Dr. Josyann Abisaab

Wear a Helmet- Avoid the ER

Concussions happen when the head is hit or knocked against a hard surface. Visits to the ER following these injuries are often necessary, and ER doctors like Josyann Abisaab encounter these patients often. Concussions can result in confusion, memory loss, weakened vision, nausea, unconsciousness and in severe cases, dementia and other permanent damages.

A good helmet can really absorb and deflect a lot of the impact force. Sometimes people don’t wear them because they feel foolish or think that they are not necessary, but a fall without a helmet can result in severe brain injuries. Not every helmet offers the right amount of protection; it is important to choose a helmet that was made exclusively for your activity, for example a cyclist should wear a different helmet than a rock climber.

Autumn Season Safety Tips: Josyann Abisaab MD

The season of “falling leaves” has given Autumn its popular moniker as the Fall season. But for doctors, like Josyann Abisaab MD, who staff the emergency rooms around the country, “fall” has taken on a whole new meaning. Forty-two million Americans seek emergency room treatment each year. Many of those injuries actually occur in the performance of ordinary household tasks – such as the outdoor yard maintenance so many of us set out to achieve each autumn. Leaf raking, lawn mowing, and roof inspections all have their potential dangers, including major falls, painful cuts and back injuries. Lawn mowers, in particular, must be viewed as the large, potentially harm-causing machines that they really are.  The Consumer Product Safety Commission reported that more than 225,000 people were injured by power, manual and riding lawn mowers in 2007.

The good news, however, is that these dangers can be easily avoided by adhering to these few simple tips:

-- Turn your engine off before you begin any maintenance work on your lawnmower.

-- Don’t use your hands or feet to clear debris from under a lawnmower. Use a stick or broom handle instead.

-- Don’t remove safety devices, shields or guards on switches.

-- Never leave a lawnmower running unattended.

-- Wear protective gear like goggles and gloves, boots and long pants when mowing.

Dealing with Nighttime Croup: Tips from the E.R.

Any parent who has heard a child with croup knows how terrible the sound is.  Croup is almost always worse at night because blood flow to the respiratory tract changes when a child lies down.  Dry air can also aggravate the cough.  Many parents end up in the E.R., being seen by doctors like Dr. Josyann Abisaab, for croup.  Here are some suggestions for ways to avoid that E.R. visit.

Dr. Andrea Leeds, a pediatrician in Bellmore, New York explains that you should first give the child a dose of children’s ibuprofen (if they are over 1) to reduce the swelling in the airways.  Then, turn on the shower full blast and sit in the steamy bathroom for fifteen minutes with your child.  Finally, dress him warmly and go out into the cold night air (or stand in front of the freezer if it’s the heat of summer).  The steam will relax the airways and the vocal cords and the cold air will reduce the swelling.

This combination of activities will usually help to control symptoms enough until the next day, when you can get to the doctor.

Diabetic Heat Issues: Dr. Josyann Abisaab

Emergency room doctors, like Dr. Josyann Abisaab, see an increased number of emergency room visits in the summer months from diabetics.  Researchers have found that diabetics show an increased frequency of emergency room visits, hospitalizations and even deaths due to heat illness during the hottest times of the year.  There are a number of reasons for this trend, many of which are addressed in this informative article.

Certainly, for anyone with diabetes, and for those treating them, it is essential to understand how heat influences and impacts diabetes.

Summer Safety with E.R. Doctors Like Josyann Abisaab

During the summer months, the American emergency rooms see a great deal of injuries and deaths from the same sources.  If you are informed of these situations by doctors like Josyann Abisaab and you take precautions it should help to cut down on these tragic situations. 

Make sure to protect yourself and your family against sunburn and heat stroke.  Wear sunscreen with an SPF of 15 or higher and continue to apply more throughout the day.  Drink plenty of water throughout the day as well and if you feel faint or nauseous, make your way to a cool place and drink something.

If you travel this summer, make sure to wear your seatbelt at all times and not to travel with anyone who has been drinking.  Check that the vehicle that you are taking has been fully serviced.  When you get to your destination, make sure that you find out where the nearest emergency room is, just in case an emergency arises.

Josyann Abisaab: Animal Safety with Small Children

Most people would be surprised to know that nearly 3 million children are bitten by dogs each year – and that 58% of these incidents actually happen in the home.  Emergency room doctors such as Josyann Abisaab offer solutions to help children to stay safe around their animals, and those of others.

Make sure not to leave children under five alone with animals, even if it’s your own animal.  Children think that they are playfully roughhousing with the family dog – and don’t see that the dog has become annoyed or overly stimulated and may bite.

Teach children, as well, to know what proper behavior is around animals.  They shouldn’t disturb a sleeping or eating animal and they shouldn’t try to remove a toy from an animal’s mouth. They need to know not to approach an unfamiliar animal unless the owner is there and grants them permission.

Should your child get bitten by a domesticated animal, you’ll need to get proof of shots from the animal’s owner.  If the bite is from a stray cat or dog, you’ll need to consult your local animal control center.

Josyann Abisaab: The Dangers of Water

Most of us lead very busy lives, and we have probably all turned our backs on our children in a shallow pool or in the bathtub.  Parents are often shocked to learn just how quickly a child can drown and just how little water it takes for the drowning to occur.

A child can drown within seconds and can do so with as little as 2 inches of water if they fall headfirst into a cleaning bucket or into a bathtub.

To take the proper precautions, make sure to install a four-sided 5-foot fence with an automatic childproof gate if you have a pool.  Make your child wear flotation devices when he’s in a pool.  Never take your eye off of your child in the bathtub or even in a shallow, baby pool.

Certainly, emergency room doctors such as Josyann Abisaab want parents to understand the dangers of even small amounts of water for children.

Josyann Abisaab & Poison Prevention

More than one million children under the age of 6 are poisoned each year as a result of accidents.  Certainly, emergency room physicians like Josyann Abisaab who have to deal with these poisonings urge parents to be vigilant in the home.  Here’s how.

Make sure to purchase child safety tops on all medicines and chemicals, whenever possible.  Lock up caustic cleaners so that children can’t reach them – but keep in mind to also secure vitamins and mouthwashes, as these can also poison children.  Vitamins with iron can be toxic to kids and mouthwashes can be poisonous from the alcohol content.

Don’t ever store chemicals in a familiar food container.  For instance, don’t put your antifreeze in a soda bottle or your paint thinner in an ice cream container.  Keep all vitamins, medicines, liquor, cleaning products, pesticides and fertilizers locked and in their original packaging.  Keep toiletries out of a child’s reach and make sure to flush expired medicines down the toilet, rather than throwing them in a wastebasket.

Post numbers in an obvious place for the poison-control center and keep activated charcoal or ipecac syrup on hand.  Make sure not to give your child the ipecac syrup, however, without speaking to your doctor or to poison control first.