Warning about the consequences of self-treating at home

Medical news October 7: Warning about the consequences of self-treating at home

Vietnam - Sweden Uong Bi Hospital has just received and treated 2 cases of self-treatment at home, leading to serious illness.

Get into trouble because of self-medication

A typical case is a 2-year-old patient (residing in Dong Trieu, Quang Ninh ) who was burned by boiling water at home. After receiving first aid at a nearby medical center, instead of being transferred to a higher level for treatment, the family asked to take the child home and apply traditional medicine themselves in the hope that the wound would heal quickly.

Illustration photo.

However, after 2 days, the child had burns on his buttocks, genitals, legs, and feet that were red and oozing fluid. At this time, the family took the child to the hospital for treatment.

Another case of a patient with psoriasis. Instead of following the doctor's treatment regimen, the patient listened to many people's advice that bathing with certain types of leaves would help him recover quickly. However, after only a few baths, the patient saw many skin burns appear, accompanied by a feeling of heat, burning, and pain at the burns.

Doctors at the Vietnam-Sweden Uong Bi Hospital said that despite repeated warnings, there are still many cases of patients being hospitalized with complications such as ulcers, infections, and necrosis.

The cause is improper self-treatment. Instead of going to medical facilities to be examined and treated by doctors, there are many cases where patients have self-treated at home using word-of-mouth remedies and folk remedies.

In addition, folk remedies have not been scientifically proven and the consequence is that the disease does not improve but tends to become more severe. At that time, the patient rushes to the hospital, leading to difficulties in treatment, prolonged treatment time and causing a lot of pain for the patient.

Therefore, doctors recommend that everyone protect their own health by visiting and listening to the doctor's advice if there are any unusual health problems.

Also talking about the consequences of patients self-treating, Dr. Ngo Chi Cuong, Head of the Department of Internal Medicine and Deputy Director of Medlatec General Hospital, said that recently many patients came to the hospital with serious complications due to self-treatment or medication adjustment.

Patients should note that chronic diseases are only "mild" when patients comply with the treatment regimen, but "fierce" and cause serious complications such as disability and death if the disease is not managed and treated under the guidance of a doctor.

According to Dr. Ngo Chi Cuong, chronic diseases are very diverse such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, viral hepatitis, autoimmune diseases... can occur at any age, gender and are currently the leading cause of death and disability, so they need to be continuously monitored, managed and treated.

Statistics from the United States show that 75% of people aged 65 and over have at least one chronic disease and 50% have at least two chronic diseases.

Chronic diseases require long-term treatment, not just 1 or 2 years, but in many cases, continuous care for life. Because the disease progresses silently, lasts a long time, is prone to relapse, causes pain, but cannot be prevented by vaccines, it causes a significant impact on the psychology of confusion and anxiety, reduces the quality of life as well as costs and wastes the patient's time.

Experts recommend that if a patient is diagnosed with a chronic disease, they must determine to live “peacefully” with the disease for the rest of their lives. To avoid unpredictable complications caused by the disease, patients must strictly adhere to 3 principles.

First of all, you need to have regular health check-ups and follow-up visits according to your doctor's appointment; You need to go to a medical facility immediately if you experience any unusual symptoms.

In addition, strictly follow the prescription (pay attention to the time of taking the medicine regularly, every day and at a certain time if any), absolutely do not stop taking the medicine on your own. During the treatment, if the medicine has side effects, you need to discuss with your doctor to adjust the medicine accordingly.

In addition, follow a scientific, healthy diet, or choose foods according to the advice of your treating physician.

Vietnamese children spend a lot of time on social media

According to statistics, Vietnam is one of the countries leading the world in the rate of internet and social network users. Currently, our country has more than 72 million social network users, accounting for about 73% of the population. Of these, 7% are between the ages of 13 and 17 and nearly 10% are between the ages of 18 and 24.

A 2022 UNICEF survey showed that 82% of Vietnamese children aged 12-13 use the internet daily, compared to 93% of those aged 14-15. According to the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, Vietnamese children spend 5-7 hours a day on social media.

Many commentators argue that social platforms are designed to be addictive to users, especially young people. This causes negative impacts on mental health such as depression, insomnia, anxiety, distraction in studying as well as a series of other problems for users' mental health.

According to Dr. Nguyen Thi Mai Huong, Institute of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Hanoi Medical University, the benefits of social networks are increased social connections, opportunities for self-expression and access to information and resources for adolescents in their studies and lives.

Studies also show that about 81% of students report that social media helps them feel more connected to their friends and the world around them.

However, when abusing social networks, adolescents can experience negative effects, such as sleep disorders, depression, social isolation and Internet addiction, cyberbullying.

In addition, increased rates of cybercrime, peer pressure and exposure to harmful content are some of the risks associated with social media use, leading to self-harm, suicidal thoughts and other mental health issues.

These research findings emphasize the importance of monitoring and educating children about responsible and healthy use of social media.

Associate Professor, Dr. Le Minh Giang, Director of the Institute of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Hanoi Medical University, said that equipping ourselves with self-protection skills and maintaining control when using social networks is the key to helping us fully exploit the benefits without negatively affecting the mental health of Vietnamese youth.

Vietnamese elderly suffer from many diseases

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Trung Anh, Director of the Central Geriatric Hospital, said that over the past 10 years, the population aging process has been taking place rapidly.

To date, Vietnam is one of the 10 countries with the fastest population aging rate in the world. According to the General Statistics Office, Vietnam officially entered the population aging stage in 2011. In 2021, our country has 12.5 million elderly people (accounting for 12.8% of the total population) and is increasing rapidly.

It is estimated that by 2038, Vietnam will enter an aging population phase with the elderly accounting for over 20% of the total population.

Population aging has been a major challenge globally. Meanwhile, health care services for the elderly are limited.

Currently, the average life expectancy of Vietnamese people is 73 years but is not of good quality, according to geriatric experts. According to 2023 statistics from the World Health Organization (WHO), among 10 Southeast Asian countries, Vietnamese men's life expectancy ranks 5th and Vietnamese women's life expectancy ranks 2nd. However, the number of years lived with illness is high compared to other countries.

About 60% are in poor to very poor health. In addition, the average elderly person has to endure 14 years of illness, suffering from about 3-6 underlying diseases, such as metabolic disorders, bone and joint disorders, cardiovascular disorders, neurological disorders, respiratory disorders, digestive disorders, high blood pressure, diabetes, etc.

This is really a problem for the medical industry when the number of patients increases while the ability to respond in terms of human resources and equipment is limited, and hospitals are overloaded.

In addition, health care costs for the elderly are also increasing, putting financial pressure on the health insurance system and the state budget.

Another burden that makes old age difficult is that more than 70% of the elderly do not have a pension and have to depend on their children. Of these, more than 65% of the elderly live in rural areas, are farmers and work in agriculture, and have unstable incomes.

According to Dr. Ha Anh Duc, Director of the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment, Ministry of Health, the aging rate in Vietnam is two or three times faster than in developing countries, causing the population to age but not be rich, and the quality of life to be low.

In addition, the elderly account for more than 20% of the population, all have underlying diseases, need care, support, and treatment for life. This is a challenge in both care, treatment, and economic development, social security, and welfare.

According to statistics from the General Department of Population, the elderly currently account for nearly 12% of our country's population, and are expected to account for 17.9% by 2025, and could reach 23.5% by the middle of the 21st century.

Faced with the above challenges, the Director of the Central Geriatric Hospital believes that it is necessary to update new changes in the elderly health care system such as long-term care system, comprehensive support, and quality of life improvement. Develop a training program framework for geriatric doctors, and develop young human resources in Vietnam.

The health sector needs to develop specialized human resources in the field of geriatrics and related specialties in the prevention, treatment and care of underlying diseases such as dementia, Parkinson's, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, coronary intervention and pain relief, musculoskeletal and respiratory diseases, etc.

In addition, the elderly need to pay attention to the principles of reasonable eating, reducing salt, fat and sugar, eating refined foods and not raw foods. Exercise regularly to keep the body's blood circulating and the spirit always happy. Use additional supplements to compensate for the lack of nutrients in the body. Take medication and return for check-ups on time, do not stop taking medication on your own.

Monitor health, promptly adjust prescriptions, and advise on nutrition and exercise to help maintain health and prevent complications.

Source: https://baodautu.vn/tin-moi-y-te-ngay-710-canh-bao-he-luy-khi-tu-y-dieu-tri-benh-tai-nha-d226747.html