e-Health: A New Approach in Healthcare Practice

The Internet offers an unprecedented opportunity for healthcare information to be disseminated instantaneously. Quality of information, both scientific and nonscientific, and the development of tools to disseminate information securely via the Internet are the two most important issues related to achieving effective and wider exchange of health information. For the first time ever, information can be exchanged simultaneously and interactively all around the world, with the potential of being equally available to healthcare professionals as well as to patients. The big difference between yesterday\u27s knowledge-based patient care and that of tomorrow, is a fundamental premise that patients will explore the web world with a desire to learn more about their condition, including its treatment and prognosis. This has evolved into the concept of e-health (Electronic Health). Evaluation and examination of the information being conveyed via the Internet is important and necessary in order for the Internet to be an effective tool in healthcare

Spinal supports and physical therapy in patients with low back pain: a case series

The association of low back pain with physical workload in seated workstation related jobs has been debated and remains controversial. Clinical studies eliciting the natural history of the disease in this emerging population are insufficient to make definitive conclusions. We report four consecutive cases of patients suffering from low back pain presenting to a tertiary spine clinic with severe non-specific low back pain. Two patients as age-matched controls with persistent low back pain were followed for 6 months after receiving conventional treatment. In comparison, two test patients received parallel conventional treatment along with orthopaedic full spinal supports as an additional treatment modality. Outcomes analysed demonstrate the efficacy of orthopaedic full spinal supports for treating low back pain

Efficacy of low-level laser therapy for body contouring and spot fat reduction

BACKGROUND: Low-level laser therapy (LLLT) is commonly used in medical applications, but scientific studies of its efficacy and the mechanism by which it causes loss of fat from fat cells for body contouring are lacking. This study examined the effectiveness and mechanism by which 635–680 nm LLLT acts as a non-invasive body contouring intervention method. METHODS: Forty healthy men and women ages 18–65 years with a BMI \u3c30 kg/m2 were randomized 1:1 to laser or control treatment. Subject\u27s waistlines were treated 30 min twice a week for 4 weeks. Standardized waist circumference measurements and photographs were taken before and after treatments 1, 3, and 8. Subjects were asked not to change their diet or exercise habits. In vitro assays were conducted to determine cell lysis, glycerol, and triglyceride release. RESULTS: Data were analyzed for those with body weight fluctuations within 1.5 kg during 4 weeks of the study. Each treatment gave a 0.4–0.5 cm loss in waist girth.Cumulative girth loss after 4 weeks was −2.15 cm (−0.78 ± 2.82 vs. 1.35 ± 2.64 cm for the control group,p \u3c 0.05). A blinded evaluation of standardized pictures showed statistically significant cosmetic improvement after 4 weeks of laser treatment. In vitro studies suggested that laser treatment increases fat loss from adipocytes by release of triglycerides, without inducing lipolysis or cell lysis. CONCLUSIONS: LLLT achieved safe and significant girth loss sustained over repeated treatments and cumulative over 4 weeks of eight treatments. The girth loss from the waist gave clinically and statistically significant cosmetic improvement