Q: A few days ago, I had an accident when my dog panicked when it saw a deer outside my window and pushed me into a door. I hit my nose hard and it bled profusely for about 10 minutes. It hurt a lot. It looks straight, but how do I know if it is broken?
A: The only way to tell for sure is to have it examined by a doctor. An X-ray is usually not necessary.
There is probably nothing that needs to be done if your nose appears straight and you have no difficulty in breathing.
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The main concerns are a deviated septum, the middle divider in the nose, which can affect your breathing, or a crooked nose, which can affect your appearance.
You may not be able to tell until the swelling goes down, which may take a few days. A broken nose sometimes also gives you two black eyes and may affect your sense of smell.
Pain from a broken nose is best treated with Tylenol. Aspirin, ibuprofen or other anti-inflammatory painkillers should be avoided because they can increase or prolong bleeding.
Q: My doctor has threatened to fire me as his patient for not agreeing to his treatment suggestions. Can he do that?
A: He cannot get rid of you because you disagree with him or refuse to take the treatments he prescribes.
He may threaten to get rid of you as a patient if you persist in smoking with a bad heart or lungs or continue to put on weight if you are at risk of becoming a Type 2 diabetic, but he cannot follow through with the threats and abandon you.
He can do this only if you are physically or verbally abusive to him. Even then, he has to put the reasons in a letter to you and agree to find you another doctor, particularly if there is a shortage of them in your area.
However, ifyou are always disagreeing with your doctor and have lost faith in him, it might be a good idea to find another one. Having a good doctor-patient relationship is important.
Being short increases the risk of coronary heart disease, report re-searchers at the University of Leicester in the United Kingdom.
Every 2.5 inch change in height increases a person’s risk by 13.5 percent. For example, compared to a five feet six inch tall person, a five foot tall person on average has a 32 percent higher risk of coronary heart disease.
