Skip to main content

ATOPY...


The predisposition towards the development of allergic reactions when in contact with an antigen. Therefore, an atopic person is hyperallergic. Atopic reactions include: atopic dermatitis (ezcema), hay fever (allergic rhinitis), and allergic-induced asthma. These three form a triad called the allergic triad. It definitely is related to the genes, as people have different genetic predisposition to the “allergic triad”.
We, as humans, are predisposed to overlooking several minute pieces of information- for me, a typical example is overlooking the meaning of the word atopy, which until now, I did not actively know. Thus, on seeing the word in a test I had today, I was totally blank as to the characteristics of atopic conditions, and most likely, got the answers wrong.
Most atopic people do not know they react to certain allergens till they come in contact with them, but in families where such reactions are common, they could be expected and the probability of taking care of them early is quite high.

Truth is, we could also learn from the genetic predispositions to these hypersensitivities and utilize them by focusing on minute pieces of information…because those pieces of information just might save a life.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

WANNABE INTERN

Week 2 Message to the Pre-Intern: don’t lose hope! Week 2, for me, was 2 months post-induction. This was when the wait began to sink in. You mean I’ve been home for two whole months? By now, I was literally chewing on my fingernails. Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t scared of getting a space, but I certainly wasn’t confident about any place anymore. That is when I began to write this book. Today is the 12th of September and I sit at the dining table in my parents’ house, typing at 11:27pm (because well, I have an editing job to finish up, but mostly because I don’t have to go anywhere tomorrow morning). If I don’t want to, I don’t even have to take a bath tomorrow morning because well, I can stay indoors all day! (I most likely will stay indoors, except for those few minutes when I step out to buy hot akara for my akamu). I am spent. You know, I have applied to a couple of places now. Let me start with the first: LS Health Service Commission At the State Health servic
1 comment
Read more

CLINICALLY: CLERKING AND CLECKING

A typical medical practitioner knows all about this process of clerking, this is basically the first thing he does when attending to a patient i.e. he clerks. Clinically, clerking involves: 1.       History Taking- involves taking demographic data, noting the main presenting problems, past medical history, history of main presenting complaint, family history, occupational history, drug history, alcohol history e.t.c. Basically, it helps in determination of symptoms. 2.       Physical Examination- is useful in the elicitation of signs of the disease in question. 3.       Provisional and differential diagnosis: the clinical history and physical examination conducted will help the clinician arrive at provisional diagnosis, from which he arrives at a differential diagnosis. 4.       Management Plan- involves investigative procedures (e.g. haematological investigations) as well as a treatment plan for the diagnosed disease. How about clecking? Clecking is not a word that’s us
Post a Comment
Read more
ALL THESE ENDLESS STUDYING !… On exams and fear All these comparing and measuring ourselves by ourselves! Its so wrong and self-limiting. All these numerous, bulky, endless exams in medical school can get even the strongest of us  jittery! However, the most successful person isn’t the one whose prime goal is a 100% on the scoresheet but those with the excellent mentality that to be a good doctor, you have to have the requisite knowledge. Just to remind us of our prime focus,  which is true excellence that comes, not from passing an exam from excelling superbly at what you do:  “Medicine is more than the application of scientific facts to treat people. If your highest goal is to simply pass the exams, you may still succeed but the journey will be fraught with much anguish. However, if you remember that someday, you can relieve the suffering of one individual or save just a person’s life from what you’d learn each day as you study, all your efforts will take a new meaning and purp
2 comments
Read more