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Capsule moments

April 29, 2018

VESALIUS AND HUMAN ANATOMY:

Vesalius was born in 1514 at a time when surgery and anatomy were considered of little importance compared to other branches of medicine at the time like blood-letting.   He believed that surgery must be grounded in anatomy.  He was aided in his studies of anatomy by a judge in who was interested in Vesalius’ work and made bodies of executed criminals available for study.  This was quite a departure from the work of Galen who for religious reasons had to restrict his dissections to animals, principally apes.  Vesalius’ book, “De Humani Corporis Fabrica” was the result of primarily human dissections and became very popular among 16th Century physicians.

DANGERS OF SECOND-HAND MARIJUANA SMOKE:

There hasn’t been a lot of research done on this subject.  The little that has been done shows that the effects of second-hand exposure to marijuana smoke lasts much longer than those produced by tobacco smoke.  More work has to be done but the toxins and tars found in marijuana lead many to believe that smoking any type of cigarette around children is not recommended.

ALLERGY AND HEPA FILTERS:

I was doing some reading on these filters and they are rated using a MERV scale.  MERV stands for Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value.  The higher the rating, the fewer dust particles get through.   The HEPA filters are the best you can buy and can filter out more than 99% of particles that are 0.3 microns or larger.  However, due to the thick filtration material used in such filters, a typical residential furnace or air conditioner would have to push air through at a much higher pressure which may damage the furnace.  MERVs of 8 to 11 are the best we can hope for in a home situation but will make a big difference.

TO TATTOO OR NOT TO TATTOO:

We’ve all seen people with tattoos covering whole arms or legs and from a distance it just looks like dirt.  You wonder what possessed them to get such a tattoo.  Teens should be especially cautions about getting a tattoo.  Nose and tongue rings are easy to remove.  But tattoos?  Not so easy.  Although tattoos are becoming more acceptable in modern society, there are still employers who are less likely to hire people with highly visible tattoos.  Other factors for those considering a tattoo should consider include:  making sure all immunizations are up-to-date and not taking any medication to compromise immunity.  Even with proper sterile techniques, some people develop keloids, hard, raised scars that can be difficult to get rid of.  Of course, people should consider the location of the tattoo and what the tattoo depicts.  The decision to get a tattoo deserves a lot of sober thought!