The Russians insist for gastroenteritis vodka with black pepper. A couple of kids even got out of detention when they found vodka in their rooms, because the parents explained it was medicinal. It turns out this was not just an excuse, but is widely believed. They use vodka for many of their health problems. I've never tested this theory out, but they truly believe it, Who knows?
A grain of sugar in a hard to get out splinter - a Zimbabwean nurse showed me this, and it really worked. The sugar apparently draws in fluid, and the splinter works its way out. Never used it myself, but watched the result when my colleague has. There have been some stories in the papers about the use of sugar lately, so they might have some hard evidence soon.
Fractured clavicles - we had some problems because the Russian parents insisted a middle clavicle fracture should be operated and put back in alignment, while local doctor's said no. Parents still angry despite 3 doctor's recommendations, and flew child home for surgery.
Bedrest - for minor coughs/colds, Russian parents insist on complete rest in bed, and the insist that a temp of 37.0 centigrade is a fever.
Just some of the interesting things I've come across.
Doctors put sugar on a prolapsed rectum--yes, this is the US, and a "real" medical center. The sugar would draw the fluid out of the prolapsed rectum, and, in theory, make it easier to reduce. So we brought in sugar packets from the coffee machine. Didn't work, and the pt. still needed surgery, but there is a therapeutic use for sugar (other than treating hypoglycemia).
Exact same way they do in the Veterinary office for dogs' prolapsed uteruses. (uteri?)
Anybody work with leeches and maggot therapy? End of shift leech count was my favorite.
Anybody work with leeches and maggot therapy? End of shift leech count was my favorite.
Thorazine for intractable hiccups.
We use leeches on the trauma floor. I had a patient with one on her neck, just behind her ear, that came off in the bed... she was uncomfortable to begin with, but once that thing was in the bed with her she flipped out. Can't say I blame her.
Thorazine is old school, but Haldol can also be used for intractable hiccups. Atypical APs can also be used as adjuvant pain medication.
Leeches are absolutely the best thing for superficial thrombophlebitis, if you only can convince the patient to accept them. Their poison has potent antiinflammatory and analgetic properties not shared by bivalirudin.
Aeons ago in Soviet Union we had a rare and quite expensive drug made from the poison of one specie of vipers. You added couple of drops of it to 250 cc of sterile water, soaked a sponge in the solution and applied it at the place of a bleed. It stopped instantly. Worked for every capillary and some venous bleeds, nosebleed, large surgical areas, etc. as a miracle. Only one trouble was the DIC it induced from time to time.
OP, if you go through medical practices of foreign countries you will find many and then some more of most interesting things which really work. Medicine is not ended at the borders of the USA.
I'm going to try that sugar trick for splinters. I wonder if it would work with the spike of a goat head getting broken off in your foot? That happens to me constantly.
Some of my family members are very much into holistic/natural medicine. And anti-vaxx.
Hard to keep my mouth shut.
Googled "vodka" as medicine and found out that it has been used for centuries for all kinds of things. Interesting.
Doesn't happen anymore (that I know about) but doctors would taste urine to diagnose diabetes. I'm thinking they could just spill it and let it dry . . . very sticky.
My great aunt was a rural public health nurse, beginning in the 1920s. She talked about finding enlarged livers on babies because of the Eastern European immigrant mothers rubbing vodka on babies' gums to help w/ teething.
Not sure how unusual this is, but years ago the ENT service would order a beer down the FT TID. We gave it just like a bolus feed. They figured most of these pts are chronic alcoholics, and the beer will prevent DTs better than a Valium protocol
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Mavrick, BSN, RN
1,578 Posts
Exact same way they do in the Veterinary office for dogs' prolapsed uteruses. (uteri?)
Anybody work with leeches and maggot therapy? End of shift leech count was my favorite.
Thorazine for intractable hiccups.
Meat tenderizer for clogged feeding tubes.
Honey for wound therapy is totally legit