Single-payer system for the US: you heard it here last

Today's New York Times has an article on the virtually unimpeachable argument in favor of a single-payer health-care financing system for the United States. All the arguments are there (except for one, which may be implicit in the others: we could provide universal coverage and still save a bundle). The article also recognizes that the great stumbling block isn't economics or logic: it's

CBO and tax-exempt hospitals

This month the Congressional Budget Office issued two reports on the tax-exempt hospital industry. Both are worth reading, as much for what they say about the mind-set on Capital Hill these days as for what they tell us about tax-exempt hospitals.1. Nonprofit Hospitals and the Provision of Community Benefits. How much tax benefit do nonprofit hospitals receive as a result of their exemption from

The Fitness Icebear on the Treadmill

Funny how things go:

The Fitness Icebear on the Treadmill

Funny how things go:

The Fitness Icebear on the Treadmill

Funny how things go:

Drug wholesaler settles with New York

New York's AG, Eliot Spitzer, announced on Thursday that his office had reached a settlement with prescription drug behemoth Cardinal Health, Inc., in connection with that drug wholesaler's purchasing practices. Here are some of the salient features of the announcement:Cardinal -- based in Dublin, Ohio and ranked 19th on the Fortune 500 list of America's largest corporations -- is one of the

Middlemen redux

Following up on my earlier post about the role of middlemen in health care, yesterday's WSJ had a nice front-page article (link good for 7 days) on middlemen. After extolling the usual list of the virtues of a middleman --A lot of the money that goes to health-care middlemen is well spent. It allows employers to combine their purchasing power for leverage with hospitals and drug makers. It

When will this madness end?

The FTC put out a press release yesterday that announces a proposed consent decree in the case of "several organizations representing more than 2,900 independent Chicago-area physicians for agreeing to fix prices and for refusing to deal with certain health plans except on collectively determined terms. The FTC’s complaint charges that the actions of Advocate Health Partners (AHP) and other

The spine as profit center

Today there is yet another story from The New York Times about yet another opportunity for entrepreneurial docs (this time, spine surgeons) to combine with entrepreneurial manufacturers (this time, of medical devices) for mutual profit. Not, as Jerry used to say, there is anything wrong with that, unless the profit motive is warping medical judgment and leading surgeons to make decisions based

Viaticals -- something was rotten, indeed

From today's Modern Healthcare "Daily Dose":Florida physician Clark Mitchell pleaded guilty to participating in a securities fraud scheme with Mutual Benefits Corp. that robbed investors of $965 million and conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud. According to the U.S. attorney's office for the Southern District of Florida, MBC principals induced investors to purchase interests in the

DeBakey's surgery

It is sometimes said you should be able to teach an entire Bioethics course from the stories that appear in your local daily paper, but it is also sometimes the case that you could teach the course from a single article. Once such article is "The Man on the Table Devised the Surgery" in the Christmas-day edition of The New York Times.The gist of the story is pretty straightforward. Last Dec. 31,

Cosmetic acupuncture

The therapy section of Health & Goodness is expanding and we now have articles and case studies on over 30 different therapies. Most of these are concerned with people's health, ut I've just added one on cosmetic acupuncture. It's interesting to see that cosmetic acupuncture is very holistic as people feel better in other ways than just looking better. Lynn Jaffee who wrote the article lists:

improved digestion, decreased stress, less menstrual discomfort, fewer hot flashes, decreased acne breakouts, and less TMJ symptoms, such as teeth grinding.

Seems a lot better than botox and/or plastic surgery!

Physicians' "verbal orders": who may authenticate them?

It probably isn't worth fighting this fight, so I won't, but I have to note in passing that all physicians' orders are verbal orders as long as they used words in some form or another (either written or oral), which pretty much includes everything except body language. (See, e.g., Columbia Guide to Standard American English.) But, by long-standing practice, "verbal orders" is the established

Nice news for the antitrust bar

Worth watching in 2007:Nurses filed a class-action antitrust lawsuit against Detroit-area hospitals and health systems, claiming that they colluded since before November 2002 to fix wages at below-market levels. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Detroit, names Bon Secours Cottage Health Services, Detroit Medical Center, Henry Ford Health System, McLaren Health Care Corp., Oakwood

What ever happened to the bird flu pandemic?

AP ran a story this month ("Experts Puzzle Over Halt of Bird Flu") with a couple of interesting points:Bird flu may not be gone, but merely resting -- there are lots of potential hiding places, made difficult to find because of a combination of factors, including warmer weather, poultry vaccination programs, and the reluctance of academics and developing countries to part with virus samples.Cold

Coughs and colds

If you're in the northern hemisphere now is the traditional time to suffer from coughs and colds, so I've got two articles for you on Health & Goodness:

one is written by me and focuses more on cold prevention

the other is by a naturopath and focuses more on natural cold treatments.

Talking about what doctors don't want to talk about

Death.Today's New York Times has an op-ed by Dr. Pauline Chen on "The Most-Avoided Conversation in Medicine" -- i.e., the one that includes the words "you're dying and we've run out of ways to slow it or stop it." Chen's useful suggestion, which probably amount to spitting into the wind but is worth repeating to every medical student and doctor you meet: "I think there is a simple way to change.

Acne Scars

Acne sufferers can sometimes receive a double wallop of skin problems to deal with. Not only do they have to fend off the lesions that are a part of acne, but they can also have scars to contend with after the lesions are gone.

Acne is caused when pores (actually hair follicles) clogged by oil and dead skin cells cause bacteria to be produced, which can lead to pimples. This most often happens during the teen years when the hormone changes lead to excess sebum (oil) production.

There are different types of acne lesions including:

Comedones - which we know as whiteheads and blackheads, that result from plugged pores. Closed comedones where the plug remains in the skin are whiteheads, and open comedones are blackheads. Dirt is not the cause of the black color in blackheads rather it's a reaction of the air with the skin's pigment.

Pustules - are pus-filled acne lesions and are usually red near the skin surface.

Papules - are like pustules but are red inflamed pimples without the white pus-filled center.

Cysts or nodules - are the most serious form of lesion. They are large, pus-filled, and painful, and extend deep into the skin. Cysts are the cause of the most serious acne scarring.

There are levels of acne severity as well - from mild to severe: Mild - consists mostly of whiteheads, blackheads and occasionally small pustules or papules. This type of acne does not result in scarring of any significant or lasting extent.

Moderate - consists of papules and pustules in addition to more extensive whiteheads and blackheads.

Severe - consists of cysts, redness and swelling of the face and can result in extensive scarring. This type of acne requires the attention of a dermatologist.

This severe type of acne is the form that can leave deep permanent scars, because the cysts go deep into the skin and can burst, causing extensive damage. The best course of action in the case of cystic acne is to get medical attention as soon as possible.

If you already have prominent acne scars, there are treatments options available. Most require the skin to be free from acne when used, so you must treat the acne first before you can attack the scars.

One of the types of acne scar treatment is called dermabrasion or surgical skin planing. This "sands" off the top layer or layers of the skin, those that have scarring, so that new and smoother layers can replace them. The skin is first frozen with a freezing spray product, and an instrument that spins and contains some kind of abrading head (a wire brush or diamond surface) is used to remove the scars. Healing may take a few weeks and the skin will be red for a while, but it can lessen scarring considerably.

Another treatment is using a laser to resurface or peel the skin. The top layer of the skin is removed with a carbon dioxide laser, and the middle layer is conditioned in order to leave the skin smoother. It's performed by a dermatologist or a qualified doctor and usually takes less than an hour. A local anesthetic is administered before the procedure is done. The healing time varies but can take up to 3 weeks. Laser resurfacing has been shown, for some, to have less post-procedural discomfort, bleeding and bruising than other resurfacing methods.

Some of the deeper and more severe scars may require surgical removal while the less severe ones may be dealt with using either a chemical peel or a milder form of abrasion.

While these procedures are meant to deal with serious scars caused by severe acne - lesser scars can result from squeezing or popping pimples. These less prominent scars, while not requiring any of the aforementioned methods, may still take a fair amount of time to fade. So it's best not to break your pimples if you can avoid doing so.

Stephanie McIntyre has been a Platinum eBay Powerseller, an eBay Trading Assistant as well as an Educational Assistant trained by eBay. Her company, eSales Unlimited Inc. specializes in training small business owners in using eBay as an additional revenue stream. She maintains a site with information on selling on eBay.

Health Informatics - Perkembangan Informatika Kesehatan

Hari ini (secara bukan ilmiah), dengan kata kunci masing-masing "informatika kesehatan" dan "informatika kedokteran" via Google, saya mencoba menemukan nama dan peristiwa terkait informatika kesehatan (health informatics), informatika kedokteran (medical informatics), dan informatika kesehatan masyarakat (public health informatics) di Indonesia melalui Internet (huruf 'I' besar = global; internet/intranet dengan huruf 'i' kecil = lokal[?] Mohon koreksi..).

Secara subjektif, hasil pencarian 10 halaman pertama yang berhubungan saya telusuri tautnya dengan membuka tab baru di Firefox. Tidak terasa telah terbuka sekitar 30-an tab. Beberapa berkas berupa format pdf (terutama dari Pak Anis) tidak saya tampilkan di Firefox (tapi saya simpan dengan download manager FlashGot + WebDownloader for X, kadang juga menggunakan ekstensi DownThemAll; Ubuntu Linux) agar tidak memberatkan browser.

Taut dari sumber alamat yang sama, judul tulisan yang sama, tidak berkaitan, tidak ditelusuri. Taut dari halaman yang dibuka tidak ditelusuri karena keterbatasan waktu. Taut dari blog saya tidak ditelusuri. :)

Setelah dipilah, tersisa 21 (+pdf) halaman termasuk blog rekan-rekan yang ada di menu samping blog saya. Bobot nama (ada situs terkait/situs pribadi yang dapat ditelusuri tentang nama yang bersangkutan), tulisan, dan peristiwa dipilah kembali sehingga menghasilkan 11 halaman untuk diulas sepintas:

• blognya Erik Tapan
• Anis Fuad
• Hatmoko
• Informatika Kedokteran di Wikipedia
• Informatika Kedokteran di Cermin Dunia Kedokteran dari halaman kalbefarma.com
• Simposium eHealth FK Unpad dari halaman MLDI
• Telenursing dari halaman PPNI
• Teknik Informatika Kedokteran dari halaman tempo.co.id (komentar dari tulisan Pak Anis sebelumnya, tp judul dari redaksinya agak 'aneh'..)
• Prospek Telemedicine di Era 3G (tulisan Pak Anis di Kompas yang dimuat lagi di situs Dinkes Jatim)
• Peran TI dalam Ilmu Kedokteran dari majalah Chip online (isinya tentang pembentukan PIKIN [Perhimpunan Informatika Kedokteran/Kesehatan di Indonesia])
• Telemedicine di Universitas Gunadarma
• Pertemuan Regional Pengembangan Sistem Informasi Kesehatan di Daerah dari situs Dinkes Jatim

.
Berikutnya adalah ulasan terkait nama dan peristiwa seputar informatika kesehatan/kedokteran di Indonesia:

Nama seputar informatika kesehatan/kedokteran di Indonesia

Ada nama Erik Tapan, Anis Fuad, Johan Harlan (wajah lama).
Terkait nama-nama di atas, Erik Tapan memulai aktivitas 'dokter Internet' melalui mailing list(milis) Dokter Indonesia (telekonsultasi), memasyarakatkan informatika kedokteran/kesehatan melalui berbagai media dan seminar, berperan dalam telemedicine di Indonesia.
Anis Fuad aktif dalam berbagai diskusi di milis sejak mahasiswa, turut mengembangkan kurikulum pendidikan informatika kesehatan/kedokteran di UGM, konsultan di bidangnya, lebih rajin menulis di berbagai media dan jurnal (apalagi sejak aktif nge-blog..).
Johan Harlan seorang ahli biostatistik, dokter Angkatan Laut, koordinator informatika kedokteran Universitas Gunadarma.
Hatmoko, Siswanto M. Muhamad, Nur Martono (wajah baru). Sebelumnya saya pernah mengetahui nama Hari Kusnanto, Rano Indradi, Adiet, Agus Mutamakin, Syaiful Fatah, Ali Sungkar, Harun Riyanto, Ronald T. Gultom.

Peristiwa seputar informatika kesehatan/kedokteran di Indonesia

Perkembangan informatika kesehatan/kedokteran yang saya ketahui dari Internet ini, meliputi peristiwa yang terjadi secara on line melalui Internet dan off line. Telekonsultasi, telemedicine, telenursing, pengembangan kurikulum pendidikan kedokteran, pemetaan kesehatan, pemasyarakatan informatika kesehatan/kedokteran melalui seminar, simposium, diskusi di berbagai media terus dikembangkan.

Beberapa pusat pendidikan/perguruan tinggi menyebutnya dengan istilah informatika kedokteran, sistem informasi manajemen kesehatan, informatika kesehatan. Mahasiswanya berasal dari disiplin ilmu kesehatan/kedokteran, teknik informatika, rekam medis, keperawatan, farmasi, statistik, dan sosial. Ada yang mengarahkan lulusannya menjadi ahli membuat perangkat lunak medis, ahli rekam medis, dan ahli sistem informasi manajemen.

Di daerah, perkembangan informatika kesehatan masyarakat dapat dilihat dari aplikasi yang digunakan di pusat pelayanan kesehatan baik dinas kesehatan, rumah sakit, dan puskesmas. Beberapa proyek merupakan uji coba/percontohan dari sistem kesehatan daerah yang dikembangkan secara lokal (lebih lengkapnya tentang ini akan coba ditampilkan pada tulisan berikutnya..).

Catatan penulis

• Kemungkinan terdapat informasi yang lebih baik pada halaman pencarian di atas 10 halaman pertama
• Halaman situs dapat ditemukan karena isinya yang 'padat' kata kunci, terdaftar pada beberapa mesin pencari, memiliki banyak taut dari situs lain, dan mungkin bukan karena kualitas tulisan
• Mungkin memang belum banyak informasi informatika kesehatan/kedokteran berbahasa Indonesia yang tersedia di Internet

Ada saran dan komentar?

The Willie Sutton School of Healthcare Cost Management

Considering the incredible profits being earned by many of the middlemen in the health care industry, wouldn't you think there would be a more efficient way to deliver health care that didn't require the services of the paper-pushers, leaving more money on the table for goods and services that actually benefit real patients? That was one of the lessons, I thought, from the story involving United

How A Cystic Acne Treatment Can Help

The little skin disorder we commonly call acne is one of the most irksome afflictions known to man. Once we hit puberty, these annoying red bumps began to appear on our faces and never seem to go away from then on. They might calm down considerably after a few years, but they will still continue to invade our cheeks, chins and noses.

My wife, who is now 39 years old, is still complaining about occasional pimples that plague her face. I thought that they would be completely gone by the age of 21. Anyway, we are lucky to have mild but numerous hang-ups with acne because some individuals can truly suffer its wrath. I’m referring to those unfortunate individuals who grapple with large cystic acne. This is the worst of the worst when it comes to pimples. Fortunately, a decent cystic acne treatment can help these unlucky persons.

You may be wondering about cystic acne outbreaks because you may have never heard of it before. Cystic pimples are probably the most difficult form of acne to deal with. This form is different than your basic variety of blackheads, whiteheads, and blemishes. Cystic acne starts below the skin's surface, while the standard pimples rise on the skin's surface when pores are clogged. It's similar to having an ingrown hair in some ways.

Ingrown hair happens when hair continues to grow beneath the skin, even though it's trapped and can't break through, which results in a nasty, massive bump. Males often encounter this burden after they shave. This affliction can definitely be a pain to deal with and can even warrant a trip to the dermatologist. Now, this goes the same for cystic acne.

You should see a professional if you are in need of a quality cystic acne treatment. A cystic acne treatment should be done as early as possible to avoid severe skin damage. It makes sense to attack the problem before it escalates into something more severe. You should seek the right cystic acne treatment as soon as you become aware of your condition.

However, some people still attempt to administer their own cystic acne treatment, rather than see a dermatologist. This is not advisable because getting rid of cystic acne on your own by poking, picking, popping or pinching can result in permanent skin damage. It would be best if you visit a professional and attain a cystic acne treatment that can really help your skin.

Morgan Hamilton offers expert advice and great tips regarding all aspects concerning Cystic Acne Treatment. Visit our site for more helpful information about Cystic Acne Treatment and other similar topics.

Some folks have a head for business . . . .

The AP reports (courtesy of MyWay) on an interesting case that lies at the intersection of criminal procedure and a patient's right to refuse an unwanted medical procedure. Seventeen-year-old Joshua Bush has a 9mm bullet in his head. Its presence isn't life-threatening, and a procedure to remove it wouldn't be any more dangerous than other surgeries that require general anesthesia. He has refused

Piergiorgio Welby dies after respirator removed

The Italian poet who lost in his bid for court authorization to have his respirator removed (see earlier post), died after his physician removed the respirator without official permission (Reuters). Meanwhile, AP reports that prosecutors in Rome are looking into the details of Welby's death (AP/CBS News).The death came the evening after an expert medical panel ruled Wednesday "that the use of a

Tips To Cure Baby Acne

How happy you are with the arrival of your baby, first or second I do not know, but how sorry you are to see the small red spots on the cheeks of the baby. Many of your friends and relatives have assured you that it will go away, you also know that it will pass over, yet you are worried. You feel the need to seek tips to cure baby acne, either from your doctor or other experienced ones, who have tackled such situations.

Baby acne is not uncommon among the new born. Its other name is infantile acne. Though cheek is the favorite place of baby acne, it manifests over chin and forehead as well. Babies are born with it, it can get it anywhere from 2 weeks to 2 months age. It can hang on till the baby reaches the age of six months as well.

Again, nothing much to worry. Time is the best healer. Mother's hormones did the trick. The baby gets exposed to the hormones, when mother carries it. The good and bad of the hormones were passed on to the baby. As the baby grows, the effect of the hormones also fades away and you are happy to see the clean, rosy cheeks of your baby.

As for tips to deal with the baby acne, the first tip is, don't do anything to worsen the situation. Picking any acne is bad, and to do it on your baby is worst. The skin of the baby is very tender.

Also, you are not expected to put any oil or lotion on it. Let your anxiety not score over the reality. Wash the baby with the finest and mild soap. As for washing its clothes, treat it as the part of the baby itself and use a good quality detergent.

You are again told not to worry much about the baby acne, your concern is understandable, if acne persists even after 6 months of age. Then you need to contact your doctor.

In fact, your care about the skin during and after pregnancy and your diet is as important as the care of the baby. New born baby's skin is gifted to it by you. Since most of the babies depend upon mother's milk, for their maintenance and growth, your style of life has direct effects on it.

Skin is the base on which acne thrives. An infant's skin is highly sensitive, and in the first few weeks after the birth, many changes in the conditions occur. Don't make a grim situation of the normal changes and minor irritants. The market is flooded with some necessary and a host of unnecessary baby products. Don't daub the baby with powders, oils, lotions and creams. Let the skin breathe freely to enable it to meet the acne condition in the natural way.

To get more information on acne, acne treatments and acne medication visit http://www.acnetalks.com/pimple

Italian poet pushes the law on his right to die

Today's New York Times has a story about Piergiorgio Welby, an Italian poet who apparently has entered the final chapter in his 40-year fight with muscular dystrophy. His breathing is supported by a respirator and he may have a feeding tube (the article isn't crystal clear on this point), and he has asked for permission to have his respirator removed. Italian authorities have so far said no:“I

What Exactly IS Acne

Did you know that over 75% of people between the ages of 12 and 24 get acne? That is just a ton of people. 25% of these people get acne on an area of their body besides their face and fully 40% of all acne sufferers look for medical treatment due to the severity of their breakouts.

Acne Vulgaris is the proper name for acne and it really fits, right? Vulgaris reminds me of the work vulgar which is how I feel when my acne breaks out. We all know that acne is a common skin condition that usually shows up during our teen years. Known as pimples, zits or even pizza face, it usually shows up on the face, but the rest of the body is not immune to this vulgar condition. While, unfortunately, this conditions usually appears in teens during adolescence, it can also show up in adults. It is found round the world and does not prefer male or female, everyone is a target for acne without discrimination.

Acne shows up as lesions which break out on the skin. Whiteheads, blackheads, or cysts form from clogged pores. The reason that acne shows up during puberty is because it is at this time that the body's sebaceous glands start to over product oil due to hormone changes. This oily substance, called sebum, keeps your hair and skin soft and lubricated. However, excess sebum combines with dead cells to clog the pores which results in the red inflamed areas we know as acne. Excessive follicle cell production is another change that comes along with puberty. Because these dying cells build up quickly, they can combine with sebum which forms whiteheads. Because this mixture is a breeding ground for bacteria the result is redness and inflammation that show up as pimples.

Pimples usually appear in the 'T zone' of the face. This zone is the forehead, nose, and chin. Acne can also appear on the cheeks and other parts of the face. Interestingly enough the next most common area for acne is the back, followed by the neck, the chest, and the shoulders.

There are many different ways that your acne can be treated. The easiest treatment is to keep your face and the rest of your skin clean and oil free. Simply using a gentle cleanser once or twice a day will usually helps to keep acne in check. This is especially important after any activity that has made you sweat.

Mild and severe acne conditions can be treated by a dermatologist. Your doctor will know best what will be good for your acne treatment. The can prescribe ointments which are used directly on the skin as well as drugs like antibiotics which combat the bacteria which causes pimples.

Acne typically clears up by the time you are in your early 20s. But it is also not unusual for some acne to show up even in adults and sometimes acne shows up in adults who have never had it before.

Teenagers are particularly sensitive to how acne affects them emotionally. This is a difficult time anyway and adding anything that affects how they look can have severe emotional affects. Some people even start withdrawing from social activities and go into a depression. So please get help for your acne before it gets you down.

Go to Rose's site, http://www.skinproblem.biz for more information on acne and other skin problems

Tips To Cure Baby Acne

How happy you are with the arrival of your baby, first or second I do not know, but how sorry you are to see the small red spots on the cheeks of the baby. Many of your friends and relatives have assured you that it will go away, you also know that it will pass over, yet you are worried. You feel the need to seek tips to cure baby acne, either from your doctor or other experienced ones, who have tackled such situations.

Baby acne is not uncommon among the new born. Its other name is infantile acne. Though cheek is the favorite place of baby acne, it manifests over chin and forehead as well. Babies are born with it, it can get it anywhere from 2 weeks to 2 months age. It can hang on till the baby reaches the age of six months as well.

Again, nothing much to worry. Time is the best healer. Mother's hormones did the trick. The baby gets exposed to the hormones, when mother carries it. The good and bad of the hormones were passed on to the baby. As the baby grows, the effect of the hormones also fades away and you are happy to see the clean, rosy cheeks of your baby.

As for tips to deal with the baby acne, the first tip is, don't do anything to worsen the situation. Picking any acne is bad, and to do it on your baby is worst. The skin of the baby is very tender.

Also, you are not expected to put any oil or lotion on it. Let your anxiety not score over the reality. Wash the baby with the finest and mild soap. As for washing its clothes, treat it as the part of the baby itself and use a good quality detergent.

You are again told not to worry much about the baby acne, your concern is understandable, if acne persists even after 6 months of age. Then you need to contact your doctor.

In fact, your care about the skin during and after pregnancy and your diet is as important as the care of the baby. New born baby's skin is gifted to it by you. Since most of the babies depend upon mother's milk, for their maintenance and growth, your style of life has direct effects on it.

Skin is the base on which acne thrives. An infant's skin is highly sensitive, and in the first few weeks after the birth, many changes in the conditions occur. Don't make a grim situation of the normal changes and minor irritants. The market is flooded with some necessary and a host of unnecessary baby products. Don't daub the baby with powders, oils, lotions and creams. Let the skin breathe freely to enable it to meet the acne condition in the natural way.

To get more information on acne, acne treatments and acne medication visit http://www.acnetalks.com/pimple

IQ and Vegetarian Diets

I'm basking in glory here as I was a vegetarian at 30:


A new study shows that children with higher IQs are more likely to become vegetarians. Researchers from South Hampton University analyzed data on 8,170 participants from the 1970 British Cohort Study and concluded that a higher IQ at age 10 was associated with a 38 percent increased chance of being vegetarian at age 30. The study included 366 vegetarians, which was 4.5 percent of the total sample.
Gale CR, Deary IJ, Schoon I, Batty GD. IQ in childhood and vegetarianism in adulthood: 1970 British cohort study. BMJ [serial online]. Dec. 15, 2006. Available at: http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/ Accessed Dec. 15, 2006.

Toxic Chemicals

We are exposed every day to a whole range of chemicals - in food, in the environment and in our personal care products. Here's an article on toxic chemicals from a leading holistic dentist explaining what to look out for and what to do about it.

Blog - Medical Weblog Awards

Dengan disponsori Thinklabs Medical dan Medgadget, diadakanlah Medical Weblog Awards yang ketiga di akhir tahun 2006 ini. Penghargaan untuk dunia per-blog-an kedokteran ini menerima nominasi melalui usulan di kolom komentar The 2006 Medical Weblog Awards medgadget.com.

Para juri dan pengguna akan melakukan pemungutan suara (hanya boleh sekali untuk tiap kategori dan bersifat terbuka) terhadap blog yang dinominasikan dengan posisi masing-masing 50% (juri dan pengguna) melalui pencatatan alamat IP.

Keputusan akhir akan ditentukan oleh para editor.

Kategori yang dilombakan:

• Best Medical Weblog
• Best New Medical Weblog (selama 2006)
• Best Literary Medical Weblog
• Best Clinical Sciences Weblog
• Best Health Policies/Ethics Weblog
• Best Medical Technologies/Informatics Weblog
• Best Patient's Blog (kategori baru tahun ini)

Blog peserta dapat dinominasikan pada lebih dari satu kategori.

Jadwalnya sebagai berikut:

• Batas akhir nominasi diterima hingga hari Minggu, 31 Desember 2006
• Pemungutan suara akan dimulai dari hari Rabu, 3 Januari 2007 hingga Minggu (malam), 14 Januari 2007
• Pemenangnya akan diumumkan pada hari Jumat, 19 Januari 2007.

Bagi pemenang Best Medical Weblog, Thinklabs akan memberikan paket lengkap Thinklabs Stethoscope Recording (Thinklabs ds32a Electronic Stethoscope dan 2GB Apple iPod Nano dengan aksesoris perekam Micromemo). Untuk pemenang kategori lain, Medgadget akan memberikan edisi terbaru The Merck Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy.

Nominasinya dapat dilihat di arsip medgadget tentang Medical Blog Nominees.

Jika dilihat dari para nominasi, beberapa blog menggunakan blogspot-nya blogger :)), walaupun ada juga yang menggunakan layanan berlangganan lain dan versi pro.

Sepertinya memang tidak ada pembatasan tentang persyaratan blog gratisan atau bukan.

Ini pemenang Medical Weblog Awards tahun 2005 lalu.

Jadi teringat dengan tulisan Om Priyadi (ini blog seleb bukan? [jangan komen di blog seleb!] ..ada-ada saja..) tentang Situs Terbaik.

Kami di dunia blog kedokteran saat ini mungkin lebih menekankan konten daripada 'tetek bengek' macam validasi html, semantik web, SEO, dan hal-hal desain blog/web lainnya. Yang penting informasi sampai dengan selamat pada pengguna/pembacanya.

Ayo nge-blog dan saling berbagi..

Ada yang mau stetoskop elektronik dan Ipod? :)

Acne - Back Acne (Bacne)

Acne pimples are not just a facial problem. Other areas of the body are susceptible as well. The neck, shoulders, arms, chest, and legs can all get the occasional or not so occasional zit. One place that sometimes gets acne, the back, even has a special name coined for it: bacne.

Bacne is what you have when your back has an outbreak of acne. In general, it's not quite so serious as getting facial acne because it's usually not as visible. It's much easier to hide back pimples under the clothing we wear most of the time. Of course, the exceptions are the times one is in a bathing suit or shirtless. Under these conditions bacne can be as much of a cosmetic problem as the facial variety of acne.

Like the other parts of the body, this form is caused by clogged pores. A type of oil called sebum is excreted in excess from the sebaceous glands inside the hair follicles on the back. These pores will become blocked if this oil is not promptly removed. This can lead to blackheads, whiteheads, and zits or in other words, bacne.

It's also thought that acne, including bacne, can be caused by the friction or pressure from wearing tight fitting or synthetic articles. There's even a name for this, it's called acne mechanica. Heavy backpacks, shoulder pads, bra straps, and tight fitting synthetic uniforms that chafes or puts excess pressure on the skin can cause this type of bacne. If you must wear tight articles of clothing or heavy equipment, it may help to wear a cotton T-shirt underneath. Better to avoid the item that caused the problem, or at least make it less tight or heavy.

The treatment and prevention of bacne is also the same as for acne on the face. It's important to keep the back clean, and to avoid excess perspiration. Always wear clean clothing and undergarments next to the skin. Use a gentle back scrubber and a mild soap to clean the back area. Also, avoid the accumulation of dead skin cells on the back as this can add to the problem. You can use an exfoliate to remove these cells. Regular bathing (especially after any activity that causes you to sweat a lot, like working out) is important. If you can't do this right away, then at least try to wipe off well, and change into dry clothing. Apply acne medication to the affected areas after cleaning. All of these steps will help to discourage the formation of bacne.

In some cases bacne can be pretty stubborn, and difficult to control. But because back skin is less delicate than the face, it can be treated more aggressively. Over-the-counter medications can handle most cases of bacne. Most contain either salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide. There are also some good natural acne fighter you may try such as basil, neem, and tea tree oil. The advantage of these is that they not only are anti-inflammatory, and anti-bacterial, but they condition the skin as well. For more persistent or severe cases of back acne, a visit to the dermatologist may is necessary. If your bacne is really inflamed, or has developed into larger blemishes that could lead to deep scars; he or she can prescribe stronger treatment, including antibiotics if necessary.

So if you have bacne, it's not too difficult to manage in most cases. A little diligence on your part and you should soon see some improvement.

Stephanie McIntyre has been a Platinum eBay Powerseller, an eBay Trading Assistant as well as an Educational Assistant trained by eBay. Her company, eSales Unlimited Inc. specializes in training small business owners in using eBay as an additional revenue stream. She maintains a site with information on selling on eBay.

Biomechanics Of The Golf Swing

I love this quote from A A Milne:

"Golf is so popular simply because it is the best game in the world at which to be bad."

If you don't want to be bad it, read this article on golf biomenchanics and see if it will help you to improve your game.

I've Got Acne: Which Acne Medicine Should I Be Using?

Acne is a very common condition and notorious for producing pimples on the face and upper torso. Many will additionally suffer with pimples or spots on the back and neck which can be very uncomfortable. The condition of Acne is so common that it is considered to be a normal part of puberty and usually placed into one of three categories being mild, moderate or severe. However, the bad news is that the condition isn't just restricted to adolescents so it is also possible to develop acne in later life as well.

Should We Be Worried About Getting Acne?

Acne is not a serious health threat but it can cause scars so we need to bare this in mind when considering the seriousness of the disease. Very often sufferers will find their skin inflamed and irritated; subsequently causing them to scratch the infected area/s thus creating additional unease and scarring.

How Can We Treat The Condition Effectively?

There are a number of acne medicines available on the market all of which are designed to help with the treatment of the condition and help clear the skin. One of the most popular agents for treating Acne is 'isotretinoin' which is commonly know as Accutane and will greatly reduce the irritation that acne can cause. You may also consider Acnope acne cream that is an anti-acne, anti wrinkle cream that helps dry acne and fight germs and also Clearasil vanishing cream is also meant to be a great acne cream.

Rather than being overly concerned about something that may be unavoidable, learn what Acne medicine ingredients offer effective treatment and then take it from there. It is all too easy to get caught up in the stigma of having acne and forget to pay attention to the actual underlying concern.

What About Topical Medications?

Topical acne medications may contain benzoyl peroxide, sulfur, resorcinol, salicylic acid or tretinoin, or retinoic acid. It is therefore imperative that before commencing any such treatment that you seek professional guidance from your Doctor. Particularly for women as the use of a topical acne cream during pregnancy may be questionable and as such should only be take on the advice of a medical practitioner. However, the amount of topical acne cream during pregnancy that is absorbed through the skin is really quite minimal.

Is There A Cure?

Acne Medical researchers are working on new drugs to treat acne, particularly topical antibiotics to replace some of those in current use. With this in mind it is optimistic that researchers of acne may very well introduce a solution to greatly alleviate the condition. It seems however, that people will do almost anything to sell an acne cure these days so you need to be particularly careful with when shopping around. When it comes to zits and finding the acne cure it can be quite a challenging task so proceed with caution. And, by the way, don't buy a suggested acne cure, apply it for a week and expect that your acne will be gone forever. If only life was that simple!

Your first point of call in any instance is a visit to your family Doctor who will assess the situation and advise accordingly. Your Doctor may even refer you to a specialist dermatologist for further help. Remember, don't be too worried or overly concerned if you have acne as you are not alone; it is one of the most common skin disorders and can easily be treated with the right medication.

If you suffer from or know of a person affected by Acne then be sure to visit the Acne Medicine Site. Clive thoroughly recommends this site so please check it out today here: - http://www.acnesmedicine.com. For comprehensive and immediate, acne and skin care information.

Traithlon tapering

I once did a beginners traithlon. I was so nervous and far older than virtually all the other women. They all seemed young and confident and to have the latest equipment, so I was quite intimidated, but I ended up coming half way up the field. I was so excited and thrilled.

Triathlon tapering is a hot topic - how mch training you should do in the couple of weeks befre the event, so I've added an article on this topic to Sport & Me.

Drug Company Charitable donations

This morning I received an email from a good friend:

Today, Bristol-Myers Squibb, the pharmaceutical monolith that charges nearly $1,000 for a 30 day supply of one of its HIV/AIDS medications, is donating $1 to the National AIDS Fund for each person who simply visits their website and "virtually lights a candle." The tally is near 800,000 now.

Sounds great and your instinct, of course, is to do it.

But I took a few minutes to look at their web site and this is what they say:

"For each virtual candle lit through December 31, 2006, Bristol-Myers Squibb will contribute $1 to the National AIDS Fund, up to a maximum contribution of $100,000, to benefit AIDS service organizations in underserved communities in the U.S."

In other words they get all this wonderful publicity for a measly $100,000 - it's a snip in any drug company marketing budget.

so I won't be lighting a candle.

The Most Common Side Effects Associated With Acne Treatment Products

When you spend some time trying to find a good acne treatment product, one of the first things you'll realize is that the focus of their claims is always about how fast and effective they are. The sad part is that far too often those claims just aren't true. It can be extremely difficult to find out anything about potential side effects or health issues that might arise from using a particular product.

There are hundreds of acne treatment products available, and their ingredients are quite diverse, so you need to know more about the health implications of a product before you spend your money on it. Because of the wide range of products, the range of potential side effects and complications is also wide.

The most common complication is an allergic reaction. The frustrating part is that most acne treatment products contain more than one ingredient, so it can be difficult to work out which particular ingredient was responsible for the allergic reaction. Quite often, too, the acne sufferer doesn't even know they're allergic to that particular substance until they use the acne treatment product. Most of the time the allergic reaction is mild, and may just involve some reddening or irritation of the skin, but for some people it can be severe and may result in a trip to hospital.

If you're considering oral acne treatment products, then one of the most common complications from using these products is respiratory tract irritation. This can lead to breathing difficulties, which isn't such an issue for most people, but can potential be fatal for asthma patients.

Remember, though, that these types of complications are very severe, and also very rare. For most users of acne treatment products, the side effects are mild. Usually they involve redness and inflammation of the skin or sometimes dryness and flaking of the skin. Generally these side effects are the result of too many chemical ingredients in the product, resulting in drying out of the skin. Your skin needs moisture and hydration, so responds to the drying out effect by flaking. Redness and inflammation are more likely to be a mild allergic reaction.

Make sure you spend some time reading up about the various products available before you make your choice. Think about any known issues you may have with your skin, such as a tendency to be sensitive. No matter how desperate you are to get rid of your acne, you still need to think about the health of your skin for the long term. Don't spend your money on a product that's going to cause more problems than it solves.

For more information on skin care for oily skin, dry skin, women's skin, men's skin and children's skin try visiting http://www.skin-care-super-guide.info, a website that specializes in skin blemish products and vitamins for clear skin in order to properly and safely eliminate acne, blackheads and zits.

Confidentiality in therapy

When I was a therapist I went to see my account. One of my clients worked there and I said, without thinking: "Hello, how are you?" This was in the nature of a polite, general enquiry that I would say to anyone I knew, and not a specific client-based question. Later that day she phoned me up very angry and asked me why I'd asked her this question in front of her work colleagues who did not know she was seeing me.

I was very taken aback, but it taught me a valuable lesson about how careful you have to be in the field of confidentiality.

This was all brought back to mind because I've just published an article by Colleeen E Swan on the topic of confidentiality in counselling. She describes some legal cases which just show how complex this issue is.

How To Have A Mental Breakdown!

This is a great article - tongue in cheek but making lots of important points about the mad things we do to make our lives more stressed.

Are you a carrot, an egg or coffee

This came to me via email and I thought you might enjoy reading it too:


A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how
things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to
make it and wanted to give up She was tired of fighting and struggling. It
seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose.

Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water
and placed each on a high fire Soon the pots came to boil. In the first
she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she
placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying
a word.

In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the
carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and
placed them in a bowl.Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her aughter, she asked, "Tell me what you see."
"Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied.

Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She
did nd noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to
take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed
the hard boiled egg. Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma The daughter then asked, "What does it mean, mother?"

Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same
adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the water.

"Which are you?" she asked her daughter. "When adversity knocks on
your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?
Think of this: Which am I?

Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength?

Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart?

Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water,
the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot,
it releases the fragrance and flavour. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest,
do you elevate yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity?

Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

The Unspoken Horror Of Adult Acne

Did you know that more than 25% of the adult population worldwide suffers from acne? If we leave the pages of statistical data and look at people with plain eyes it will be hard to find a man or a woman who did not suffer the gnawing problem of zits. However, even though this problem is "skin deep", its effects germinate into bouts of despair and social angst, which jeopardizes quality of life.

Digging Into The Roots Of Adult Acne

Sebum secreted from the hair follicles moves to the skin pores and lubricates the skin. But sometimes the oil glands expand, producing an excess of sebum, which ultimately gets trapped in the hair follicle and clogs the pores. These clogged pores permit bacteria and growth of Propionibacterium acnes. This bacteria causes inflammation of the hair follicle and the surrounding skin and thus acne emerges.

Though till now the exact causes of adult acne are not known, most of the theories suggest hormonal imbalances as the root cause. Some other causes proposed are evolutionary biology, diet, stress, vitamin deficiency and the list goes on.

Some Effective Treatments To Get Rid Of Adult Acne

Studies reveal that Vitamin A plays an important role in the reduction of serum and keratin production and thus minimizes their growth in follicle comedos. So, nourish your system with Vitamin A and take at least five servings of vegetables and fresh fruits daily. However, always consult a doctor before starting up with any kind of regime.

Zinc is an important element in treating acne too. Zinc enhances the functions of Vitamin A and lends a helping hand in the healing and regeneration of tissues. Zinc also reduces the conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone, which shrinks sebum production.

Most acne sufferers lack Selenium, which plays a crucial role in the action of the enzyme Gluthathione Peroxidase that prevents the inflammation of the hair follicle. Vitamin E minimizes this process and plays a vital part in the action of Vitamin A and Selenium.

Friendly bacteria, Acidophilus, can check injurious intestinal bacteria including yeasts such as Candida albicans. You can take in Acidophilus either in gel capsule form or as yogurt with live culture.

Benozyl peroxide reduces pimples and is effective for acne. You can have it in cream or lotion form.

Creams containing sulphur are also useful in treating acne

Medications containing iodide and bromide can worsen your acne condition so stay away from such products.

All these things are medicines, all of which may have side effects and should not be taken without a prescription and the guidance of a doctor.

Good News For Foodies

You will be glad to know that chocolate or fried foods do not cause acne. These foods are often seen as unhealthy food habits and therefore "must be" related to skin breakouts, but this theory has no scientific backing.

However, foods which are high in refined sugar, trans-fatty acid (milk products) oxidized fatty acids (fried oils) and synthetically hydrogenated vegetable oil contents may not cause acne but are definitely not very good for your health, and so an excess of these foods should be avoided. You can be infected with intestinal toxemia if your diet is low on fiber and essential vitamins and high on these contents. The result of glut of toxins may show on your skin.

Some Natural Remedies Of Adult Acne

The good news about the use of natural things is that they come without the risk of side effects.

Name And Fame Of Some Natural Ingredients

Azelaic acid

This acid makes the keratin production stable and you will get almost same results as using Benzoyl- Peroxide or oral antibiotics.

Tea Tree Oil

Reduces acne with its antibacterial and antifungal qualities.

Green Tea

A renowned antioxidant, which trims down inflammation and infection

Topical Vitamin C And E

Both are strong antioxidants, which improve skin condition by diminishing inflammation and infection.

Fruit Acids (AHAs And BHAs)

These acids gently exfoliate your skin, leaving it smooth.

Some Tips To Control Outbursts Of Adult Acne

1. Cleanse your face with a mild soap or sulphur soap but do not rub your face with a towel.
2. Never ever pick or squeeze the zits, it will only worsen your skin condition.
3. Some acne treatment products will hike up your skin's photosensitivity so when you are using these products, use a sunscreen and wear a hat when you are out. Avoid the tanning booths while using these products as well.
4. Try to avoid the use of oil-based products on your skin. To prevent the clogging of pores use only "noncomdomedogenic" skin products
5. Try to avoid friction from sports equipment and airborne grease from fast food places; these can make your acne worse.
6. Along with a good diet include at least 8 to ten glasses of water in your daily regimen to keep your system clean and the skin glowing

Choosing the right path will help your skin get rid of adult acne scars. Make your skin dazzle with a smooth glow by following the tips in this article.

Learn how you can cure yourself of acne in just three days by visiting my web site.

Online Diabetes Class

I got this info from the well respected Physicians Committee For Responsible Medicine:

You are invited to participate in the Food for Life Diabetes online series. This exciting new series offers education on diet and diabetes, along with group support. The classes feature lectures by PCRM president Dr. Neal Barnard and cooking demonstrations by PCRM nutritionist Dulcie Ward, R.D.

The next class is Dec. 6 at 3 p.m. EST. Two more classes follow on Dec. 13 and Dec. 20. Each session will last about 1 hour. You will need a high-speed Internet connection to participate. Additional computer requirements can be found here.

Click here to register for the remaining classes in the Food for Life Diabetes online series. Registration for the Dec. 6 class ends on Tuesday, Dec. 5.

The Physical And Psychological Effects of Adult Acne

During the past several years there has been the general belief that acne is a skin disorder that affects only teens. In part, it is true that this skin problem is most common among teens and that's the reason why acne has been associated with teens for many years. However, the perception that this skin condition would go away when one reached adulthood is not the case any more.

There are many adults who have had acne as teens and are no longer afflicted by it. However, there is a great number of adult people who are battling acne too. It's a fact, while teens do make up a large percentage of the acne-suffering population, it is also more common in adults than one might think.

The Physical Effects Caused By Adult Acne

Perhaps the worst physical consequence that acne can bring to adults (and to all people who suffer from this skin problem in general) is the scarring it can leave. Scars make it really difficult to cope with acne. The main reason why this is so is because aging skin is thinner, and as such its recovery capacity is much more lower that than of teens. This might not be as much a concern for many young adults however, as the skin ages the consequences by acne can be more devastating. In the worst-case scenario, prolonged acne could produce deeper scars. And this undoubtedly will play a very significant role in how one is physically perceived.

The Psychological Effects Caused By Adult Acne

Besides its physical effects, perhaps the most negative effects that acne causes in adults are its psychological effects, which can be long-lasting and cause serious problems. Just like teens, adults who suffer from acne often become the victims of anxiety and depression. The problem is that acne makes them feel more sensitive to what other people around them might think of them and how they are perceived. But unlike teens, these psychological effects can be more harmful in adults because many feel they shouldn't be suffering from a skin problem that should have cleared up since long ago, or shouldn't even have hit them in their adulthood at all! The worst consequence caused by acne in adults in the end is lowering their self-esteem. With a very low self-esteem, many adults are often forced to stay away from attending any type of social event to avoid placing themselves in a situation where they might feel inferior.

Treating Adult Acne - Is There Hope?

Fortunately, nowadays there are numerous treatments available to treat adult acne both over-the-counter and prescribed. In order to have the best results, it is generally advised to learn about the cause, symptoms and type of your acne before the right treatment can be recommended. Once this is done, it becomes easier to control this condition. With the right treatment, you can begin a really great skin care regimen that will take the place of any harsh, aggressive, and sometimes even dangerous treatment that you might be tempted to use.

Treating adult acne as soon as possible is the best thing to do. It does not matter what type of acne form you have, it is crucial to look for treatment. And although the results might not come for some time, you'll be taking the most important step towards recovery - taking action!

About Author:
Hector Morales owns the [cystic acne] (link: http://www.AcneUpdates.com) and other acne tips.

How to Prevent Acne from Spreading

One of the best ways of preventing acne is by doing everything in your power to prevent it from spreading. Let us take a look at how we can prevent your acne from spreading;

Too much oil and dirt on your skin is one of the main culprits for the outbreak of acne. By keeping your skin free from excessive oils and dirt, you will in effect minimize the outbreak from occurring, or at least prevent it from spreading.

Avoid wearing makeup that is oil based. Use water based makeup instead. This will ensure that your face is not covered with excessive oils. Clean all your makeup off your face before you go to bed. This will ensure that that pores of your skin are not blocked by the makeup and dirt that might have been collected from it. If possible, avoid wearing makeup at all, or at least go easy on it.

Don’t use oil based moisturizer on your skin. Once again, all you are doing is adding excessive oils to your skin, which in turn will potentially cause an outbreak of acne.

Change your pillow case with a new one every few days. That way you won’t be sleeping on a pillowcase that has been collecting all the oils and dirt from your skin during the last few nights.

A little common sense can go a long way in preventing your acne from spreading. However, the best way of treating your acne problem is by consulting your doctor. That way, he or she is able o prescribe the right treatment for your skin.

More info on acne can be found by visiting acne.healthsect.com. This website is dedicated to helping people understand how to treat and cope with acne.

Acne Scarring

The news is, acne scarring is permanent but can be treated. A final solution for your acne scarring is to have major plastic surgery. Most sever acne is NOT controlled by food, cleanliness, or OTC meds.

However, acne scarring is commonly more significant than this. Acne Scarring is visible markings, lumps or indentations on the skin's surface resulting from scar tissue which has formed as part of the healing proc. The only way to completely prevent acne scarring is by properly treating acne lesions as soon as they form.

The most effective way to prevent acne scarring is to leave the acne alone, however this doesn’t mean you can’t seek expert advice on how best to treat your acne. Acne scarring is most often the result of self-excoriate behavior such as the tendency to pick or squeeze the pimples.

Moderate to sever acne include: nodules, cysts, rosacea and conglobata. For moderate to sever acne, it is advisable to consult with a dermatologist.

Oral Antibiotics:

These are available by prescription for moderate to sever acne. A new topical treatment of moderate to sever acne can help and it’s best to ask your dermatologist first.

Physicians say that the scarring itself represents only a small part of the actual damage.

Acne suffers are aware that where there is acne there will be scarring as well. Many people have the common pimple or breakout, but for a few of the unlucky acne sufferers, acne can cause scarring. Any scarring will improve with time.

Doctors advise people not to squeeze acne themselves, because scarring can result.

Adjacent, no overlapping laser pulses are delivered over the scars. The ultra pulsed carbon dioxide laser, the erbium YAG laser and the pulsed dye yellow light laser are most commonly used for treating acne scarring.

For the improvement of facial acne scarring: a systematic review of the evidence check out Laser resurfacing of the skin The Harmony Pixel Laser is proving to be highly effective in the treatment of acne scarring.

Numerous medical studies have documented the effectiveness of Nd:YAG laser treatments for acne scarring. Acne scar laser treatment is administered by experienced medical staff who have been properly trained in this area. Laser therapy for acne and acne scarring works by targeting the sebaceous, oily glands that cause bacterial entrapment.

Scar reduction is one of the most common uses of laser skin resurfacing. Recent research shows Acne Rosacea can be successfully treated with yellow laser with no side effects. The erbium laser typically is used to produce superficial resurfacing.

Laser skin resurfacing has added to the numerous treatment options available for acne scarring. The latest treatment options for acne scarring are lasers, such as the pulsed carbon dioxide (CO2) laser and the Erbium:YAG laser. There are many treatment options for those who suffer from chronic consistent acne.

The good news is that there are numerous treatment options now available to treat acne scarring. Fortunately there are topical treatment options, depending on the kind of scarring. The first thing to do is to get good advice about the options.

Laser treatment is one of the newer options for getting rid of acne. As with any surgery, it is important to understand the options and procedures. Laser resurfacing is a recent addition to the armamentarium of options for acne scarring. Electrolysis and laser are the best options. Talk to your doctor about the best treatment options for you.

However, acne scarring is commonly more significant than this. One more cause of acne scarring is the pinching and squeezing of acne. A final solution for your acne scarring is to have major plastic surgery. Acne scarring is one of the most embarrassing skin problems faced by many, but help is out there, so make the most of it.

Acne scarring is permanent but can be treated. The only way to completely prevent acne scarring is by properly treating acne lesions as soon as they form. Acne scarring is almost as embarrassing as actual pimples.

Acne scarring is one of the great misfortunes of many people, young and old. For the lucky majority, acne scarring is a minor annoyance, difficult for others to visualize. Acne scarring is what most teenagers and adults fear. Acne scarring is the end result of the body's healing process.

Len Cecchetto has written lots of articles about acne. He suffered as a kid and has had a keen interested in the development of cures over the years. You can find out more at http://howtorid-acne.blogspot.com

Children & Divorce

Divorce is a difficult time for eevryone, particualrly if children are involved. Jill Curtis has done lots of research on this subject and writes with sensitivity and compassion, so I'm delighted to be able to post one of her articles on Health & Goodness:

Children & Divorce

Scammers |Targeting Therapists

I thought this was worth passing on:

Massage therapists are now on the receiving end of a variation of anonline con. Here's how it works: An out-of-town "client" contacts apractitioner via e-mail wanting to schedule appointments for a time inthe future when he/she will be visiting the area. The appointments andtimes are scheduled. Shortly thereafter, the practitioner receives a cashier's check forthese services, but it's generally for much more than the originallyagreed upon price. The alleged client or a secretary of the clientcontacts the therapist, explains the mistake, and asks the therapist todeposit the check and simply refund the balance. The check appears toclear and the practitioner sends the overage back to the client only tolearn two weeks later that the check was a fraud. Now the practitioneris out whatever the overage was.If this has happened to you, visit the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) website, www.ftc.gov/ftc/consumer.htm, and click "File a Complaint" tofill out the form. You can also forward the offending e-mails tospam@uce.gov.Using caution and common sense will help you avoid the pitfalls ofInternet scams. For more information on Internet scams, visitwww.ftc.gov/spam/ or www.snopes.com/crime/fraud/cashier.asp.from: http://www.abmp.com/home/scams.html

Ethical consumerism

earlier this year we decided to sponsor the health and body section of Ethical Junction - you can see our clickable logo for Health and Goodness on all the health pages.

Co-operative Financial Services (CFS) has today announced it will sponsor Ethical Junction. CFS includes the Co-Operative Bank, the internet bank Smile and Co-Operative Insurance.

Great news for Ethical Junction, and yet another sign that people are interested in behaving ethically and not just in making money.

Why Acne is a Serious Issue for Teens

The problem is acne.

As a teen, you know that poor skin makes you feel absolutely terrible. It makes you miserable. It leads to low self-esteem. You think that people are looking at you funny because your skin is covered with various spots and marks.

It just isn’t fair.

On top of the obvious external problem, acne causes you to internalize negative feelings. Your friends and your parents don’t understand that acne makes you feel dirty. It makes you feel greasy. It seems like your problems are the result of your skin problems.

I know that some teens really have it rough. They get picked on and ridiculed by everyone else. I remember this too and I once felt ugly and alone because of acne.

Acne is serious for teens exactly because it makes people angry, frustrated and depressed. If you’re a teen, you know exactly what I’m taking about. If you’re not, just remember that poor skin gives you anxiety. It fills you with shame.

Finally, consider that really bad acne can cause scars. These scars are often permanent and can cause long term self-esteem issues. So, prevention is really important. And obviously, it is easier to prevent acne than it is to deal with scars after the fact.

Why is It Important to Take Care of Acne?

Acne really isn’t your fault. You don’t deserve it and you can get rid of it. You can prevent it. That’s the good news.

It is important to prevent acne for a few reasons. Like it or not, better skin will help you interact with other people. This is because you feel better about yourself. So, it has less to do with how you look and more about how you feel. That’s definitely the key.

When you feel better about yourself you will have better social relationships. You’ll have an easier time attracting other people. Also, importantly, you’ll be healthy in other areas of your life. There is a spillover effect.

Vibrant skin with a healthy glow will make you feel more sexy, plain and simple. You also do not have to worry about spending money with treatments month after month if your skin is healthy.

Fortunately, there are healthy and low cost ways to prevent acne. For teenagers, this is obviously important. Freedom from the pain and sores is worth almost any price, but having some extra money is certainly nice as well.

John S. Rhodes is an accomplished writer and researcher on many health topics. See his secret update on acne prevention and cures: http://uxreports.com/a2/acne.html

Life With Acne

Acne is a skin disease that affects more than 17 million individuals in the United States alone. Three out of four teenagers suffer from some form of acne. The possibility of severe psychiatric and psychological complications affects many individuals suffering from acne, while affecting a person’s quality of life in a negative manner. Psychiatric and psychological complications are not a serious problem for many of the individuals suffering from acne, but there are enough individuals with these conditions to be alert to the symptoms. This is not a disease that limits itself to the skin only.

If you are suffering from severe acne, be alert to the following symptoms. Seek medical help if you recognize any of these symptoms in your life.

Depression

Depression caused by acne affects how you feel, think, and act. There are many symptoms of depression with the most common being:

> A change in appetite that results in weight loss

> Sleeping a lot or not sleeping at all

> Tired all of the time

> Irritable

> Having a feeling of worthlessness

> Difficulty concentrating or making decisions

> Thoughts of suicide

You may become depressed when your acne is severe, causing scars and not responding to treatment. You should share with your doctor how your acne has affected you emotionally.

Social Phobia

Acne may cause you to become so excessively self-conscious that you fear being around other people. The symptoms of social phobia are an overwhelming anxiety of fear that others are looking at you and judging you. Embarrassed or humiliated by your looks will interfere with everyday activities. Dreading and worrying about upcoming events in your life will take a toll on your health.

Social Phobia is not something that is easily controlled by you. Please share with your doctor if you have any of these symptoms.

Anxiety Disorders

Severe acne can lead to stress, which in turn leads to anxiety disorders. As with social phobia, anxiety disorders have many of the same symptoms. The important factor to remember is that it is treatable and if not treated can lead to poor performance in school, poor social skills, and you are more vulnerable to substance abuse.

As a teenager, social anxiety disorder resembles severe shyness and may not be recognized as a problem. The symptoms of social anxiety are an intense fear of social interactions, avoiding friends and conversations, looking down while speaking to someone, isolating yourself from others, excessively concerned with what others think about you.

Impaired self-image and self-esteem

Are you constantly putting yourself down? Society today is all about the perfect look. The problem with this view is that no one has the perfect look. As a teenager your body is changing rapidly with many hormonal changes affecting your entire body. Acne is a result of some of those changes. You may not be responding to treatment and have allowed yourself to think less of yourself than you should. There are so many internal and external factors in developing a healthy self-esteem.

You are in control of your self-esteem. There are many good things about yourself and you need to concentrate on those attributes instead of those areas that you are not happy with. You may need to talk with your doctor if you feel that you are unable to develop a healthy self-esteem on your own.

Social Dysfunction

Social dysfunction is the umbrella of all of the above conditions. If you are suffering from severe acne and find yourself retreating from others and suffering from the symptoms of depression, it is important that you consult your doctor immediately. Acne is not always a skin disease; it can turn into a psychiatric and psychological disease. Stop it before your quality of life is affected.

Life with acne is not always an easy life. If you are not careful it may reduce your quality of life. When your acne becomes more than you can handle emotionally, your quality of life deteriorates. Acne controls you when it all you think about.

Gaining control may not be easy for you. Seek help when your emotional life is in turmoil. If you are a teenager, your parents may not understand how you feel and may not sympathize with you. If you are an adult suffering with adult acne, you are at greater risk of suffering from these symptoms.

Your first step toward a better life with acne is getting professional help when you are suffering from any of the symptoms in this article.

Visit www.acnescram.com for the latest information and products for acne skin care.

Salvestrols, Skin Problems & Cancer

If you look at my web sites you'll know I'm keen on salvestrols, so I was interested to get this email:

Hello, I have just read your article on the impact that salvestrols have on skin tumours. My Mother was diagnosed with ovarian cancer two years ago, and is still receiving treatment for it. A friend of mine told me about someone she knew who had managed to rid herself of stage 4 cervical cancer by having conventional treatment and by taking 12 fruitforce tablets a day, so I immediately got my Mum to start taking them on a daily basis.
As well as having ovarian cancer my Mum had a basal cell carcinoma on her back which had been there for approx 5 years but she had never got round to doing anything about it. It would weep and bleed and would often be quite painful, however since taking fruitforce it has dried up and completely healed over. We were astounded!
We are still waiting to hear how my mum's ovarian cancer is doing but we are all very hopeful that the fruitforce tablets are working miracles!
Many Thanks
Michelle Thomas

Gadget - CSS untuk PDA Dokter

Aplikasi PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) yang paling sering digunakan dalam dunia medis adalah referensi medis.
Berbagai referensi medis tersedia gratis dan berbayar di Internet. Sebagian besar membutuhkan program pembaca seperti iSilo, MobiPocket, dan eReader (baca tulisan sebelumnya tentang Pengembangan Aplikasi Medis PDA). Beberapa program pembaca tersebut akan berfungsi penuh (terutama hyperlinks) jika kita menggunakan versi komersilnya, walaupun program konversinya tersedia gratis (tersedia versi Windows).

Tawaran DVD eText dan eBook pernah penulis terima via mail. Tetapi setelah penulis konfirmasi, penawar menyatakan secara jujur bahwa DVD tersebut ilegal alias bajakan, sehingga akan kesulitan untuk diperbanyak dan diperluas penggunaannya secara legal (pesan moralnya: mari belajar untuk tidak membajak, karena dibajak itu sungguh tidak enak, kecuali anda dan karya anda siap untuk dibajak...yang berpendidikan tinggi saja membajak..apalagi kami yang...ah sudahlah..kita memang bangsa pembajak :D ). Updated Dec 2, 2006: silakan mengikuti kisah-kisah dari I Made Wiryana.

Kini kita coba membuat referensi medis berbasis web di PDA dari sisi pengguna (dokter). Aplikasi ini mudah dikustomisasi, murah, legal, dapat pula dikembangkan untuk digunakan di sisi server atau digunakan secara intranet.

Yang kita butuhkan cukup sedikit pengetahuan HTML/XHTML (eXtended/HyperText Markup Language) dan CSS (Cascading StyleSheet), serta tentu saja sebuah PDA. Dari sepuluh rekan sejawat yang penulis ketahui menggunakan PDA di praktiknya, tujuh (7) orang menggunakan Pocket PC (PPC), sisanya Palm. Jadi akan kita fokuskan ke PPC dan Pocket Internet Explorer (Pocket IE). Pada jenis perangkat lainnya, prinsipnya hampir sama.

Penulis lebih senang menulis kode HTML/XHTML dan CSS di desktop cukup dengan notepad (Windows) atau gedit (Ubuntu Linux). Tampilannya diuji dengan browser Firefox+Web Developer extension dan Opera (Windows dan Ubuntu Linux), coba juga fasilitas small screen rendering (SSR). Jika ingin langsung melakukan editing HTML/XHTML di PDA, dapat menggunakan PocketHelp 1.2 (PPC; gratis), tampilannya diuji dengan Pocket Internet Explorer (Pocket IE) bawaan PPC (Windows Mobile 2003).

Karakteristik web PDA

Beberapa karakteristik PDA yang sebaiknya diperhatikan:

• layarnya lebih kecil dibanding desktop
• memori terbatas
• penggunaan stylus
• biaya akses (online) mahal (dihitung per kilobyte data yang diunduh/download) jika pengguna menggunakan GPRS
• huruf standar jenis sans-serif (tahoma, courier new, bookdings, dan sejenisnya)
• gambar berukuran terlalu besar kadang tidak dapat tampil

Jadi, tampilan web (offline) yang kita butuhkan nanti:

• sederhana
• teks tampil dominan
• model satu kolom
• minimalisasi gambar (ukuran gambar dapat mengecil sesuai ukuran layar)
• minimalisasi plugin/flash
• lebar maksimum/optimal yang dianjurkan adalah 220 px (pixels/piksel)
• tinggi 245 px jika ingin menghindari scrolling vertikal
• kontras yang mudah dibaca dan tidak melelahkan mata
• menghindari penggunaan frame
• menghindari penggunaan JavaScript

Sangat dianjurkan menggunakan standar HTML/XHTML dan CSS mobile untuk efisiensi.

Beberapa karakter CSS yang berfungsi baik pada Pocket IE:

• p
• strong, bold
• heading
• ul, ol
• gunakan alt="...teks..." untuk keterangan gambar
• mendukung format gambar JPEG, GIF, PNG, dan BMP
• bgsound dengan wav, satu kali putaran/tidak berulang
• dianjurkan menggunakan CSS outline (link to external files) dibanding CSS inline (embedding) untuk multi halaman

Sebagai tambahan, dapat mengunduh The Flash MX Content Development Kit secara gratis dan dilengkapi dengan Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Windows CE Edition yang juga tersedia gratis.

Tidak memiliki PPC? Tidak masalah. Hasil pengembangan mobile web dapat diuji menggunakan emulator dengan mengunduh Microsoft Pocket PC 2003 SDK.

Kini kita buat folder baru dengan nama PDA_dr. Klik kanan berkas pdadokter.css ini dan save link as/save target as pdadokter.css, simpan di folder PDA_dr.

Berikutnya unduh berkas PDA_Dokter.html ini. Simpan dalam folder yang sama.

Folder PDA_dr dikompresi dengan 7Zip (Windows, Linux; gratis, open source), WinZip, atau WinRAR. Berkas zip dipindahkan ke PDA melalui kopi ke kartu memori (via card reader), infra merah, atau Bluetooth. Lakukan ekstraksi berkas zip tadi. Buka berkas PDA_Dokter.html tadi untuk melihat hasilnya di PDA. Silakan unduh berkas PDA_dr.zip berserta contoh gambarnya. Ekstraksi berkas zip tadi ke suatu direktori atau folder dan nikmati hasilnya (Penulis menggunakan Total Commander 2.0 versi PPC dan Pocket RAR 3.60 versi PPC). Dapat juga dibuat shortcut-nya dengan bantuan Total Commander.

Lihat hasilnya di PDA_Dokter ini.

Cukup sederhana bukan? Silakan dikembangkan, selamat mencoba, dan semoga bermanfaat.

Beauty and Enlightenment: Laser Light Treatment of Acne

Acne is not a particularly attractive trait of anyone, whether adult or adolescent. Acne, in fact, contributes to lowering one's sense of self, and self-esteem. As acne untreated can scar one's skin, the effects brought on by acne can scar one emotionally for life.

Acne, however, is curable. Called by its formal name Acne vulgaris, acne is characterized by inflammation of the skin in the form of pus-filled bumps. These bumps are actually hair follicles clogged with oil and dead skin cells.

Acne is caused by a variety of problems. It can be due to a genetic predisposition to acne, a theory supported by the prevalence of acne in Western societies. Acne is also caused by fluctuations in hormonal levels, especially of the male hormone testosterone. Acne, scientists surmise, is the body's reaction to these hormonal changes.

Another cause of acne is stress, which on its own results in hormonal fluctuations due to overworking of the adrenal glands. Other causes include medications containing halogens, androgens, barbiturates, and iodides; exposure to chlorinated compounds such as chlorinated dioxins; and abnormalities in follicle physiology, such as channels that are too narrow, pores that are too wide and deep, among others.

Adult acne is common as well, and may be due to conditions such as ovarian syndromes, pregnancy, or a rare syndrome such as Cushing's.

Although highly unsightly and inconvenient, acne is not without its cures. Several topical ointments, such as those containing retinoic acid and benzoyl peroxide, have been shown to cure acne. These medications, however, do not provide immediate results, and are thus often expensive.

Previous studies on acne have shown that sunlight can improve acne problems, but sunlight actually worsens acne in the long term due to UV damage to the skin. Nevertheless, treatment of acne by other wavelengths of light is now becoming common, as it is a painless, non-invasive, and has been shown to decrease the incidence of acne. One type, light wave therapy, passes a blue light beam of high intensity over the skin. Originally used for cancer therapies, this treatment has shown to be effective in acne removal.

The light of blue light therapy is generated by fluorescent bulbs, lasers, or dichroic bulbs. When applied daily, blue light can reduce acne considerably. This is due to the effect the light has on Propionibacterium acnes, the bacteria responsible for causing acne.

According to studies, the bacterium produces a set of molecules called porphyrins, which generate harmful molecules called free radicals when porphyrins are exposed to blue light. As these free radicals accumulate, bacteria are killed, and acne is reduced until it disappears.

Blue light treatment has been shown to be safe, and even more effective than benzoyl peroxide, but over a shorter period. Blue light treatment, however, is considered expensive, but is actually cheaper than using benzoyl peroxide over a period of years.

Laser surgery, on the other hand, makes use of a high intensity laser beam passed over the skin to treat acne. This kind of treatment has actually been used to treat acne scars, but is now commonly used to prevent acne.

Laser therapy works by one of the following methods:

• Lasers degrade, or burn away the follicle sac, the opening in the follicle from which hair grows.
• Laser light is strong enough to damage, or completely remove oil-producing sebaceous glands.
• Like blue light treatment, lasers lead to the formation of free oxygen radicals in acne bacteria, which can kill them.

Laser surgery, however, is reputed to have disadvantages, such as damage to skin due to exposure to light. If used improperly, light and laser treatments can dry out skin, or induce the formation of spots.

If you are interested in laser surgery, consult with your dermatologist, and know the advantages and disadvantages of laser surgery. If used well, laser surgery can help you have cleaner, clearer skin free from acne.

About the Author: Elizabeth Radisson is a frequent author on the subjects of acne, and acne treatment products. For more information on ways to treat acne, head to http://www.ForYourPores.com

Blog - Desain Blog Kesehatan

Blog ini pada awalnya penulis buat untuk pembelajaran dan dokumentasi saja. Versi 'gratisan' ini memang memiliki keterbatasan dibanding piranti lunak blog lain atau dibanding dengan hosting sendiri. Blog ini pun menurut desain/model/rancangan situs/blog kesehatan masih banyak kekurangannya, maklum masih belajar.

'Secara' bukan seorang desainer web, penulis juga ingin berbagi mengenai tampilan dan kemudahan aksesibilitas suatu blog menurut bahasa awam penulis (sudut pandang penulis sebagai pengguna). Sedikit banyak pendapat penulis mengacu pada HONcode, W3C, webcredible.co.uk, Jakob Nielsen, Alistapart.com, Design World Master Web Indonesia, dan pengalaman pribadi.

Desain memang merupakan suatu karya seni yang penuh nilai rasa. Desain blog pun dapat mencerminkan personalitas pemiliknya, misalnya melalui nama blog, pemilihan warna, topik tulisan, koleksi taut, dan gambar latar. Desain blog yang penulis maksud disini mencakup struktur umum blog, jenis dan ukuran huruf, warna, serta aksesorisnya.

Sah saja jika blog dibuat dengan desain tertentu dan hanya untuk catatan harian pribadi atau bahkan bukan untuk konsumsi publik. Berbeda halnya dengan blog yang ditulis dengan semangat berbagi untuk konsumsi publik. Berarti ada 'aturan-aturan' umum yang sebaiknya diperhatikan dalam membuat desain blog, terlebih blog kesehatan. Lepas dari seni desain blog, ada faktor aksesibilitas yang sebaiknya juga diperhatikan.

Judul blog
Judul blog sebaiknya sama dengan alamat blog atau pemiliknya untuk memudahkan mengingat dan pencarian. Misalnya saat mengetik nama pemilik/perusahaan, nama blog, atau topik kesehatan tertentu di kolom mesin pencari Google, menghasilkan penemuan blog yang dimaksud. Atau saat mengetik hal yang sama di kolom alamat Firefox akan menemukan orang/perusahaan/topik kesehatan/blog dimaksud (pakai Firefox!).

Loading time
Waktu tampilnya keseluruhan wujud blog memang dapat dipengaruhi oleh jenis koneksi (misalnya dial-up, broadband), jam akses, kemampuan browser, kecepatan komputer, banyaknya grafis blog, banyaknya JavaScript yang harus dibaca (beberapa pengguna bahkan men-disable JavaScript dengan alasan keamanan dan kecepatan...paranoid?), dan sebagainya. Jadi gunakan gambar dan JavaScript secara bijak (kecuali server memungkinkan cepatnya loading) agar pengunjung tidak lama menunggu tampilnya keseluruhan blog.
Updated Dec 18, 2006: pakai CSS (Cascading Style Sheet) ! Dapat juga ditentukan bagian mana yang ingin ditampilkan lebih dulu saat loading, bagian isi/artikel atau menu samping.

Informasi pemilik/penulis
Dalam bidang kesehatan, identitas penulis sangat penting untuk memperoleh kepercayaan pengunjung akan informasi kesehatan yang diberikan. Kalau bisa, informasi ini terpampang jelas (foto, alamat kontak/mail, biografi, CV) tanpa perlu klik 'About', 'About us', 'Tentang Kami', dan sejenisnya.

Disclaimer
Adanya pernyataan tentang informasi kesehatan yang ditulis merupakan pendukung yang tidak menggantikan hubungan dokter-pasien, kecuali penulis blog adalah tenaga profesional kesehatan.

Menu navigasi
Pengunjung blog yang spesifik umumnya mencari informasi tertentu dari suatu blog dan tidak ingin atau tidak memiliki waktu untuk mengeksplorasi isi blog yang lain. Mereka akan lebih suka menggunakan fasilitas pencarian, kategori, arsip tulisan, topik terhangat, dan sejenisnya.
Updated Dec 18, 2006: letak menu dapat di atas, bawah, atau lebih sering di tepi kanan dan/atau kiri blog. Menu di kiri blog (sudut pandang pengguna), mungkin karena kebiasaan menu Windows, GNU/Linux, Mac ada di sebelah kiri. Menu di kanan blog, sepertinya karena tombol scrolling ada di sisi kanan jendela.

Kustomisasi pengguna
Pengunjung mungkin lebih senang tampilan jendela yang tidak maximize, mungkin juga menggunakan layar monitor jenis lebar (wide screen), atau ingin ukuran tulisan yang diperbesar. Desain yang liquid tentu akan sangat membantu agar blog tetap tampil maksimal. Pengguna memilih sendiri skin/theme? Boleh juga.

Sumber tulisan
Menyatakan dengan jelas sumber tulisan. Sertakan taut yang benar dan valid.

Membalas komentar
Sempatkan membalas komentar tiap pengunjung blog. Sisipkan taut yang jelas untuk mempertegas jawaban jika pengunjung ingin eksplorasi lebih lanjut.

Updated Dec 5, 2006:
Moderasi komentar
Komentar pengunjung sebenarnya wujud interaktivitas blog yang dapat membedakan dengan web biasa. Sah saja jika comment moderation diaktifkan untuk menjaga 'kebersihan dan keamanan' kolom komentar blog anda. Tetapi dengan adanya huruf/kode rahasia yang harus ditulis manual (tidak [belum?] mampu diakali 'robot' untuk spam), sepertinya akan lebih enak jika komentar yang pengunjung tulis dapat langsung dibaca tanpa menunggu persetujuan pemilik blognya.

Anonimitas
Jika pendapat/komentarnya memang bermanfaat atau pada topik-topik pribadi seperti konsultasi seks, anonimitas sepertinya tidak masalah.

Kerahasiaan
Email yang dituliskan pada kolom komentar hendaknya memang tidak untuk ditampilkan/disebarluaskan.

Fasilitas feed dan langganan
Sediakan fasilitas feed dan langganan/notifikasi (via mail) agar pengunjung dapat mengikuti tulisan-tulisan selanjutnya.

Fasilitas shoutbox
Ini dapat membantu interaksi bagi pengunjung yang ingin memberi pesan singkat di blog.

Fasilitas social bookmarking
Untuk memudahkan tulisan/topik tertentu ditemukan melalui pencarian bookmark/tag.

Warna desain
Hati-hati penggunaan warna merah dan hijau bersamaan untuk menghindari kesalahan karena buta warna merah dan hijau, terutama dalam pengisian formulir yang harus diisi/tidak boleh dikosongkan. Baiknya berikan keterangan dengan teks juga (bahwa kolom harus diisi/tidak boleh dikosongkan).

Kecepatan baca
Tulisan tepi kiri lebih mudah dibaca. Atur tulisan menjadi paragraf yang tidak monoton dan membosankan tapi tetap dalam satu pokok pikiran yang mengerucut. Beri subjudul dan list style agar lebih jelas.

Updated Dec 3, 2006:
Read more
Dengan model ini, tulisan blog jadi terlihat lebih rapi, cukup menampilkan judul, sekilas isi tulisan, yang berminat membaca tulisan selengkapnya tinggal klik Read more.... Membutuhkan klik tambahan memang. Halaman utama pun mungkin dapat di-loading lebih cepat tanpa harus menampilkan teks penuh suatu tulisan/artikel. Tanpa fasilitas ini, dapat disiasati dengan membuat judul yang menarik dan daftar tulisan sebelumnya di menu samping.

Jenis huruf
Jenis huruf yang aman dan mudah dibaca diantaranya sans-serif yang dikenal sebagai Arial di Windows atau Helvetica di Linux dan Mac. Jenis lainnya Verdana dan Georgia. Serif atau dikenal sebagai Times New Roman (Windows) atau Times (Mac) juga sering digunakan, tetapi kurang jelas terbaca pada ukuran kurang dari 12 point.

Taut
Taut (links) sebaiknya dibedakan dengan teks biasa dan diberi keterangan sejelasnya daripada sekedar menyebutkan ...disini dan disini. Taut yang sudah dikunjungi juga ada baiknya dibedakan dengan warna tertentu (beberapa browser memiliki aturan tersendiri).

Cetak
Jika tulisan banyak memuat tentang tutorial/artikel yang layak untuk disimpan dan dicetak, sediakan pula versi cetak atau pdf untuk diunduh.

Judul dan tulisan
Sebaiknya judul dan tulisan mengandung unsur SEO (search engine optimization) sehingga mudah ditemukan oleh mesin pencari dan pengguna.

Iklan
Hindari penggunaan iklan yang mengganggu (berkedip-kedip, gambar yang besar dan menyolok, dan sejenisnya). Bedakan iklan dengan artikel informasi kesehatan yang ditulis. Nyatakan dengan jelas jika memang ada dukungan sponsor.

Update teratur
Sampaikan pemberitahuan bahwa blog akan di-update tiap hari, mingguan, atau bulanan. Perubahan atau tambahan tulisan pada judul tulisan terdahulu dicantumkan dengan jelas.

Desain yg umum
Desain yang umum seperti model 2 kolom dan navigasi di kolom kanan atau kiri dapat membuat pengguna lebih nyaman.

Open in external window dan back button
Taut yang diatur agar terbuka pada jendela baru memang dapat mengganggu fungsi back button dan berkesan 'mengusir' pengguna. Tetapi browser masa kini telah menyediakan tab sehingga halaman utama tetap dapat diakses dengan mudah sambil membuka halaman lain pada tab baru.

Text-based pengganti gambar
Perhatikan pengguna browser yang berbasis teks seperti Lynx. Atau pengguna yang men-disable tampilnya gambar demi mempercepat loading time. Mesin pencari pun hanya akan membaca teks, bukan gambar.

Standar W3C
Menerapkan validitas menurut W3C tidak menjamin 'amannya' tampilan blog pada semua browser, karena beberapa browser belum menerapkan seluruh standar W3C. Paling tidak, uji tampilan blog menggunakan Firefox (+ Web Developer extension), Opera, dan Internet Explorer.

Pengguna cacat fisik
Telah dikembangkan podcasting.

Updated Dec 18, 2006:
Bahasa
Bahasa yang digunakan pun sebaiknya disesuaikan dengan target pembaca. Untuk memudahkan diseminasi informasi di dalam negeri, gunakan Bahasa Indonesia. Untuk latihan, tulisan yang ingin 'menyentuh' dunia luas, promosi usaha, maka dapat digunakan Bahasa Inggris (internasional). Untuk beberapa istilah sakit, dapat digunakan bahasa daerah yang sesuai.


Dari semuanya, yang penting adalah konten/isi yang menarik dan bermanfaat.
Mari belajar dan saling berbagi. Ngeblog ya..ngeblog aja..