HIV is an acronym for human immunodeficiency virus. The virus spreads from an infected person through the exchange of certain bodily fluids and attacks the body’s immune system. This large-scale destruction of the body’s T-cells compromises the body’s natural immune response, rendering it vulnerable to bacterial or viral infections like HIV. Some population groups are more likely to get HIV, due to risky behaviors such as IV drug use and unprotected sex. While there is no cure for HIV, it can ... [Read More]
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Talking to Your Teenager about STDs
If you are wondering when is the best time to talk about sex with your teen, the answer is “the sooner the better”. You definitely don’t want to be having this conversation while driving to the pharmacy to fill a prescription for a sexually transmitted disease (STD). The truth is that about 80% of teens are sexually active by the time they reach the age of 19 and approximately ½ of the 20 million reported cases of STDs annually are in people aged 15 to 24 years old. These reported cases include ... [Read More]
Get a Flu Shot Today so You Don’t Risk Dying Tomorrow
If you are looking forward to not dying tomorrow, you may want to consider getting an influenza (flu) shot today. That may sound funny, but the Centers for Disease Contol (CDC) estimates that 40,000 lives have been saved in the United States alone during the last decade because of people getting a seasonal flue shot. In the 1918 pandemic, 20-50 million people died worldwide. Antiviral medications, improved healthcare, and vaccines have all combined to save countless lives. Researchers have ... [Read More]
A Nurse Practitioner: A Different Dynamic of Care
You’re sick and you need to go to the doctor – or do you? The healthcare system in the United States has changed a lot, and today there are a lot more options for patients to choose from than say, 20 years ago. As the population grows – and grows older in particular – and the number of physicians decline, people are seeing a lot more nurse practitioners (NP) and physician assistants (PA) for not only primary care, but also for acute, urgent, and emergency care. You may have seen an NP or PA in th ... [Read More]
Why it is Important to Immunize Your Kids
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), preventable childhood diseases such as whooping cough, mumps, measles, and diphtheria are once again on the rise. In large part, this is because many parents do not believe in immunizing their children. In others, parents do not know that low-cost and no cost vaccines are available. Some parents have been misinformed due to a movement based on pseudo-science and bogus claims that vaccines cause autism. Medical studies have ... [Read More]
