Swallowed Coin Removal without Sedation Using a Foley in a Young Child

A blog subscriber recently informed me about a video showing a coin being removed blindly from a young child using only a foley catheter without any sedation. Watch video  above... This blind removal technique basically involves passing a small foley catheter through the mouth and PAST where the coin is located within the esophagus, typically behind the voicebox. The foley catheter balloon which would then be located past where the coin would be, is then inflated with a syringe. After ballo…

11/23/2018 0

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Swab Culture is Inaccurate Test for Determining Tonsillitis

A fascinating study came out in June 2017 that compared the bacteria found on the tonsil surface by swab versus bacteria found within a core needle biopsy versus bacteria found within the dissected tonsil's core. The take home finding is that a swab culture poorly identifies the bacteria causing recurrent tonsillitis . Based on 54 children who underwent tonsillectomy , researchers performed a swab, needle biopsy, and core dissection of all tonsils removed. Culture results obtained from…

6/28/2017 0

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Ear Skin Tags in Babies and Their Removal

Image by Kalus D. Peter in Wikipedia It is not uncommon that a baby is born with "skin tags" around the front of the ear. They are also NOT the same as the skin tags that develop later in adulthood which are benign and easily removed. Infant skin tags may contain not just skin but also fat and cartilage. Infant ear tags often occur by themselves, but sometimes may occur in association with anomalies of the kidney, inner ear,  craniofacial bones, and potentially other structures. …

6/23/2017 0

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Wax Removal of Nasal Hair

Screenshot of video by Sepi Balini Makeup artist and vlogger Sepi Balini posted a video on instagram showing her nasal hair being removed by waxing. OUCH!  She's made of tough stuff as most individuals would have at least shed a tear given the nose is extremely sensitive, even with pulling just one nostril hair out. Watch the video here . However, this is NOT a good idea and I certainly hope is not something that picks up in popularity whether male or female. Although nasal h…

4/07/2017 0

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Argentine President Undergoes Vocal Cord Surgery

Image by Casa Rosada in Wikipedia On Dec 20, 2016, media reported that the Argentine President Mauricio Macri underwent a 10 minute office procedure to extract a polyp from the vocal cord. He reportedly went immediately back to work after the procedure. The details are sparse and it is unclear exactly what was done to extract the vocal cord polyp . However, there are only a two ways a vocal cord polyp can be extracted in the office without sedation (that I know of). 1) Trans-nasa…

12/21/2016 0

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Psoriasis Improves After Tonsillectomy

Image by Bobjgalindo in Wikipedia It is felt that certain skin psoriasis conditions may improve if not completely resolve after tonsillectomy . The psoriasis could be anywhere on the body and is hypothesized to be triggered by an abnormal immunological response to streptococcus, an organism commonly found in tonsillitis as well as strep throat. The exact mechanism is unclear but several studies performed over the years found potential benefit, especially for guttate psoriasis and even t…

12/04/2016 0

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