Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with medicaladvice

How do I treat road rash?

Raichle — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 13:59:39 -0800

How should I treat my road rash so that it will heal quickly and not scar? I had a bike accident last night and scraped and bruised my face fairly badly. It looks like a really bad rash with a small puncture. I cleaned it really well with anti-bacterial soap and Bactine and then doused it with Neosporin. Is there anything else that I should do? Would Arnica help or be bad since it's an abrasion?

Oh, okay, I wasn't aware that anal bleeding was such a pedestrian concern-- thanks, Doc.

Anonymous — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 20:33:40 -0800

TMI Medical Filter: Previously, I had sometimes crippling stomach pain. That went away. Now I'm, uh, bleeding. Rectally. Um. Yeah. But my HMO doesn't seem to care all that much. MetaFilter is not my doctor, but I can't go to my doctor to ask... should I skip my HMO and go to the hospital? Demographics note: Caucasian male, 20 years of age, only other major prior health problem--familial (?) migraine headaches.

Around August, I started having these awful, crippling bouts of mid-torso (stomach-area) pain in the morning and night, accompanied by abdominal bloating and upper-back pain. This continued for a week until I stopped being a moron and went to see a gastrointestinal doctor through my HMO, who put me on a preliminary regimen of Prilosec and ordered a round of tests.

For awhile, these bouts subsidied (with no word from my doctor RE: my tests), but then mid-September they began again for no readily apparent reason, prompting me to schedule another appointment, which I was not able to get in until October. I learned that apparently turned up negative for my H. Pylori scan (which apparently is predictive of having an ulcer?), though my HMO/doctor lost (!) all of the other related tests (I don't even recall all of them--one of them was an "occult blood" test). My doctor quibbled about perhaps performing an endoscopy, but would not commit to any further orders.

With a significantly increased dosage of Prilosec, the painful episodes had until recently subsided into occasional odd, funny, light pain in my stomach that I had been unaccustomed to feeling prior, but nothing that interfered with going along my day-to-day business. I had largely put that out of my mind until a few days ago, when I started to bleed rectally at almost every defecation. This began as a few drops or a bloodiness of the feces, but in my very subjective perception seems to have gotten steadily worse day-by-day. Accordingly, I've made an appointment with my doctor, but it won't be for another two weeks!

I've been calling for the past few days to try to catch a dropped appointment or see if any doctors at associated facilities have openings, explaining my circumstances, but have had absolutely no luck. Today, my bottom-torso even hurts some.

My own self-diagnosis was Meckel's Diverticulum, but, uh, then I noticed that this is mostly diagnosed at youth, and really, I don't understand anything. The symptoms seem to match me exactly, though (minus the, uh, life-threatening ones, as far as I know).

These are a lot of words to ask: At one point should I say "fuck you!" to my HMO and decide to seek some ER help at one of my great local hospitals? Is this potentially life-threatening in the immediate term? Should I have said "fuck you" the moment I started bleeding? I'm worried about incurring unnecessary hospital costs as my family and I are in a difficult financial situation (though I'm lucky to have healthcare at all, I suppose). If it helps at all or if anyone has any experience working with them, my HMO is Kaiser and I live in the Northern Virginian area.

flushing out a 4.5mm kidney stone?

Anonymous — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 06:10:50 -0800

4.5mm kidney stone - what can I do between now and the urologist's visit in two days to get rid of it? I've read that most 4mm and smaller stones pass on their own. Mine's 4.5mm. I want to get this little mineral bugger out of my system if possible.

What can I do on my own to maximize the chances of passing this stone?

I was diagnosed on Friday following moderate flank pain and abdominal discomfort starting last Monday. CT scan confirms stone diagnosis, and I'm seeing a urologist on Wednesday.

More info: white male, moderately active, middle age. CT scan shows 4.5 mm stone in kidney. This is my first stone. Took 100% RDA in calcium supplements (calc. carbonate) for the past year. Also a moderate cola drinker (24 oz / day) and black tea drinker (1 - 2 cups / day). I don't drink coffee or alcohol, and I don't smoke.

I was much more active a year ago. I was bike commuting daily. Given the calcium supplements and the reduction in exercise, which I've read leads to bone loss and subsequent increased levels of calcium, my educated guess is that this is a calcium-based kidney stone.

In the past week, I've stopped drinking cola, cut back on tea, and stopped taking calcium. I've also begun drinking at least 3 liters of water a day.

I'd like to do the maximum to pass or reduce this stone before the urologist visit. Beyone the diet changes above and the increase in water, what can I do?

I know that you are not my urologist. I'm just looking for suggestions that go beyond the advice in all the 'so you've got a kidney stone' pages.

Should I be more physically active? How far can I take this (i.e. jogging, jumping jacks)? And if this is a calcium-based stone, what can I injest to encourage it to break up or slim down?

Best way to let a knife wound (cut) heal?

dobbs — Sat, 11 Feb 2006 13:42:06 -0800

I cut my left index finger something fierce with a very sharp serrated knife. What's the best thing to do to help it heal fast and well? It's between my 2nd and 3rd knuckle, the whole thumb-side and a quarter of the top. It was with this knife, if that makes a difference. It bled for a really long time and I considered going to the emergency room but, for reasons I'll not get into, couldn't, and now can't leave my place till Monday.

I've been putting polysporin on it and keeping it under a very tightly wrapped band-aid. However, I've changed the band-aid 3 times and the gash is pretty significant now that I can see it without the blood. Should I just keep changing the band-aid (how often?) and doing the polysporin or ... should I be letting it "breath" or what? The best thing about the band-aid is that it's across the knuckle so is keeping the finger stiff. When I bend the finger, the gash opens more and it starts to bleed again. Without the band-aid it'll be hard not to bend the finger as I'm typing all weekend with a vicious Monday deadline I can't get out of.

I already have a toonie shaped scar on my palm and would rather avoid one on the top of the same hand. Any suggestions that don't involve a doctor?

Though I'm "chained" home, there is a drugstore across the street that I can access. Thanks!