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User:TenOfAllTrades/temp3/summary

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Sample and summary

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The current version of the Science Ref Desk has 165 entries, from January 6 to January 14, inclusive.

  • Up to January 13 (yesterday) I can find only one question without a response.
  • Of the twenty-one sections on January 14 (the current day), only four have not yet received a response. Damn, we're fast.

It is from this pool of 160 answered questions that I have extracted the following questions. (I did not attempt to evaluate the detail or accuracy of responses.) Depending on exactly what one chooses to consider a 'medical' question, I would put approximately 21 questions into that category. This does not include any questions that were removed from the Ref Desk page; if someone knows of any medical questions that were removed for seeking medical advice please drop me a note.

Of those twenty-one,

  • three were unambiguously seeking medical advice and diagnoses;
  • two of those three were from posters who self-identified as minors in their initial question or on followup;
  • two or three were 'gray area' questions;
  • one poster (asking about beta blockers and itching) revealed after the question was answered that he was asking a specific medical question about him symptoms;
  • the remaining sixteen or so questions were unproblematic.

If we assume that this was a fairly typical week's (well, eight days') worth of questions, then we're in not bad shape. On average, we're looking at less than one question per day that we need to be handing off to appropriate medical professionals.

Medical questions

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Questions seeking medical advice

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In my opinion, the following medical questions seek actual medical advice (diagnoses, courses of action, prognosis) about a real medical condition. I have provided just the original questions here, with the name of the poster removed. The bulleted link points to the full discussion as it appeared when I copied the page, and is the same heading as the original poster used.

  • Herpes
    I am a 22 year old male, and the other day I noticed this purple thing on my thigh. It is was like a blister bigger than my thumb-nail, and I put a needle through it and a lot of blood came out, and then i squeezed and all this white stuff (the same stuff that comes out of pimples) came out, a lot of it too. Now Ive read about herpes before, and I saw pictures, but it looks different, it doesnt look the same at all. But i'm worried, is it just a pimple? Thanks
  • unfitness test
    Despite the poster's statement that 'this isn't about medical advice', this is about medical advice. The poster later identified himself as a minor.
    This isn't about medical advice, I am just interested in knowing weather it is normal when my pulse rate gets over 220 that it feels like someone is squeezing my trachaea, my whole body is pulsating as blood flows through it and air is forced our of my lungs every time my heart beats. Is this beacuse I am very unfit, or just the usual side effects of a high pulse rate?
  • Hearing problems
    I'm 14 years old but I seem to have hearing problems. I've always had the problem of hearing people talk, but never understanding what they are saying, especially when there is background noise or I am talking on the phone. This is obviously annoying because I either say what 5 times before understanding, or I just nod and say yes, not ever knowing what they just said. I also just listened to these high frequency "mosquito noises" on this website [17]. A teenager like me is supposed to be able to hear from 21.1 khz to 22.4 khz. I can only hear up to 14.9 khz, which is what people 39 and under are supposed to hear! I have never listened to music on earphones very loud for long periods of time and I don't go to loud concerts. However, I did have many ear infections and had to have ear tubes put in when I was young. Is my problem just going to get worse as as I get older? Maybe as far as though I will go deaf? Hopefully this doesn't count as medical advice. Thanks for your responses.

Gray area questions

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These questions relate to medicine, and may be related to the poster's health. In such cases, we need to take care not to offer medical advice inappropriately.

  • Question 1 about my eyes
    This one's definitely a gray area. If it were phrased 'What techniques do people use to whiten the whites of their eyes?' then I'd probably let it go.
    Is there anything I can do to make the white part whiter?
  • Propranolol side effects
    This one is borderline, particularly given that the original poster revealed later that he was asking specifically about himself. Given that information up front, we most certainly should have simply referred the poster to his physician or pharmacist.
    Is there any evidence that this Beta blocker can cause chronic itching all over the body in some patients suffering from hypertension?
  • Healing after a spinal injury/surgery
    This one is another gray area. The patient is in a doctor's care already, and the question is about the general effectiveness of rehabilitation and physiotherapy.
  • Hi, my dad had an accident (slip and fall) a few days ago and had to have surgery on his neck (c4 - c3 area). They inserted artificial bone into his neck. We were really scared he would be paralyzed, but he has shown a lot of improvement. He can move one hand and one leg with considerable strength and the other leg just a little but it sometimes spasms. His bad arm he can move but in the fingers he has mostly just thumb and index motion. This is at about 48 hours after the surgery.
    We are hopefull that he will do a lot better, and with physio be able to walk. The problem is I really have no knowledge of how rehabilitation works outside hollywood movies (where people enter totally paralyzed and go onto win championships in football). My question is, how effective is rehabilitation at making movement better for a patient? Would it be common for someone who for example has feeling and some movement in both legs go onto to be able to walk?
    I know this is a hard format to answer questions in, I am just looking for your general opinions.
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Again in my personal opinion, the following questions are on topics related to medicine, but do not seek medical guidance or diagnosis. Note that I may have missed the odd medicine-related question; it's a big page. Any comments I have added are in italic type.

  • Love and P A I N
    I'm in love with someone I probably can't get. I'm very curious as to why this psychological state causes actual, physical pain. Specifically, a burning feeling in my chest when I think about that special someone. I guess it's pretty mild compared to, say, cutting a finger open, but still. Has anyone figured out why this happens? Pain means nerves must be being stimulated, yet my body is wholly intact. I imagine this is why love historically came to be associated with the "heart", though the blood-pumping musculature is obviously not directly involved. What gives? Thanks.
  • sugar
    What would happen if someone was on a diet consisting almost entirely of sugar, and very sugary food.
  • Waterjets for teeth dangerous?
    My dad said that Waterpik waterjets (used instead of flossing) are actually dangerous, because the force of the water pushes bateria and such deeper into the gums and even the bloodstream. Is this true, or even possible if used properly?
  • Escherichia coli
    Specifically how do virulent strains of E. coli cause the well-publicized complaints (bloody stools, diarrhea)? I was looking the question over, and couldn't really find any specific steps.
  • Caps and Baldness
    Can wearing hats/caps give you a higher chance of baldness in the long run?
  • Huntington's disease
    This was a lengthy, multipart discussion. I'm leaving it out here because I'm too lazy to copy all the bits and pieces, but essentially it was asking about mechanisms, therapies and side effects.
  • Images with eyes closed
    When you press against your eyes while there closed, how come after 3-4 seconds you "see" colors and patterns?
  • medical term for eye crust
    What is the medical term for eye crust (aka: eye gunk, eye booger, sleep, schmutz...) Whatever it is, the common terms should redirect to the proper article name.
  • physical exercise and aching after
    Hi. I went to a circuit training class on tuesday (for the first time in 7 years, so I expected to ache after). why though do my muscles ache more now on thursday than I did yesterday? Why does it get worse over time (and then obviously gets better after a few more days)?
  • Peanuts!!!
    Is there any benefits or dangers to eating peanut shells?


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