“Why a have a medic alert?  In an emergency, you may be unable to communicate the details of your medical conditions, medications you take, or any severe allergies you have. Medical alert bracelets/necklaces speak on your behalf and share vital information that may be able to save your life. First response personnel will look for medical identification on your body before moving forward with treatment. They do not recognize tattoos as a form of medical ID.”

Hemophilia Foundation of Michigan  (hfmich.org)

There are advantages to having a medic alert button and medic alert ID tags!

It is comical to some with “Help me, I fell and I can’t get up.” regarding the commercial but we all know there are many that really have experienced this terrible disaster and did need this medic alert button for their health.

While the Medic Alert name is synonymous with medical identification bracelets; not all bracelets are created equal. That is why, this August, its celebration Medic Alert Awareness Month. This celebration is designed to educate the public about Medic Alert Foundation and the extra life-saving benefits that set foundation who sell this product apart from general medical jewelry providers (medic alert bracelets or necklaces).

The collection of services found behind every Medic Alert medical ID bracelet is how shoppers can distinguish Medic Alert Foundation from all other medical ID providers in today’s market. Only Medic Alert continues to deliver 24/7 life-saving services that other providers simply can’t match.

Medic Alert Awareness Month is a special event to recognize that, for over 50 years, the foundation has continued to protect the health and well-being of millions of members’ worldwide. We do this by ensuring you receive proper medical treatment and care during an emergency.

Medic Alert’s foundations trusted 24/7 emergency support network, offers peace of mind for both you and your loved ones. If unresponsive; your personalized engraved MedicAlert medical ID will work for you, immediately connecting first responders and medical personnel to your up-to-date medical information.

These medic alert foundations are a charity whose team members and services work 24/7; in order to ensure there customers to receive exceptional medical care in the event of an emergency (from a fall to chest pain experiencing a heart attach or experiencing a collapse due to a stroke).  With that medic alert on the individual has seconds on their bracelet or necklace medic alert button to push to get immediate help to their home with police and a ambulance with EMTs or Paramedics.

If your mom, dad or family member needs help like this may be the ideal thing for them it was for my mom.  Check out medic alert foundations on the internet and you may love just what the offer.

Don’t get this blog wrong medical bracelets are good to have also.  Your medical ID provides for a quick recognition of your medical conditions, allergies, medications, or treatment wishes; this leads to faster and more effective medical treatment.

Medical ID bracelets reduce treatment errors which may result from not having a patient’s health record during an emergency situation or upon hospital admission.

A medical ID speaks for you in the event of an emergency if you become unresponsive.

First responders and medical personnel are trained to first look for medical identification jewelry in an emergency. Medical IDs will immediately alert emergency medical professionals to your critical health and personal information.

There are unlimited reasons for you and your loved ones to wear a medical ID when living with common or unusual medical ailments. A medical ID will save your life and the lives of those you love.

“There are a number of things that may contribute to or cause gastroparesis. In the majority of people with gastroparesis, the cause is unknown and is termed “idiopathic.” This is the most common subset of gastroparesis. The term idiopathic simply means that there is no known cause of the disease. An average of 30% to 50% of patients with gastroparesis have a diagnosis of idiopathic gastroparesis. “.

Campbell County Health  https://www.cchwyo.org

“​August is Gastroparesis Awareness Month, which is dedicated to improving understanding and management of the disease. Gastroparesis, also known as delayed gastric emptying, is a chronic condition that affects the stomach muscles and prevents proper movement of food from the stomach to the small intestine.”.

Capital Digestive Care

“Each month we highlight National Health Observances (NHOs) that align with our mission to improve health across the United States. In August we’re raising awareness about immunization, breastfeeding, and children’s eye health and safety.”

heath.gov

“According to the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA):

• Breastfeeding without other foods or fluids for the first 4 to 6 months of life is the best start for all babies
• Breastfeeding reduces the risk of ovarian and breast cancer, type 2 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and cardiovascular disease
• Breastfeeding saves money

DISTRICT HEALTH DEPARTMENT  DHD https://www.dhd10.org/world-breastfeeding-month-2022/

“Viral hemorrhagic fevers can cause:

• Septic shock
• Multiorgan failure
• Death”

MAYO CLINIC

How is it transmitted?

Some viral hemorrhagic fevers are spread by mosquito or tick bites. Others are spread by contact with infected body fluids, such as blood, saliva or semen. A few varieties can be inhaled from infected rat feces or urine.

If you travel to an area where a particular hemorrhagic fever is common, you can be infected there but not develop symptoms until after you return home. Depending on the type of virus, it can take from two to 21 days for symptoms to develop.

Risk factors

Living in or traveling to an area where a particular viral hemorrhagic fever is common will increase your risk of becoming infected with that particular virus. Other factors that can increase your risk include:

• Working with infected people
• Slaughtering or eating infected animals
• Sharing needles to use intravenous drugs
• Having unprotected sex
• Working outdoors or in rat-infested buildings
• Being exposed to infected blood or other body fluids

Complications

Viral hemorrhagic fevers can cause:

• Septic shock
• Multiorgan failure
• Death

Prevention

Preventing viral hemorrhagic fevers is challenging. If you live in, work in or travel to areas where these diseases are common, protect yourself from infection by using appropriate protective barriers when working with blood or body fluids. For example, wear gloves and eye and face shields. Precautions also include careful handling, disinfection and disposal of lab specimens and waste.

Get vaccinated

The yellow fever vaccine is generally considered safe and effective. However, in rare cases, serious side effects can occur. The yellow fever vaccine isn’t recommended for children younger than 9 months of age; pregnant women, especially during the first trimester; or people with compromised immune systems.

There’s also an Ebola vaccination that protects against one type of Ebola. Check with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about the status of the countries you’re visiting — some require certificates of vaccination for entry.

Avoid mosquitoes and ticks

Do your best to avoid these insects, especially when traveling in areas where there are outbreaks of viral hemorrhagic fevers. Wear light-colored long pants and long-sleeved shirts or, better yet, permethrin-coated clothing. Don’t apply permethrin directly to the skin.

Avoid being outside, if possible, at dusk and dawn when mosquitoes are most active, and apply mosquito repellent with a 20% to 25% concentration of DEET to your skin and clothing. If you’re staying in tented camps or in hotels, use bed nets and mosquito coils.

Guard against rodents

If you live where there are outbreaks of viral hemorrhagic fevers, take steps to keep rodents out of your home:

• Keep pet food covered and stored in rodent-proof containers.
• Store trash in rodent-proof containers, and clean the containers often.
• Dispose of garbage regularly.
• Make sure doors and windows have tightfitting screens.
• Keep woodpiles, stacks of bricks and other materials at least 100 feet from your house.
• Mow your grass closely and keep brush trimmed to within 100 feet of your house.

“Viral hemorrhagic fevers (VHFs) are a group of diseases that are caused by several distinct families of viruses. The term “viral hemorrhagic fever” refers to a condition that affects many organ systems of the body, damages the overall cardiovascular system, and reduces the body’s ability to function on its own. Symptoms of this type of condition can vary but often include bleeding, or hemorrhaging. Some VHFs cause relatively mild illness, while others can cause severe, life threatening disease. Most VHFs have no known cure or vaccine.”

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Viral hemorrhagic fevers (VHFs) are a group of illnesses caused by four families of viruses. These include the Ebola and Marburg, Lassa fever, and yellow fever viruses. VHFs have common features: they affect many organs, they damage the blood vessels, and they affect the body’s ability to regulate itself. Some VHFs cause mild disease, but some, like Ebola or Marburg, cause severe disease and death.

VHFs are found around the world. Specific diseases are usually limited to areas where the animals that carry them live. For example, Lassa fever is limited to rural areas of West Africa where rats and mice carry the virus.

The risk for travelers is low, but you should avoid visiting areas where there are disease outbreaks. Because there are no effective treatments for some of these viral infections, there is concern about their use in bioterrorism.

These diseases most commonly occur in tropical areas. In the United States, people who get them usually have recently traveled to one of those areas.

There’s no cure for viral hemorrhagic fevers. There are vaccines for only a few types. Until additional vaccines are developed, the best approach is prevention.

Symptoms

Signs and symptoms of viral hemorrhagic fevers vary by disease. In general, early signs and symptoms can include:

• Fever
• Fatigue, weakness or general feeling of being unwell
• Dizziness
• Muscle, bone or joint aches
• Nausea and vomiting
• Diarrhea

Symptoms that can become life-threatening

More-severe symptoms include:

• Bleeding under the skin, in internal organs, or from the mouth, eyes or ears
• Nervous system malfunctions
• Coma
• Delirium
• Kidney failure
• Respiratory failure
• Liver failure

Causes

Viral hemorrhagic fevers are spread by contact with infected animals or insects. The viruses that cause viral hemorrhagic fevers live in a variety of animal and insect hosts. Most commonly the hosts include mosquitoes, ticks, rodents or bats.

Some viral hemorrhagic fevers can also be spread from person to person.

Stayed tune tomorrow learning more in Part II on Hemorrhagic Fever!