Chief Medical Officer at Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital Dr. Kevin Most joins the Steve Cochran Show to discuss the first warning signs of pneumonia, strategies to avoid holiday weight gain, and determining the right moment to consult a doctor for antibiotics.
Dr. Kevin Most’s Steve Cochran Show Notes:
Staying healthy thru the holidays- try to prevent the 2-3 lb. weight gain seen by many in the 15 days around holidays
- Set aside time for exercise- don’t skip your exercise just because you are off work
- Set aside some time for yourself- holidays can be stressful- find some time just for you
- Don’t go to holiday parties hungry- eat healthy snacks before you go, as the food at holiday parties are often loaded with fat, salt and calories
- Eat in moderation, the goal is to enjoy food not over indulge. Eat mindfully- enjoy the taste not the volume
- Try to stay on your typical sleep schedule
- Be aware and limit your alcohol intake, set the number and appropriate timing
- Don’t drink on an empty stomach. Food slows the time that it takes for alcohol to get to the small intestine where it is absorbed
- Drink a glass of water or tonic water plain between drinks
- Add vegetables to your diet- vitamins and fiber
- Take a walk after dinner- it helps digestion, good for your heart, good for relationships and keeps you away from that second piece of pie
- Get your flu and Covid booster now for full protection at Christmas
- If you are sick, stay home and zoom with the family
- Wash your hands frequently
- Have an expert put up your Holiday lights or do it with a group for safety, unplug the tree before going to bed
Obstructive sleep apnea
- This is a condition that has periods of time while sleeping that the airway is blocked and no breathing occurs
- The body realizes it is short on oxygen and triggers a response from the body, often waking the individual
- Individuals who snore loudly are noted to have this condition
- It occurs when the throat muscles relax and block the airway, this can happen many times during the night
- There are many complications from OSA
- Daytime sleepiness and fatigue
- Cardiovascular problems including high blood pressure
- Increased risk of heart arrythmias
- Complications with some medications making it worse
- Risk factors- age, excess weight, narrowed airway, nasal congestion, diabetes, smoking, males, asthma
- Treatment- CPAP- Continuous positive airway pressure, mouth pieces, surgery, upper airway stimulator –
- Possible new treatment- Medication- this would be the holy grail
- New study looked at a combination of 2 drugs that stimulate the muscles that often relax causing OSA
- The study looked at 175 individuals with 4 arms- meaning one group received the 2 drugs at a specific dose, arm 2 – received the 2 drugs at a lower dose, arm 3 received only one of the drugs and arm received a placebo
- The sleep studies showed great improvement in the 3 arms that received the drug and the placebo arm was unchanged
- Nocturnal desaturation (when your oxygen drops) decreased in the 3 arms that received medication
- The low dose combo was as effective as the high dose
- The single medication did not work as well and had more side effects
- A new Phase 3 study is being run now with a much bigger group
- What does this mean? In the future many patients may be able to get rid of their CPAP machines
Mycoplasma outbreaks
- Mycoplasma may not be a term many of the public have heard of but its common street name is well known, “walking pneumonia”
- “walking pneumonia” is called that as bed rest and hospitalization are usually not needed with this illness
- It is a very common illness that can be treated with common antibiotics,
- Its symptoms include a cough that may continue for weeks after the infection is over
- Fever, headache and a rash are not uncommon with it
- Pneumonia versus Bronchitis depends on where the infection is.
- Recent infections in a county in Ohio with over 150 cases mainly in children
- The number is thought to only be a fraction of the total cases as many are treated without testing
