People use these sites to identify their health issues rather than visiting a doctor, which is obviously a bad idea!
"Naw, I don't need to see a doctor, WebMD tells me I'm fine!"
And for people who have a propensity towards paranoia, this type of thing is extremely dangerous....case in point....
A few weeks ago, Poop declared, "I think I have tuberculosis."
Me: You what?
Poop: I think I have tuberculosis. I have all the symptoms.
Me: Let me guess...WedMD?
Me: Let me reassure you, you do NOT have tuberculosis. You were probably vaccinated against it when you were a child. I could be wrong, but, I think it was pretty much eradicated in the western world at the turn of the 20th century.
The conversation ended, but I'm not sure I convinced him. He wandered off muttering "tuberculosis" under his breath.
I've banned him from using WebMD in the future.
8 comments:
Poop can go for a simple TB test. (Remember that little fluid bubble they inject into your forearm then look at a couple days later?) This checks if you've been exposed to TB. A 2-step test checks if you've ever been exposed to it. As far as I know there isn't a vaccine against it. I'm sooooooooo not sayin' Poop has it and don't want to propagate THAT. IF there were an exposure the next step is a chest x-ray and there are meds for to keep it from becoming active.
BTW how come there are puppy pictures but no Poopypants pictures? BTW again...one of my hubby's nicknames is Poopypants too. Long story.
Cheers,
M :)
Oh yeah...one more thing...WebMD and the like are definitely EVIL.
The interweb tells me there is a vaccine (abbreviated BCG) and it's been in use since 1921.
Did your Poopypants actually poop his pants? I'd love to hear the tale..LOL...
There is a vaccination for TB called the BCG, but it is only effective for around 15 years - max. If you were vaccinated as a child, and you are in adulthood you are no longer immune. The tuberculin skin test (the fluid bubble injection you speak of) cross-reacts with the BCG vaccination, so if you have been vaccinated, you will almost certainly see a reaction, this could mean you have TB, or it could be a false positive. The only way to check for certain is to ask for a blood test (preferably T-SPOT.TB). These are way more accurate.
Oh yes... and it has never been eradicated in the Western World. The World Health Organisation estimates that one third of the worlds population is infected with TB. The increase in foreign travel and immigration has seen a resurgance in this deadly disease, especially in developed countries and we are now seeing drug-resistant and multi-drug resistant strains as well.
In case it was unclear, this was a joke...not the part about people self-diagnosing based on internet information (or disinformation, as the case may be)...
I'm a fan of Web MD. I put in my symptoms, see what wacky ailments it comes up with, then decide I have either a cold or allergies.
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