Monday, April 30, 2012

Three Reasons You Should Contact an Emergency Dentist

Emergencies come in all shapes and sizes, and usually occur at the worst possible time. Unlike planning a trip to the dentist or doctor, an emergency is never something you can predict. For most crisis medical situations, you can usually find a 24-hour doctor's clinic that will see you whenever necessary. But where should you turn if your situation revolves around your mouth?
If you are having abrupt pains or problems with your mouth, you should consult an emergency dentist. Often, they are an offshoot of the practice you regularly attend for checkups, and may consist of a 24-hour phone line that you can call to arrange a quick appointment. You can also do an Internet search and find several different options that are located close to you.
There are a variety of reasons why you would need an emergency dentist. Perhaps the most common reason is that of a knocked-out tooth. It could be that you ran into a door, or tripped and fell on the playground, or maybe in the course of defending a damsel in distress, you got on the wrong end of a punch. Whatever the case, you should try and preserve the tooth. Clean it off as best you can, making sure not to rip off any tissue that might be connected, and drop it in a glass of milk. Then call the 24-hour phone line at the location you've already chosen, and explain your situation. They should be able to fit you in quickly enough that you will be good as new in no time at all.
Another reason to see the emergency dentist would be if you have dental abscesses. These look like large swellings on your gums, and are usually painful. Smaller abscesses may look like a pimple. In this case, the first thing you should do is rinse it with warm water, and get into the dentist as quickly as possible. If you leave the abscess untreated for too long it can become infected, and will only become more painful.
A third reason why you should seek out emergency dental care is if you have a serious toothache. Toothaches are often the result of something stuck between your teeth or gums, so you should try and use floss to remove any unwanted objects before proceeding further. If the ache does not abate, and only worsens over the course of several hours, it's time to seek professional help. It could be a sign of something worse than just your ordinary toothache - the professional will tell you if that is the case.
Dire situations never arise when it's convenient for you. Go ahead and decide what emergency dentist you will call if you find yourself in a quandary. That way, you're prepared, and will be less stressed throughout the situation.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Finding a Walk-In Clinic Before the Emergency

Waiting can be hard work. When you were younger, waiting on Santa to come was the worst; he'd only come if you were asleep, but naturally you couldn't go to sleep because you were too excited. As an adult, it can be hard to wait for other things, such as that promotion at work, or that perfect man to enter your life. One thing that can be very difficult to wait for is medical help when you don't have an appointment. Often times, things simply happen that are far outside of our control. You should be prepared ahead of time so that when you have a medical emergency, you know right where to go.
Consider finding a walk in clinic. These frequently offer urgent care that doesn't require an appointment. This is great if you have an emergency and need quick service, and didn't have the time to make an appointment. There are numerous locations throughout the country, as well as several chains that have practices set up across the nation. Be sure to do your research ahead of time, so you are ready when disaster strikes.
First, check the location of the walk in clinic. If you're having serious chest pains, you don't want to have to drive two hours to get to your urgent care facility. Instead, you want somewhere that is within easy driving distance (probably no more than twenty miles,) and is easy to reach. Most people don't want to run the risk of driving on the interstate or on winding roads if they're not feeling well, so try and find somewhere that is already on your side of town.
Find out the availability of the walk in clinic. Many of facilities will be open on holidays but not twenty-four hours, or vise versa. Perhaps they aren't open on the weekends. A great deal of injuries and emergencies, especially for children, occur on the weekends while they are enjoying ball games or playing at the park. Be sure that you are happy with the hours during which you can access your facility. It's probably a good idea to try and find a practice that at least has a twenty-four hour phone line, even if it's not necessarily open 24 hours. If you look hard enough, though, you will probably be able to find that location that fits your availability desires.
A special consideration that you will want to consider before deciding on your walk in clinic is their insurance coverage. You will want to verify that they accept your insurance before you ever walk through their doors with your first emergency. There is nothing worse than thinking your insurance will cover your visits, and then finding out, after you've already had an appointment for a couple hundred dollars, that they won't cover a dime. You can call the facility to find out if they accept your insurance or, once you have a list of possible practices, you can call your insurance provider directly to find out which ones will accept their company.
You never want to wait until you are in dire straits to figure out where to go for medical assistance. It's better to be prepared before you need the walk in clinic, and know where it is you are going to go when a medical emergency occurs.

Thursday, April 19, 2012

Why Does My Shoulder Only Hurt On Some Activities And Not All?

Experiencing shoulder pain can severely limit your daily activities. While it can be aggravating to have to deal with, what is even more aggravating is when the pain only comes from certain movements, and not others. It would stand to reason that having an injury to a major area such as the shoulder would cause pain no matter what you were doing. But this is not always the case.
While this might seem puzzling that only certain movements would generate pain, it is actually a good sign. Being able to pinpoint the locale of the pain based on movement will help your doctor to isolate what could be causing it.
Anatomy Of The Shoulder
The shoulder is a very complex joint with a great deal of responsibility being given to it. With so much mobility available, it has to be work in many different ways that is not required of most other major joints of the body. But having this range of motion also means a much greater possibility of injury.
Since the shoulder is comprised of four major muscles, three major bones, and various ligaments and tendons, there is much more opportunity for things to go wrong, whether it is from age, wear-and-tear, illness or injury. Having such a vast range of possible sources of pain is why some conditions can cause more opportunities for pain than others.
Isolating The Pain
Using a combination of physical examination and questions, a pain specialist can isolate where the pain is originating and exactly how severe the condition is. Given the complexity of the shoulder, it is vital that the diagnosis be precise so that the most effective treatment options can be implemented. The goal is to bring the shoulder back to optimum performance using the simplest approach possible.
While some injuries may be so severe that they require surgery in order to correct, this is not always the case. In fact, most shoulder injuries can be rectified simply by using a thorough and comprehensive program of physical therapy. Although necessary in some cases, surgery should always be considered a last resort option.
Once a pain specialist isolates the source, they can advise you on the best course of action to slowly bring the shoulder back to optimum health. Based on the complexity of the shoulder and the importance that it carries, treatment has to be precise and regimented. As strong as the shoulder appears, it is also delicate in many ways. If you try to rush treatment, you risk re-injuring the area even more.

Friday, April 13, 2012

Push Yourself Harder And Smarter With Back To Back Exercises

All circuits are comprised of three components. Exercise movements: free weights, body weight, speed, power, or sport based (such as punching drills). Repetitions: ordinarily in the higher ranges (12-50) to increase lactic build up, but lower and medium rep ranges (or a fusion of all three) are great for weight loss and building muscles. Rest intervals: kept short to stimulate a state which stimulates the output of the male growth hormone and anaerobic fitness. Working out more often than not incorporates the initial few warm up drills to get the heartbeat raised, followed by carrying out as many repetitions as you can in a specified time frame (or maybe a determined number of reps) at every station, along with a rest interval of 5-20 seconds between each station, until such time as one particular circuit is carried out. If your muscle training program is not giving you the results you really want, and you are struggling to develop muscle size and definition, you may ought to kick start your progress all over again with circuit training. You could find it tricky to start with, but shortly after that you will have raised your strength and fitness levels above your expectations.
  • In case you are already experienced with lifting weights, the stimulus from high repetition circuit training is unlikely to be good enough to activate strength increases.

  • Include instability: As a substitute for doing exercises using a fixed surface, like the floor or a bench, use an exercise ball to make your body and muscles continue to work harder so as to keep balance.

  • To boost the potential to build muscle from this type of program, a strength and fitness circuit can be devised. This may be done by introducing exercises from a strength training programme and performing them back-to-back with exercise movements from a calisthenics programme. For example, complete a set of dumbbell squats in the 6-15 rep range. End the set 2 or 3 repetitions prior to reaching failure. This is quickly followed by 10-15 reps of step ups.
The secret to a decent figure is excellent muscle development plus low body fat. Make use of the Kettlebell swing to develop your leg muscles and incorporate it in a metabolic resistance training workout this way:
  1. Kettlebell swing
  2. Hip Extensions
  3. Kettlebell swing
  4. One Leg Lying Cable Knee Raise
  5. Kettlebell swing
  6. Dumbbell Pullover
  7. Kettlebell swing
  8. Reverse Grip Smith Machine Bent Over Row
  9. Behind The Back Barbell Shrug
You may need a couple of circuits using sub-maximal weights at the start. Make sure to determine what resistance you can expect to handle following a few loosen up rounds. Because every single movement triggers your body in a different way, you can actually work at a fast tempo. This helps to develop muscle size and definition and get rid of fat. Unlike low intensity cardiovascular exercise that eats up muscle, using weights like this forces your body to pack on muscle mass and to reduce excess adipose (or fat) tissue. It's essential to have a record of the weight loads used as well as rest periods. Endeavor to boost intensity each and every training session.On completing every round, take a breather for about 15-40 seconds and after that start another circuit. If you wish to shed extra pounds, lessen rest periods, yet still train with respectable weight loads always.

Saturday, April 7, 2012

Urgent Care Facilities on the Rise

Healthcare is increasingly difficult to come by in the United States, especially for those families who do not have coverage via health insurance. Nevertheless, urgent care facilities have been on the increase, servicing those without insurance and operating outside of normal hours, decreasing the bottlenecking that occurs at emergency rooms across the nation. General practitioners and other specialists who service the increased demand for healthcare during odd hours have opened these facilities. Those families with children who have issues at late hours but are not extreme enough to warrant an emergency room visit take full benefit from this service. Because general doctors may not be available after hours, on weekends, or holidays, these types of facilities are fueling a demand for those with special needs but low budgets or without insurance.
Urgent care facilities also service those who require walk-in service. This specifically means healthcare provision for those who have not made an appointment for services that do not warrant an emergency room visit. While many urgent care services are not open on a continuous basis like that of emergency rooms, they do function to help keep emergency rooms efficient, organized, and streamlined. While the system is not perfect, these care facilities are the most recent progression in the United States health care system. The next evolutions will take place in 2014 with the addition of President Obama's Affordable Care Act. While it is still unclear how this legislation will affect this specific industry, health insurance companies that may have not covered visits to urgent healthcare facilities will not turn those with preexisting conditions away.
The industry has a trade association called the Urgent Care Association of America, which establishes criteria and standards for these facilities across the nation. Much of these regulations cover the scope of service, operating hours, staff requirements, and locations in conjunction with emergency rooms and other hospitals. As such, many of these facilities are staffed and maintained by nurses and assistants that could normally be found in a general practice or small to mid-sized hospital. While some of these facilities to contain highly experienced medical professionals, the vast majority house professionals with hospital and general practice experience adequate for the overseeing of special needs populations such as children and the elderly.
Thanks to these types of facilities, many people without health insurance or without access to a regular doctor during irregular hours or on holiday can now receive healthcare, sometimes at a fraction of the cost. Because these services exist, many children, young adults, and seniors have access to a form of healthcare that would have otherwise been inaccessible. Those seeking these types of services should spend a fair amount of time looking them up online, reading reviews, and locating the nearest service within their towns and cities. By knowing where the nearest facility is, families can obtain healthcare services that are needed outside of normal business hours on weekends or holidays.