Whelehans Health News

Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI) Part 2 Symptoms Symptoms of RSI can take months or even years to appear. Initially, only a slight ache may be felt. As the problem gets worse, there is more marked pain while performing the repeated activity (e.g.) when typing. Eventually, the pain may be felt most of the time, even with only slight movements. As well as the pain, numbness and tingling may make it difficult to hold objects. The most common RSI signs and symptoms include: Tenderness in the affected muscle or joint Pain in the affected muscle or joint A throbbing (pulsating) sensation...

Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI) Part 1   Repetitive strain injury (RSI) is an injury caused by repetitive use of muscles. It usually occurs in the back, shoulders, arms, wrists, and hands. Contrary to popular belief, you do not have to be undertaking heavy manual work such as drilling or shovelling to develop RSI. Most RSIs are caused by seemingly safe jobs such as writing, using a computer or packing boxes. The most important factor is that the activity is continuous, usually for a long period of time. RSI is a musculo-skeletal disorder RSI is a musculoskeletal disorder which is a...

A Mullingar pharmacist is offering reassures to people that they don’t “need to be overly concerned that they will not get their medicines” despite recent headlines about shortages. Eamonn Brady of Whelehans Pharmacy says that there some medicines are in short supply, but pharmacists work together to make sure patients are not affected. He said: “Not all pharmacists are out of stock of lines currently listed as short; for example, in Whelehans we have stock of all lines and many pharmacies share supply with other pharmacies, so when one pharmacy is short, their neighbouring pharmacy often provide them with stock,...

Atrial fibrillation  Part 3   Symptoms   The patient may be symptomless but symptoms can range from mild to severe including: Breathlessness Tiredness Palpitations: the patient may feel the sensation the heart beating fast or irregularly Light headedness or dizziness Chest pain or tightness.   Diagnosis   Echocardiogram An electrocardiogram (ECG) checks the heart's rhythm and electrical activity and confirms atrial fibrillation by recording the heart’s electrical signals. If the ECG is normal, but the clinician still suspects bouts of atrial fibrillation (paroxysmal atrial fibrillation), then a record of the heart rhythm over 24 hours will be needed to confirm....

Atrial fibrillation  Part 1   Atrial fibrillation is the most common type of arrhythmia. An arrhythmia is a heart rhythm problem. The heart may beat too quickly, too slowly or in an irregular pattern.   Types of arrythmia include: Tachycardia: fast heart rate of more than 100 beats per minute. Bradycardia: Slow heart rhythm below 60 beats per minute. Supraventricular arrhythmias: Arrhythmias manifesting from the atria (heart’s upper chambers) Ventricular arrhythmias: Arrhythmias manifesting from the ventricles (heart’s lower chambers) Bradyarrhythmias: Slow heart rhythms due to disease in the heart’s conduction system affecting the sinoatrial (SA) node, atrioventricular (AV) node or the His-Purkinje network.   Atrial...