NO GREAT ARTIST CAN LIVE WITHOUT THE CRITIC WITHIN.

The almost magical ability of rare athletes to perform at a level above others is a challenge to scientist Damian Farrow at the Australian Institute of Sport. He found that the best players are not necessarily the fittest, the strongest or the fastest, but they have great "field vision." Studying hockey star Wayne Gretzky, quarterback Joe Montana, and Boston Celtic star Larry Bird, Farrow found they display a knowledge of where teammates are at all times. The best players continually dart their eyes around the field, while those who make poor decisions focus for too long on certain targets. By tracking vision in another way, Farrow found that top athletes unconsciously read their opponent’s body language a third of a second before action takes place to anticipate the next maneuver. The question that Dr. Farrow seeks to answer remains, " Is this ability innate as it seems to be or can it be taught?"

AND THAT’S WHY IT IS CALLED THE GRAVEYARD SHIFT!

A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (AMA) analyzed 86,000 in-hospital cardiac arrests, collecting data from 500 hospitals over a seven year period. During that time 11,604 , about 20%, survived to leave the hospital. Possibly the most interesting piece of information is that cardiac arrests (code blue) which occurred after ll P.M. were considerably less likely to live. The percentage dropped to less than 15% of those patients who arrested during the graveyard shift. The study did not attempt to examine why this difference existed. "It may well be possible that there is a less-effective and less-efficient response at night," according to the lead author Mary Ann Peberdy, M.D. Accordingly, hospital administrators must alert their staffs to eliminate this perceived malfunction.

EVERY GOVERNMENT IS A DEVICE BY WHICH A FEW CONTROL THE ACTIONS OF MANY.

The Feds never tire of beating up on doctors. The DHHS (Dept. of Health and Human Services) has proposed a new rule for the National Practitioners Data Bank (NPDB) which is likely to be finalized soon. Unlike the current requirements, any and all licensing actions would be reported, not just those based on professional conduct or competence. Also, all licensed healthcare practitioners would be included. This action represents a sweeping expansion in gathering information for the NPDB. The original design concept was peer review to take a look at how physicians might have gone wrong and try to correct problems, but with so much being reported it will be difficult to figure out which doctors are truly doing good work. The end result may actually lower the standard of care.

MARIJUANA ASH ON YOUR SHIRT WILL PRODUCE A POT HOLE.

Reporting in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), a New Zealand team conducted a long term study analyzing periodontal disease and possible relation to use of cannabis. 903 people were examined four times between the ages of 18 to 32 years to determine disease involving the inner layer of the gums and possible loosening of teeth. They accounted for tobacco use, frequency of dental services, plaque and socioeconomic status. By the time they reached age 32 years, the heaviest cannabis users were three to five times more likely to have an area of severe gum disease when compared with non-users. In a separate analysis the team also looked only at people who had never smoked tobacco. Those using only marijuana had dramatically increased incidence of gum disease compared to non-users.

THE TWO PLY ROLL – DON’T LEAVE HOME WITHOUT IT.

Jock Stender, head of a marine terminal company, was in Chile and had to make a presentation in Lima, Peru. He bought a sandwich at the Santiago airport, headed for Lima, and was hit with the Inca two-step. He was so weak on arrival that he had to ask his vice-president to do the talking while he sallied back and forth to the toilet. El diablo in mi estomago (devil in my stomach) goes by various names depending on location, Montezuma’s revenge, Hong Kong dog, Delhi belly, Trotskies. Maya macarena, etc., and is commonly caused by enteric bacteria, usually E.coli, campylobacter, B. cereus, and is usually self-limited. According to Richard Olds, M.D. a travel-disease specialist at the Medical College of Wisconsin, 70% of Americans traveling in a developing country (aka third world) for two weeks will contract traveler’s diarrhea. Moreover, studies show that 97% of travelers make a food or beverage error within 72 hours of arrival in a foreign country. Typical missteps include drinking tap water, eating fruits and vegetables washed in tap water, and consuming improperly cooked food. Too often travelers to an exotic location spend their time in hotel rooms and only meet room service personnel. So, carry your hand sterilizer, and follow the three p’s – peel it, purify it or make it piping hot.

MAN IS THE ONLY ANIMAL WHO HAS THE TRUE RELIGION – SEVERAL OF THEM.

According to the London Daily Telegraph some Muslim women medical students at various hospitals are objecting to regulations which require washing hands and forearms. Their complaint is that washing above the wrist reveals bare arms which is immodesty and against their religious practice. Standard infectious disease prevention requires appropriate hand and arm lavage and is crucial for safety which should be obvious to even the most hidebound Muslim clerics. Some women at Birmingham University said they would change careers rather than comply. Yes. Please do!

"HEY, DUDE! WHERE’S YOUR GARTER BELT AND SUPPORT HOSE?"

In a field previously reserved for the female body men are now reaching for the "mirdle," so-called because it is a cosmetic body-shaping device designed for the male midriff. Paunchy males want to suck in the bulging belly, lift the sagging buttocks and bolster their vulnerable male egos. Nieman Marcus and some boutique men’s stores are marketing what is basically a girdle, but that word is a no-no, so they resort to euphemisms like "shapewear," "support boxers,"and "waist eliminator." Apparently, a younger generation of males is more open to wearing undergarments that purport to sculpt the masculine figure and level the playing field. Of course, there remains the locker room problem of golfing buddies – "Nice girdle, Grandma."

BREAKFAST AT MONTEREY IN JUNE. DINNER OFF MAUI IN DECEMBER.

Great white sharks, those ravenous nomadic beauties which migrate through Hawaiian waters, reveal predictable site fidelity as they scout for seals, turtles and surfers. A Stanford team collected data from 100 tagged sharks which show that they stick to specific routes and enjoy the California coast in the summer, then leave the coast in winter to head either to Hawaii or to a "café" about halfway between the mainland and the islands. Café? Are they there to dine or be seen?

"AND I WILL NEED WORKER’S COMP OF COURSE."

A man in Franklin County Washington state wanted some time off from work and was worried about a pending drug test. He asked a "friend" to shoot him in the shoulder and so he did. Detectives are investigating the friend who could be charged with reckless endangerment and the injured man is expected to be charged with false shooting (as well as being a moron.

PERHAPS HE CAN SHARE A CELL WITH EX-GOVERNOR SPITZER.

What a pleasure to see class-action attorney Richard (Dickie) Scruggs get nailed for bribing a federal judge. Hopefully he will go to jail. One would have to wonder why a man who won hundreds of millions of dollars in a $206 billion settlement from tobacco companies would sink so low, except to assume that he sees no moral or ethical problem with bribery. His conviction doesn’t help the image of a profession constantly accused and abused for greed and self-interest.

OIL AT $110 A BARREL? HAWAI’IAN ELECTRIC DOESN’T CARE.

No doubt everyone has experienced a sharp pain in the wallet with the current electric bill. Hawaiian Electric Co. (HECO) bumped your "energy cost adjustment" by 21% since October 2007. It’s all about increased cost of petroleum, of course. What a good deal for HECO; and what a pity that medical reimbursement does not provide a similar opportunity when our expenses elevate.. Lucky you live Hawaii, I think.

ADDENDA —

---- Fifty-five percent of grocery cart handles are contaminated with body fluids, usually saliva or urine.
----- Prostitutes at Nevada’s Bunny Ranch contributed $15,000 to Ron Paul’s political campaign. (Is this robbing Peter to pay Paul?)
----- In Berlin, Germany, a man was caught with a stolen suit under his clothes. He was easily spotted because he forgot to take the suit off the hanger.
----- Kermit the frog is left-handed.

Aloha, and keep the faith. ----------rts

Contents of this Newsletter do not necessarily reflect the opinion, policy or position of the Hawaii Ophthalmology Society or the Hawaii Medical Association. Editorial comment is strictly that of the writer