May 2022

DEAR DR. ROACH: A few years ago, when being prepped for a colonoscopy and gastroscopy, I had an IV line inserted into my right arm with a sedative in it. As I waited to pass out, I noticed a large air bubble slowly moving down the IV line toward my arm. I got concerned about an air embolism and called the nurse over, who pooh-poohed my concern: “It’s just an air bubble! It won’t hurt you.” I insisted on seeing the charge nurse, who came over, turned off the drip, and flicked the line with her finger multiple times, getting the air bubble to move up the line. She then pinched the line shut and turned the drip back on and flicked the line a few more times, until the air bubble floated into the IV bag and wobbled to the top. She released her pinch on the IV line and said: “There. Are you happy now?” and walked away.

HAYS, Kansas — The COVID-19 pandemic hit air travel hard. The number of canceled flights skyrocketed, airlines hemorrhaged billions in losses and a lack of passengers turned once-bustling airports into ghost towns.