Sports concussions researchers turn to video games for help

One of the great unknowns in treating athletes who have suffered a concussion is determining when they are ready to resume playing their sport. The University of Maryland has turned to a popular video game for help. Clinicians and trainers have found that an athlete’s balance – in addition to his or her ability to think and reason – is an important yardstick for assessing recovery from a concussion, though the best method for doing so remains up for debate. At Maryland and a handful of other colleges, athletic department trainers are using Nintendo’s Wii Fit, as an objective and practical – if unproven – method of balance assessment. For the past year…

State facilities for the disabled called antiquated, but some rely on them

CHESAPEAKE, VA. — On a barren tract that backs up to Interstate 64, past a street sign that says “Dead End,” sits the entrance to a home that no parent would eagerly choose for a son or daughter. This Story ‘We should close them all’ Expansion of Virginia Training Center for people with developmental disabilities sparks debate Virginia Training Centers The Southeastern Virginia Training Center houses some of the state’s most profoundly disabled people, those who for decades had no option but to live in institutions. Across …

Study: Many doctors don’t blow whistle on colleagues

CHICAGO (AP) — Your doctor could be drunk, addicted to drugs or outright incompetent, but other physicians may not blow the whistle. A new survey finds that many American physicians fail to report troubled colleagues to authorities, believing that someone else will take care of it, that nothing will happen if they act or that they could be targeted for retribution. A surprising 17% of the doctors surveyed had direct, personal knowledge of an impaired or incompetent physician in their workplaces, said the study’s lead author, Catherine DesRoches of Harvard Medical School. BEDSIDE MANNER: Many docs insensitive when delivering cancer diagnosis DOCTORS: Tacking on fees for patients One-third of those doctors had not reported …

How runners can avoid or, if necessary, treat blisters

This time of year, the heat in Washington is blistering. Literally. Because high temperatures and oppressive humidity make you sweat so much more, your feet are likely to get wet when you’re walking, jogging or hiking. That moisture isn’t just uncomfortable; it’s also the source of friction. “That’s why it’s so hard to take off wet clothes,” explains Mary Mundrane-Zweiacher, an athletic trainer from Dover, Del. There’s the rub that can result in blisters. According to an article in the June issue of Podiatry Today, the uncomfortable bumps are the most common sports-related foot ailment. They usually fall in the boo-boo …

Blisters: How runners can avoid or, if necessary, treat blisters

This time of year, the heat in Washington is blistering. Literally. Because high temperatures and oppressive humidity make you sweat so much more, your feet are likely to get wet when you’re walking, jogging or hiking. That moisture isn’t just uncomfortable; it’s also the source of friction. “That’s why it’s so hard to take off wet clothes,” explains Mary Mundrane-Zweiacher, an athletic trainer from Dover, Del. There’s the rub that can result in blisters. According to an article in the June issue of Podiatry Today, the uncomfortable bumps are …

Caregivers get training that simulates sensory and memory losses of dementia

Put on a necktie. Buckle a belt. Write the names of my family members. And . . . what? I had five things to do in five minutes, but I couldn’t seem to remember what they were. This was largely because I couldn’t feel, see or move as I usually do. I’d been gloved, goggled, headphoned and otherwise handicapped in an attempt to make me feel like an elderly person whose body and mind have begun to fail. When I couldn’t remember my tasks, I was nervous and embarrassed. I looked around, second-guessed myself. Seeing a pile of laundry, I started folding — but was that one of my tasks? Is this what it feels like to have dementia? “That was frustrating,” said …

New health-care law might make your doctor more informed, efficient, responsive

In many respects, American doctors today labor much the way their counterparts did 50 years ago. This Story How the new health-care law might make your doctor better informed, more efficient, more responsive and, maybe, happier What will the changes mean for you? Ask Post reporters. Most are in practices with five or fewer other physicians. They keep their records on paper in longhand. When they need to consult a colleague, they reach for the telephone. They bill for each visit. They have …

Jamie Oliver improves Huntington, W.Va.’s eating habits

It’s happy-ending time for Huntington, W.Va.: Six-year-olds can now distinguish between tomatoes and potatoes. Cooks are tossing apple-cucumber salads with honey dressing for the lunch line. College students and parents are learning to make omelets and soups in free cooking classes. And Jamie Oliver, the crusading British chef who arrived last fall to help change habits in “the unhealthiest town in America,” has apparently won the hearts, minds — and stomachs — of the locals. This Story After chef’s star power fades from view, did folks change how they eat? Read more of Jane Black’s interview with Jamie Oliver With the finale of his …

Finding a Good Personal Trainer

Most people should hire a Personal Trainer at some point during their fitness quest. A good trainer will help motivate and will educate the individual on the proper form and the proper use of various exercises. The trainer will help you make good decisions and help you make progress that you could not make on your own. The trick is to hire a Personal Trainer that “fits” you and that knows how to motivate and how to teach. The easiest way to find qualified trainers is to ask around the gyms and places and get recommendations from your friends and other exercisers. Most trainers will give you one free consult and some will even give a free workout so that you can see how…

The Marine Workout – How to Start Out

The United States Marine Corp. boot camp is world renowned for being one of the highest demanding physical undertakings. This is something you want to ideally prepare for well in advance. You will want to build towards the Marine Workout. If you are out of shape, or perhaps overweight, you want to start out gradually and start easy. Even if you are reasonably fit, if you are not used to a hard training routine, being gradual is still key. Yes, in the Marines you will be pushed to breaking point and beyond. However, to build core fitness the more gradual you address your training routine, the better. Then you work up to a full Marine workout routine. Two major areas you want …

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