General Medical issues thread

[Quickstatus]

poo explosions

A Type 7 on the Bristol Poo chart?

 

[Cossie]

View attachment 354613

Yikes, that looks serious!

 

[Hvr]

Any ideas what I should try to fix it,

Maybe an eponymous fix?

Spoiler: Such as this:

Bundy rum,

 

[QF WP]

SMS received from my brother:

“Today’s news is that my biopsy has confirmed I have prostate cancer, with a Gleason score of 3+4 which is apparently not too bad. My Urologist recommends surgery to remove the prostate which he wants to do in 3-6 months time. The lack of urgency is reassuring. (Or if I do nothing, it will kill me in maybe 12-15 years!)

This is pretty much the outcome I’ve been expecting so I’m quite comfortable about it.

Thanks for all your well wishes. X

#fckcncr”

As good an outcome as he could have expected. Silent drink for him tonight

 

[Quickstatus]

My Urologist recommends surgery

Best wishes to your brother

These days the Urologists can do Robotic keyhole prostatectomy. Usually only an overnight stay in hospital. Mild pain only.

Surgeon does the operating manoeuvres which is translated to the robotic arms (AirBus fly by wire style) . Much more accurate and precise, and less trauma and tissue handling leading to up and about and eating the next day. Most go the next morning with just panadol. Just need to have a urinary catheter for 1-2 weeks (go home with it).

 

[LostRedditor]

Since my toddler started daycare in early September, I have had maybe 10 days of not being sick. Same for my partner. My son has had even fewer days. He even spent three days in hospital with high fever and IV antibiotics and fluids. I know this time will pass and it gets easier, but my goodness these 2.5 months feel like a year.

Today I am on prednisolone and penicillin with strep throat, and my sons double ear infection has returned so he is once again on antibiotics. Hoping we can at least go all of Christmas without being sick

 

[JohnM]

SMS received from my brother:

“Today’s news is that my biopsy has confirmed I have prostate cancer, with a Gleason score of 3+4 which is apparently not too bad. My Urologist recommends surgery to remove the prostate which he wants to do in 3-6 months time. The lack of urgency is reassuring. (Or if I do nothing, it will kill me in maybe 12-15 years!)

This is pretty much the outcome I’ve been expecting so I’m quite comfortable about it.

Thanks for all your well wishes. X

#fckcncr”

As good an outcome as he could have expected. Silent drink for him tonight

Very similar to my situation, @QF WP.

I had the robotic-assisted prostatectomy. It's about a 3-hour operation.

One night in hospital. Catheter out after about a week; thick pads for barely another week until the sphincter closed after the catheter assault. All quite straightforward. I didn't even need panadol but I think the night nurse insisted. Yessss, mum...

The strongest advice I would give, especially given that your brother has a few months' notice, is to see a physiotherapist who specialises in men's health issues and get a pelvic floor muscle strengthening program going - and lose weight if he's carrying a bit. Avoiding future incontinence is crucial.

So long as the PC is organ-confined, total removal of the singular organ means the likelihood of any future issues is vanishingly small. I still get my PSA monitored once/year, by just getting the GP to throw it in when I get annual other blood tests like cholesterol done. It's been below detection level ever since the operation six years ago.

 

[Quickstatus]

One night in hospital.

The one thing that throws a spanner into the works that I've seen is a lot of blokes have undiagnosed chronic constipation from inadequate diet. And any abdominal ops makes the gut go to sleep (ileus).
Some then get abdominal distension - full of gas because they can't fart and the gas just builds up like a balloon because the diet also had gassy elements or the bugs that live in the colon is gas producing.

Improve diet is one way to prevent this and the week before eat lightly and avoid gassy food

 

[Flashback]

Very similar to my situation, @QF WP.

I had the robotic-assisted prostatectomy. It's about a 3-hour operation.

One night in hospital. Catheter out after about a week; thick pads for barely another week until the sphincter closed after the catheter assault. All quite straightforward. I didn't even need panadol but I think the night nurse insisted. Yessss, mum...

The strongest advice I would give, especially given that your brother has a few months' notice, is to see a physiotherapist who specialises in men's health issues and get a pelvic floor muscle strengthening program going - and lose weight if he's carrying a bit. Avoiding future incontinence is crucial.

So long as the PC is organ-confined, total removal of the singular organ means the likelihood of any future issues is vanishingly small. I still get my PSA monitored once/year, by just getting the GP to throw it in when I get annual other blood tests like cholesterol done. It's been below detection level ever since the operation six years ago.

Must have been some great anaesthetic if the night nurse was talking to you! It only insisted, because the night nurse had it all included.

Night Nurse Cold & Flu Relief, 10 Capsules - Boots

Buy Night Nurse capsules to provide a complete night-time cold and flu treatment. Shop online today at Boots.

www.boots.com

On a more serious note, glad it was caught and seems to have been in time.

 

[TheRealTMA]

SMS received from my brother:

“Today’s news is that my biopsy has confirmed I have prostate cancer, with a Gleason score of 3+4 which is apparently not too bad. My Urologist recommends surgery to remove the prostate which he wants to do in 3-6 months time. The lack of urgency is reassuring. (Or if I do nothing, it will kill me in maybe 12-15 years!)

This is pretty much the outcome I’ve been expecting so I’m quite comfortable about it.

Thanks for all your well wishes. X

#fckcncr”

As good an outcome as he could have expected. Silent drink for him tonight

FWIW: I had this less invasive procedure in 2018. Tumour was mid centred so suitable. Seems to have worked well.

Nanoknife - Focal Irreversible Electroporation (IRE) - Dr Phillip Stricker

Why We Treat Some Prostate Cancer With Focal IRE – NanoKnife© Whilst most prostate cancers occupy large areas of the prostate, there are some that occupy less than half and often less than a quarter of the prostate gland. These more focal prostate cancers probably constitute about 20% of all...

www.phillipstricker.com.au

 

[tgh]

A mate had a prostatectomy ( not sure of the methodology) ,
He put a lot of work into the prep , ended up cancer free but with decreased continence

 

[JohnK]

@JohnK re your father. Does he have a GP who is able to provide comprehensive long term medical care?. I can't emphasise enough that the patients with complex medical needs require an excellent GP with regular medical reviews. While I don't know your father's individual circumstances, I think based on estimated age, he should also be looked after by a good Geriatrician.

Dad should not be on Deptran. He was on it before and the consequences are not ideal.

I'm not sure which patches they have given him but mum said they are the same as the ones that caused dad delirium about 5 years ago and ended up spending 6 months in hospital.

Dads GP is OK but she's extremely busy. She visits mum and dad at home regularly. She was the one that called home and asked to go to hospital. At this stage we can't hope for mum better GP care.

I'm not criticising dad but he needs to ignore the pain. We all suffer. We all learn to cope with the pain with minimal medicine. There is no easy answer. There is no cure.

I've got the xrays back for my thumb. Not broken. No damaged ligaments, tendons. I think it was the worst news I could get. There's very noticeable arthritis in the thumb. I do not think I'll ever have full use of the right thumb again. Cortisone injections are the only hope.

 

[Seat0B]

SMS received from my brother:

“Today’s news is that my biopsy has confirmed I have prostate cancer, with a Gleason score of 3+4 which is apparently not too bad. My Urologist recommends surgery to remove the prostate which he wants to do in 3-6 months time. The lack of urgency is reassuring. (Or if I do nothing, it will kill me in maybe 12-15 years!)

This is pretty much the outcome I’ve been expecting so I’m quite comfortable about it.

Thanks for all your well wishes. X

#fckcncr”

As good an outcome as he could have expected. Silent drink for him tonight

Sorry to hear it. No matter how prepared you are, and how treatable the doctors tell you it is, it’s still very hard to hear that you have cancer. So I can really empathise with your brother.

And of course you must feel some worries for yourself with your family history.

I totally agree #fckcncr.

Post automatically merged: Nov 24, 2023

Since my toddler started daycare in early September, I have had maybe 10 days of not being sick. Same for my partner. My son has had even fewer days. He even spent three days in hospital with high fever and IV antibiotics and fluids. I know this time will pass and it gets easier, but my goodness these 2.5 months feel like a year.

Today I am on prednisolone and penicillin with strep throat, and my sons double ear infection has returned so he is once again on antibiotics. Hoping we can at least go all of Christmas without being sick

It will get better. Just hang in there.

 

[SuePa]

Since my toddler started daycare in early September, I have had maybe 10 days of not being sick. Same for my partner. My son has had even fewer days. He even spent three days in hospital with high fever and IV antibiotics and fluids. I know this time will pass and it gets easier, but my goodness these 2.5 months feel like a year.

Today I am on prednisolone and penicillin with strep throat, and my sons double ear infection has returned so he is once again on antibiotics. Hoping we can at least go all of Christmas without being sick

It sounds like just about every primary teacher's first year of teaching.
You'll all strengthen your immunity soon.

 

[Bundy Bear]

First find out what the pain is. just because you feel it is in the shoulder doesn't mean that is the cause of paon
.

So if you have a strong family history of heart disease I would get an ECG done. Probably not the heart but best to be sure.

Thanks for the reply, one of my thoughts was could it be something like that but haven’t exercised in 2 weeks and heart rate was ok, not that an apple watch could be 100% trusted, so google was suggesting a pinched nerve.
Nexk/shoulderstill sore today but at least not painful, there is a really good youtube guy with neck exercises which I used for a while when the other side of my neck was sore.

I have just finished my first 5 day course of antibiotics and feel just as bad as when I first started with the added bonus of stomach upset, I guess its likely a virus and for some viruses I just take ages to get over them, not feeling achy like a flu but still run down, yes had a flu shot earlier this year.
Its not good waking up feeling bad and coughing up coloured phlegm means the virus is hanging on. I have been wearing a light jacket to keep the body temperature up, one of those marathon finisher jackets that I thought I wouldn’t wear until next winter or when visiting Victoria.

 

[drron]

Thanks for the reply, one of my thoughts was could it be something like that but haven’t exercised in 2 weeks and heart rate was ok, not that an apple watch could be 100% trusted, so google was suggesting a pinched nerve.
Nexk/shoulderstill sore today but at least not painful, there is a really good youtube guy with neck exercises which I used for a while when the other side of my neck was sore.

I have just finished my first 5 day course of antibiotics and feel just as bad as when I first started with the added bonus of stomach upset, I guess its likely a virus and for some viruses I just take ages to get over them, not feeling achy like a flu but still run down, yes had a flu shot earlier this year.
Its not good waking up feeling bad and coughing up coloured phlegm means the virus is hanging on. I have been wearing a light jacket to keep the body temperature up, one of those marathon finisher jackets that I thought I wouldn’t wear until next winter or when visiting Victoria.

With that extra history one possibility is pleurisy - inflammation of the lining of the lung. Basically can be associated with any chest infections. often worse if you take a deep breath or cough. Also the best treatment for the symptom is an anti inflammatory such as aspirin which you did find helped. not really dangerous and gets better when the infection is over,
Though seeing you are still bringing up coloured phlegm I would advise a chest xray to exclude pneumonia or any other problem. As well just because 1 antibiotic didn't work doesn't mean the cause is a virus. You may have a bacteria that isn't sensitive to the antibiotic you took. So if the cough continues see your GP and possibly a blood test. Generally a high white cell count particularly the neutrophils means a bacterial infection.

 

[tgh]

Swmbo has an arthritis outbreak in her hand, gp said caused by covid.
Lots of anecdotal evidence around that Covid leaves long term calling cards for a significant cohort.. not just the diagnosed long Covid sufferers.
A bit of wind sniffing suggests that we are not out of the woods yet...

 

[Pushka]

Swmbo has an arthritis outbreak in her hand, gp said caused by covid.
Lots of anecdotal evidence around that Covid leaves long term calling cards for a significant cohort.. not just the diagnosed long Covid sufferers.
A bit of wind sniffing suggests that we are not out of the woods yet...

I agree but it's going to remain anecdotal I'm thinking. When I had my most recent covid vax, the pain it created for a day completely mimicked the pain I had with PMR. I had experienced a return of pmr in my left arm as I'd tapered from steroi_ much to the rheumatologists angst, so I had this shot in my right arm. I'm also yet to be convinced that PMR wasn't linked to either covid or vax but there are so many other compounding variables.

 

[Bundy Bear]

With that extra history one possibility is pleurisy - inflammation of the lining of the lung. Basically can be associated with any chest infections. often worse if you take a deep breath or cough. Also the best treatment for the symptom is an anti inflammatory such as aspirin which you did find helped. not really dangerous and gets better when the infection is over,
Though seeing you are still bringing up coloured phlegm I would advise a chest xray to exclude pneumonia or any other problem. As well just because 1 antibiotic didn't work doesn't mean the cause is a virus. You may have a bacteria that isn't sensitive to the antibiotic you took. So if the cough continues see your GP and possibly a blood test. Generally a high white cell count particularly the neutrophils means a bacterial infection.

Thanks for the reply, found an appointment at lunch time today, no point waiting until Monday as I think best course is some anti inflammatory at least it might calm the system down. I do also have asthma.

The only time I got pneumonia was 16 days after I returned from Japan in 2006, why it took so long to show up is a mystery.
Reminds me of Covid some people got really sick in the 2nd week when the body goes i tried but gave up, I was sick for a week but then I got better which was good like most colds I get but very 2nd year I seem to get hit with a type of cold my body takes ages to get under control.
Worst part is one doctor said was I not doing enough exercise and was I eating correctly, I run 10-20km a week when I am not sick more before a major event.

 

[trooper]

Very similar to my situation, @QF WP.

I had the robotic-assisted prostatectomy. It's about a 3-hour operation.

One night in hospital. Catheter out after about a week; thick pads for barely another week until the sphincter closed after the catheter assault. All quite straightforward. I didn't even need panadol but I think the night nurse insisted. Yessss, mum...

The strongest advice I would give, especially given that your brother has a few months' notice, is to see a physiotherapist who specialises in men's health issues and get a pelvic floor muscle strengthening program going - and lose weight if he's carrying a bit. Avoiding future incontinence is crucial.

So long as the PC is organ-confined, total removal of the singular organ means the likelihood of any future issues is vanishingly small. I still get my PSA monitored once/year, by just getting the GP to throw it in when I get annual other blood tests like cholesterol done. It's been below detection level ever since the operation six years ago.

Looks like I have joined a fairly large club. Gleason of 3 +4. PET scan next Friday... Physio consult for the pelvic floor strengthening exercises next month. Next meeting with the Surgeon 8 January. He's the local head of Robotic Surgery. Concerned about side effects....but thats life. Some comfort with these posts...thanks!