Miracles of Modern Science

As I recover from my deviated septum sugery, the thought occurred to me that modern medical science is just amazing.

I've had a history of sinus trouble, and it has had a substantial impact on my life.  For most of my life, I've tried to limit my time in the cold.  I've become acutely aware of the telltale signs of a sinus infection.  I've had to run to the doctor a few times a year to get meds to cure them.

I had one sinus that had a partially blocked opening, which the doctor opened up.  It was the source of most of my infections in the past.  I do breathe noticeably better these days. 

It was a tough surgical procedure with a rather inconvenient recovery, but all in all, the effects appear to be substantial.  It will, in many small ways, change the way I live my life for the better.

It reminds me of getting Lasik surgery back in the Spring.  (The recovery for that, btw, was about as minimal as I could ever imagine.  It was basically, "go home, go to sleep, wake up with 20/15 vision".)

Strange how we're born with these frailties and abnormalities and just learn to cope and live with them.  More and more, medical science changes that equation for us.  I once had a fungal condition of the skin that lasted, literally, from when I was 7 years old until I turned 28.  A product came on the market, Lotrimin, that cured the condition in a week.  Literally, the sample-sized topical cream cured the condition completely.  I can't tell you about the mountains of other medications I tried throughout the years.

As I get older, it amazes me that although there are parts of my physiology that are clearly getting worse (my body is in all-out rebellion against ever letting me run long distances again, that's for sure), gradually, my life is actually improving. 

With the potential for deployment now roughly 6 months away, it'll be nice to know that I won't have to worry about eyeglasses, sinus infections or skin-rotting fungus like I did back when I served in the Army in the 1980s.

Don't get me wrong... I'd take all 3 of those conditions if it meant I could be a 17 year-old again. 

For people of my son's generation, though, they won't have to take that tradeoff.  They won't ever have to wear glasses if they don't want to.  Even for those who can't afford it, the military is now routinely and regularly correcting servicemember's vision as a free benefit. 

I just can't help but marvel that if I'm activated to military service in 2010, I will be, in several respects, in much better condition than I was in as a young man.

There are cost benefits to this, too.  One of the rationales I used for the laser vision surgery was that I wouldn't have to buy $500 worth of eyeglasses every few years.  Not to mention $200 worth of contacts every year.  Throw in the fact that I don't have the inconvenience of contacts or glasses and this is a huge, huge benefit to me.

Imagine the cost-benefit if this had taken place when I was 16, instead of 43?

The deviated septum surgery?  Imagine the cost of 2 or 3 doctor's visits per year and 2 or 3 scrips for antibiotics?  Yeah, it may take a decade or two, but the benefit is there. 

So, I'm thankful for all the stuff the doctors have fixed.  Like anybody, there are things I wish were different that the doctors won't be fixing in this lifetime.  Like anybody, there are things that are getting worse every year. 

However, overall, I'm fortunate that thanks to modern medical science, I actually am ending this year with a much better body than I started it with.