Urinary Tract Infections Medics in survival scenarios have to deal with major injuries and serious infections, Sometimes, infections aren’t serious to begin with, but worsen if not treated. Some of these infections involve the urinary tract. Urine directly from the bladder is generally sterile, but most women have experienced a urinary tract infection (UTI) at one point or another.  The areas most commonly contaminated are the bladder, which holds the urine, and the urethra, the tube that drains the bladder. 

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Video: Germs That Cause Illness In this video, Joe Alton, MD, aka Dr. Bones, goes back to the basics to discuss the various types of pathogens (germs that cause disease). Dr. Alton tells you about bacteria, viruses, protozoa, and fungi: their characteristics, differences, and some well-known issues for which each is responsible. To watch, click below: Wishing you the best of health in good times or bad,   Joe and Amy Alton Learn more about pathogens and 150 other medical

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Survival Medicine Hour #347 In this episode of the The Survival Medicine Hour with Joe Alton, MD, aka Dr. Bones, and Amy Alton, ARNP, aka Nurse Amy, discusses how to make those summer outdoor outings with your family, as well as off-grid survival scenarios, safer for all involved. To make a wilderness experience memorable (in a good way), you’ll need to know what factors will make the environment friendly or not-so-friendly, with injuries as the end result. Amy and Joe

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Off the grid, you will find yourself outdoors a lot, with activities like gathering wood for fuel, foraging, and hunting required to keep body and soul together. In warm weather, you just might find yourself face-to-face (or maybe face-to-ankle) with a snake. Most snakes aren’t poisonous, but a few are, including some species common in North America. The term “poisonous snake” is probably incorrect, as venoms and poisons are not the same thing. Poisons are absorbed in the gut or

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  THE SURVIVAL MEDICINE HOUR #345 In this episode of The Survival Medicine Hour, Joe and Amy Alton, aka Dr. Bones and Nurse Amy, discuss the Wilderness Medical Society’s special edition on combat casualty care guidelines applied to survival settings, where they coincide and where they diverge. Also, some basics on an important part of wound care, wound debridement, the removal of dead skin from a healing open wound. Studies show that antibiotics are important to prevent and treat wound

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Wound Debridement in Remote Settings Injuries in remote settings like a wilderness trail or survival homestead pose challenges to the medic not experienced in long-term wound care. Ordinarily, a system exists to evacuate victims of such injuries to modern medical facilities. In situations where that option doesn’t exist for the foreseeable future, however, the average person may be medically responsible from the point of injury to full recovery. This is a novel (and sobering) thought for most, and the tools

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Survival Medicine Hour #344 In this episode of the Survival Medicine Hour, Joe and Amy Alton, aka Dr. Bones and Nurse Amy, tackles a number of tough topics like, what can you put in an open wound to prevent and treat infection if a disaster happens and all you have is household items? Here’s how to use bleach and baking soda to make Dakin’s solution, used for over 100 years to prevent death from infected wounds. Also, Nurse Amy discusses

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In this companion video to a recent article, Joe Alton, MD, aka Dr. Bones, discusses the importance of dental preparedness in long-term survival settings. Perhaps you don’t need a dental kit when the power’s out for a few days, but when you’re stuck in primitive conditions and not likely to get out anytime soon, dental supplies are an important part of being an effective medic. Let’s face it, pain in your mouth can make you miserable, so miserable that your

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Dakin’s Solution One of the challenges facing the caregiver in austere settings is how to prevent infection in open wounds. After a disaster, people may be forced to perform activities of daily survival to which they are not accustomed. Injuries may occur as a result. Infections will be more likely in areas where hygiene and sanitation are questionable; without advanced medical care, a bad outcome may be the end result. A simple and affordable method that was used as far

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Survival Medicine Hour #243 In this episode of the Survival Medicine Hour, Joe and Amy Alton discuss the alternative to lidocaine for local anesthesia: injectable Benadryl (diphenhydramine). The pros and cons and its potential use in survival scenarios are explored. Also, dental issues will be a major problem for the medic in any long-term event; Dr. Bones talks about tooth abscesses and how they might be life-threatening if ignored in off-grid settings. Lastly, a discussion of the different pathogens that

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