and body weight and is affected by physical activity. It can also be greatly altered by illness. (Dietitians employ standard methods to estimate daily energy requirements. One of these methods is the Harris-Benedict equation.)

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