Signs of our times

It all happens 'hear'. Dead or alive, we 'cremeate' all

Flower

Hibiscus blossom

Another Misty Morning at a Construction Site

A Misty Dawn

Floating Building

Skeletal

Ghostly

Eerie

Babblers

A flock of babblers hopping about and quenching their thirst after a hard days worm foraging.

MIsty Morning

Potato Field on a Misty Morning

More Mist

Crow in the Mist at a Construction Site

On a Foggy Winter Morning

I Block Hostel rises out of the mist as new K Block Hostel takes shape in the foreground

Puppies at my feet

The puppies spy me

Two brave fellows venture towards me

Sniff sniff (friend or foe)

The others join in

Nibbling my toes, wagging their tails

Getting friendlier

 

Alert for any danger with their curved upright tail aquiver

There is this fresh crop of puppies on the GLA University campus. These frisky little fellows saw me and scampered like a pack of blood-hounds. After greeting me in their canine manner of licking and biting they frolicked about and soon retreated to their hidey-hole.

 

Scabies

Scabies is a communicable skin disease that manifests as intense itching (especially at night) and rashes - the distribution of which is shown below.

It is caused by a mite called Sarcoptes scabiei, which is a parasite that burrows into, resides and reproduces in human skin. Scabies usually spreads through direct skin contact with the infested people. Their clothing and bedding may also carry the mites/eggs and transmit the disease.

Treatment

• Apply topical medicated creams/lotions (5% permethrin or benzoyl benzoate) and take drugs (ivermectin) according to the doctor’s advice to kill the mites and control itching respectively. Itching may persist for about a month sometimes despite appropriate treatment.

• Family members and close friends of the infested persons should also seek medical advice and receive treatment if necessary.

Scabies mite

Additional Precautions

• Wash hands thoroughly before and after contact with the infested person.

• Wash the clothing, towels and bed linen of the infested persons separately. These items should be washed in hot water at 60°C or above, for not less than 10 minutes so as to kill the mites and its eggs.

• Place non-washable items in a plastic bag and seal up for at least 14 days before reuse.

• Clean shared-use equipment/ devices with detergent before using on other persons.

• Discard shared-use or suspected contaminated creams and lotions.

Prevention

•  Keep good personal hygiene, wash hands and body frequently.
• Regularly change into clean clothing, towels and bed linen.
• Avoid sharing clothing and personal items with others.
• Perform skin inspection for institutionalised residents regularly for early identification of infestation.

Onychomycosis

Fungal infection occurs through cracks in your toe-nails or cuts in your skin. The toenail changes colour or get thicker and may be painful. Fungal infections thrive in the warm and damp environment of your toe-nails. Different kinds of fungi and sometimes yeast affect different parts of the nail. Left untreated, an infection could spread to other toenails, skin, or even your fingernails.

Symptoms

Infected nails are usually thicker than normal, yellow to brownish in colour and generally distorted in shape. They can break easily (friable). Sometimes a white dot shows up on the nail that gets bigger. When fungus builds up under your nail, it can loosen and even separate the nail from the nail-bed. The fungus can also spread to the skin around your nail.

- SONY Xperia M4

Men are more prone to fungal infections of toenails. The older you are, the better your chances are, too. People who have diabetes, athlete's foot, or a weak immune system, who smoke, or whose family members have it are also at a higher risk. If you spend a lot of time in the water or you've injured your toenail, your odds for getting toenail fungus go up.

Treatment

Consult a dermatologist as fungal infections of toe-nails may be mistaken for psoriasis and get appropriate treatment depending on the type fungus you have and how bad the infection is. The dermatologist may scrape off a part of the affected area and send it to a pathologist to determine the cause of your problem. Your doctor may try one thing or a combination:

• A topical cream that goes directly on the nail (terbinafine, tolnaftate)
• An antifungal prescription pill (fluconazole, itraconzole, terbinafine)
• Removing the damaged area of the nail or skin
• In extreme cases, the nail may be removed completely with surgery.

Foot Care

Use soap and water to wash your feet, and dry well, including between toes. Trim your toenails - straight across - to keep them shorter than the end of your toe. Make sure the tools you use are clean, too. Wash nail-cutters and files with soap and water, then wipe with rubbing alcohol. You might be tempted to cover up discoloured nails with polish, but don't. Your nail bed can't "breathe," which keeps fungus from going away.

- SONY Xperia M4

Keep Feet Dry and Clean

Be smart about your footwear. Choose socks that absorb the perspiration. Change them regularly. Make sure your shoes fit well. They should be made of something that lets air move through it, like canvas, mesh, or leather.

Know Your Toes

Take a good look at your nail beds and the skin around your toenails regularly, at least once a month. (You might need to use a mirror if it's hard to see your toes.) Watch for changes in colour and texture, as well as for cuts or damage. Does anything hurt? If your symptoms don’t improve or get worse, consult a doctor.