Materialistic Idealist's blog: "Random stuff"

The world of modern medicine never ceases to amaze. The latest high tech treatment for a potentially lethal infection.....a faecal transplant. Or in plain English......a shit sandwich. All will be explained below.

Clostridium difficile (C diff) is a bacteria normally found in the colon in very small amounts or not at all. The colon is normally packed full of "good" bacteria that crowd out nasties like C diff and stop it growing out of control. If C diff does take over, it causes severe diarrhoea. It can also cause a very serious condition called pseudomembranous colitis. There are several deaths every year from C diff.

C diff is normally linked to antibiotic use. Antibiotics wipe out the "good" bacteria and allow C diff to multiply. So it often affects already ill people. Conventional treatments for C diff are metronidazole and vancomycin. Vancomycin can also be delivered into the colon directly via a catheter passed through the rectum. In some cases, even these treatments fail.

The last line treatment is the faecal transplant.Firstly, the colon is sterilised with vancomycin. A nasogastric tube is then passed and an emulsion of faecal matter is then delivered into the stomach. This then seeds the gut with "good bacteria", preventing C diff from taking over. So far, this treatment has had very positive results.

A small story my boss told me.......

During a very cold winter day, a bird was flying across the sky. As it got colder and colder, the bird froze and fell to the ground. A cow walked up to it and crapped on it. The heat thawed the bird out and it began singing. The noise attracted a fox which then ate the bird.

Moral of the story-not everyone who shits on you means you harm and when you are in deep shit, you should keep quiet.

ECG (Heart Tracing)

ECG (called EKG in USA) stands for ElectroCardioGram. This test looks at the electrical activity in the heart.

How Is It Done?

The first step is to attach adhesive electrodes to the chest and limbs. It may be necessary to shave the chest to get good skin contact. In women, the elctrodes are places under/around the left breast. The machine will then be attached to the electrodes. At this point the patient will be asked to lie very still while the machine takes a recording for about 10 seconds. The test is not painful or uncomfortable.

Why Is It Done

The usual reasons for an ECG are chest pain, palpitations, fast/slow/irregular pulse, shortness of breath or unconsciousness. Many doctors also request an ECG as a baseline investigation. It does not necessarily mean something is wrong with your heart.

What Does It Show

The heart is a muscular organ with its own "wiring". For each heartbeat, an electrical impulse travels through the wiring in a specific way, causing the muscle to then contract in a coordinated and efficient way. The ECG shows how the current is moving through the wiring and muscles. Many conditions can cause the current to travel in an abnormal way.

There may be abnormalities in the rate, rhythm or shape of the deflections in the ECG. Some are specific to certain conditions. Others are more general. The ECG is always interpreted in light of the patients history and examination. Comparison with previous ECGs is also helpful. The ECG is not an end in itself.

I attended a course of leadership/management yesterday so I have the answers to some of the questions I'm about to ask, but I would like other people's views and opinions too.

What makes a good leader? What sort of leader would you follow? Should leadership style change with the situation? At what point does a leader become a dictator?

At what point do tact and diplomacy degerate into bullshit? Does sugar coating something unpleasant necessarily detract from the truth in it?

If the objective is to break bad news, how would you go about softening the impact while still delivering the necessary information.

Both are villainous clowns. Which one is creepier, scarier, funnier, etc. Which one would win in an all out fight?

Instructions...... Once you have been tagged, you have to write a blog with 10 weird or random things, facts, or habits about yourself. At the end, you choose at least 5 people to be tagged, listing their names . Don't forget to leave a comment that says, "You're it!" on their profile and ask them to read your blog. You can't tag the person who tagged you. 1. I think money used wisely is the most likely potential path to happiness (hence materialistic). 2. Despite the above, I'm an idealist. I have a strong sense of justice. 3. I have a cholesterol addiction. 4. My favourite colour is green. 5. I like old school 2D video games like Streetfighter 2, etc. 6. My favourite drink is Coke. 7. I have never drank alcohol and never intend to. 8. I would like to travel if I get the chance. 9. I know more bizarre trivia than most people I talk to. 10. Despite being on this site, I'm actually a graduate of one of the top universities in the world.

Today I was lucky enough to get to try out an art called baguazhang. Bagua for short. One of the Chinese internal martial arts. It translates as "eight trigram palm". Eight trigrams refer to the 8 combinations of broken and single lines from the I Ching (Book of Changes). Putting aside the philosophical basis of the art, it has a reputation for being very effective. Chairman Mao's personal bodyguards were all bagua fighters. Other similar arts are Tai Chi and Hsing I. Also, Systema (a Russian art). Anyone else interested in these arts?

Everyone knows that IQ is a measure of intelligence. The strange thing is that "intelligence" is not very well defined. I tend to think of it as the raw "data processing power" a person has, although I know thats a gross oversimplification. There is also the concept of EQ, emotional quotient. Also known as emotional intelligence. This is generally emotional self regulation, discipline, persistence, being able to recognise and respond appropriately to various emotional states in others, etc. Obviously, a high IQ combined with a high EQ will produce a real winner. But, which one is more important? Or are they both equally important? Or does it depend on what the persons goals are?

It is said that science cannot offer solid proof of the existence of God. The facts have to be interpreted by each individual to allow them to draw their own conclusions. In most belief systems that include a creator of some description, there is a concept of accountability for all your actions. Atheists often vilify those who believe in God, hence my question. Is atheism usually a thought out and reasoned decision? Or is the concept of accounability to a Creator too unpalatable for some poeople, so their atheism is a form of denial?