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Showing posts with label how to. Show all posts
Showing posts with label how to. Show all posts

how to use your inhaler

2:13 AM, Posted by healthsensei, No Comment

demonstration on how to use your metered dose inhaler and spacer

Here are general instructions for using a metered dose inhaler and spacer.

To begin, shake the inhaler five or six times.

Remove the mouthpiece cover and place the spacer over the mouthpiece at the end of the inhaler.

Put your lips and teeth over the spacer and breathe in slowly. As you do so, squeeze the top of the canister once. Keep inhaling even after you finish the squeeze. Continue inhaling slowly and deeply.

After inhaling, remove the spacer from your mouth and hold your breath for up to 10 seconds.

If you need another dose of medication, repeat the previous steps.

Your inhaler may come with slightly different instructions. Ask your doctor for a demonstration.

How to use dry powder tube inhaler

Here are general instructions for using a dry powder tube inhaler.

To begin, twist the cover off and set it down.

Next, load the dose of medication. Twist the base grip to the right as far as it will go. Twist it back to the left. You will hear a click, which means it's ready to go.

You don't need to shake the inhaler.

Bring the inhaler to your lips in a horizontal position. Put your lips over the tube and take a quick, deep breath. Continue inhaling quickly and deeply.

If you need another dose of medication, repeat the previous steps.

If you accidentally blow into your inhaler after loading a dose, start over and load a new dose. The tube inhaler is designed to deliver one dose at a time.

When you are finished, place the cover back on the inhaler and twist shut. Keep your inhaler dry and store it at room temperature.

Your inhaler may come with slightly different instructions. Ask your doctor for a demonstration.

how to use peak flow meter

A peak flow meter helps monitor respiratory conditions such as asthma, by measuring maximum airflow out of your lungs.

Consult with your doctor as to where to set the color-coded indicators. They are what help determine the status of your airflow.

To begin, hold the meter by the handgrip. Slide the red piston to the bottom of the scale, next to the mouthpiece.

Raise the meter horizontally, inhale deeply, then place your mouth over the mouthpiece and blow forcefully. Make sure your lips act as a seal over the mouthpiece so that no air escapes.

The red piston will slide up the scale. The number that it stops on is your peak flow reading.

Repeat the test two more times. Each time, remember to slide the red indicator back to its start position near the mouthpiece.

Record the highest reading, with the date and time. Your doctor will help determine a personalized scale to use with your meter, dependent on your age, height, sex and health.


how to use dry powder disk inhaler

Here are general instructions for using a dry powder disk inhaler.

To begin, hold the disk level in one hand. With the other hand, put your thumb in the appropriate notch and push it away from you as far as it goes. The mouthpiece will appear and snap into place.

Keep the disk horizontal. Again with your thumb, slide the lever away from you until it clicks.

The disk is now ready to deliver medication.

Put your lips around the mouthpiece. Breathe in quickly and deeply through your mouth — not your nose. After inhaling, remove the disk from your mouth and hold your breath for up to 10 seconds.

To close the disk, put your thumb in the notch and slide it back toward you as far as it goes. The disk will click shut, and the lever will automatically return to its original position. The disk is now ready for your next dose.

Your inhaler may come with slightly different instructions. Ask your doctor for a demonstration.

how to use single dose dry powder inhaler


To begin, remove the inhaler cover. Then hold the base of the inhaler firmly and twist the mouthpiece to open. Push the buttons on each side of the base to test the small spikes within the capsule chamber. These spikes puncture the capsule of medication.

Remove the capsule from its foil container and place it in the capsule chamber at the base of the inhaler. Do not put the capsule in the mouthpiece. Twist the mouthpiece back to a closed position.

With the inhaler upright and vertical, press the spike buttons once. You should hear a click; that's the capsule being pierced.

Release the buttons and prepare to inhale. Do not shake the inhaler.

Bring the inhaler to your lips in a horizontal position. The blue spike buttons should be on the left and right of the inhaler, not top and bottom.

Put your lips over the mouthpiece and breathe in deeply and quickly.

As you inhale, you will experience a sweet taste and hear the capsule spinning in the chamber.

After inhaling, hold your breath for up to 10 seconds.

Open the inhaler to check for leftover powder. If some remains, close the chamber and inhale again.

After use, remove the empty capsule and throw it away. Then close the inhaler and replace the mouthpiece cover.

Your inhaler may come with slightly different instructions. Ask your doctor for a demonstration.

How to compile your medical family tree

4:49 AM, Posted by healthsensei, No Comment

Medical history: How to compile your medical family tree

Your family medical history provides insight into the diseases and conditions that are common to your family. Use this history to give you clues about your risk of disease.

By Mayo Clinic staff

Your family medical history — sometimes called a medical family tree or pedigree — is a record of illnesses and medical conditions affecting your family members. Similar to a family tree you might have drawn in school, a family medical history is a visual representation of the relationships among members of your family, but it also includes information for each person about diseases, age of disease onset, causes of death and other relevant health information.

How is a family medical history used?

You inherit half of your genetic profile from each parent. Along with the genetic information that determined your appearance, you inherited genes that may cause or increase your risk of certain medical conditions. Except for a relatively small number of genes, the identities of most disease-associated genes remain unknown.

A family medical history can serve as a "substitute" genetic test to help your doctor interpret the history of disease in your family and identify patterns that may be relevant to your own health. Your doctor and other health care professionals may use your family medical history to:

  • Assess your risk of certain diseases
  • Recommend changes in diet or other lifestyle habits that can lower disease risk
  • Recommend treatments that can modify disease risk
  • Determine what diagnostic tests to order
  • Determine the type and frequency of appropriate disease screening tests
  • Determine whether you or family members should get a specific genetic test
  • Identify a condition that might not otherwise be considered by your doctor
  • Identify other family members who are at risk of developing a certain disease
  • Assess your risk of passing conditions on to your children

A family medical history can't predict your future health. With few exceptions, it only provides information about risk. Other factors — such as your diet, weight, exercise routine, other lifestyle habits, and exposure to pollutants or environmental factors — will also raise or lower your risk of developing certain diseases.

How do you gather information about your family's medical history?

Your family may want to work together on developing your family medical history. Therefore, holidays and reunions can provide a good opportunity for your relatives and you to gather information, fill in gaps in information, and talk to the "family historian," who may remember details about the health of deceased family members.

Not everyone, however, may be comfortable disclosing personal medical information. Be aware of a number of factors that may contribute to a person's reluctance to discuss medical issues:

  • Feelings of shame regarding certain illnesses, such as alcoholism or mental illness
  • Painful memories associated with a condition, such as multiple miscarriages
  • Denial about the history of disease in the family
  • Cultural or generational differences that influence feelings about health issues and personal privacy
  • A lack of understanding of medical conditions
  • Perceptions that a family medical history has no value

Consider the following strategies for addressing the issue with your relatives:

  • Explain your purpose. Emphasize that your purpose is to create a record that will help you determine whether you and your relatives have a family history of certain diseases or health conditions. Offer to make the medical history available to other family members, so that they can share the information with their doctors.
  • Provide several ways to answer questions. Some people may be more willing to share health information in a face-to-face conversation. Others may prefer answering your questions by phone, mail or e-mail.
  • Word questions carefully. Don't start with personal questions. Begin your interview by asking questions about the whole family. When you begin discussing personal medical history, keep your questions short and to the point.
  • Be a good listener. As your relatives talk about their health problems, let them speak without interruption. Listen without judgment or comment.
  • Respect privacy. As you collect information about your relatives, respect their right to confidentiality. Some people may not want to share any health information with you. Or they may not want this information revealed to anyone other than you and your doctor.

What other sources of information may be beneficial?

You may want to consult other documents, such as existing family trees, baby books, old letters, obituaries or records from places of worship. Public records — birth certificates, marriage licenses and death certificates — are usually available in county record offices.

If you are adopted, ask your adoptive parents if they received any medical information about your biological parents at the time of your adoption. Adoption agencies may also have family medical information on file. If you were adopted through an open adoption process, you may be able to discuss your family's medical history directly with members of your biological family.

What information should you include in a family medical history?

Your goal is to gather as much accurate information as possible. Don't expect to find answers to all your questions, and don't worry if some details are missing.

If possible, your family medical history should include at least three generations. Compile information about your grandparents, parents, uncles and aunts, siblings, cousins, children, nieces and nephews, and grandchildren. For each person, gather the following information:

  • Sex
  • Date of birth
  • For deceased relatives, age at the time of death and cause of death
  • Diseases or other medical conditions
  • Age of disease onset
  • Diet, exercise habits, smoking habits or history of weight problems

Ask about the occurrence of the following diseases and medical conditions often associated with genetic risk:

  • Cancer
  • Heart disease
  • Diabetes
  • Asthma
  • Arthritis
  • Mental illness
  • High blood pressure
  • High cholesterol
  • Stroke
  • Kidney disease
  • Alcoholism or other substance abuse
  • Birth defects
  • Vision loss
  • Hearing loss
  • Learning disabilities
  • Mental retardation
  • Miscarriages or stillbirths

Also include information about race and ethnicity because the risk of a particular disorder may be greater in one population group than in others.

How do you compile the information into a family tree?

Once you have gathered information about your family, create a medical family tree, or a diagram that visually depicts the relationships among family members. Record the medical information and other details about each person on your tree. If information about a disease or cause of death is unknown, don't guess at the answer. An incorrect guess can result in a poor interpretation of your medical history.

You can find samples of medical family trees and a list of commonly used symbols for pedigrees at the Web sites of the American Medical Association and the National Society of Genetic Counselors.

The office of the U.S. Surgeon General offers an electronic tool called My Family Health Portrait that provides a template for inputting information and generates a medical family tree for you. It is available in English and Spanish as an online tool or downloadable software.

What should you do with a completed family medical history?

Provide your doctor with a copy of your medical family history and ask him or her to review it with you. Your doctor may ask you questions for clarification and can help you interpret the relevance of certain patterns in your medical history. He or she may advise you immediately regarding preventive measures you can take or screening tests you should schedule.

Update your family medical history every couple of years and provide your doctor with a revised copy.

HQ01707

Nov. 1, 2007