Medical Services

Procedure and Benefits

Ear lavage or ear irrigation is a regular clinical procedure for removing excessive ear wax, also known as cerumen. Cerumen is a naturally produced wax in the ear, formed to lubricate and protect ear from external debris. Ear wax also prevents the growth of bacteria. A normal amount of ear wax may be beneficial, however, it should be regularly cleaned to avoid it from getting hardened, causing an ear block.

Hardened ear wax causes earaches, difficulty in hearing and difficulty in breathing (as it puts pressures on the ear) and ringing in the ear. Excessive wax build up also damages the ear drum.

Ear Irrigation:

The eardrum and canal of the ear are very sensitive areas. Excessive earwax may damage the structure of ear drum, influencing your hearing health. The removal of excessive earwax through ear irrigation is a simple and safe process that involves no or minimal risk.

In case your ear is has stored dirt over time or small stones, insects, bacteria or infection; it is very essential to remove it before it starts to damage your ear canal. Ear lavage is a process most recommended for the extraction of foreign materials from your ear.

Ear Irrigation Process:

Prior to performing an Ear lavage, the physician demonstrates the condition of your ear. He will then suggest whether your condition can be treatment with ear drops, or requires an irrigation. Moreover, he will test to see if the pain in the ear is caused by foreign materials or excessive wax, rather than some other serious condition.

The simplest way to detect excess wax is by inserting a small instrument known as otoscope inside the ear. Otoscope lights up inside the ear while magnifying the image inside.

If excessive wax is the problem, the doctor may perform an irrigation using a tool like syringe. A mixture of saline and water is inserted into the ear to extract the wax out. You are likely to experience slight discomfort, the procedure, however, is not a painful.

Ear Irrigation can also be performed at home. You can easily purchase a syringe kit, designed for ear irrigation from any nearby pharmacy.

Risk of Ear Lavage:

Patients with a damaged eardrum, weak immune system and ear tubes are not recommended to undergo an Ear irrigation treatment. The building up of wax can be a cause of some infection. Be generous about all the symptoms you are feeling after an ear irrigation. Ear lavage is an entirely safe procedure that has no harmful side effects.

Benefits:

Extraction of excessive wax significantly improves the quality of your hearing. It also prevents your ear from infections. The pressure of ear wax can damage the eardrum and ear canal. Removal of ear wax and foreign materials will keep your ear canal safe and healthy.

Elderly citizens have sensitive ear drums. It is important for them to regularly remove excessive wax from the air to prevent damage and sensitivity of ear drum.

Pulmonary function tests are a series of tests required to test the functioning of lungs. The tests indicate breathing condition and the circulation of oxygen in the lungs.

These tests are recommended by the doctor if:

■ Your body shows symptoms of lung disease.
■ For routine lung testing.
■ To monitor the effectiveness of a lung related treatment, such as asthma.
■ To assess the condition of lungs before surgery.
■ Respiratory infections.
■ To check for restrictive airways and conditions like, Asbestosis, bronchiectasis, chronic bronchitis and emphysema.
■ To assess side effects of chemotherapies and medication that may cause lung problems.
■ To determine if a patient can undergo a certain treatment.
■ To monitor lungs before chemotherapy or surgery.

Procedure:

The procedure varies for both adults and children. For elderly patients, the procedure is as follows:

Spirometry:

– A patient has to place his / her mouth on a mouthpiece on a tube that is attached to a computer.
– A nose clip is used to prevent air from passing through the nose.
– The patient is asked to breathe through the masterpiece, quietly.
– Then he is directed to take a long breath, and then blow in the tube as hard as possible.
– The amount of oxygen passed each time is measured.
– The test takes about 15-30 minutes.

Lung capacity

A different machine is used to check the capacity of lungs. This machine has clear walls with confined space. The patient is required to sit inside this machine. The procedure that follows includes:

– A nose plug is given to the patient to wear. The patient has to blow in the plastic tube connected with the machine.
– The machine tracks the amount of air inhaled and exhaled.
– The tests are repeated to get an accurate breathing rate per minute.

PFT testing is mostly safe. However, as it requires breathing in and out quickly, most patients with disturbed lung conditions feel dizzy or may experience the following conditions:

– Fainting after strong breathing
– Coughing
– Attack of asthma
– People who are claustrophobic may find it uncomfortable to sit inside the machine

PFT is not recommended for:

– Patients who recently had an eye surgery, the breathing puts pressure on the eyes
– Chest or stomach surgery
– Recently had a heart attack or stroke
– Have pacemakers
– Have tumors in brain, bulged blood vessels in chest
– Have respiratory infection or active tuberculosis

After the testing, depending on the condition of your heart, the doctor may suggest further treatment. In severe cases, depending on the results, patients may have to sign up for a surgery, or the doctor could recommend other possible treatments for the lung condition the patient may be suffering from. Patients with lung and heart conditions who are not recommended to undergo the PFT test will be directed towards other possible treatment methods. Bloating, use of medication and muscle pains may alter the results of your test.

Medical treatments that involve cutting and stitching of tissue are a part of minor surgeries. Surgery includes various techniques and with the advancement in technology, minor surgeries have become quicker and more accurate than was previously possible. In a nutshell, many surgeries that do not require general anesthesia and are conducted quite easily and quickly, are termed as minor surgeries.

For senior citizens, here are few of the minor surgeries that are usually conducted by our doctors:

● Mole removal by excision
● Shave excision for the removal of other skin wounds
● Skin biopsies
● Ingrown toenail operations
● Insertion of Implanon

All of the above listed minor surgeries require attention to detail and meticulous approach. Since the skin of senior adults is much more sensitive and often more worn out than the younger skin, due to the lack of moisture and loosening of tissues. But our professional team has been able to perform all of these surgeries successfully through normal treatment. We ensure that the area where the surgery is being performed is clean and tidy. This eliminates chances of any infection that may develop at some later stage. Skin surgeries are prone to attract infection and again in the case of sensitive skin, the chances are high as the immune system of senior adult is often weak.

It is very important for the equipment to be appropriate. Our team ensures the availability of sharp cutters and blunt cutters, in different range and sizes, and the availability of disposable and sanitized instruments as well. Proper measures for infection control are installed. Providers wear a lab coat, gloves and masks. Moreover, a provider with any sort of infection whether it be viral or infectious is highly prohibited to enter the premises.

Proper written record of the patient is ensured along with the documentation of previous medical history. There might be a situation in which a patient might not be eligible to undergo a specific surgery due to current or previous medication. So before the surgery is approved, proper analysis of the medical history of patient is to be conducted.

It is obvious that a surgery will leave its mark on the patient. Our special treatment and team of professionals ensure that this possibility is reduced to every possible extent. In skin surgeries, the skin is either removed or replaced. Doctors ensure that minimum damage is done as the skin of older generation has lesser odds to get cured on its own. It is extremely important that the patient is treated with due diligence.

A wound refers to an injury involving internal or external breakage of the tissues, mostly of the skin. Where most of the minor wounds can be treated at home, some wounds may require immediate professional assistance. Wounds that result from accidents, fall, sharp tool or object, accompanied by heavy bleeding require anti-infectious injections and immediate stitches to prevent blood loss.

Basically, there are five different kinds of wounds in the medical terminology:

1. Abrasion

Abrasion is the result of a sharp skin rub against a hard or rough surface. For example, you fall on the road and get a road rash. Abrasion may not cause excessive bleeding, but requires proper cleaning of the wound to prevent infection.

2. Incision

Incision is the result of a sharp object cutting the skin, for instance a glass, knife or blade can cause an incision. Incision causes blood loss. Deep incisions risk damaging the muscles, ligaments and tendons.

3. Laceration

A laceration refers to tearing and deep incision of the skin. Laceration is often the result of car accidents or accidents at factories, caused while working with sharp machinery. The bleeding in such case is extensive and rapid.

4. Puncture

Puncture in the skin is caused by a pointed object, such as, a needle or a nail. Bullet wounds are also known as punctures. Puncture injuries do not bleed much, but are likely to damage the organs. A puncture wound requires immediate medical attention, accompanied by a tetanus shot.

5. Avulsion

Avulsion of the skin is complete or partial tearing of the skin tissue. These are often the result of violent accidents such as blasts, explosions, gunshots and crushing accidents. Bleeding in such cases is rapid and heavy.

Skin Cancer:

Skin cancer has become a common type of cancer in both women and men. In USA, for the year 2010, 1 million skin cancer cases were reported. The most common kind of non melanomatous lesions that are responsible for more than 800,000 cancer cases in USA, are associated with sun exposure and aging.

Lack of skin care education and consistent guidelines is another cause of increase of skin cancer and related diseases. The goal to monitor the detection of melanoma is to perform an early biopsy, identifying the patients who are at high risk, observing the nevi and avoiding to treat minor melanoma without biopsies.

Procedure:

The assessment of skin lesion generally starts with a physical inspection and examination of the skin. Most dermatologists use a surface microscopy or dermoscopy to examine the lesion. The dermoscope is similar to a magnifying glass with a light source that closely examines the suspicious lesion. Once the type of disease is identified, the lesion is treated with an available treatment option.

Cryotherapy is another skin treatment procedure that uses cold nitrogen in liquid form to destroy infected tissue. This treatment option is mostly used on precancerous or benign lesions. Tissues that are not deeply affected can also be treated with cryotherapy.

An electrocardiogram is the fastest and simplest testing method for the evaluation of heart. Small electrodes of plastic are placed at different points of chest, legs and arms. As the electrodes connect with an EKG machine, the electric functioning of the heart is interpreted, measured and printed. Electrocardiogram is safe and transfers no rays to the body.

The electrical impulses in our body direct the contractions of heart to maintain the blood flow. An EKG measures these impulses to record the rhythm, strength, time and heart beats of these electrical impulses as they pass through different areas of the heart. Changes shown in an EKG indicate different heart related conditions.

You may need an EKG for:

– Evaluation of chest pain
– Evaluation of heart related problems, such as shortness of breath, tiredness, fainting or dizziness
– Evaluation of irregular heartbeats
– To determine the health of heart before or after a surgery
– To check the placement and functioning of a pacemaker
– To determine if the medication for heart related condition is working fine
– For tracing of the function of heart during a surgery or physical examination.

There can be more reasons why your doctor may recommend you go for an EKG.

Procedure:

An electrocardiogram can be performed at private clinics/laboratory or at hospitals. Procedure varies depending on the practices of doctor and your heart condition.

Typically, the process goes as follows:

– You will be required to remove any metallic or plastic object that may interrupt the procedure.

– You will have to remove your shirt, to expose your arms and chest. The privacy of patients is respected by covering them with a gown or sheet, keeping only the required area exposed.

– You will be required to lie down on a table or bed. Technicians mostly recommended lying still to ensure that the tracing is not interrupted.

– People with hairy chest, legs or arms would have to shave the small patches where the EKG patches are applied, mostly technicians do that for you. This is to ensure that the electrodes stay close to the skin.

– Electrodes are attached to the legs, arms and chest.

– The electrodes are attached to the machine using lead wires.

– As the lead is attached, the technician starts reading the measurement of your impulses.

– It takes less than 20 minutes for the tracing results to show. As the tracking of beats is completed, the wires are disconnected and electrodes removed.

Results:

After an ECG, patients are allowed to eat whatever they like, unless their heart condition directs otherwise. There is typically no extra care required after an EKG. If there was any discomfort experienced during the process, you may tell you physician immediately. Alternate or additional instructions are provided after the procedure, depending on the condition of your heart. The conditions of pacemakers are to be informed prior to the EKG process. It also important for patients to mention any medication they may be using, to help doctor determine the condition better.

An X-ray is an imaging test, introduced in 1896 to view the inside of a body without having to cut it, or making an incision. X-ray is a basic and very common technology that has become an important tool for diagnosis, identification and treatment of different medical conditions.

Various types of X-rays have been introduced for specific medical conditions and physical injuries. For instance, a barium enema detects bowel problems, whereas, a mammogram examines the chest.

Indications:

Your doctor may recommended an X-ray for examination of your body. For example:

– To view a bone structure where you may be experiencing pain
– Monitor the repression or progression of diseases, like osteoporosis
– Study the effectiveness of a treatment

Some medical conditions in which an X-ray is used are:

– Arthritis
– Fractures
– Infections
– Digestive problems
– Cancer
– Breast tumors
– Blocked veins or vessels
– Constrictive lungs
– Enlarged heart
– Swallowed item
– Tooth decay
– Inflamed joints

Procedure:

X-ray is a standard and simple procedure that requires no formal preparation. Depending on the location of the body, where an X-ray is required, doctors recommend patients to wear comfortable and loose clothing that can be easily removed, if required. Mostly patients wear a gown, jewelry is also removed. If you have any metal implants, pacemakers, recent surgeries, you must inform the medical assistant about it beforehand. Metallic objects keep the X-ray from passing accurately across the body.

Risks of X-ray

X-rays are a type of radiation. A certain amount of exposure to radiation is safe for adults. Different methods of X-rays are suggested for pregnant women, however for any adult being exposed to an X-ray machine is safe and requires no precautions.

Patients who have been through accidents, traumatic event or have a broken bone may experience some pain during the X-ray. For the test, your body is placed in a particular position to get a clear image. This may cause discomfort. You can inform your technician if you experience any pain.

X-ray tests are received immediately. The doctor reads the X-ray sheet and examines the condition after which further medical treatment or tests are recommended, such as,blood tests, imaging scans and therapies.