EWIMA Immediate Medical Care Clinic

EWIMA's Immediate Medical Care Clinic in Wheeling, Illinois can see you now without an appointment. We welcome walk-in patients. We specialize in the treatment of minor illnesses and injuries for adult patients. Patients are seen by our experienced medical staff on a walk-in basis, and are often in and out the door within an hour!

• A fraction of the cost and wait time of the ER!
• Board Certified Physicians
• On-site X-Ray and Lab

EWIMA Immediate Medical Care is a great alternative for adults who do not have a life-threatening condition and can not get a same-day appointment with their doctor, do not have a primary care doctor or are visiting from out of town.

You never need an appointment to be seen at EWIMA Immediate Medical Care and we accept most insurance plans.

Whooping cough outbreak in Lake County

Lake County health officials are alerting the public to "a dramatic increase" in the number of pertussis cases this year, particularly among school-aged children.

As of Nov. 20, health officials reported 82 confirmed or probable cases of pertussis so far this year, with the majority of cases occurring in children between 5 and 11 years old.
"I'd say it's a dramatic increase," said Victor Plotkin, an epidemiologist for the Lake County Health Department.

Pertussis is often known as "whooping cough" because the symptoms include a cough with a high-pitched whooping sound. Symptoms are similar to those of a common cold accompanied by coughing. Symptoms usually appear within five to 10 days of exposure but can last as long as 21 days.

Plotkin said the health department started to see an increase in pertussis cases in late spring with 11 cases in May. The number of cases reached a high of 18 cases in July, before leveling off and then spiking again this fall.

There were 10 reported pertussis cases in September, 14 in October, and 7 so far in November, he said.

"We had another wave of increase in October, especially at Townline (Elementary) School in Vernon Hills," said Plotkin. "But it's spread out throughout Lake County."
Townline Elementary School has posted a notice to parents about pertussis on the school's Web site.

"Cases of pertussis (also known as whooping cough), are cropping up around the area, including at Townline," the school's Web site states. "Parents are urged to be extra vigilant when students show symptoms, which are often similar to that of a common cold."

In addition to Vernon Hills, Plotkin said there have also been pertussis cases include Grayslake, Round Lake, Highland Park, Mundelein, Libertyville, Antioch, Waukegan, Beach Park and other areas.

"Basically, it's everywhere," he said.

The Illinois Department of Public Health reports that Lake County and Chicago are seeing an increased number of pertussis cases this year, while suburban Cook, McHenry, Stephenson, Whiteside and Winnebago counties are reporting clusters of pertussis cases in school-aged children.

Plotkin said the 82 cases in Lake County so far this year is well above normal. In 2007, there were 20 cases of pertussis and there were 68 in 2006.

Plotkin said the county did see very high numbers of cases during a nationwide outbreak of pertussis in 2004 and 2005. In 2004, there were 152 cases of pertussis and 135 cases in 2005. However, before that, pertussis cases in the county had averaged about 8 to 10 a year for many years.

Plotkin said the 2004 and 2005 pertussis outbreak appears that it may have been attributed to waning immunity among older children and adults who had not received booster shots. He said the most recent outbreak is a bit more puzzling because many of the children who are becoming ill are younger children who were recently vaccinated.

"Unfortunately, during this outbreak, even people that have been recently vaccinated are becoming sick anyway," he said. "Their symptoms are milder, but they still can pass the bacteria along to others and make others sick."

Plotkin said there have been no deaths reported because of pertussis in the county this year. However, three babies were hospitalized over the summer.

Health officials urge anyone who has a cough lasting more than a week to consult their physicians, especially if the cough becomes worse at night and has a different sound than a typical respiratory cough. Pertussis can be treated with antibiotics, which will alleviate the symptoms and help prevent its spread to others.

"People need to be especially aware because of the upcoming holidays," he said. "If they are sick or have suspicious symptoms, they should stay home."

Persons who are interested in pertussis vaccinations should call Healthy Trust Immediate Medical Care at (847) 243-0333.

Healthy Trust Can Diagnose Deep Vein Thrombosis

Far too many Americans are dying of dangerous blood clots that can masquerade as simple leg pain, says a major new government effort to get both patients and their doctors to recognize the emergency in time.

"It's a silent killer. It's hard to diagnose," said acting Surgeon General Dr. Steven Galson, who announced the new campaign Monday. "I don't think most people understand that this is a serious medical problem or what can be done to prevent it."

At issue are clots with cumbersome names: A deep vein thrombosis, or DVT, forms in large veins, usually a leg or the groin. It can quickly kill if it moves up to the lungs, where it goes by the name pulmonary embolism, or PE.

These clots make headlines every few years when seemingly healthy people collapse after long airplane flights or being in similarly cramped quarters. Vice President Cheney suffered one after a long trip last year. NBC correspondent David Bloom died of one in 2003 after spending days inside a tank while covering the invasion of Iraq.

But that provides a skewed vision of the problem. While there aren't good statistics, the new surgeon general's campaign estimates that every year, between 350,000 and 600,000 Americans get one of these clots - and at least 100,000 of them die.

There are a host of risk factors and triggers: Recent surgery or a broken bone; a fall or car crash; pregnancy or taking birth control pills or menopause hormones; being immobile for long periods. The risk rises with age, especially over 65, and among people who smoke or are obese.

And some people have genetic conditions that cause no other symptoms but increase their risk, making it vital to tell your doctor if a relative has ever suffered a blood clot.

People with those factors should have "a very low threshold" for calling a doctor or even going to the emergency room if they have symptoms of a clot, said Galson, who issued a "call to action" for better education of both consumers and doctors, plus more research.

Symptoms include swelling; pain, especially in the calf; or a warm spot or red or discolored skin on the leg; shortness of breath or pain when breathing deeply.

But here's the rub: Doctors are ill-informed, too. For example, studies suggest a third of patients who need protective blood thinners when they enter the hospital for major surgery don't get them. And patients can even be turned away despite telltale symptoms, like happened to Le Keisha Ruffin just weeks after the birth of her daughter, Caitlyn.

Ruffin made repeated visits to doctors and emergency rooms for growing pain in her leg and groin in December 2003 and January 2004, but was told it must be her healing Caesarean section scar.

Finally one night, Ruffin's husband ran her a really hot bath for pain relief - only to have her climb out minutes later with her leg swollen three to four times its normal size, and then pass out.

"I like to call that my miracle bath," Ruffin said, because the sudden swelling proved the tip-off for doctors.

Pieces of a giant clot in her right leg had broken off and floated to her lung. The ER doctor "said if I hadn't made it in when I did, I may not have lived through the rest of the night," recalled Ruffin, now 32, who spent a month in the hospital and required extensive physical therapy to walk normally again.

These clots "tend to fall through the cracks" because they cross so many areas of medicine, said Dr. Samuel Goldhaber, chairman of the Venous Disease Coalition and a cardiologist at Boston's Brigham & Women's Hospital.

With the surgeon general's campaign, "DVT after all these years will finally get the national spotlight like cigarette smoking did in the mid-60s," he said.

In addition to Galson's report:

-The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality is issuing a 12-page booklet to help consumers tell if they're at risk for DVTs and what to do - and a 60-page DVT treatment-and-prevention guide for doctors and hospitals.

-As a prevention incentive, starting Oct. 1 Medicare will withhold payment from hospitals when patients develop the clots after knee- or hip-replacement surgery.

Healthy Trust Immediate Medical Care can diagnose DVT right in the office using ultrasound in only a few minutes without an appointment.

Get ready for the 2008-2009 Flu Season

Healthy Trust Immediate Medical Care is your official Chicago North Shore Flu Clinic. We provide low cost flu vaccinations to help make sure you will stay healthy this winter.

If you do happen to get the flu this year we use the latest techniques to make sure that you will recover and get back to your daily routine quicker.

Influenza is a viral infection that sickens millions of people each year and can cause serious complications, especially in children and older adults. Fortunately, the flu vaccine available in the form of a flu shot or a nasal spray offers protection against the flu.

When is the flu vaccine available?

The flu vaccine is generally offered between September and mid-November, which is typically before the late-fall or early winter start to flu season.

What kind of protection does the flu vaccine offer?

A flu shot is between 70 percent and 90 percent effective in warding off illness, depending on the length and intensity of a given flu season and your overall health. In a few cases, people who get a flu shot may still get the flu, but they'll get a much less virulent form of the illness and, most important, they'll have a decreased risk of flu-related complications especially pneumonia, heart attack, stroke and death to which older adults are especially vulnerable.

A study published in 2006 showed that the nasal spray flu vaccine (FluMist) was only between 30 percent and 57 percent effective in preventing the flu in adults. However, another study in 2006 found that giving nasal spray vaccine to school-age children helped reduce the spread of flu in the community. And in 2007, researchers compared the effectiveness of FluMist with the flu shot in children ages 6 months to 5 years. The children treated with FluMist experienced about half as many cases of flu as did those who received the shot. However, FluMist increases the risk of wheezing in this age group especially in those who already have asthma or recurrent wheezing and in all children under age 2. In 2007, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) therefore approved FluMist for children older than 2 years who don't have asthma or recurrent wheezing. Consult with your doctor about which form of vaccination may be best for you or your child.

Why do I need to get vaccinated every year?

You need annual flu protection because the vaccine changes from year to year. The flu vaccine you got last year wasn't designed to fight the virus strains in circulation this 2008-2009 flu season.

Influenza viruses mutate so quickly that they can render one season's vaccine ineffective by the next season. A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advisory committee meets early in the year to estimate which strains of influenza virus will be most prevalent during the upcoming flu season, and manufacturers produce vaccine based on those recommendations.

Will this year's vaccine protect me against the flu?

The flu vaccine protects against the three main flu strains that research indicates will cause the most illness during the flu season. This years influenza vaccine contains three new influenza virus strains.

They are:

A/Brisbane/59/2007(H1N1)-like virus
A/Brisbane/10/2007 (H3N2)-like virus
B/Florida/4/2006-like virus.

The 2008-09 influenza vaccine can protect you from getting sick from these three viruses, or it can make your illness milder if you get a related but different strain of flu virus.

What are my options for the flu vaccine?

The flu vaccine comes in two forms:

A shot

A flu shot contains an inactivated vaccine made of killed virus. The shot is usually given in the arm. Because the viruses in the vaccine are killed (inactivated), the shot won't cause you to get the flu, but it will enable your body to develop the antibodies necessary to ward off influenza viruses. You may have a slight reaction to the shot, such as soreness at the injection site, mild muscle ache or fever. Reactions usually last one to two days and are more likely to occur in children who have never been exposed to the flu virus.

A nasal spray

Administered through your nose, the nasal spray vaccine (FluMist) consists of a low dose of live, but weakened, flu viruses. The vaccine doesn't cause the flu, but it does prompt an immune response in your nose and upper airways as well as throughout your body.

Who should get the flu vaccine?

Most people who want to reduce the risk of having influenza can get a flu shot. The CDC recommends the flu vaccine in particular if you:

Are age 6 months to 4 years

Are a child on long-term aspirin therapy

Are pregnant

Are 50 years old or older

Have a chronic medical condition such as asthma, diabetes or heart, kidney or lung disease

Have a weakened immune system such as from medications or HIV infection

Are a resident of a nursing home or other long term care facility

Are a child care worker or health care worker or live with or care for someone at high risk of complications from the flu

Who shouldn't get the flu shot?

Don't get a flu shot if you:

Have had an allergic reaction to the vaccine in the past.

Are allergic to chicken eggs.

Developed Guillain-Barre syndrome, a serious autoimmune disease affecting the nerves outside the brain and spinal cord, within six weeks of receiving the vaccine in the past. People who have experienced Guillain-Barre after the flu vaccine are at higher risk than are others of developing it again.

Have a fever. Wait until your symptoms improve before getting vaccinated.

Why do children need two doses of the flu vaccine?

Children younger than 9 years old require two doses of the flu vaccine if it's the first time they've been vaccinated for influenza. That's because children don't develop an adequate antibody level the first time they get the vaccine. Antibodies help fight the virus if it enters your child's system. If a flu vaccine shortage was to occur and your child couldn't get two doses of vaccine, one dose might still offer some protection.

I heard the flu shot isn't very effective for older adults. Is it worth getting vaccinated if you're over 65?

If you're over age 65, the vaccine doesn't offer as much protection as it would to someone younger because older adults produce fewer antibodies in response to the virus. Still, the vaccine offers more protection than does skipping the shot altogether. More important, the flu vaccine decreases the risk of flu-related complications especially pneumonia, heart attack, stroke and death to which older adults are especially vulnerable.

Will the flu shot protect against bird flu if there's an outbreak among humans?

An annual flu shot won't protect you specifically from bird flu, but it will reduce the risk of simultaneous infection with human and bird flu viruses. This is important because simultaneous infections are the main way that viruses swap genes and create new strains that potentially can cause flu pandemics.

Can I lower my risk of the flu without getting a flu shot?

With or without a flu shot, you can take steps to help protect yourself from the flu and other viruses.

Practice good hygiene Good hygiene remains your primary defense against contagious illnesses.

Wash your hands thoroughly and often with soap and water or an alcohol-based sanitizer containing at least 60 percent alcohol.

Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth whenever possible.

Avoid crowds when the flu is most prevalent in your area.

Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze.

If I've already had the flu, can I get it again?

Once you've had the flu, you develop antibodies to the viral strain that caused it. But those antibodies won't protect you from new or mutated strains of influenza or other viruses.

What should I do if I get the flu?

First of all, don't go to work or school you'll risk spreading this contagious disease to others.

To relieve your symptoms:

Drink plenty of fluids.

Avoid alcohol and tobacco.

Consider over-the-counter medicine such as acetaminophen (Tylenol, others) to ease the discomfort associated with muscle aches or fever, but don't give aspirin to children or teenagers because of the risk of the rare but serious disease, Reye's syndrome. And keep in mind that acetaminophen can cause severe liver damage if taken in excess.

Use antiviral medications if prescribed by your doctor, but no longer than recommended. Be sure to monitor yourself. If you start feeling worse, consult your doctor to make sure you're not developing a flu-related complication.

What kind of complications can arise from the flu?

Complications include bacterial infection, pneumonia and dehydration. If you have a chronic medical condition, you may experience a worsening of that condition. Children can develop sinus and ear infections.

Is there any medicine to treat the flu?

Antivirals work both to prevent the flu and to help reduce the severity and duration of the illness by a day or two. Antiviral medications must be taken within 48 hours of the onset of your symptoms and are available only by prescription. Ask your doctor about getting a rapid flu test that can verify within a few hours whether you have the flu.

These two antivirals are recommended for treating the flu virus:

Zanamivir (Relenza)

Oseltamivir (Tamiflu)

Each of these drugs can cause side effects, including lightheadedness, nausea, loss of appetite and difficulty breathing. They can also lead to the development of antiviral-resistant viruses.
People with the flu, particularly children, who take Tamiflu may be at increased risk of self-injury and confusion. The FDA recommends that individuals with the flu who take Tamiflu be closely monitored for signs of unusual behavior. In July 2007, the FDA approved two lower dose versions of Tamiflu for children. Still, discuss possible side effects with your doctor before starting any antiviral medication.

Your best bet for treating flu symptoms remains the tried and true:

Rest.

Get plenty of fluids.

Take acetaminophen or ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, others) for aches and pains.

Come see the doctors at Healthy Trust Immediate Medical Care.

It's also important to eat healthy and get some daily activity to help keep your immune system in top form.

Healthy Trust Immediate Medical Care is the official flu clinic of the Chicago North Shore Communities of Lake County, Wheeling, Prospect Heights, Lincolnshire, Deerfield, Buffalo Grove, Northbrook, Highland Park, Long Grove, Riverwoods, Des Plaines, Palatine, Glenview, Highwood, Northfield, Libertyville, Winnetka, Arlington Heights, Mount Prospect, Lake Bluff, Lake Forest, Mundelein, and Bannockburn.

Popcorn safe for bowel condition

Men with abnormal pouches in their bowels can safely eat nuts and popcorn, and those foods may even lower the chance of intestinal flare-ups, a study found.

The University of Washington research, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, contradicts the advice of doctors who have told people with the condition known as diverticulosis to avoid those products. No studies have shown that to be true, the researchers said.

One-third of the U.S. population will develop the condition by age 60, the researchers said. Inflammation, bleeding and obstructions may result, and treatment costs about $2.4 billion a year. While diverticulosis remains little understood, it may be linked to too little fiber in a diet, doctors say. Nuts and popcorn are high in fiber.

"For many doctors, hopefully they will not tell their patients that they can't have some of the foods that they enjoy and may actually be good for them, such as nuts," said Jennifer Christie, an Emory University gastroenterologist in Atlanta who wasn't involved in the study.

Diverticulosis, occurs when a person has many small pouches in the lining of the large intestine, or colon, that bulge out through weak spots, causing discomfort like bloating or abdominal pain, according to the U.S. National Institutes of Health. When those pouches become inflamed, diverticulitis develops, which can lead to rectal bleeding, infection or an intestinal obstruction from scarring.

Between 10 percent and 25 percent of people with diverticulosis develop diverticulitis, according to the U.S. government.

A lack of fiber can lead to constipation, which may make people strain on the toilet, increasing pressure on the colon and causing the colon lining to bulge out through weak spots. These bulges or pouches may then become inflamed when bacteria or stool are caught in them.

Patients with the condition have been told to avoid nuts, popcorn and seeds because doctors thought particles from the foods may become lodged in the pouches, causing inflammation or bleeding, according to the study.

Researchers analyzed data collected from an 18-year study that included 47,228 men ages 40 to 75 who filled out medical questionnaires about their health and diet every few years. The men didn't have diverticulosis at the start of the study.

Twenty-seven percent of men in the study ate nuts at least twice a week, and 15 percent ate corn or popcorn at least twice a week. Over the 18 years, 801 men developed diverticulitis and 383 diverticular bleeding.

The researchers found that men who ate nuts at least twice a week had a 20 percent lower risk of diverticulitis than those who ate nuts once a month. And those who ate popcorn at least twice a week had a 28 percent lower risk of the condition, compared with those who ate popcorn less than once a month.

The high amounts of fiber in nuts and popcorn may be one reason men who ate more of those foods had fewer complications from diverticulosis, said the lead author, Lisa Strate, an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Washington in Seattle. Nuts also may help reduce inflammation, she said yesterday in a telephone interview.

The study was presented last year at Digestive Disease Week, a meeting of gastroenterologists, in Washington.

Strate is studying other reasons, such as obesity and physical inactivity, that people may develop complications from diverticulosis. Future studies should look at whether high-fiber diets help, and whether a diet high in red meat contributes to complications, she said.

Does morning sickness indicate a girl?

THE BELIEF:

Morning sickness means a baby girl is more likely.

THE FACTS:

Old wives' tales about predicting a baby's sex -- relying on clues like the way the woman carries and the fetal heart rate -- are usually more fantasy than fact.

But the notion that morning sickness can sometimes indicate that a girl is on the way may be an exception. A number of large studies in various countries have examined the claim, and almost all have found it to be true, with caveats. Specifically, studies have found that it applies to women with morning sickness in the first trimester, and with symptoms so severe that it leads to hospitalization, a condition known as hyperemesis gravidarum.

One of the most recent studies was conducted by epidemiologists at the University of Washington. The scientists compared 2,110 pregnant women who were hospitalized with morning sickness in their first trimester and a control group of 9,783 women who did not get severely ill. They found that the women in the first group were more likely to deliver a girl, and that those who were the sickest -- hospitalized for three days or more -- had the greatest odds: an increase of 80 percent compared with the control women.

Other studies in The Lancet and the journal Epidemiology, among others, have repeated the findings. It is thought that certain hormones produced by female fetuses may be the culprit.

THE BOTTOM LINE:

Severe morning sickness may indicate a higher likelihood that the baby will be a girl.

Can manipulating your neck lead to a stroke?

THE BELIEF:

Manipulating your neck could lead to a stroke.

THE FACTS:

Manipulating your neck is supposed to relieve pain, not cause it. But years ago neurologists noticed a strange pattern of people suffering strokes shortly after seeing chiropractors, specifically for neck adjustments.

Their hypothesis was that a chiropractic technique called cervical spinal manipulation, involving a forceful twisting of the neck, could damage two major arteries that lead through the neck to the back of the brain. Strokes in people under age 45 are relatively rare, but these cervical arterial dissections are a leading cause of them.

Studies that followed suggested a link. One at Stanford that surveyed 177 neurologists found 55 patients who suffered strokes after seeing chiropractors. Another, published in the journal Neurologist, said young stroke patients were five times more likely to have had neck adjustments within a week of their strokes than a control group. It estimated an incidence of 1.3 cases for every 100,000 people under 45 receiving neck adjustments.

But other studies have cast doubt. One published this year examined 818 cases of stroke linked to arterial dissections at the back of the neck. Before their strokes, younger patients who saw chiropractors were more likely to have complained beforehand of head and neck pain -- symptoms often preceding a stroke -- suggesting they had undiagnosed dissections and had sought out chiropractors for relief, not realizing a stroke was imminent.

THE BOTTOM LINE:

Forceful neck manipulation seems to carry a small risk of arterial tears.