Episode 1 Operation Ouch!

-I'm Dr Chris.

-And I'm Dr Xand.

-We're identical twins.

-Twins!

'Do you know just how awesome your body really is?'

That's real, visible DNA.

'Well, get ready to be wowed!'

Right there is a blood vessel.

'In this new series we're delving deeper than ever before...'

It's time to saw open some bones.

'..to find out what makes your brilliant body work.'

Smell my armpits!

'We'll be doing gobsmacking experiments...'

Wow!

'..testing some mind-bending tricks,

'and we'll uncover some real medical mysteries.'

I got hit with a wooden cricket bat.

'So, are you ready to see what you're made of?'

-Coming up today...

-..on Operation Ouch!

'Find out why we're racing dominoes in the lab.'

Yes!

'We hit the streets and bend some minds.'

-It's weird.

-Yeah, really weird.

'And I discover what's hiding on your hands.'

Ooh, that is a strong smell.

'But first...'

Medical teams always expect the unexpected.

Arrrgh!

He wasn't expecting that!

'Waiting in Sheffield accident and emergency is four-year-old Lacey

'with a confectionery related conundrum.'

I pushed a tic tac up my nose and then it was stuck.

'Right, one in each nostril, was it?'

Only one.

'Well, that's something, I suppose.'

I was blowing my nose, and then it didn't...

come out.

'Oh, dear. Let's find out more about this nasal nightmare.'

Lacey was at home watching TV.

-The Dumping Ground?

-No.

-Deadly 60?

-No.

-Operation Ouch?

Xand, I don't know what she was watching. That's not the point.

The point is, she was watching TV and eating sweets.

And throwing them up in the air and catching them in her mouth?

No, Xand, that's how YOU did it.

Lacey was eating them like normal, then, all of a sudden,

she stuck one up her nose.

What? That's no place to keep your sweets!

I know. And when she tried to get it out she pushed it up even further.

Ouch!

I'm going to see the doctors, see what they say.

'Sounds like a good idea.'

'And here's Dr Chris Lamare to have a squizz at that snout.'

'Dr Chris starts by asking the question on everyone's lips.'

-Why did you push a tic tac up your nose?

-Because...

'Yes?'

Um...

'Looks like we'll never know.

'Dr Chris sees if he can spot the sweet up her sneezer.'

I can not quite see a tic tac in there.

'The cunning candy is still out of sight

'so it's time for a more hands-on approach.'

Have you ever heard of the mother's kiss?

'Ooh, everyone likes kisses from Mum.'

It's a really nice way of trying to get things out of noses.

'Maybe not this kind.'

If you press on this nostril...

and then give her a kiss...

and just blow as hard as you can into her nose.

'Mum doesn't look so sure.'

It should fire out if it's still intact.

However, it will cover the side of your face in snot.

'Ooo, nice!'

SHE BLOWS

'Any sign of that sweet?'

'Not yet.'

'Yep, there's that snot.'

I don't like that.

-MUM:

-I know, I'm sorry, darling.

It's the best way to try and get it moving.

'Dr Chris has another look to see if there's been any movement.'

Actually, I can see bits of it now.

'Oh, yeah. That tiny little white speck is part of the sweet.'

What it looks like is there's just little parts of it left.

If the main body of it is somewhere else,

then it's a bit further back than we can see.

'With bits of sweet still up Lacey's nose,

'we'll be back later to see if that missing mint is still on the loose.'

Ready to see some amazing experiments?

This is the Operation Ouch Poo Factory.

We show you how your incredible body works.

Just don't try anything you see here at home.

Today we're taking you on a journey

down your body's information superhighway.

We're talking about your nerves.

Come and have a look at this.

Now, where in the body do you think you'd find this lot?

Well, the answer is C -

it's inside your back.

This is a spinal column,

and it runs all the way from the bottom of your head

to the top of your bottom.

Now, this spinal column is from a pig, but yours is very similar.

The whole structure is designed to protect a very important

bunch of nerves called the spinal cord,

and it runs down this groove in the middle.

And this is the spinal cord.

The reason that it's so well protected inside those bones is

because it's very important.

It carries all the information from your brain to your muscles.

And what's really amazing

is that some nerves carry signals at 100 metres per second,

which is ten times faster than anyone can run, even Usain Bolt.

So how are they so fast? Well, we're going to show you.

BELL RINGS

Hang on. That's the lunch bell. Woohoo!

'Just a minute, Xand. It's not lunchtime yet.

'What's everyone doing in the canteen?'

Er, Xand, what on Earth is going on?

It's actually part of a plan to show you how nerves work.

Now, the lunch queue represents one single nerve.

All the way along the nerve are ion channels.

That's what the people in this lunch queue are.

They pass the message from one place to another,

all along the length of the nerve.

OK, I see.

So I represent my own brain, and I'm thirsty, and I want a cup of tea.

In order to get my hand to get me a cup of tea,

I have to send a message down this line,

just like the brain would send a nerve signal down a nerve.

'So my brain is using the ion channels in my nerve to send

'a message to my hand for a drink.'

Tea. OK - milk, two sugars, please.

Thank you.

Oh, this tea is very hot.

I'd better send a note to Chris's brain

to see what he wants me to do about it.

'Hurry up, ion channels, this is really hot!'

HE MOANS

Tea is too hot.

Hmmm, well, Xand's message did eventually get to me,

but it took a long time, didn't it?

From my perspective, the tea is too hot to drink,

so I'm going to go back to the lab.

Come on, ion channels.

Er, Chris?

Chris?

Thankfully, your nerves have a trick up their sleeves

to make them work a whole lot better than our lunch queue,

and we're going to show you just what that is by using dominoes.

Dominoes? Great.

Now, each line of dominoes represents a single nerve.

And each domino is an ion channel

just like those people in the lunch queue.

Now, in this line-up,

all the dominoes are side-by-side.

But in this line-up there are rulers between each domino,

and these rulers represent something called a Myelin Sheath.

Now, in your body, there is

a Myelin Sheath wrapped around many of your nerves.

This is what allows messages to travel down your nerves

in a very special way.

Both cars will go around the loop, but...

..which car is going to jump first?

Let's find out. It's time for a nerve race.

Wearing blue, in lane one, it's the rampaging ruler,

the Myelin Sheath mover, Dr Chris.

And in lane two, the green machine, the domino dominator, Dr Xand.

Drivers at the ready.

3, 2, 1... go!

Yes!

Let's see that again.

What a start from Dr Chris's Myelin Sheath

as it streaks ahead of Dr Xand's dawdling dominos.

'Exactly what happens in your body as the Myelin Sheath

'wrapped around the nerve allows the signal to go superfast

'and sends the blue car speeding to the finish.'

It's just as well, because if your nerves were like Xand's race,

you'd be the slowest-moving human on the planet.

Oi!

So, we've shown you the amazing superhighway of nerves

that is your spinal cord.

And we've shown you how they pass messages around your body so quickly

at 100 metres per second.

And that's all thanks to a layer of fat called the Myelin Sheath,

which allows messages to jump along the nerve,

getting to their destination superfast.

Right, I want to have a rematch.

-Fine, we can. But you have to set up the dominos.

-No problem at all.

OK, good.

Now, this time, I'm going to want the other line-up.

I wonder if I can get rid of some of these blue dominos.

Oh!

In the UK,

there are hundreds of rapid response medical teams on standby.

And they have to get to the scene of an emergency in minutes.

Minutes?

We are on call with the UK's emergency services,

showing you what it's really like on the front line, saving lives.

On call with me is paramedic Jan Vann.

Today I'm hitching a ride

in one of the West Midlands Ambulance Service's

rapid response vehicles.

And paramedic Jan Vann is having me along.

Jan, where's the vehicle?

How did she do that?

And a new case is just in.

We've just got a call about a five-year-old girl

not eating or drinking,

vomiting, high temperature, rash on cheek.

So, Jan, obviously, vomiting with a rash,

one of the things we've got to think about is meningitis.

Meningitis, yeah. If it is meningitis

that could be quite serious.

So treatment has to start straightaway.

'Within minutes we arrive at the scene.

'I've got my camera, and Eric's got his,

'so you won't miss any of the action.'

-Hello.

-Hello. What's your name?

-Reema.

-Reema?

-That's pretty. What's been happening, Mum?

She had a high temperature, and then every time she gets

-the Calpol, it's soothing, but it's going back again.

-OK.

'Jan checks for meningitis, which often shows itself as a rash,

'and, if not treated, this can be serious.'

Fantastic.

'Luckily, there's no rash, but she does have a high temperature.'

Reema's temperature is 39.9 degrees.

Normal body temperature should be just below 37.

So it may not sound like much,

but actually, if you're at 39.9 degrees centigrade,

that can be quite dangerous just by itself.

Is she weeing, Mum?

-She did a wee...

-When did she do wee?

About two, three hours ago.

And when you go for a wee, does it hurt? No?

So although Reema's been vomiting,

she hasn't been drinking very much, she is still making wee.

That shows her kidneys are working

and that she actually has enough fluid in her body.

So that's a really good sign.

Looking at all her observations, they are all normal,

but she's got quite a high temperature.

So the biggest problem at the moment

is that she's got some sort of viral infection.

'The good news is Reema won't need a trip to hospital.'

Hi, I'm a paramedic on scene with a little poorly child.

'But Jan makes an appointment for her to see her GP.'

What do you think of Jan?

'And it's a thumbs up from Reema.'

I mean, I was quite worried about Reema.

When we took her temperature and it was 39.9,

that is a seriously high temperature.

But, luckily, Jan's able to be really reassuring,

say it's definitely not meningitis.

'And after a visit to her GP,

'Reema was treated for a viral infection and soon recovered.'

'Still to come...

'We are 'ouch and about' solving your medical mysteries.

Next patient, please.

Dun-dun-duh!

'We bend minds.'

I don't get it.

'And I discover how mucky your mitts are.'

-When was the last time your dad washed his hands?

-Never.

-Eurgh!

Remember Lacey and the sweet stuck up her nose?

It's time to find out how she's getting on.

Her nose, Xand, not yours!

Oh, yeah.

'In Sheffield, four-year-old Lacey is in hospital after sticking

'a sweet up her schnoz.

'Lacey was at home watching TV.

'She was munching mints when she stuck one up her nose.

'Then, when she tried to get it out, she pushed it up even further.

'After trying to blow the candy out of her nose...

'..with a little help from Mum...

'..Dr Chris has only managed to see small bits of the sweet.

'So it's time to try some tools to remove this crumbly candy.'

These are crocodile forceps. Snap, snap!

'Dr Chris goes in search of the sweetie with the crocodile forceps.'

There are lots of nooks and crannies in your nose

where a sweetie could hide.

Up your nostrils,

or in your nasal passages.

Who knows where Lacey's sweetie is?

To try and find it, Dr Chris is using crocodile forceps.

It could be anywhere around here.

-It's tickling on the tip my nose.

-Is it?

'After a search up Lacey's snout, there's no sign of the sweet.'

There was a small bubble of snot that I could see,

so I tried to grip that, but there was nothing in it.

It was just soft mucus.

'If there are any pieces of the sweet left,

'they'll come out by themselves in Lacey's snot.'

'So, are you going to stick anything up your nose in future, Lacey?'

No.

-'Glad to hear it.

-Bye!

-Bye!'

-Bye-bye.

-Bye.

That that's a lot of texting!

'Now we're going to mess with your mind...'

Wait, you're him?

'..scramble your senses

'and baffle your brain!'

For today's mind-bending trick

we're going to perform an optical illusion.

Dun, dun, dun!

What are you doing?

I'm going to perform an illusion.

Xand, it's not a magic trick,

it's science. It's an optical illusion.

-Can I keep wearing my cape?

-No, go and get changed.

Our optical illusion is going to show how your brain processes

visual information.

Here we've got a lovely batch of fresh cupcakes,

but which of the two middle cakes is bigger?

First up, is Grace.

This cake is worth £1.

How much would you pay for that cake?

£1.30?

You think £1.30, so you think it's about 30% bigger?

The bigger it is, the more it should cost, because it's more yummy.

-More yumminess?

-More yumminess.

-You pay for the yumminess.

So you're sure that cake is about a third bigger

than that cake on the left?

Yeah.

'OK. So, if this yummy cake is £1,

'how much would people pay for this even yummier cake?'

-I would pay £1.50.

-You'd pay £1.50?

Probably about £1.75.

-You think that one is 75p bigger than that one?

-Yeah.

£1.50.

£2. £2?

-Really?

-I'd say £2 as well. It's taller.

I think one is taller.

It definitely looks bigger and fatter.

'Well, if you said you'd pay more for the bigger cake on the left,

'you'd be out of pocket, because, believe it or not,

'they are the same size.'

Gracie, what would you say

if I told you those two cakes are exactly the same size?

-You're mad!

-LAUGHTER

Incredible.

-No, no.

-You still think that one's bigger?

-Yeah.

-It's weird.

-Yeah. Really weird.

I don't get it.

So why do you think that one looks bigger?

Is it because of the size of the cakes around it?

They're tiny, and those ones are massive.

'Yep, they've got it.'

This trick is known as the Ebbinghaus Illusion.

It demonstrates that our brain doesn't see

the size of things as they really are,

but rather, as they appear compared to what's around them.

Both cakes are exactly the same size, but the one on the left

appears larger because it's surrounded by smaller cakes.

Right, Xand. Let's take the tray further down the street and see

if we can find some more volunteers for our experiment.

Wait a minute, the middle cakes have gone!

HE MUMBLES

Today we're back in a theme park with our mobile clinic.

Xand is preparing the Ouchmobile ready for his first patient.

And Chris is ouch and about in the park

to answer your burning questions.

Wow, I'm impressed.

At the clinic, Xand is open for business.

Next patient, please.

First in is nine-year-old Kayla, who wants to talk about her tummy.

Why have you come to the Ouchmobile today?

I have this interesting white line going down my stomach.

'What's the diagnosis, Doc?'

Sounds like a case of....

I can't wait to see it.

Now, can we have a look?

OK.

Oh, there it is.

What's interesting about this...

is that the line it runs along is called...

The Lines of Blaschko are

the little lines in your skin

that cells march along when you're growing inside your mum.

And the cells that make your skin a dark colour

are called Melanocytes - they make melanin -

and you've got a few less of them walking along that line.

I think that it's quite a special line,

and you should be quite pleased about it.

Thank you very much for bringing your amazing line

-into the Ouchmobile.

-You're welcome.

'Away from the clinic,

'Chris is ouch and about in the park solving your medical mysteries.'

Why do you go red when you're shy?

Being shy is a bit like being attacked.

Your heart rate increases

and your face goes red because there's more blood going to it.

Thank you, Dr Chris.

Why do paper cuts hurt so much?

I think the reason they hurt so much is because paper just cuts

that top bit of the skin where all the nerves are.

So it is as painful as if you cut it with a knife. Does that explain it?

Yes.

'Back at the Ouchmobile, there's a new case in the waiting room.'

Next patient, please.

And its 11-year-old Martha with a multicoloured mystery.

So, Martha, why have you come to the Ouchmobile?

I've got a bluey greeny eye with a smudge of brown in it.

What the diagnosis, Doc?

Sounds to me like a case of...

'Yep, that's what she said.'

Can you open up the eyelid on the Ouchcam?

Now, that eye is just a regular blue eye.

This one has got two different colours in it.

So we call this mosaicism, like after a mosaic.

Effectively, your eyes are made of different coloured tiles

and you've got mostly blue tiles, with a few brown tiles.

How did I get it?

So, everyone starts life as just one single cell.

That's divided in half to become two cells, then four cells,

then eight cells, until you get Martha.

And somewhere early on, one of these cells makes the decision to go,

"You know what, I'm going to be brown eyes, not blue eyes",

and those cells have stuck together, and they're in your eye.

Thanks very much for bringing your amazing eyes to the Ouchmobile.

Thank you, Dr Xand.

'Job done for today.'

-Uh, hi, Xand.

-Oh, hello, Chris.

-Er! What have you been doing?

Making toast and jam. Would you like some?

I'd love some. I love toast and jam.

Actually, no, I hate toast and jam.

-More for me!

-Whoa, whoa!

Xand, before you eat that,

when was the last time you washed your hands?

Looking at them, I'd say fairly recently.

Well, I think it's time to wash them again.

Never mind that, Chris - it's time for Investigation Ouch.

'Every single day, your hands come into contact

'with all sorts of things,

'picking up a lot of bacteria along the way.'

But just how often do we wash our hands?

Well, I'm going to find out using a special scientific tool called...

asking people.

When was the last time you washed your hands?

Er, just before I left the house,

which was probably about 20 minutes ago, maybe.

Really? OK.

-A couple of hours ago?

-Yeah.

At school.

When was the last time your dad washed his hands, do you think?

I think it was never.

You think he's never washed them?

-In the morning.

-In the morning? What time is it now?

-It's about...

-Late afternoon.

So, maybe we don't wash our hands quite as often as we think we do,

but why does it matter how clean our mitts are?

Well, there are harmless bacteria on your hands,

but your hands also play a crucial role in spreading illness.

In fact, four out of every five illnesses

are spread using your hands.

Although you don't need to wash them all the time,

washing your hands before you eat and after you go to the loo

is very important, and I'm going to show you why.

So, I'm gathering as many handprints as possible on a special jelly

which will help to show what bacteria are on people's hands.

Well done. Brilliant.

Next, I want to take a second handprint after their hands have been

washed in water to see if there's a change in the amount of bacteria.

Finally, I want to see the difference soap makes.

So I'm getting my volunteers to wash their hands with soap and water.

OK, so you do the backs of your hands, in between your fingers.

This is an absolute masterclass in hand washing.

What about a nice clean high-five?

Now our samples head off to the lab where they are put in an incubator

set at exactly 37 degrees, which is the same temperature as your body.

They will happily grow

in this perfect bacteria breeding environment for 48 hours.

Keeping an eye on our batch is virologist Rhiannon Lowe.

So, Rhiannon, what have we got here?

OK, these are the plates that haven't been washed.

So we've got normal skin flora that we've been growing up, so we've

got lots of staphylococcus species, we've got streptococcus species.

And that's exactly what you would expect from a regular hand.

This is normal hand flora - you can see the four fingers and thumb.

Check out these furry fellows.

Would you like to smell?

Oo, that is, er, a strong smell.

So these are bacteria that you might find on your hands after not

washing your hands after going to the toilet,

so there will be faecal bacteria.

'Yep, that means poo.

'And these bacteria can cause food poisoning.'

-So can we have a look at the next lot?

-Yep.

A lot of people don't wash the thumb very well at all,

so your thumb tends to have a lot more bacteria on them.

What, people just stick their...

Yeah, just wash it like that, and their thumbs stick out like that.

'So there's still definite handprints here.

'It's clear that water alone doesn't do much.'

-What about number three?

-Number three. Let's take a look.

'Squeaky-clean! Well, almost.'

There's just a few sporadic colonies.

'It just goes to show that using soap when you wash your hands

'is so much better.'

There are bacteria on your skin that are actually doing you good.

'So there's no need to keep your hands squeaky clean all the time.'

But washing your hands with soap and water, especially before you eat,

is a great way of protecting you from getting sick.

'And remember, when you wash your hands, do it thoroughly.

'A good 20 seconds of washing with soap and warm water

'will keep your mitts clean. And don't forget your thumbs!'

In the emergency department, doctors and nurses need to act fast.

Especially when strange things like this happen!

At Alder Hey in Liverpool,

waiting with his dad is five-year-old Peter.

He looks fed up. What's the matter?

I hurt my ear.

It's a little sticking out,

and there's a bit of swelling just behind his ear.

'See what you mean, Dad. That is sticking out.

'How did this ear-itable incident happen?'

It was lunchtime at school and Peter was tucking into...

-A cheese sandwich?

-No.

-Beans on toast?

-No, Xand.

-Fish and chips? I love fish and chips.

-No, Xand, it was chicken.

Mmmmm! Yum. That's a lot of chicken.

-Yes. But as Peter was eating, his ear started hurting.

-Oh, no!

-And then it started growing.

-Whoa! Like Jack's beanstalk.

Xand, this is Peter's story, not Jack's.

-Anyway, it grew, and grew...

-Come on, Chris, stop it now.

It wasn't that big!

OK, OK, but the pain did become

so bad that Peter couldn't eat his lunch.

Ouch!

Time for Dr Ashvin Luximon to find out more.

-Where does it hurt?

-Here. It's here.

'Dr Ashvin takes a closer look at Peter's ear.'

-Does it hurt when I press?

-Ow!

-It hurts there?

-Yes.

-And is it hurting inside your ear as well?

Erm, no. Just outside.

'So what's the doctor's diagnosis?'

It's quite tender to touch just behind his ear which is

where his mastoid bone is.

We just have two rule out something potentially quite serious

such as mastoiditis.

Inside your head, the mastoid bone sits behind your ear.

Sometimes it can get infected with bad bacteria.

This is called mastoiditis.

It can become serious if not treated quickly.

Peter's got his own ideas about what might happen.

You can just chop my ear off and put another ear on.

'Did he just say chop his ear off and put another ear on?'

Just chop my ear off and put another ear on.

'Yeah, I don't think we're going to need to do that.'

Phew!

'Phew, indeed!'

OK, are you ready? A little prick coming now.

'Peter's having a blood test to help the doctors decide what's going on.'

High five.

'Oh, come on, Dad.'

LAUGHTER

I'll high-five you with my foot.

'Great work, Peter.'

'After a restless couple of hours, Dr Ashvin is back,

'but the results of the blood test are inconclusive.'

It still could be mastoiditis because it is swollen

and tender there. OK?

So, Peter's blood results came back as unclear, really,

so we're going to keep him in over the weekend and admit him

for IV antibiotics which should clear up any infection.

-'So, off Peter goes to the ward.

-See you in a bit, fellow!'

'The good news is, after a couple of days, the antibiotics have worked.'

'And that's what a normal ear should look like.'

They put a needle in your hand, didn't they?

They put a needle in my hand to make me better.

He's got to take antibiotics orally,

so when he gets home we'll just carry on with that for seven days.

And hopefully, should be back to normal within a couple of days.

-'OK, I 'ear' you! Bye!

-Bye!'

Next time on Operation Ouch...

'We find out what this bone has to do with your blood...'

We're going to need some very specialist kit to cut it open.

Exactly.

'Xand hits the road with the emergency services...'

He has a life-threatening condition.

'And Ben's brain has an incredible op...'

So this is the surface of Ben's brain.

-So we'll see you next time...

-..for more Operation Ouch!

Chris!

Wait for me!

How much would each of you pay for that cake in the middle,

on the right?

-I'd probably pay £1 for that one.

-You'd pay the same price for both?

-Yes.

-BOTH: Why?

They look the same.

Now that is what you'd hope for from the police, isn't it?

The only people we haven't fooled all day.