University Daily Kansan/Wednesday, Aug. 19, 1987
7
New clinics will treat TB and hypertension
Staff writer
By STORMY WYLIE
Staff writer
High blood pressure and tuberculosis may not seem like common health problems that affect many KU students, but they do, a Watkins Hospital spokesman said recently.
To treat these diseases, two new health clinics will be offered to KU students this fall at Watkins Hospital.
The hypertension clinic will treat students with high blood pressure. The INH clinic, named after the drug isonicytin hydrochloride, used to treat tuberculosis, will treat students who have positive tuberculosis skin tests.
Free blood pressure tests will be given on a walk-in basis, Woods said. If a student has high blood pressure, he will be encouraged to come to the hypertension clinic.
These clinics will be held one or two days a week and may open in mid-september, said Jody Woods, nurse practitioner at Watkins.
"The first thing the doctor will do is examine the student to rule out other diseases," Woods said. "Then he will educate the student and talk about proper diet and exercise to bring the blood pressure down to a normal level."
Most students suffer from high blood pressure around mid-term and final examinations and graduation.
Jim Strobl, director of student health services, said the free blood pressure tests also would be available to faculty and staff members, but not the hypertension clinic.
Watkins operates solely on student health fees, which are included in tuition costs. Faculty, staff and visitors to the University may be treated at Watkins for a fee.
Although tuberculosis, also known as TB, is not the major health problem it once was in the United States, it still is a contagious bacterial disease prevalent in many foreign countries.
At the University, the student groups most likely to have positive tuberculosis tests are military and foreign students and those who have studied abroad. Woods said.
Last fall, 151 KU students had positive tuberculosis skin tests. Twelve more tested positive during the spring semester. About a year ago, two KU students were found to have active tuberculosis.
Active tuberculosis primarily
affects the lungs, although other parts of the body may become infected. Symptoms include fever, weakness, loss of appetite and coughing.
A positive tuberculosis test does not mean that a student has active tuberculosis, Woods said. Students who test positive may experience none of the symptoms, but may feel tired or run down, Woods said.
Students being treated also will have blood tests every other month to test for any side effects of the medicines, Woods said.
All students at the University should have a tuberculosis skin test, Woods said. These are usually given during a physical. If a student tests positive, he will be referred to the INH clinic for treatment.
These two new clinics will be offered in addition to regular clinics offered at the hospital. These include allergy injection, general medicine, gynecology, health education, mental health, nutrition counseling, physical therapy and sports medicine clinics.
At the clinic, students being treated for TB are given two medicines, isoniazid and pyroxodine, also called vitamin B-6, which must be taken once a day for a year. A year's supply costs a student about $20.
Strobl said the hours of the sports medicine clinic may be extended this fall and more staff members may be added. The clinic is now open from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. each day and may be extended to regular clinic hours.
Watkins Hospital's regular business hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Monday through Friday. The hospital is open 24 hours, seven days a week.
The health care that KU students pay when they enroll covers medical evaluations, examinations and most treatments. It also covers some laboratory tests, nutrition counseling, health education services and first-time visits for mental health services and physical therapy.
Students pay for medications, X-rays, minor surgery, out-patient observations, laceration treatments, some laboratory tests, mental health services and physical therapy.
Student health insurance also is available at a reduced rate through GM Underwriters Inc. An insurance representative is based on campus at Watkins.
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