Q: I have had some severe side-effects to the statin drug Lipitor, so bad that I ended up in hospital for two days. I have a high level of cholesterol, but have never had a heart attack. My doctor has prescribed Crestor because she says it has fewer side-effects. I have looked it up online and it seems that Crestor is in the same family as Lipitor, so I’m scared to take it.
A: Lipitor is in the same family of statin drugs as Crestor. Both drugs have more or less the same side-effect profile. The main difference is that Crestor is more powerful, so you could get away with a lower dose than with Lipitor, which is much cheaper.
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You may want to ask your doctor about Questran, a powder containing fibre called psyllium that is mixed in a drink or juice. For you, that would be a safer alternative.
Q: Why do we have to wait so long, often four or more hours, to be seen in the emergency department? Often there are only a few patients in the waiting room, but they are all waiting just as long.
A: A specialist in emergency medicine told me the main reason for long waits is that people are living longer these days, and when they do go to the emergency department, they are much sicker than they used to be even 10 years ago.
The triage nurse at the check-in counter does her best to ensure urgent walk-in cases are seen first.
Several patients who arrive by ambulances in stretchers are given priority because they are usually serious, complicated cases and take up most of the doctor’s time. Depending on the hospital size, there may be only one doctor on duty.
Scientists in Boston, Massachusetts, have discovered a better way of sealing the edges of wounds with Dissolvable Dendritic Thioester Hydrogel.
This could be useful in situations where medical help is a long distance away. Wounds need to be closed a quickly as possible to prevent further bleeding and infection.
In such situations, a temporary wound closure needs to be easy to apply and remove later if surgical intervention is needed .
