Why You Shouldn’t Mix Alcohol with Metronidazole Pills

Many times we are told by our doctors not to combine certain medicines with other drugs and chemicals due to its potential side effects and drug interactions. Before you are prescribed with certain medicines by your doctor, you should be well aware of the precautions as well as how the medications will function so that you will know what to expect. Generally this is part of the patient safety rules. That is why you will find a leaflet packed together with the medicines you have bought so you can have something to glance on during your treatment. Leaflets contain the general instructions, precautions, the general dos and don’ts, as well as a brief list of drugs or chemical that you should never combine with your medication.

Metronidazole pills are antibacterial drugs with its sole purpose to kill and eliminate infections caused by various types of bacteria and parasites. Most of these infections can occur in the digestive tract, genital area, lungs, and other internal organs. With metronidazole pills it is easier to eliminate such body intruders by simply killing the pathogens and parasites and prevent them from coming back.

Although Metronidazole pills are very powerful and beneficial antibiotic, take note that it is still a drug that might have some drawbacks especially when taken together with other chemicals and drugs. That is why you need to discuss with your doctor about your treatment prior of taking Metronidazole pills. Among the most prohibited chemicals that you should never ingest with metronidazole is alcohol. So what makes Metronidazole pills and alcohol a dangerous combo? Read more…

Kryptonite to the rescue?

A superglue that can slash heart surgery recovery time shows super promise

We’ve all been warned of dire consequences if we accidentally get Krazy Glue on our fingers when we’re fixing the lamp the dog knocked over. Many glues are so strong savvy people use them to help close wounds. In fact, they are used in medicine during hip replacements and other procedures.

Dr. Paul Fedak, at Calgary’s Foothills Hospital Medical Centre has recently shown that a new superglue can be applied to the sternum after open-heart surgery, with superior results compared to conventional treatment.

Last Sunday, over 3,000 health professionals were treated to information on this super adhesive, called Kryptonite, at the Canadian Cardiovascular Conference in Montreal. The results from a trial on 55 patients who had undergone open-chest surgery - during which the breastbone must be cut open - received either standard treatment with steel wire closures (25 patients), or wires along with the superglue (30 patients).

The glue, made by Doctors Research Group in the U.S., bonded the bones together within 24 hours, without sticking to any other tissue, while the wires alone took up to eight weeks.

Because Kryptonite’s ingredients are derived from components in castor bean oil - fatty acids and calcium carbonate - Dr. Fedak says the stuff is “bio-compatible,” i.e. the polymer forms a porous, very strong bonelike substance, and it doesn’t contain the toxins found in most other bone cements.

Recovery time was cut in half and the pain encountered during healing was greatly diminished. Normally, just the thought of coughing, sneezing or even breathing deeply brings on dread to recuperating chest surgery patients. Those treated with the superglue needed far less medication for their pain.

Of course, the innovation comes with a price - in the arena of $700. Dr. Fedak, however, believes that the shortened hospital stays and reduced medication needed after operations using Kryptonite would help compensate for this cost.

Of the approximate 29,000 chest surgeries performed in Canada annually, it’s highly possible that if the next trial - of 2,000 people - on Kryptonite confirms this study’s results, only high-risk patients (those with internal bleeding or other complications) will not receive this breakthrough treatment in the future. I can’t wait for the results!
Milena Katz