April 14, 2003

Today is the day to loot something.

Lent is almost at an end, but we Catholics keep watch at Knotmag.com.

Well, the questions have come in, and Dr. Hot Pants has answered. She worked hard for your benefit, white coat on, pencil in hand, tequila shot at the ready. Please welcome her first installment. She will be answering more questions next week; if you have any queries, simply email me with the subject line reading "Hot Pants," with a gracious patience, understanding that the doctor must spend time on her goal of being a doctor in addition to her position of chief resident of Zulkey.com

Ask Dr. Hot Pants: Issue #1

Dear Dr. Hot Pants,

What is the medical term for a scab? Are there different types of scabs? Which, if any, are okay to pick at?

Oliver Alling, Chicago

Dear Oliver,

A scab is defined by Stedman's medical dictionary as "a crust formed by coagulation of blood, pus, serum, or a combination of these, on the surface of an ulcer, erosion, or other type of wound." A scab may also be referred to as an incrustation (which is also the process of scabbing over), and a dry scab is known as an eschar. Scabs will be different based on the type of wound that induced them and the material that forms them (blood, pus etc) although to the best of my knowledge specific terms for specific types of scabs are not commonly used. Although it is tempting, it is really not a good idea to pick any kind of scab. Incrustation is an important part of the healing process and picking only serves to delay healing and to greatly increase the risk of infection or scarring. It is a much better idea to soak scabs in warm water to soften them up, to wash the affected area with antibiotic soap, and to cover them with a band-aid if needed to keep the wound clean. I also just found out that HealthBoards has a message board going for die-hard scab pickers, which seems like a weird thing to bond over but might be of interest.

--Dr. Hot Pants

Howdy,

Why DOES my pee smell funny after eating asparagus? I asked a few of my friends if they had noticed the same thing(about their own asparagus pee, I wasn't walking around with a jar) and they claimed not to know anything about it. Thanks.

Still claiming DPG,
Russell
Victoria, BC

Dear Russell,

The reason that your pee smells weird after you eat asparagus has to do with certain metabolites that get sent to your bladder when your body digests the asparagus. There is some controversy over exactly what the compound is, but the most recent study I've seen (and there are a surprising number of studies) was a 1987 article in Xenobiotica (Xenobiotica 1987 Nov;17(11):1363-71) claiming that the smell is due to a variety of sulfur-containing compounds including methanethiol-- which interestingly is also suspected to be a narcotic in very high concentrations. Even more interesting (to me, anyway) is the probability that the ability to smell these compounds in urine is a genetically determined hypersensitivity to certain smells. So if you and your friends are really close and you all ate asparagus together, you would be able to smell the odor in their pee as well as in your own, although they would not be able to smell it in any sample even if you did walk around with a jar. The entire world is divided into people who can smell methanethiol in pee and people who can't! I personally like to think of it as being almost like a superpower-- although I'm not sure if your non-smelling friends will be all that jealous. Anyway, I hope that answers your question....

--Dr. Hot Pants