Category Archives: Health

Leslie Dinaberg Sits Down with Dr. Alois Zauner

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Dr. Alois Zauner (courtesy photo)

Dr. Alois Zauner (courtesy photo)

Strokes can be paralyzing and debilitating: There are 4.5 million strokes every year in the United States, making them the third leading cause of death and the number one cause of disability. But thanks to the addition of a new Neurovascular Center at Cottage Hospital, under the leadership of Dr. Alois Zauner, swift and less invasive treatment for strokes and other brain illnesses is now available right here in Santa Barbara.

Leslie Dinaberg: Tell me about the new Neurovascular Center at Cottage Hospital?

Alois Zauner: The idea is really to build up a Neuroscience Center. The first aspect was really the most difficult, to build the neurovascular service. It is like trauma service, your head injury needs to be treated right away and the same for stroke. …

The problem for this region is that centers are in Los Angeles (UCLA or USC or Cedars) and then the next places are in San Francisco (UCSF or Stanford) and basically for 500 miles there is nothing. … So frequently in the past a patient, let’s say in Ventura or Oxnard, has a bleeding aneurism or a stroke, and does not get on time to UCLA or some other place.

The idea is really to build, in partnership with other hospitals, a Neurovascular Center for this region, not just for Santa Barbara. …And also help some other hospitals to provide service, because not everybody has to come here. Some stroke patients can be treated in smaller hospitals.

LD: Is it more about having the doctors with the skills to perform those surgeries or is it also about having the equipment?

AZ: It’s kind of both. The key issue is that it’s the upfront investment in what is called a Neuro-angiography suite and also … the material we use is very expensive. So you need to have a certain infrastructure and tools to really do it and then you need the ICU critical care units. It takes quite a lot of infrastructure…Building the new hospital some of the focus is on the neurosciences and the neurovascular unit is the first major step towards that direction. We already do spine surgery, there is neurology here, but some other programs will be new. There will be treatment for Parkinson’s and we’ll do brain tumors and also child development and things like that.

LD: That’s interesting.

AZ: …One reason for me to come here me is also a closer collaboration with USCB, especially the neuroscience research institute.

LD: So they have a research institute even though they don’t have a medical school?

AZ: Yes, UCSB has a neuroscience research institute and they do have very fine engineering and a lot of what they’re working on is related to pre-clinical science. …We’re doing the fundraising right now. …

LD: Did the hospital have this vision and then go out and find you to run the center or did you come in with a vision and they’re now creating the center?

AZ: Very good questions. I think when I was a fellow at UCLA there was always the talk that Santa Barbara was unserved … that a lot of the patients don’t make it on time to the right place when they had a stroke… Then I think Cottage had a consulting company, … (they were making) a major investment and had to be sure that they were targeting what’s needed for this region. So they were told neurosciences and then somehow I got involved.

I think the initial vision of Cottage was more to have a stroke center, but you know I think it merges more with what neurosurgeons do; you cannot just have a stroke center because you have strokes but also the aneurisms … and a full spectrum of vascular diseases.

LD: It makes sense with our aging population.

AZ: Yes, in town but also everywhere, it’s not just for Santa Barbara, it’s for this region…One of things we’re doing is using a Robot in the ER and they can communicate with the people here. The Robots are made by a company here in SB called InTouch Health (www.intouchhealth.com), we have them here in the ICU … right now we have this at home, but the idea is that we’re partnering with other hospitals so they will have this in emergency rooms and assist the physicians who is not expert in say neuro, and discuss the films and can ask the patient questions and we can then decide how to treat them. … Critical care is also very important and I’ve spent a lot of time the last six months to work with the nurses and technicians because we do so much more to monitor the brain so that’s very important.

LD: How far away is the center from completion?

AZ: The neurovascular is in place, basically, but I think that the neuroscience center, that will take a while. …

LD: Can you explain the new minimally invasive techniques you are using?

AZ: A traditional way to treat an aneurism is do open surgery. So you do a craniotomy (where you surgically open the skull) and we go into your brain… we still do about 15-20% like that because the minimally invasive technology with the things we have right now we cannot do 100%, maybe 85%. In the case of neuroendovascular surgery a tiny little catheter goes into the brain…and we pull out the clot.

LD: In addition to being less invasive is there less chance of other complications?

AZ: … Less invasive does not mean that there’s less risk. Yes there’s less pain involved, they get to go home much quicker, the ICU care is much easier, like the aneurism we had today can go home in a few days. So yes, patients have less pain but it’s not always less risks.

LD: Is there a specific person that you’re working with at UCSB to make all this happen?

AZ: Matthew Tirrell is the Dean of Engineering. I think he’s the person who is really the key.

LD: Why did you choose to come to Santa Barbara to build this center?

AZ: What I wish is that we really can build this up, that we make a difference in the community. …It’s also I think very important for us to really be connected to UCSB to develop a center, because really what we do is so new that I think you cannot completely separate it from research or new ideas and I do hope that in a smaller hospital we can also work with researchers. It’s easier than in a big medical facility.

Vital Stats: Dr. Alois Zauner

Born: Austria

Family: Wife Teresa, son Alexander, age 10 (“they’ve only been here six weeks)

Professional Accomplishments: Medical degree from the University of Vienna; surgical internship and neurosurgical residency training at the Medical College of Virginia; combined fellowship in neuroendovascular surgery and diagnostic and interventional Radiology at UCLA; one of only 50 Neurosurgeons in the U.S. with training in neurointerventional radiology and endovascular techniques; director of Neuroendovascular Services at the University of Miami in Florida, and Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurological Surgery and Radiology; working to establish a new Neurovascular Center at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital.

Little-Known Fact: “My family would like to have me back in Austria.”

Originally published in Noozhawk on January 14, 2008. Click here to read it on that site.

Menorrhagia: The Body Out of Balance

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Most women will experience a heavy menstrual period at some point in her reproductive life. For some women, heavy periods are even the norm. “But if there is a change in heaviness get it evaluated,” says Dr. Carrie Ann Terrell, a specialist in women’s health. If you are soaking a pad or tampon within one to two hours for longer than one day, you should seek medical attention, she advises. It could be Menorrhagia, which the National Women’s Health Resource Center (NWHRC) defines as soaking a pad and/or tampon every hour or less during each menstrual cycle.

While Menorrhagia–which affects an estimated 10 to 20 percent of premenopausal women in the United States–can strike at any time, it is most likely to occur during puberty and the years just before menopause, when reproductive hormones are erratic.

“Women learn about periods, pregnancy and menopause but are unprepared for what happens in between. The fact is, pelvic health conditions can happen at any age, particularly after a woman’s had a baby,” explains Elizabeth Battaglino Cahill, RN, executive director of the NWHRC.

The condition can cause fatigue and anemia and restrict a woman’s personal and professional activities. Menorrhagia can also be indicative of more serious medical conditions.

According to the Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, some common causes of Menorrhagia include: hormonal imbalance; uterine fibroids; polyps; dysfunction of the ovaries; adenomyosis; an intrauterine device malfunction; pregnancy complications; pelvic inflammatory disease, thyroid problems, endometriosis, and liver or kidney disease. In addition, certain drugs, including anti-inflammatory medications and anticoagulants (to prevent blood clots), can contribute to heavy or prolonged menstrual bleeding. In rare cases, uterine cancer, ovarian cancer and cervical cancer can cause excessive menstrual bleeding.

Ice packs, vitamin C, vitamin E and iron supplements can help reduce bleeding, but you should always check with your health care professional before taking any medication, even herbs and nutritional supplements, according to the NWHRC.

Medical treatment options for Menorrhagia continue to evolve.

“We think the sheer magnitude of how many Baby Boomer women are affected matters because such a large group will have the power to set new expectations for pelvic health, driving more women to seek treatment,” says Cahill. “Think back to when the default treatment for breast cancer was a total mastectomy. Those rates have dramatically declined primarily because women advocated for more minimally invasive treatment options. The same needs to be true for pelvic health.”

Currently, progestin–which works by reducing the effects of estrogen in your body, slowing growth of the uterine lining–is the most-prescribed medication for Menorrhagia, with studies finding that it can reduce bleeding up to 15 percent. However side effects, including weight gain, headaches, swelling and depression, lead many women to quit using this option.

Doctors may also prescribe nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as Aleve, Motrin, Cataflam or Ponstel, which work by reducing levels of hormone-like chemicals that interfere with blood clotting. Studies find they can reduce blood flow an average of 25 to 35 percent. Oral contraceptives can also reduce menstrual bleeding up to 60 percent by preventing ovulation and thinning the endometrium.

Gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonists are drugs that are used only on a short-term basis because of their high cost and severe side effects. Basically, they temporarily send a woman into menopause, complete with hot flashes. However, they are very effective in reducing menstrual blood flow. But because they interfere with the activity of estrogen in your body, long-term use could lead to osteoporosis.

Doctors may also prescribe Danazol, is a form of the male hormone testosterone that blocks the action of estrogen in your body. It causes your period to stop in about four to six weeks, but can have side effects, including acne and reduced breast size.

Some physicians may also recommend using an intrauterine device such as Mirena, which releases a progestin called levonorgestrel, to help control the bleeding. The main side effect of this treatment can be some light bleeding between periods, particularly in the first three months.

Women with Menorrhagia may elect to have an outpatient procedure, endometrial ablation, in which the lining of the uterus is destroyed. In extremely severe cases, women with Menorrhagia may also opt for surgical procedures such as removal of the uterus through a hysterectomy. Other surgical procedures, including myomectomy and uterine artery embolization, may be used if fibroids are the cause behind the bleeding.

“Treatment for this condition is broadly available. What’s critical is that women and their health-care provider discuss menstruation as part of a routine physical exam,” says Amy Niles, President and CEO of NWHRC. “Beginning a dialogue about this vastly under-diagnosed condition and available treatment options– both between a woman and her doctor and among national health-care leaders– is the first step toward helping women live healthier more enjoyable lives.”

Questions to Ask Your Health Care Professional about Menorrhagia

1. Is the amount of menstrual bleeding I’m experiencing abnormal?

2. What tests do you need to conduct to diagnose my Menorrhagia, and why are you doing them?

3. Is this heavy bleeding affecting my iron levels? What can I do about that?

4. Why are you recommending this particular treatment option for my heavy bleeding? If that doesn’t work, what do you recommend next?

5. What are the disadvantages and risks associated with each recommended treatment?

6. Even if you find a problem like fibroids causing my abnormal uterine bleeding, is it possible to avoid a hysterectomy?

7. How many endometrial ablations of this type have you performed in the past year? What is your success rate? What kind of complications have you encountered?

– Source: National Women’s Health Resource Center

Originally published in Coastal Woman

Dr. Ayesha Shaikh

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Click Here to Read Dr. Ayesha Shaikh From Santa Barbara Magazine

Dr. Ayesha Shaikh

Dr. Ayesha Shaikh

Having practiced obstetrics and gynecology in Santa Barbara for the past 20 years, Dr. Ayesha Shaikh (rhymes with “bake”) has a hard time walking through town without someone recognizing her.

Her daughter Sarah, 20, a student at Middlebury College, says she can’t go anywhere without someone recognizing her mom.

Her husband of 25 years, Mohammed, an engineer who owns Image-X, frequently quips that he’s “the only Indian Muslim who walks six feet behind his wife.”

He might have to widen that perimeter in January, when his wife’s network will expand even further as she takes over as Cottage Hospital’s Chief of Staff.

Her new assignment, to serve as a liaison between the hospital’s administration and its medical team, comes at one of the most exciting and tumultuous times in the facility’s history, as construction gets underway on a $500 million new hospital, which is not expected to be completed until 2013.

As anyone who’s been through a home remodel can testify, living through years of construction can make you feel like taking a hammer to the closest available target, and Dr. Shaikh will be right there to absorb the blows.

“You know how physicians are,” she said. “If they want to be heard they can be heard. … I think I’ll be hearing a lot of, ‘where’s my parking!'”

Soothing frazzled nerves comes naturally for Dr. Shaikh, having delivered thousands of babies over the years (she stopped counting after her first 250). She hasn’t lost a father yet, although there have been a few close calls.

“You know when they start turning funny shades of color, you say, ‘okay, there’s a chair, why don’t you take a seat and sit down. I’ll take care of the baby and the mom,'” laughs Dr. Shaikh, her lilting Indian/British accent having the desired calming effect.

“It’s amazing how these guys can talk and do all this Rambo-style stuff and when it comes to delivery they become like little ducks … They see that little baby and they burst into tears.”

The joy in sharing these moments is one of the reasons why Dr. Shaikh plans to continue delivering babies, despite her new administrative responsibilities at the hospital.

“It’s fulfilling — I don’t want to say you feel great, but you feel nice, especially when things go well and it’s someone who you’ve seen through a lot of difficult times. You just feel so good.”

Originally published in Santa Barbara Magazine in winter 2006.

Hospital construction to begin in June

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Construction is expected to begin in June on the rebuilding of Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, the largest and most expensive project in the city’s history. As anticipated, the Santa Barbara City Council unanimously gave the go-ahead on April 26. Officials estimate the hospital won’t be completed until 2013.

Cottage Health System Chief Executive Officer Ron Werft outlined the rigorous review process the project has undergone over the past 26 months, including 31 meetings with the City Council, Planning Commission, Architectural Board of Review and other commissions of the city; 20 meetings with city staff and 19 neighborhood meetings.

“All of us who have worked on this project have a great deal of pride in it,” he said.

While the current cost estimate hovers near $415 million, officials fear the cost could be much higher, with some mentioning — for the time in the life of the project — that public funds may be needed to help pay for the hospital.

Cottage had initially vowed to pay for the project without taxpayer dollars, relying on a plan to sell private bonds, use hospital reserves and foundation money and raise funds in the community.

“We may need your financial assistance,” said Cottage board member Dr. Nicholas Vincent, who suggested the cost of the hospital could rise to $460 or $480 million.

However, Cottage Health System CFO Joan Bricher disagreed, saying, “We are very confident that we are able to provide the city with our own fiscal ability to complete this project and it’s our job to do so and we take that very seriously.”

Commenting on the relatively-quick-for-Santa Barbara 26-month review process, Planning Commission Chairman Jonathan Maguire said, “this is probably the largest and most complicated development that our city will ever see. If this development were anything but Cottage Hospital, I bet we would still be a long way from where we are today.”

The hospital will remain open throughout the eight-year construction effort. Cottage is working to meet a state deadline that requires all hospitals to be earthquake safe that time.

Originally published in South Coast Beacon

San Marcos nursing students go on rounds

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San Marcos High student nurses were still beaming from their recent trip to Boston for the National Youth Leadership Forum on Nursing. There they had the chance to meet like-minded students from all over the country, job-shadow nurses at several Boston hospitals, and hear from medical experts about the different aspects of a nursing career.

“It was … a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” said senior Katie Coy, who has been accepted to the nursing program at Azusa Pacific University.

“Fun,” “educational,” “awesome” and “even better than expected” were some of the reviews given by the six seniors who attended the conference. All of them are third-year students in the school’s Health Academy, now enrolled in the C.N.A. (Certified Nursing Assistant program) class in cooperation with Santa Barbara City College.

What’s not to be excited about?

Gloria M. Ochoa observed the electrophysiology lab, Brenda Rubio worked in a transplant unit, and Coy and Rachel Myers got to experience the cardiac unit. Courtney Giers learned how to draw blood and Maria Gutierrez even got to see a baby being born.

All of the girls left their experience even more convinced that they want to be nurses.

“I want more,” said Ochoa. “Usually I expect hospitals to be cold places, where you get done what you need to be done and you’re out of there. But that’s not how it is, actually. It’s warm, they’re friendly, and they all work together. It’s like a family.”

The girls will soon get to experience that nursing camaraderie again. After completing internships at Samarkand, in April they will start new internships, at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital.

“We’re thrilled to have the kids here working,” said Pat Doherty, director of volunteer services. “They have a week or two in a variety of areas within in the hospital for them to observe, learn about the different areas and be mentored by the staff.”

Doherty noted that several students who went through the San Marcos program three years ago are now student nurses at the hospital and studying at SBCC.

In addition to their trip, the students said meeting other teens made them realize how unique the San Marcos program is.

“I didn’t hear of anything like the Health Academy,” Giers said.

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on March 24, 2005.

FitFest aims to raise energy level

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Photo courtesy maxpixel.freegreatpicture.com.

Photo courtesy maxpixel.freegreatpicture.com.

There’s something about physical activity that breaks you out of hamster wheel-like-thinking and makes your mind feel refreshed. It also alleviates stress, improves self-esteem and reduces the odds against developing all kinds of serious illnesses.

For women and girls in particular, “physical inactivity and poor diet together have become the second leading cause of preventable death after smoking in the U.S.,” said Lisa Braithwaite, executive director of Body Electric, which will hold its annual Women’s FitFest 2005 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Feb. 26 at Earl Warren Showgrounds.

Braithwaite said she wasn’t an athlete growing up, but in her junior year at Cate School she was required to play sports.

“I learned how to play basketball and I learned how to throw the discus and the shot put. It was totally great,” she said.

Years later, while working at Shelter Services for Women and Girls Inc., Braithwaite got caught up watching the women’s NCAA basketball tournament on TV.

“I just was blown away by just the level of athleticism that women had come to. I had no idea. … I sort of had this epiphany, I was already working in domestic violence and spent all of my time talking to teenage girls about healthy relationships and body image issues and what our society tells girls they should be … I had never really made the connection with sports,” she said.

She had the epiphany in 1997 and went on to found Body Electric –with co-founder Brenda Britsch and their friends, Kira Anthofer, Ginny Benson, Jana Johnston and Kim Reese — based on the common goal of educating Santa Barbara girls and women about the benefits of physical fitness. “(Physical activity) makes you feel good,” said Braithwaite, whose group also advocates for gender equity in addition for providing opportunities for physical challenge.

“We’re here to encourage women and girls to adopt physical activity in ways that work for them, and to help break down the barriers that keep many of us from achieving our goals,” she said.

Time — including commitments to work and children — money, and body image are the barriers that keep most women from working up a healthy sweat.

But Body Electric is helping to change that attitude by building awareness of just how much fun sports can be at its free annual sports/health/fitness fair, which will feature sports clinics and demonstrations, exhibits from local businesses and nonprofit organizations, a scavenger hunt and a raffle.

Activities and demonstrations will include a climbing wall, body fat analysis, dancing, martial arts, belly dancing and gymnastics, with interactive exhibits from Mark French basketball summer camps, Real Living Nutrition Services, Santa Barbara Outrigger Canoe Club, Titan Sports Performance, One Legacy, and other health, sport and fitness organizations.

For more information about the Women’s FitFest and other fitness activities, www.bodyelectric-sb.org.

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on February 17, 2005.

Researcher touts stem cell advances

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The promise of human stem-cell research in developing a cure for Parkinson’s disease is very real, according to Dr. Benjamin Reubinoff, director of the Hadassah Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research Center in Israel.

While it’s hard to speculate on the exact timing of the research breakthroughs, “we hope that it will be within the next 10 years,” said Reubinoff, who shared his cutting-edge research at the first Santa Barbara Hadassah Health Forum on Jan. 27.

In a morning presentation to selected UCSB faculty and guests, “35 people sat in awe,” said Sissy Taran, vice president of Santa Barbara Hadassah Group. That lecture will also be broadcast to in Santa Barbara and throughout the United States, Taran said.

Reubinoff also shared his findings with more than 100 doctors at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital last week, said Dr. Alex Weinstein.

Reubinoff leads a medical research team at Israel’s Hadassah University Hospital in Jerusalem, which has successfully used stem cells to treat rats with symptoms of Parkinson’s disease.

Embryonic stem cells are capable of changing to form different cells with a wide variety of functions throughout the body. The Hadassah University experiment indicated the stem cells developed into nerve cells, which had previously been lost through Parkinson’s.

“These observations are encouraging, and set the stage for future development that may eventually allow the use of embryonic stem cells for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease in humans,” Reubinoff explained at a public forum at Cottage Hospital, which about 100
people attended.

However, he said, “Further studies would be needed … because the safety of the treatment could not yet be assured.”

“Over 16 million patients worldwide suffer from neurodegenerative disorders, and stem cells could potentially be used to treat any disorder associated with death or malfunction of cells.”

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on January 29, 2005.

Eastside dental clinic gets new site, mission

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One of the things that you hear in this world a lot is that dental disease is the only sickness that is almost 100 percent preventable,” said David Landecker, executive director of Santa Barbara Neighborhood Clinics, whose newest project, the Eastside Family Dental Clinic, will celebrate its grand opening Jan. 13, from 3:30 to 6 p.m.

The dental clinic recently moved into a roomy, new 2,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art space, at 923 N. Milpas St. It had been housed in an 800-square-foot building on Carrillo Street.

In addition to offering basic dental services – like exams, X-rays, cleanings, fluoride, root canals, fillings and nonsurgical extractions – to low-income families for as little as $15 for children and $20 for adults, one of the key components of the project is the dental education center. The center will focus on teaching children how to care for their teeth.

“The idea is to bring preschool (and elementary school) classes here, or when kids come in …,” Landecker said. “We’ve got a computer and all kinds of dental stuff. It’s just to kind of make the office a little more fun and little more friendly.”

The timing of the new center couldn’t be more perfect for the Assistance League of Santa Barbara, which recently decided to take on dental education as a new programming area.

The Assistance League was aware that dental care was one of the most serious health needs for the working poor, families that had working incomes but not necessarily dental insurance, said Sarah de Tagyos, who is heading up the Assistance League’s volunteer effort. The research also found that a lack of preventative care and regular checkups led to more serious dental problems.

Working with Dr. J.C. Ramirez, the clinic’s dental director, and Georgia Lee Miller, who heads up the county’s Children’s Dental Disease Prevention Program, the Assistance League has donated hygiene kits and dental health activity books for children.

Assistance League volunteers will also help staff the education center, along with volunteers from Direct Relief International. In addition, major donations coming from Paul and Leslie Ridley-Tree, the Weingart Foundation, Michael Towbes, the Ann Jackson Family Foundation, the Hutton Foundation, Joel and Vasanti Fithian, Susan Levin, the Outhwaite Foundation, the Alice Tweed Tuohy Foundation and the Santa Barbara Foundation, among others.

However, the clinic is still $140,000 short of its $1.4 million fund-raising campaign, said development director Terra Basche.

As the only dental clinic of its kind, the clinic is available for anyone in the community; however, Landecker emphasized the importance of serving children.

“Our real mission … is really to take care of children, and to educate children about their teeth,” he said.

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on December 23, 2004.

Cottage pushes for chance to spring into action

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Pending environmental review, hospital renovation could start in a few months

Warning a project delay will ultimately cost the community more money and may threaten health-care services, Cottage Health System officials last week pushed the city Planning Commission to move quickly to approve a new, $407 million regional hospital.

The rebuilding program, due to begin in 2005 with completion by 2012, involves replacing the existing hospital, to meet new seismic standards. It also includes the construction of three nursing pavilions, a new entrance at Castillo and Pueblo streets, and a diagnostic and therapeutic wing on the Junipero Street side of the complex.

Cottage plans to use a combination of hospital reserves, a tax-exempt bond issue, foundation assets, and a major community fund-raising effort to pay for the project, but will not rely on tax dollars.

Construction could begin in the spring, but first it must get past an environmental review, the first phase of which was heard Dec. 2.

About 70 people attended the meeting but many left early as the discussion stretched to nearly five hours. It was clear there was strong support for the state-of-the-art hospital but also many concerns about the effects on the surrounding neighborhood. Speakers expressed concerns about construction, traffic and environmental impacts.

“Given that the purpose of the hospital is to improve our community’s health and given that Santa Barbara is often a front-runner in implementing proactive environmental practices that often exceed the requirements of law, the redesign of Cottage Hospital should be viewed as an opportunity to implement the best possible protections of health and environment,” said Kira Schmidt, executive director of Santa Barbara Channelkeeper.

Her sentiments were echoed by representatives from the Citizen’s Planning Association and Heal the Ocean, both of whom also suggested a closer look at the sewage system and possible development of a sewage treatment plant for the hospital.

This was the first public meeting in which the project’s draft environmental impact report was discussed. Public comment ends Dec. 15 and the matter must return to the commission for final approval early next year.

For a copy of the report visit www.santabarbaraca.gov/Resident/Community/Planning/cottage.htm. Comments may be sent to Irma Unzueta, the project planner for the city, via e-mail to iunzueta@SantaBarbaraCA.gov or P.O. Box 1990, Santa Barbara 93102.

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on December 9, 2004.

GERMS

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Green Microbes Bacteria Pathogen Germs Infection, courtesy maxpixvel.freegreatpicture.com.

Green Microbes Bacteria Pathogen Germs Infection, courtesy maxpixvel.freegreatpicture.com.

Attached to the most adorable carriers, how can anyone turn them away? The truth is, you can’t–and it’s enough to make you sick.

There’s a fine line between obsessive-compulsive disorder and healthy hygiene. When it comes to avoiding colds and flu, experts say we can learn from the example of a certain germ-obsessed television detective.

While Monk’s obsession with keeping surfaces as clean as possible may seem extreme, experts agree that cleanliness is next to flu-lessness, especially when it comes to your hands.

As Susan Perkins, a nurse with the Santa Barbara Elementary and High School Districts, put it, “Wash your hands. Wash your hands. Wash your hands.”

School children are taught to sing “Happy Birthday to You” twice while washing their hands. Scientists from the Environmental Protection Agency are even giving lessons to North Carolina kindergarteners on “Why We Wash Our Hands,” visually aided by an ample supply of purple glitter, which any victim knows, spreads faster than any germ ever invented.

But other than rinse and repeat, what can you do to stay healthy?

Cleaning expert Cheryl Mendelson, who literally wrote the book on housecleaning — Home Comforts — counsels the more obsessed among us to relax.

“Many people have mild tendencies this way (to clean compulsively). If you are one of them, it may help to keep in mind that nothing that lives in your kitchen sink or on your toilet handle can compare to what thrives in a healthy person’s nose — an ecosystem that no one can or should do anything about,” said Mendelson. “Nor have there been any epidemics arising from poor housekeeping practices.”

With our wealth of antibiotics, vaccines and antibacterial products available, some experts think we may have even gone too far in protecting ourselves. For example, antibiotics are sometimes prescribed to treat a common cold, which is a viral infection and not affected by antibiotics.

Instead of making us healthier, these antibiotics and antibacterials can do us harm, according to Dr. Howard Markel, author of When Germs Travel. The more ubiquitous these bacteria killers become, the more opportunities that germs have to adapt to them.

A recent Columbia University study suggested antibacterial products don’t cut the overall risk of contracting a cold, a runny nose, a fever, a sore throat or diarrhea because these will destroy all the bacteria in their paths (including the friendly ones) leaving only the sturdiest — and often the most dangerous — germs in their wake. Regular soap, plain bleach and water, as well as alcohol-based products, dislodge harmful bacteria just as well as antibacterials do, without spawning more dangerous germs.

Unfortunately germs from other people aren’t as easily controlled as cleaning our environments. Proper flu etiquette is nothing to sneeze at.

A recent letter sent to La Patera School parents offered these common sense guidelines:

= Don’t send your child to school with an illness that could spread.

= Don’t send your child to school if he or she would be miserable all day or would distract the other children.

= Have “just in case” care arrangements for your child in the event you are unable to stay home with a sick child.

Perkins also emphasized the latter.

“It can be very difficult for parents because employers are not always understanding of parents’ need to stay home with sick children,” she said.

“Even more important, if you’ve got a sick child at school, they’ve gone to school, don’t feel well during the course of the day, it’s important that a parent pick them up within an hour of being called because there isn’t really any place for kids to sit and rest in the health office.”

With vaccines in short supply this year, the second line of defense against cold and flu germs is “respiratory etiquette,” which means keeping our germs to ourselves. Covering your mouth when you cough or sneeze, using a tissue and throwing that tissue away when you use it.

And, of course it’s important to practice prevention as much as possible.

“We encourage parents and students to get enough rest, eat a healthy diet,” Perkins said. “Its kind of inevitable that they will get sick at some point … the first few days of a cold, if a child’s really not feeling well, has a lot of symptoms, coughing, sneezing, fever especially, we encourage parents to keep them home … for at least 24 hours after their temperature is back to normal.

“It’s not realistic that they’re going to stay home for entire duration of a cold because you can have that runny nose for five to 10 days probably and then you can have a residual cough for even up to three to four weeks. But if kids are acutely sick, we encourage them to stay home a day or two.”

Not to obsess about it … but that advice goes for grownups, too.

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Stopping the Spread of Germs Illnesses like influenza and colds are caused by viruses that infect the nose, throat and lungs. The flu and colds usually spread from person to person when an infected person coughs or sneezes.

Here are some tips from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to help stop the spread of germs.

Take Care

= Cover your mouth and nose when you sneeze or cough.

= Cough or sneeze into a tissue and then throw it away. Cover your cough or sneeze if you do not have a tissue. Then, clean your hands.

= Clean your hands often.

= When available, wash your hands — with soap and warm water — and rub your hands vigorously together and scrub all surfaces. Wash for 15 to 20 seconds. Soap and the scrubbing action dislodge and remove germs.

= Alcohol-based disposable hand wipes or gel sanitizers also may be used.

= Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth. Germs are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose or mouth.

= Stay home when you are sick and check with a health-care provider when needed.

= When you are sick or have flu symptoms, stay home, get plenty of rest, and check with a health-care provider.

Common Flu Symptoms

= Fever (usually high)

= Headache

= Extreme tiredness

= Cough

= Sore throat

= Runny or stuffy nose

= Muscle aches

= Nausea, vomiting and diarrhea (much more common among children than adults).

What You Can Do

= Practice other good health habits

= Get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids, and eat nutritious food. Practicing healthy habits will help you stay healthy.

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on November 18, 2004.