Blog
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The “Iceberg” Wound: Understanding Deep Tissue Injuries
When we think of a skin injury we usually think of something that happens from the outside in such as a scrape, a cut, or a blister. As an in-home nurse practitioner specializing in wound care, I often see a much more deceptive type of wound: the Deep Tissue Injury (DTI). Unlike a typical scrape,
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Beyond Redness: Identifying Pressure Injuries on All Skin Tones
In the medical world, we are often taught that the first sign of a pressure injury is “non-blancable erythema”–a fancy way of saying a red spot that doesn’t turn white when you press on it. But there is a significant flaw in that standard: it primarily describes how a wound looks on light skin. As
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Why Your Back Pain Might Actually Be a Foot Problem
I often walk into a patient’s home and hear them describe a nagging ache in their lower back or a sharp pain in their hip. They are often surprised when the first thing I do is ask them to take off their shoes and socks. “It’s my back that hurts,” they tell me, “not my
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The Truth About Toenail Fungus: It’s Not What You Think
I want to clear the air immediately: toenail fungus is NOT a hygiene problem. Having fungus under your nails does not mean you are “dirty.” In my practice, I see fungus in the cleanest of homes. It is an opportunistic infection which means it will grow wherever the opportunity exists. Fungi love dark, moist, and
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5 Common Foot Care Myths That Could Be Hurting You
In my daily practice as a nurse practitioner, I spend a lot of time “unlearning” old habits with my patients. Many of the most common foot care beliefs are outdated or even dangerous–especially for those of us navigating the changes that come with aging. Today, I want to pull back the curtain on a few