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Surviving Summer Scorchers
Hot enough for ya? It's an oven in here. Phew!
No one can resist commenting on the heat when the mercury rises above 100 degrees. It affects us profoundly -- in body and mind. In the worst cases, high heat and humidity can be deadly, too.
During a summer heat wave, emergency rooms fill up with people suffering from heat sickness. Many walk in complaining of cramps and exhaustion, and some are rushed in with heat stroke. "Heat stroke is the one we're most concerned about," says Mathew Walsh, MD, a doctor at Thomason Hospital in El Paso, Texas, and spokesman for the American College of Emergency Physicians.
Heat stroke victims, he says, are often near death. "They're treated the same as heart attacks or strokes or trauma patients."
The cause of heat stroke is simple: being too hot for too long. If sweating isn't enough to cool you down, your body temperature rises rapidly, up to 106 degrees in as little as ten or 15 minutes. That's hot enough to literally cook your brain. You pass out, and if you're not treated immediately, you will suffer brain damage or die.
When heat stroke victims are wheeled into the ER, Walsh says, doctors try to cool them by stripping off all their clothes, blowing air over them with fans (it also helps that ERs are air conditioned), and bathing them with lukewarm water. You would think it would be best to douse them with ice-cold water, but water that's too cold causes shivering, which actually warms the body more.
In the most extreme cases, doctors will put the victim on a respirator and give a drug to paralyze the body so they can bring the temperature down quickly.
Elderly at Risk
The elderly are most vulnerable to heat stroke, for various reasons. Imagine a widow living on her Social Security stipend in a neighborhood that was perfectly nice when she moved there in 1946, but has since become seedy. Her doors and windows are shut and locked for fear of burglars, and she doesn't run her air conditioner in order to keep her electric bills low.
On a hot, humid day, she's already in trouble: These conditions are enough to bring on heat stroke. When the air is humid and stagnant, sweat cools the body less efficiently because it can't evaporate. What's more, older people sweat less than younger people.
But let's say this widow takes blood pressure medication, which blunts her thirst, so she doesn't drink enough water. Then, to make matters worse, she has a beer after her morning coffee and chain-smokes. All these things dehydrate her. So she sweats even less, her body temperature soars, and by the time the Meals-on-Wheels man comes to bring her dinner, she's dead.
Indication
Uroxatral® (alfuzosin HCl 10 mg extended-release tablets) is an alpha1-blocker for the treatment of the signs and symptoms of BPH.
Important Safety Information
Do not take UROXATRAL if you have liver problems or if you are taking antifungal drugs like ketoconazole or itraconazole, or HIV drugs like ritonavir.
UROXATRAL can cause a sudden drop in blood pressure, especially when starting treatment. This may lead to fainting, dizziness, and lightheadedness. Do not drive, operate machinery, or do any dangerous activity until you know how UROXATRAL will affect you. This is especially important if you already have a problem with low blood pressure or take medicines to treat high blood pressure. There may be an increased risk of low blood pressure and fainting when taking UROXATRAL in combination with blood pressure medication or nitrates, or erectile dysfunction medication.
If considering cataract surgery (clouding of the eyes), tell your eye surgeon that you are currently taking UROXATRAL or have previously been treated with an alpha-blocker.
Before taking UROXATRAL, tell your doctor if you have kidney problems.
Also, tell your doctor if you or any family member(s) have or take medications for a rare heart condition known as congenital prolongation of the QT interval.
BPH and prostate cancer can cause the same symptoms. However, UROXATRAL is not a treatment for prostate cancer.
The most common side effects with UROXATRAL are dizziness, upper respiratory tract infection, headache, and tiredness.
Please see UROXATRAL full prescribing information.
VIVELLE-DOT (estradiol transdermal system) IS AVAILABLE BY PRESCRPTION ONLY.
INDICATION
Vivelle-Dot is used after menopause to: reduce moderate to severe hot flashes; treat moderate to severe dryness, itching and burning in or around the vagina; help reduce your chances of getting osteoporosis (thin weak bones); and treat certain conditions in which a young woman's ovaries do not produce enough estrogens naturally. Vivelle-Dot 0.025 mg/day is only used to prevent osteoporosis from menopause. If you use Vivelle-Dot only to treat your dryness, itching, and burning in and around your vagina or if you use Vivelle-Dot only to prevent osteoporosis from menopause, talk with your healthcare professional about whether a different treatment or medicine without estrogens might be better for you.
IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION
Estrogens increase the chances of getting cancer of the uterus (womb). Report any unusual vaginal bleeding right away while you are taking estrogens. Vaginal bleeding after menopause may be a warning sign of cancer of the uterus (womb).
Do not use estrogens with or without progestins to prevent heart disease, heart attacks, or strokes. Using estrogens with or without progestins may increase your chances of getting heart attacks, strokes, breast cancer, and blood clots. Using estrogens with progestins may increase your risk of dementia (decline in memory and thinking skills).
Vivelle-Dot should not be used if you have unusual vaginal bleeding; currently have or have had certain cancers, including cancer of the breast or uterus; had a stroke or heart attack in the recent past (for example, in the past year); currently have or have had blood clots; currently have or have had liver problems; or think you may be, or know that you are, pregnant.
The most common side effects that may occur with Vivelle-Dot are headache, breast tenderness, and back pain.
You and your healthcare professional should talk regularly about whether you still need treatment with Vivelle-Dot.
You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch or call 1-800-FDA-1088.
Please see Full Prescribing Information for Vivelle-Dot.
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