The health and fitness thread about random things

[mrcharly-YHT]

So - MrsC and I went out for a meal, somewhere expensive. Enjoyed meal (although I was a bit underwhelmed by the food and £XX for a bottle of ok wine is 8|)
   
Then she ordered a coffee, which came with a chocolate, looked like a truffle. She bit off half of it, didn't want the other half as it was a sort of caramel, handed it to me. Hmm, nicely coffee flavoured toffee/caramel . . . um, this is made with coffee. Real coffee. and a migraine kicks in.

Restaurant spins round, heaves up and down, head in a clamp, hearing goes dim, my speech slurs and my eyesight goes.

From half a sodding chocolate.

Fortunately it wore off 10 minutes later, was just left with wobbly legs and faint feeling of sickness.

[barakta]

that's extremely annoying. Glad it passed quickly and hope you had minimal lingering effects.

[T42]

Yikes. Not the best way to end a meal.

[sojournermike]

So - MrsC and I went out for a meal, somewhere expensive. Enjoyed meal (although I was a bit underwhelmed by the food and £XX for a bottle of ok wine is 8|)
   
Then she ordered a coffee, which came with a chocolate, looked like a truffle. She bit off half of it, didn't want the other half as it was a sort of caramel, handed it to me. Hmm, nicely coffee flavoured toffee/caramel . . . um, this is made with coffee. Real coffee. and a migraine kicks in.

Restaurant spins round, heaves up and down, head in a clamp, hearing goes dim, my speech slurs and my eyesight goes.

From half a sodding chocolate.

Fortunately it wore off 10 minutes later, was just left with wobbly legs and faint feeling of sickness.

Oops. So does that mean the recommended 3 to 4 cups of coffee per day are out, or just chocolate?

[mrcharly-YHT]

I eat loads of chocolate

So it must have been the coffee in the chocolate. I haven't been able to drink coffee for some time. Just can't believe it took so little to affect me. Spoiled the evening

[sojournermike]

I can imagine and sympathize. Hope you're fully recovered now?

Mike

[mrcharly-YHT]

Oh, fully recovered, thanks. I used to get multiple episodes like that per day, several per hour (but worse).

Just so damn irritated that it took so little to trigger on, and that it had to happen when having a rare evening out.

[BrianI]

That'll be the Patellofemoral pain starting again on the left knee 

At least no blocks of flats on my new rounds! 

[T42]

Mrs T42's hearing has been degenerating noticeably over the last year, and now she's experiencing visual snow in one eye. Doing a bit of research on line she's found that both effects are listed against statins. Having naturally high cholesterol levels she's been on quite a heavy dose for years, and the particular statin she's on - pravastatin - is cited as being one of the common culprits.

She's off to the quack tomorrow to try and get things put right.

I've been on the same one for ten years, with the dosage bumped up since last year, so I'm wondering how long it'll be before my own eyes start going funny.

[simonp]

So I now am on a course of antibiotics for my cough as it's been ongoing for a while. Chest X-ray booked as well.

Wrist appointment on Monday.

Meanwhile colorectal surgery department have written back to offer an appointment for the next stage of investigation there.

One more condition and I'll be able to shout "House!"

[Ashaman42]

He'll only see you if it's not lupus

[mrcharly-YHT]

~It's never lupus or Behcet's

[SteveC]

I had my eyes looked at with those dilation drops in late this afternoon. Most frustrating trying to use a computer, even several hours later.

[Eccentrica Gallumbits]

Following my colonoscopy and stuff, GP has confirmed I have IBS.

[DuncanM]

IBS is a sort of non diagnosis (after they have failed to find anything significant in tests) in my experience. They have given up running tests I assume? Hope they settle down soon...

My guts have been playing up for a week or 2. Always kinda panics me at first, because I had an obstruction necessitating surgery and 2 weeks in hospital (and a long time off), but it seems to just go away again and they can't find anything hence -> IBS.

[simonp]

ECU tenosynovitis is relatively rare. ECU subsheath damage is more common and loss of a small area of lining below the ECU tendon where it point loads over the distal ulna is quite common.

You really need a top quality local hand surgeon who just does hands.  PM me if I can advise

That's interesting - thanks. I have been given three surgeons to pick from and one of them seems to be much more of a hand specialist than the others - I reckon he's the one then!

The consultant I saw this morning quickly came to a similar conclusion, MRI booked to have a look-see.

[chrisbainbridge]

Excellent

[Chris S]

Just back from the optician. Found out why getting my right eye corrected is so difficult (as in, not actually possible). Turns out I have a scar right across the centre of my eyeball. Having ruled out any past incidences of welding or stone-cutting without eye-protection, the best theory we could come up with was that a piece of road grit could have got lodged under my eyelid when out cycling once. I have vague memories of things in my eye - just assumed it was a bug or something.

So, forget the h*lmet debate - time to open up the "All cyclists should wear eye protection" debate  .

[Pedaldog.]

About 4 years ago I saw my GP about the terrible pain in my knees. I've had the problem for thirty, or more, years but it became a Lot worse and more frequent, longer lasting, sessions. He had a look, feel, move around Etc. He said "Welcome to Osteo-arthritis! I take Naproxen daily but, in the past six months, they don't seem to help at all. The past couple of months has taken it to the level of Permanent Agony.
1/. Any advice on things I can do myself? walk/Don't walk, Ride/don't ride, Sitting position or anything at all I can try.
2/. I already use Pain-Killers (Dihydrocodeine, Tramadol) as well as the Naproxen. Any thought on what would replace the Naproxen, without any bad interactions to the other stuff?

[mrcharly-YHT]

Movement helps
Warmth local to the joint helps
General advice is avoid stressing the joint - so keeping weight down is important.
Osteoarthritis does not seem to be a one-direction street. Cartilage can regrow, given the right conditions.

[Charlie Polecat]

I assume you have had the knees xrayed and they are not showing bone-on-bone - meaning the meniscus has gone? If the meniscus has disappeared then a knee replacement is in your immediate future. Nothing to worry about with that, apart from the expected inconvenience for a while, you could be back to normal in a matter of months. If however, you still have cartilage, you might see if the physician (NHS?) will swing for a MRI. If the pain is actually muscle related, you might find a therapist who will use electric therapy on the problem muscle.

As for pain meds - nsaid's often help - I prefer Ibuprofin to Naproxen - and knee strengthening exercises  for the hamstrings and quads together with plenty of non-load bearing activities - for which cycling is best could improve the quality of your life.

Keep in touch.

Charlie.

[giropaul]

There is increasing evidence that NSAIDs plus hard exercise can be an issue. There is work in progress at a couple of University departments on this topic. For me prolonged NSAID use led to significant muscle weakness and loss of limb control ( embarrassing when one falls over trying to dismount the bike!). Stopping taking  the NSAIDs saw a rapid improvement.
Just left with crippling osteoarthritis in upper limbs then. There is no cartilage left, so nothing to regenerate, just keep ( carefully) taking the pain killers.

[Pedaldog.]

I wasn't told, and didn't ask, if cartilage was thinned or gone. I had spent 3 half-days a week in Hospital for various treatments from 1975 to 1977 and I have a Memory of them talking to my Mam about Removing the cartilage. I'm sure that didn't happen as, up to the mid 90's, I was Very fit and active and knee problems only flared up occasionally.  I should be able to book an appointment with by GP,sometime before next April, so I'll try to negotiate an MRI then. Thanks for the help so far. Please keep any more knowledge coming.

[mrcharly-YHT]

Cartilage can regrow from almost nothing. I have personal experience of this but only as a child - it may be different when you are an adult.
However it was my belief the there are few tissues (spinal cord?) in the body that cannot regrow. Even tooth enamel, to an extent, will regenerate.

There are many types of arthritis; osteoarthritis, to my amateur knowledge is usually caused by malformation or other damage to a joint that causes excessive wear. Reform the joint, reduce the stress, stretch (so that the joint is not under compression all the time) and the cartilage can regrow and reduce the pain.

It is a subject I keep a close eye on as it is the usual cause of very early needing an artificial hip for ex-Perthes patients; many in their 30s.

[chrisbainbridge]

I am surprised that hellymedic has not weighed in on this one. my understanding is that cartilage except in very young children does not regrow.  If cartilage could regrow we would not do joint replacement.

Hyaline cartilage may regrow but articular cartilage does not. 

osteoarthritis is a fascinating condition.  A very large proportion of its causation is genetic.  Probably 80%+ but damage to the hoint at any time leading to a significant step will increase the risk of arthritis.