All right. It's time for a health watch
this morning where we discussed all
things trending in the health world.
This morning, we're joined by
Doctor Syed Hussein with Trinity
Health of New England over Zoom.
Doctor Hussein, good morning.
Thanks for being with us.
Morning, Erica. Good to
be here. All right, First
off, we're going to talk about the
Center of Disease Control and Prevention.
They're raising concern over
COVID-19 spreading rapidly.
And it's also been announced by
the World Health Organization
that there is a significant spike
in deaths and hospitalizations
worldwide from respiratory illness.
So what are some important
things people should know as we
inch closer to fall and winter,
that's when people typically get sick.
Yeah, absolutely. So as we've discussed
in the last few weeks,
Erica, it's important that
we put things into context.
So yes, there has been a spike
nationwide in terms of positivity,
rising hospitalizations as well as
deaths that follow when we see a
bump up in the other two metrics.
Now the wave this late summer surge
we've seen is much less compared to
what we've seen in previous waves.
But that doesn't mean that folks,
you know, don't take this seriously.
They should.
And especially if you're a higher
risk or above the age of 60,
then it's really important you have a
conversation with your healthcare provider.
Make sure you're up to date
with your vaccines.
And if you live in a county there,
about 7% of counties across the
nation now that are in medium
or high category in terms of
hospitalizations from COVID-19.
It's not a bad idea to bring back
some of those measures we've used in
the past which is masking making sure
we're testing prior to gatherings
things that we know help and and
prevent COVID-19 transmission.
All right doctor saying we want to talk
about Narcan for a minute now here over
the last week it's become readily available
at pharmacies on the store shelves.
Of course, the drug is meant to help counter
and delay the effects of a drug overdose,
but people really need to know
some information about this before
they plan on purchasing it and
using it, right? Yeah, absolutely.
So those individuals that are
higher risk or may have, you know,
been more prone to using some
of these recreational drugs,
sometimes drugs may be laced with fentanyl.
We've seen that across the nation.
We've seen over 100,000 deaths
over the last couple years alone.
So this is a huge issue public
health crisis and this is a very
positive step in the right direction.
So Walmart, CVS, Walgreens,
all of these stores will start
keeping Narcan on the shelves.
I'm not 100% sure yet of what the
pricing would look like but this is
a nasal spray that can prevent over
the fatal overdose potentially and
it is used extensively currently
by emergency personnel,
emergency services and and those
that fight some of these issues
on the on the street.
A lot of Bruce Springsteen fans
disappointed and concerned he was set to
go on tour but he just announced that
he's gonna be taking time off because
of a string of metal medical concerns.
He's being treated for peptic ulcer disease.
Feel like a lot of people don't
really know what that's all about.
Talk a little bit more about it and and
what people should know and how what
How is he likely being treated for this?
Yes. So this is basically open
sores or ulcers in the lining
of the stomach or the the first
portion of the small intestine and
basically what happens is they could
have excruciating abdominal pain,
nausea, vomiting, bloating.
There could be blood in their stool
when they have a bowel movement
and they're four top causes for
peptic ulcer disease in the US.
So NSAIDs which are non steroidal
and antiinflammatory drugs
such as naproxen or ibuprofen,
a common pain medications are a leading
cause along with drinking alcohol, smoking.
And then the 4th cause is a bacterial
infection caused by H pylori for
which there is a a treatment.
Where is there is treatment
antibacterials that can be prescribed.
So those are the top causes.
So if you experience any of these symptoms,
then it's important that you seek
help through your healthcare provider.
All right, important
information. And of course,
we wish him a speedy recovery
as always. Dr. Said Husain,
thanks so much for being with us.
We always appreciate it.
Thank you. Thanks so much.