Last Minute

I was not in class today, due to a family emergency.

Hurry

Today the beginning of the class period was spent with our Independent Studies teacher reminding us about the upcoming dates which include paying several fees for our Graduation Rings, Cap and Gown as well as Senior Picnic. He then also reminded us about the deadline of our term paper and checked in on our progress. The rest of the class period I continued my term paper and looked for a second mentor because I need one that specializes more on my field of interest for my thesis. 

Split

Today was a split class period for me. I worked half of the class period on my term paper and the other half was dedicated to continuing research on the topic of statistics relating to facial trauma. I examined more of the statistical side to it and I will summarize everything I gathered. I will post my findings next class period along with graphs of causes and victims, maybe examine any correlation or other relationships or associations I can make based off of the information. 

Term Paper Cont. more Research

Today the beginning of the class period was devoted to receiving our graduation packets which inside contain prices of class rings, senior wear we can purchase as well as tassles. The rest of the class I devoted to researching more topics on facial trauma to continue working on my term paper showing the progress I have made from deciding my topic to now. This blog has been very helpful.

Dec. 2

This day is an important day to most of my fellow classmates because it indicates we survived Dec 1 deadlines. Dec 1 deadlines I mean as in college deadlines. Today was dedicated into working on my term paper. This paper was assigned to us last class period with the requirements we have to meet and the layout it has to follow. I have done a lot of progress over the last two days and its not hard taking into consideration the fact that I love my thesis topic. I also have along with this paper continued my research with arising questions that have been produced by the writing of my paper.

A Little Something Different

Today in class I decided to go in another direction and research face transplant news. I found an article done by US News (Health), I will attach it below. In summary it talked about the new challenges that face transplant is facing and most of it is on improving the technique which is fascinating because now its definitely an option! Before it was only considered but recently they performed the 10th ever face transplant in the United States. These results have exceeded the prediction of various surgeons and is only getting better with time. I have also provided pictures of one of the ten facial transplants.

http://health.usnews.com/health-news/hospital-of-tomorrow/articles/2014/11/21/face-transplants-raise-new-challenges-and-opportunities

Article

Today I spent my time watching a video for facial trauma and reading the following article which states the process to assess and manage patients with facial trauma. As well as their patient care. I have provided a link to the article.

http://www.jems.com/article/assess-manage-patients-facial

Maxillofacial Injuries: Pathophysiology

Today I used the class period to review for a test in AP Calculus AB but he majority of the time was spent on thesis and studying kinetic energy and its relation to Maxillofacial Injuries. 

The kinetic energy present in a moving object is a function of the mass multipled by the velocity: Below I listed some fractures. 

• Frontal bone fractures: These result from a severe blow to the forehead. The anterior and/or posterior table of the frontal sinus may be involved. Assume a dural tear is present if the posterior wall of the frontal sinus is fractured. The nasofrontal duct often is disrupted.

• Orbital floor fractures: Injury to the orbital floor can result in an isolated fracture or can be accompanied by a medial wall fracture. When a force strikes the globe or orbital rim, the intraorbital pressure increases with transmission of this force and damages the weakest aspects of the orbit, the floor and medial wall. Herniation of the orbital contents into the maxillary sinus is possible. The incidence of ocular injury is high, but globe rupture is rare.

• Nasal fractures: These are the result of the forces transmitted during direct trauma.
• Nasoethmoidal fractures (NOE): These extend from the nose to the ethmoid bones and can result in damage to the medial canthus, lacrimal apparatus, or nasofrontal duct. They also can result in a dural tear at the cribriform plate.
• Zygomatic arch fractures: A direct blow to the zygomatic arch can result in an isolated fracture involving the zygomaticotemporal suture.
• Zygomaticomaxillary complex fractures (ZMC): These fractures result from direct trauma. Fracture lines extend through zygomaticotemporal, zygomaticofrontal, and zygomaticomaxillary sutures and the articulation with the greater wing of the sphenoid bone. The fracture lines usually extend through the infraorbital foramen and orbital floor. Concurrent ocular injuries are common.

Jacqueline Saburido

Today I decided to split my time between doing a case study on Jacqueline Saburido and going over my Calculus AB material for the study check that I have later today.

The story of Jacqueline Saburido is a burn survivor due to being hit by a drunk driver. She accepted a ride home from her classmate, Natalia Chpytchak-Bennett. At the same time 18 year old Reginald Stephey was heading home after a couple of beers. On the outskirts of Austin, his car veered into Natalia's. Guerrero and Chpytchak-Bennett died instantly and Saburido was pinned under the seat preventing her from escaping. Saburido suffered second and third degree burns to over 60 percent of her body, but survived despite her doctor's expectations. All of her fingers had to be amputated, but there was enough bone left on her thumb to construct an opposable thumb. She lost her hair, ears, nose, lips, left eyelid and much of her vision. She has undergone more than 40 operations since the crash, including cornea transplants, which have restored her left eye. Below is a picture of the before and after of Jacqueline Saburido.

Upper Facial, Mid Facial, and Mandibular Trauma

Today I went in depth on the topics as stated in my title:

Upper Facial Trauma:
This particular trauma is caused the majority of the times by car accidents, the implementation of seat belt harnesses has reduced the number of these injuries. Ethiologies may range among the motor vehicle accidents to sports and falls, but both the force and focus of the blow determine the extent of the injuries located to this region of the face.

Mid Facial Trauma:
Fractures of the midfacial bones are most common in trauma relating to fallas, altercations as well as motor vehicle accidents. The treatment for midfacial trauma is to provide the patient the best aesthetic and functional result with only one procedure versus multiple. Nasal fractures are also commonly encountered and an often isolated form of facial fractures.

Mandibular Trauma:
Mandible fractures are among the most comon skeletal injuries in man due to blunt or penetrating trauma. They are associated with other craniofacial, cervical and systemic trauma. Mandibular fractures destabilize the airway and may create malocclusion, joint dysfunction, pain, infection, as well as paresthesia.

Bilateral Fracture Zygoma

Thesis class period constituted of me watching a video of reconstructive facial trauma surgery for bilateral fracture zygoma. The video was approximately 15 minutes long and it included the entire surgical process. Bilateral fracture zygoma is a rare case in which the zygoma is altered, the integrity of the zygoma is critical in mantaining normal facial width and prominence of the cheek. Traffic accidents are often the cause of this fracture to the zygomatic structure.

Below is the link to the video:

[WARNING: VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED]

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=08h73YJg4Jc#

I also found an article that related to the topic of bilateral fracture zygoma that provided me with additional information. It also analyzed the case of a 31 year old male patient.

 The link is the following:
http://www.theprofesional.com/article/vol-21-no-04/prof-2436.pdf

Videos Continued

Today I decided to use the period as a study period for my calculus test that constitutes 30% of my grade and the rest was devoted to watching the rest of the facial reconstuctive procedure since it had 4 parts.

Videos

Today I watched some videos on patients who have undergone reconstructive surgery for the majority of the period. Below are the links:

http://youtu.be/bEvVveWfU3c

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ERWeIKzLgyM#

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=jqCP2KjBlco#

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sNsAJOxt2w8#

Facial Trauma Common Accidents

The face is a vital part of a human being. Facial trauma can impair a persons ability to eat, speak, interact with others, and perform important functions. Sports like hockey, football and basketball account for a large percentage of these accidents, (among young adults 10-16). The more severe accidents happen because of motor vehicle collisions including motorcycles and all terrain vehicles. (17-19) Among combatants facial injuries include gunshot wounds and other explosive or incendiary devices. Because the face is such a complex structure involving bone, tissue, and muscle it is very difficult to repair and treat completely.

Travis and Nash

Today in class I went into the case of Charla Nash, the woman who was attacked by a bloodthirsty chimpanzee. This being another well known case was really good since there was a lot of information on it. A summary of the incident follows:

On February 16, 2009 Travis attacked Sandra Herolds 55 year old friend Charla Nash inflicting injuries to her face and limbs. Travis at the time was taking medication for Lyme disease. Other information reported was even though Travis was familiar with Nash, who worked for Herold she had a different hairstyle that day. Travis immediately attacked her when he saw her. Herold then 70 years old attempted to stop the attack by hitting him with a shovel and stabbing him with a butcher knife. Herold called the police and the recorded police call you can hear her yelling the phrase, "he is eating her!" When the police arrived to the scene, Travis tried to open a locked passenger seat and when he couldn't he retreated back to his cage with already several existing wound shots, where he was found dead.

Within the first 72 hours, Nash underwent more than seven surgeries to her face by four teams of surgeons. The visible damage was that Nash had lost her eyes, lips, mid facial structure, ears and nose as well as significant brain tissue injuries. She was featured on the Oprah show in order to spread awareness as well as raise money for all of the medical bills that would follow. Travis the chimpanzee was taken into scientific study where it was confirmed he had received laced tea with Xanax, the anti depressant drug which can cause rage, hallucinations, mania and therefore probable cause of the attack.

Below are pictures of Nash before and after the attack:


 

Two Halves, Beautiful Face: Katie Piper

Background on the title of this blog post: Two Halves (for those that skipped right to the content and did not read the title) I am splitting this blog post into two halves since that is the layout of the productivity of my class period

Today has been a very fast paced day, the clock seem to tick faster than normal or maybe that is part of my paranoia. I am donating blood after thesis class, during lunch, so I'm looking forward to that, but I had to go make my appointment so that made me arrive late to thesis. My friend caught me up on the little that I missed which was my teacher talking to us about using our thesis time wisely and reminding us that this is not a time to work on college applications. We disregard this several times, not excluding myself. There is just so many things to get done and it is easy to get distracted and side tracked on college since that is also right around the corner and a ticking bomb if you must say. Deadlines approaching.

Second half, now lets begin about my findings for the day on my thesis project. Katie Piper, does this name ring a bell? I looked into this case of facial disfiguration today in class. This is a summary of the attack. Katie Piper was a 22 year old British model, very physically attractive. "She would turn heads wherever she went" as several of her friends had said before, because of her beauty. On March 31, 2008 she was attacked with acid by a complete stranger on the street outside of a local café, security cameras captured this. Piper was rushed to the hospital, upon her arrival half of her nose was gone, one of her ears and her skin severely destroyed. Over 30 procedures were needed and she was required to wear a plastic mask 23 hours a day to speed her healing process. The suspects were caught and sentenced, one of the suspects was her ex boyfriend. Below are pictures of Katie Piper before and after the attack:

Background Facial Trauma and Children (Subtopic)

Some fun facts, not literally fun that was satirical but some facts:

• In the United States about three million people are treated in emergency departments for facial trauma injuries every year 
• Of the pediatric patients, 5 percent have suffered facial fractures.
• In the children under three years old, the primary cause of these fractures is falls.
• In children more than five years old, the primary cause is car accidents. 
• There are three types of injuries: Soft Tissue, Dental Structure, and Bone Injury

Its different in children versus in adults because facial trauma treatment is more difficult since the child still has to develop and grow and that cannot be predicted with 100% accuracy. 

Smile!

Today was picture day at my school. This event was more than exciting to me because we got to wear our graduation gowns, symbol reminding me how close I am to the finish line of this high school race. I requested transcripts from Ms. Randle as well as talked with the counselor. The class period went by pretty fast.

Face

I've discovered that I have not really specified what I mean when I state "facial trauma". Such a loose term in human vocabulary, but I have decided to specify my own definition for it, and the definition it has in my thesis project. When I mention or make a reference to the term facial trauma, I am referring to any injury to the face or upper jaw bone.

Facial traumas include injuries to the skin, underlying skeleton, the neck, nose and sinuses, the eye sockets or teeth and other parts of the mouth.

Keeping in my mind that I am diving more into the topic of severe cases, this is insight into what the term signifies. 

ACT

No blog for the day. The ACT was administered, but I was not present.

Presentations Concluded

Last day of presentations in my class, everyone did well, now to wait for our feedback.

Presentations

Today I presented what I have so far of my thesis project through Power Point. I believe my presentation went extremely well, and there were several questions toward the end which lets me know my audience was engaged in my topic. It was difficult to limit myself to the time frame specified but with summarizing a few of the topics I was going to branch off on, it was possible.

One of our counselors, Ms. Langet, later came in to the classroom to help us register for ACT.

This concluded our class period.

Haze and Brain

The weather was absolutely fascinating today when I stepped out of my house. I could just feel the breeze brushing my cheeks softly. This great start to my morning put me in a pleasant mood and I was very productive in thesis. I watched several videos on patients who have had traumatic experiences but one video that particularly stood out to me was an informative video on how trauma affects the brain. I have provided the link at the end of this post, please feel free to watch it and jot down some notes like I did. This is the first day I have touched on the brain and the psychological effects side of my thesis project.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSQvFd8tyuE

Trauma

Trauma, what comes to mind when someone thinks "trauma". Most likely a negative connotation since the word itself brings negativity to the atmosphere. If someone suffers a traumatic experience it is most definitely not pleasant. The traumas I have been researching are third degree burn patients that have been hospitalized over a long period of time as well as one patient who suffered severe dental trauma resulting in jaw reconstruction and more facial surgeries. Today I also wrote down a large quantity of notes hopefully conveying my emotion as I read the patient files. Productive day.

Progress

So far the progress I have made is gathered more acid attack encounters and looked at common factors. The majority of them have to do with envy, or simply revenge from love interests that did not flourish. It is really sad to see that such extreme measures had to be taken but it has made me more aware of the problem and definitely raised more interest on my topic. Next I want to shift a little away from acid attacks and go on to major accidents, I dont remember if I talked about this in my previous post but I am so indulged in the acid attacks that I just had to look a little more in depth. I plan to look at third degree burn accidents as well.

Bushra: Innocence Dripping

Bushra, was one of the cases that stood out in the acid attacks. What do you think of when you think of a 13 year old? You picture a girl or boy enjoyng their life, their innocence. You envision them full of joy for they have no worries even less the topic of marriage. Bushra, at the age of 13 had already been the victim of not only one but two acid attacks for refusing marriage to Javed. With her right eye and overall her right side of the face severely damaged she lowered her interest in any of her commonly done daily activities. Thankful through ASF she got the medical care and surgeries she needed to get her acid burns treated and her stability and confidence was once again restored. She has evolved into a stronger, more confident and determined young woman. Below is a photo of Bushra.

Acid Rain

Epiphany! I had a moment of epiphany over this weekend and it shifted me in the right direction. I have finalized my thesis project idea and its to research the Quality of Life in relation to (Facial) Physical Trauma: the Psychological and Body Image Effects. So far I have just researched testimonies and looked at major accidents such as third degree burns and major car accidents as well as acid attacks which need more awareness brought to them. Since I have finalized my thesis project idea I can come about and look for mentors and continue my thesis research. Below I have provided a picture of a victim of an acid attack. My following posts will be summaries of different testimonies I will research.

Brainstorm

My head remains filled with thoughts, but I have a clearer direction now. I was speaking to one of my mentors and she has been helping me get together my ideas into something I can understand. This assignment is deeper than I thought and much more complex. I'm aiming towards something that has to do with the medical care of the lower class in areas in Mexico. Many areas in Mexico today are dubbed as "Pueblos" or small town, it is in these areas which medical care is less afforded or in some pueblos it is nonexistent. (At the end of this post I have provided an image to help understand what a pueblo looks like.)  I came to this conclusion keeping in mind that I really enjoy providing service for those that cannot afford it or simply don't have equal access to it. We tend to take for granted the accessibility to several things here in the United States and don't keep in mind that not everyone is as privileged.

"We can't help everyone, but everyone can help someone." As Ronald Reagan once said.

Drift

Today I did not do much work on my thesis project but focused more on college applications as well as talked to my High School Counselor since I had to meet with her for half of the class period today. I will definitely be more on top of things tomorrow.

LO

The stress is so real, what to do when you have your mind set on a goal but no stepping stones to follow. The whole class was dedicated to Apply Texas and the Common Application. So many majors and I'm so confused, I know I want something related to biology but I'm not sure if i want to major in biology or not. And I still have not decided on a thesis topic, my life right now is a mess or at least my thoughts. Tomorrow will be another day.

Red

Thesis class was not very productive today, September 4. By productive I mean work efficient, our counselor, Ms. Marberry came and informed us about financial aid, important college deadlines, and to give us a breath of relief. With the clock ticking rapidly it is only normal for every "Taggie" to be anxious, stressed and a bit frightened. Today was an ice breaker, a sweet one, Ms. Marberry let us know that we were on the right track and everything was going to be fine. I pondered some more on the idea of my thesis project and my brain sparked on the theme of Cardiology, so maybe something of that sort lays ahead. I guess some productivity happened today [not much].


Taggie: Term used for students who attend the School for the Talented and Gifted at Yvonne A. Ewell Townview Magnet Center

Solid

The topic for this thesis have been difficult to solidify, I am thinking about one that has to do with the human body and its anatomy in relation to health sciences. Our teacher, Mr. Correa emphasized the importance of choosing a topic and spending your whole year dedicating to the creation of a final presentation that will be crammed into only 20 minutes. He presented us with a rubric and template for what our final thesis should look like and advised us that we would need mentors and other professionals. The rest of class was devoted to completing some more of the Common Application. Our class was soon concluded.