Newspapers / Elon University Student Newspaper / Nov. 1, 2001, edition 1 / Page 8
Part of Elon University Student Newspaper / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
Page 8 News Nov. 1, 2001 Students may be leaving the gym with more than sweaty towels Megan Myers Reporter Doctors’ appointments and col lege breaks go hand-in-hand. Par ents flock to make dentist and der matology appointments as students flood home. What if the dentist informed you that all those late nights spent studying fueled by bottles of soda has left you with a new cavity? Or worse, what if the dermatologist told you that all that lifting at the gym, swimming and tanning has exposed you to a common noncan- cerous viral skin growth? Students with defined biceps, washboard abdomens and pulsating calf muscles leave college fitness cen ters with energy, flushed cheeks and sweat-soaked towels each day. But these are not the only things with which they leave, only the ones that can be seen. Molluscum contagiosum could be lurking on the handlebars of a stationary bicycle, the seat cushion of a bench press or a shared towel. Similar to warts but caused by pox viruses, molluscipoxvirus mollus cum contagiosum is easily spread by skin-to-skin contact and can enter the body through small breaks in the skin or hair follicles. As you read this article, your palms begin to sweat and your heart begins to pound. I work out. I go tanning. Do I have molluscum contagiosum? Once thought of as a children’s disease, molluscum contagiosum has evolved into a sexually trans mitted disease in adults. There are several other ways to acquire the virus. While molluscum contagiosum can be transmitted sexually, it can also be transmitted from inanimate objects, including towels and cloth ing, and it is associated with swim ming pools and tanning beds. Au toinoculation, touching a lesion and touching another part of the body, can also transmit the disease. “It’s common,” said Kitty Parrish, director of the R.N Ellington Health Center and nurse practitioner, “Lots of people have it.” Once infected, two to five mil limeter diameter flesh-colored or pink dome-shaped growths will appear in clusters on almost any part of the body, excluding the palms and soles. Molluscum may be shiny and have a small indenta ECOnference: Students, leaming and acting Dana Gowland Lauren Farrell Reporter On Oct. 19-21, more than 1,500 students and activists gath ered at George Washington Univer sity to network and learn about en vironmental issues at a convention sponsored by ecopledge.com. Workshops, training sessions and speakers such as Jim Hightower and Congressman Earl Blumenauer of Oregon empowered students to re turn to their campuses and spread the word of the latest environmen tal campaigns and issues. Over fifty organizations attended, includ ing Greenpeace, the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life, Sierra Club, the State PIRG’s, and Alaska Coalition. Topics presented ranged from environmental racism to animal rights to nontoxic tampons. Even closer to home for Elon students, is the “Tree Free Campus” campaign sponsored by Free the Planet! and Rainforest Action Network. It is an effort to get all college campuses nationwide to become “tree free,” meaning no virgin wood products are used. All North Carolina State schools currently use 100% re cycled paper and hopefully Elon will follow suite and begin to use recycled paper products as well. For more information about this cam paign go to www.freetheplanet.org or www.ran.org. If you are con cerned about environmental issues and policies and want to learn more contact Dana Gowland at dgowland@elon.edu or Lauren Farrell at farrl8e0@elon.edu. tion in the center. Lesions are usu ally found in areas where skin touches skin. Molluscum may be come red and inflamed, which oc curs just before the growth is ready to go away on its own. “If it isn’t typical,” Parrish said. “It’s hard to diagnose and can ini tially look like ring worm.” Simi lar to any other contagious infec tion, the more a person is exposed to the virus, the more likely he is to develop lesions. Young children, who have not yet developed immu nity to the virus, those who live in tropical climates and those infected with HIV are most susceptible to the virus. “The best way to prevent infec tion is to wash your hands,” Parrish said. “While molluscum can be sexually transmitted, one can also become infected through close per sonal contact. Just make sure you see equipment at the gym cleaned and remember that molluscum is self-limited, it goes away by itself.” “Some gyms place towels and cleaning products next to machin ery other than cardiovascular equipment, but its not very sani tary,” Michelle Zimmer, assistant director of Campus Recreation said. “We would rather people wipe the machines off with their own towels rather than the same one over and over again.” According to Zimmer, machines are cleaned once every two hours or each time there is a change in shifts at the fitness center. Regardless of how one is in fected, there are several ways in which to deal with the condition. If scratched, molluscum can be come infected with bacteria and spread, according to the McKinley Health Center at the University of Illinois. Infected individuals should also avoid shaving contaminated areas. While treatment is done for aes thetic reasons, it also prevents the spread of the virus, which can take anywhere from six months to five years to go away without treatment, according to the American Acad emy of Dermatology. A curette, a sharp spoon-shaped instrument, can be used to remove centers. Le sions can be treated with liquid ni trogen or nitrous oxide. Additional treatments include electrocautery, an electric needle, or a daily application of a topical retinoid cream or gel, with a topi- Amy Cowen / Assistant Photo Editor Lindsay Adam, like most stu dents on campus, worls out in the gym with no warning of the disease. cal immune modifier or antiviral medication. Multiple treatments may be needed every three to six weeks until growths go away in dependently. Treatment can lead to minimal scarring. Molluscums can return, but ac cording to the American Academy of Dermatology, new drugs are be ing developed to treat the viral in fection. Have you met the One Who conquered, not with sword, but through His own death, burial and resurrection? Celebration! meets with Him every Sunday in a nondenominational worship service 10:30 a.m., McEwen Dining Hall Sponsored by Antioch Community Church, J, Mark Fox (421-6532)
Elon University Student Newspaper
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Nov. 1, 2001, edition 1
8
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75