For the love of Sharieff: A father dedicates his life to his son’s complex medical care
Photos by Katherine C. Cohen
On an unseasonably warm day in February, the sun shines brightly at Clasky Common Park, a New Bedford town gem with views of the river. Twenty-one-year old Sharieff Hester sports a pair of cherry-red shades and a big smile. He walks confidently around the park, his father and sole caretaker David Hester dutifully following behind, checking in often. “Are you cold son?” he asks. Sharieff answers through his tracheostomy, “I’m fine, Dad.”
David stops to adjust his son’s scarf and offer him a sip of water. “We have a routine every morning. The first thing I do is hug Sharief...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - February 17, 2016 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Jenny Fernandez Tags: Our Patients’ Stories Boston Children's at North Dartmouth Clement Bottino Complex Care Services David Roberson Lawrence Karlin lung disease Martha Fishman Mary Mullen pulmonary hypertension rare disease tracheostomy Source Type: news
Val Kilmer Spotted Without Breathing Device Around His Neck In London
Val Kilmer is looking happy and healthy again more than a year after the actor was first rumored to be dealing with health issues. Last year, the 56-year-old denied reports he underwent surgery to remove a tumor in his throat, but was later spotted wearing what seemed to be a tracheostomy tube in his neck. In recent months, the "Top Gun" star kept his neck covered with a bandana or scarf, causing many to speculate further. Last week, the actor took to Facebook to share a photo of himself and his friend, Tracey Emin, after watching Ralph Fiennes perform in "The Master Builder" in London. In ...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - February 17, 2016 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news
Toddler born with tumour crushing windpipe 'speaks' to her dad in sign language
Jenna Smith, from Cumbria, developed a large tumour on her neck while in the womb. A tracheotomy was carried out while her umbilical cord was still attached to allow her to breathe. (Source: the Mail online | Health)
Source: the Mail online | Health - January 12, 2016 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news
Bronchoscopy-Free Tracheostomy Cost EffectiveBronchoscopy-Free Tracheostomy Cost Effective
Percutaneous dilational tracheostomy (PDT) can be performed successfully with or without the use of bronchoscopy, according to Maryland-based researchers. Reuters Health Information (Source: Medscape General Surgery Headlines)
Source: Medscape General Surgery Headlines - January 6, 2016 Category: Surgery Tags: Internal Medicine News Source Type: news
Early Tracheostomy Contributes to Olfactory DysfunctionEarly Tracheostomy Contributes to Olfactory Dysfunction
Children who undergo tracheostomy in infancy experience impaired olfaction that persists after decannulation, researchers report. Reuters Health Information (Source: Medscape General Surgery Headlines)
Source: Medscape General Surgery Headlines - December 23, 2015 Category: Surgery Tags: Pediatrics News Source Type: news
Single Mom Whose Baby Has Brain Disorder Needs Car To Get To Appointments
Danielle Pettas knew as soon as her son was born that something was wrong. She just felt it in her bones. She wept, later on, when doctors told her it was an irreversible brain disorder -- semilobar holoprosencephaly, a birth defect that occurs when the brain fails to properly divide into two hemispheres. The condition results in a number of other related complications, from facial deformities to respiratory difficulties. Her baby boy, whom she named Demetrice Cross, was never going to have the kind of life she'd envisioned for him. "I didn't understand why this happened. Why my son, what did I do? Did I no...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - December 21, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news
Augmentative Communication and ALS: A conversation with John Costello
John Costello, MA, is the director of Boston Children’s Hospital’s Augmentative Communication Program. Costello has been a speech-language pathologist specializing in the area of Augmentative and Alternative Communication at Boston Children’s Hospital for 30 years. He works with children who are non-speaking or whose speech is severely impaired.
For the past six years, Costello has also been working after hours and on weekends with adult patients with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). Now, thanks to the partnership of a private donor, Boston Children’s Hospital is transforming Costello’s ef...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - December 9, 2015 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Jenny Fernandez Tags: Q&A ALS Augmentative communication John Costello Source Type: news
Stop Using My Disease to Stop Smoking
As part of its 2015 "Tips From Former Smokers" campaign, the CDC aired an anti-smoking ad that portrayed ostomies as punishment for a bad habit. This turned out to be part of a larger campaign that took advantage of diseases and complications tied to much more than smoking, twisting life-saving and preventative medical care into something akin to torture. Case in point, an ostomy isn't simply what you get for smoking your way to colorectal cancer. Ostomies also save thousands living with severe, incurable Irritable Bowel Disease (IBD). I'm a nonsmoker living with IBD, and I work in advertising. When I saw the CDC ad, whi...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - October 27, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news
“When you hit rock bottom…the only way to go is up.”
The Franciscan Hospital for Children Heartbreak Hill 5K on June 14, 2014, was a special day for Justin Ith. It was the first time the 16-year-old, who weighed a mere 70 pounds at the time, had been outside for months. As a nurse pushed the wheelchair-bound teen across the finish line, he turned to her and vowed, “Next year, I’m going to finish this race by myself.”
Justin at his first 5K in 2014 and his second in 2015 after nine months of rehabilitation
A few months earlier, Justin had been living the life of the average high school student. Skateboarder. Guitar player. Anime aficionado.
“I thought I was invincible...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - August 12, 2015 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Lisa Fratt Tags: Our patients’ stories Dr. Robert Fuhlbrigge Franciscan Hospital for Children lupus rheumatology program Source Type: news
FDA: Medtronic’s Shiley trach tube recall is Class I
The FDA classified Medtronic‘s (NYSE:MDT) recall of certain lots of its Shiley neonatal and pediatric tracheostomy tubes as Class I, the most serious type of recall issued by the federal watchdog.
A Class I label from the FDA indicates that “there is a reasonable probability that use of these products will cause serious adverse health consequences or death.”
The recalled tracheostomy tubes were formed with a wider-angle bend than standard models, Fridley, Minn.-based Medtronic said. The company received reports that patients switching tubes from a previous Shiley model to a newer model experienced air...
Source: Mass Device - July 16, 2015 Category: Medical Equipment Authors: Fink Densford Tags: Food & Drug Administration (FDA) Recalls Respiratory medtronic Source Type: news
Class I Medical Device Recall: Medtronic Shiley Neonatal and Pediatric Tracheostomy Tubes: Switching Tubes May Cause Breathing Issues
Medtronic received reports that tracheostomy patients whose tubes were switched from a previous Shiley tracheostomy tubes to the newer model tubes experienced airway obstruction because of potential differences in the angle of the newer tubes from that... (Source: Food and Drug Adminstration (FDA): CDRHNew)
Source: Food and Drug Adminstration (FDA): CDRHNew - July 15, 2015 Category: Medical Equipment Source Type: news
Tyler’s story: 20 surgeries with a smile
Tyler Bois is a boy with goals. His career aspirations run the gamut. Some days, he dreams of playing football with his favorite team—the Dallas Cowboys. Others, he wants to open a pizza shop, perhaps called “Slice of Ty” or “Ty’s Pizza Palace.”
For now, the nine year old stays busy with every day kid stuff—playing with his golden retriever puppy, planning for Cub Scout camp, dancing in the school talent show, skiing and wakeboarding. Somehow between all of these activities, Tyler has squeezed in 20 surgeries.
Born with spina bifida and a Chiari malformation (a congenital defect in which the back parts of the...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - July 10, 2015 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Lisa Fratt Tags: Our patients’ stories club foot Dr. Ben Warf Dr. Lawrence Karlin Dr. Michael Scott Dr. Roger Nuss spina bifida Spina Bifida Center tracheostomy Source Type: news
Teleflex recalls neonate manual resuscitator
Teleflex (NYSE:TFX) said yesterday it is recalling its Hudson RCI Lifesaver neonate manual resuscitator.
The company said it began notifying hospitals and distributors of the recall on May 14.
The FDA labeled it a Class I recall, the most serious type of recall issued by the federal watchdog, indicating that “there is a reasonable probability that use of these products will cause serious adverse health consequences or death.”
The device is being recalled because “the intake port may be blocked, which can cause the bag to fail to fill,” Teleflex said.
A total of 9,333 items are being recalled, wi...
Source: Mass Device - June 30, 2015 Category: Medical Equipment Authors: Fink Densford Tags: Food & Drug Administration (FDA) Recalls Respiratory Resuscitation Teleflex Source Type: news
My Q and A With William Dement, a True Sleep Studies Pioneer
Dr. William C. Dement, a professor at the Stanford Center for Sleep Sciences and Medicine, is considered the father of sleep medicine. In answer to my questions, he spoke about his early interest in sleep studies, the scientists who inspired him and how the study of sleep has evolved over half a century. Here is a transcript of our conversation. What led you to found the Stanford Sleep Disorders Clinic? Before I came to Stanford, I was a research fellow at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City and worked with patients who had narcolepsy. After I went to Stanford, in 1963, I discovered that doctors were not recognizing th...
Source: Science - The Huffington Post - June 25, 2015 Category: Science Source Type: news
MassDevice.com +3 | The top 3 medtech stories for June 24, 2015
Say hello to MassDevice +3, a bite-sized view of the top three medtech stories of the day. This feature of MassDevice.com’s coverage highlights our 3 biggest and most influential stories from the day’s news to make sure you’re up to date on the headlines that continue to shape the medical device industry.
3. TissueTech raises another $15m
TissueTech said that it added another $15 million to its coffers, led by prior backers River Cities Capital Funds and Ballast Point Ventures.
Doral, Fla.-based TissueTech makes amniotic membrane- and umbilical cord-based products designed to treat ocular surface ...
Source: Mass Device - June 24, 2015 Category: Medical Equipment Authors: MassDevice Tags: News Well Plus 3 Source Type: news
