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Free Screenings Oral, Head and Neck Cancer Awareness Week
OHANCAW is a weeklong series of events to promote education and awareness and is sponsored by the Head and Neck Cancer Alliance (formerly known as the Yul Brynner Head and Neck Foundation). The highlight of OHANCAW is a day of free screenings across the country.
LOCATION:
Midwest Ear, Nose & Throat
DESCRIPTION:
This year’s Oral, Head and Neck Cancer Awareness Week (OHANCAW) is April 22-28, 2012.
FREE screenings for oral, head and neck cancer
MIDWEST EAR, NOSE & THROAT,
2315 W. 57th St. in Sioux Falls
9:00 AM to 4:00 PM on
Friday, April 27, 2012.
Call 605-336-3503 or toll free 1-888-336-3503 to schedule your free screening.
Medications
- Antibiotics
Antibiotics may play a significant part in the treatment of sinus patients.
- Over-the-Counter (OTC) Medications
Over-the-Counter medications are available without a prescription and can alleviate certain symptoms.
- Antileukotriene Agents
Antileukotriene medications are generally administered to help in the reduction of inflammation.
- Mucolytics
Mucolytics are medications designed to make the nasal secretions more watery.
- Steroids
Steroids play an important role in the treatment of rhinosinusitis and allergies.
- Antifungals
Antifungal medications are a relatively new concept in the treatment of chronic rhinosinusitis in the immunocompetent patient.
Cold Remedies
Decongestants and/or antihistamines are the principal ingredients in “cold” remedies, but drying agents, aspirin (or aspirin substitutes) and cough suppressants may also be added.
Choose the remedy with ingredients best suited to combat your own symptoms. If the label does not clearly state the ingredients and their functions, ask the pharmacist to explain them. Some novel treatments such as zinc, megadose vitamin C, echinacea pills, and nasal gel (Zicam®) have been introduced, but they still lack scientific proof of effectiveness.
Combination Remedies
Theoretically, if the side effects could be properly balanced, the sleepiness sometimes caused by antihistamines could be cancelled by the stimulation of decongestants .
Numerous combinations of antihistamines with decongestants are available; for example:
- Actifed®
- Allegra-D®
- Chlor-Trimeton D®
- Claritin D®
- Contac®
- Co-Pyronil 2®
- Deconamine®
- Demazin®
- Dimetapp®
- Drixoral®
- Isoclor®
- Nolamine®
- Novafed A®
- Ornade®
- Sudafed Plus®
- Tavist D®
- Triaminic®
- Trinalin®
A patient may find one product quite helpful for several months or years, but may need to switch to another one when the first loses its effectiveness. Since no one reacts exactly the same as another to the side effects of these drugs, patients may wish to try their own ideas on adjusting the dosages. You might take the antihistamine only at night and take the decongestant alone in the daytime, or take them together, increasing the dosage of antihistamine at night (while decreasing the decongestant dose) and then doing the opposite for daytime use. For example, take Chlor-Trimeton,®* 4mg, one tablet three times daily and two tablets at bedtime.
Over-the-Counter (OTC) Medications
Over-the-Counter medications are available without a prescription and can alleviate certain symptoms.
- Antihistamines
Antihistamines are administered to alleviate “allergy” symptoms, but too much use may magnify a more underlying sinus ailment.
- Decongestants
Decongestants cause constriction or tightening of the blood vessels in the membranes of the nose and air passages, which forces much of the blood out of the membranes so that they shrink.
- Combination Remedies
Many medications combine antihistamines and decongestants, which may reduce side effects of each.
- Cold Remedies
Decongestants and/or antihistamines are the principal ingredients in cold remedies, but drying agents, aspirin, and cough suppressants may also be added.
