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From: Alan Tauber <Alan@DrumConnection.com>
Sent: Monday, January 10, 2000 11:15 PM

Here is an article I wrote a few years ago that bears repeating. Hope it
helps.

As an educator of percussionists and especially hand drummers I would like
to share with you some important information on this much maligned subject.

If you are bruising your hands you MAY be doing more harm to your body than
you are aware of. In researching this with help from the Internet I have
located documents on "Conga Drumming and Blood in Urine" that date back to
1941. Unfortunately, I have recently had personal experience with this
condition. I ended up in the hospital.

I was preparing for a performance trip to Senegal in which I was the lead
drummer and soloist. For three months our group rehearsed and rehearsed-
many nights a week, many hours a day. (I also was playing djembe with my
band). I had bruises on bruises but continued through it all thinking that
I would toughen up and make it through to the other side. I didn't. I wound
up in the hospital with 'acute renal failure', kidney malfunction or
disease. I lost 80% of the functioning of both kidneys due to the damage I
did to the muscles if my fingers and palms. Twice, my urine was the color of
cola. The rest of the time I seemed okay. Now I know better. Santana's
drummer used to have this happen to him and many others but I never knew
why. I always thought that it had something to do with 'straining some
muscles somewhere'. It's not! Blood, or by products of same comes from the
bruising (tissue death) in the hand muscles.

Technical terms: Rhabdomyolysis, Myoglobinuria, Hemoglobinuria and Acute
Renal Failure.

How am I two months later? Much better. I'm back to playing but it takes a
while for the kidneys to recover. And the hand muscles took a few months to
fully recover, which I didn't expect.

Advice? Never go there! As I say to my students, "If you're hurting your
hands, you're playing to hard and probably incorrectly". Did I heed my own
words? No. Feel pretty dumb; the desire to play well for the concert in
Senegal got in my way. So, don't play so hard that you bruise. Secondly;
drinking lots of fluids at least one hour before and a half hour after
playing will help. Thirdly; the ingestion of baking soda or Tums can help
the kidneys function better. Taken about an hour before playing and again
after playing will help. This changes the acidity of the urine to alkaline
and allows better clearance for the creatinine, a by product of the muscle
tissue breakdown. But this should not be necessary if you listen to your
body and not overdue it for any sake; Yes, even for the music.

Often asked question:

If I've had blood in the urine, are my kidneys damaged?

Don't worry...take a blood test! There is a simple test for CR or creatinine
level. You could get tested before playing and then have a second test after
a long, hard performance and see the difference. Your doctor would have to
set this up for you, but it may be time and effort well spent.

Blood in the urine can be a serious sign; don't pass it by.

Alan Tauber
Harvard University
8 Garden Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
781-862-6675
Alan@DrumConnection.com

From: "Tim" <timkrk@earthlink.net>
Sent: Tuesday, March 21, 2000 1:39 AM

The info from Alan is good if you have dark urine, this may indicate a
clearance problem for your kidneys especially if you have been drinking
plenty of liquids while playing. If you have not been hydrating, the
dark urine can indicate dehydration, this can also cause burning during
urination.

Another problem is actually seeing red in your urine. You look in the
commode and see pink or strings of blood clots. This comes from
mechanical damage to the groin, assuming you are not ignoring an STD.
Sometimes it can come from damage to the bladder. In any circumstance,
you need to get to a doctor quick.

I drum in the desert southwest. Dehydration is a very big problem here.
Drink even if you are not thirsty. Your body does not sense the water
loss adequately in very dry conditions to count on the thirst mechanism
working.
TimKirkpatrick

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Blood in Urine
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