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Grey's: Toxic Blood
In Thursday's episode, "Wishin' and Hopin" the interns and attendings of Seattle Grace are overcome by the toxic blood of cancer patient Marina. Just how did she get toxic blood? Supposedly the patient has been taking some kind of herbal remedy that has combined with the chemotherapy drugs to render her blood toxic.
So toxic, in fact, that the surgeons are rendered unconscious when she's on the operating table, and the mere procurement of a blood sample leaves George slurring his words and requiring immediate oxygen supplementation.
(For more on the show's other plotlines, visit Grey Matter, the writers' blog about the show.)
Unlike most of the Grey's plot lines, which have a theoretically-it-could-happen kind of novelty, this toxic blood idea seems more like something you'd see on House. Meaning that it's way out there. Unprecedented. As in VERY hard for this doctor to accept as remotely plausible.
Another thing that's very troubling is the scarcity of physicians available at Seattle Grace.
Cancer patient Marina is undergoing a bowel procedure, a general surgical operation to be performed by Richard. But when Richard and his team are overcome by the toxin, there obviously aren't any more general surgeons around. They have to call in neurosurgeon Derek and cardiothoracic specialist Burke to fix this girl's bowel. And when those two are out of commission, the team is now composed of plastic surgeon Mark, obstetrician Addison, and whoever among the interns they can happen to assemble.
Where, one might wonder, are the residents (those surgeons-in-training in the several years beyond the first-year internship)?
Still, there's a medical lesson to be learned from even this scenario, and that involves the combination of herbal or biological remedies with prescription medications. Herbal and alternative products are not subject to approval process of the FDA and cannot be legally marketed for the prevention or cure of disease.
However, the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 still allows these products to carry labels that suggest an effect on the structure or function of the human body or claim that they improve overall well-being.
Herbal remedies can have significant side effects. One example is the spontaneous bleeding that has been reported with Gingko biloba extract, which is advertised as improving cognitive (thinking) function.
Furthermore, the combination of herbal remedies and prescription medications can also interact in ways that are harmful to the body. gingko extract, to use the same example, is known to interact with anticoagulant and anti-platelet medications to influence the way these drugs can work in the body.
The bottom line - and the take - home medical message from this episode - is that herbal remedies should always be reported with your medication history since they can and do interact significantly with prescriptions that your doctor may prescribe.
Related Links: What Are Dietary Supplements?
So toxic, in fact, that the surgeons are rendered unconscious when she's on the operating table, and the mere procurement of a blood sample leaves George slurring his words and requiring immediate oxygen supplementation.
(For more on the show's other plotlines, visit Grey Matter, the writers' blog about the show.)
Unlike most of the Grey's plot lines, which have a theoretically-it-could-happen kind of novelty, this toxic blood idea seems more like something you'd see on House. Meaning that it's way out there. Unprecedented. As in VERY hard for this doctor to accept as remotely plausible.
Another thing that's very troubling is the scarcity of physicians available at Seattle Grace.
Cancer patient Marina is undergoing a bowel procedure, a general surgical operation to be performed by Richard. But when Richard and his team are overcome by the toxin, there obviously aren't any more general surgeons around. They have to call in neurosurgeon Derek and cardiothoracic specialist Burke to fix this girl's bowel. And when those two are out of commission, the team is now composed of plastic surgeon Mark, obstetrician Addison, and whoever among the interns they can happen to assemble.
Where, one might wonder, are the residents (those surgeons-in-training in the several years beyond the first-year internship)?
Still, there's a medical lesson to be learned from even this scenario, and that involves the combination of herbal or biological remedies with prescription medications. Herbal and alternative products are not subject to approval process of the FDA and cannot be legally marketed for the prevention or cure of disease.
However, the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 still allows these products to carry labels that suggest an effect on the structure or function of the human body or claim that they improve overall well-being.
Herbal remedies can have significant side effects. One example is the spontaneous bleeding that has been reported with Gingko biloba extract, which is advertised as improving cognitive (thinking) function.
Furthermore, the combination of herbal remedies and prescription medications can also interact in ways that are harmful to the body. gingko extract, to use the same example, is known to interact with anticoagulant and anti-platelet medications to influence the way these drugs can work in the body.
The bottom line - and the take - home medical message from this episode - is that herbal remedies should always be reported with your medication history since they can and do interact significantly with prescriptions that your doctor may prescribe.
Related Links: What Are Dietary Supplements?
Labels: grey's anatomy
