Ask the doctor: Do cataracts need to be ripe for surgery?
I think I may have cataracts. I heard somewhere that they need to be ripe before I get surgery. Is that true?
Content restricted. Requires subscription
In Brief: Study strengthens evidence that early marijuana use increases risk of psychosis
An analysis of studies suggests that use of marijuana during teenage years not only increases the risk of developing psychosis, but may also cause psychosis to manifest sooner than in others who are not marijuana users.
Content restricted. Requires subscription
In Brief: After high school, youths with autism spectrum disorders lose access to services
When young people with autism spectrum disorders leave high school, they are less likely to continue making use of services intended to help them socialize and improve their communication skills.
Content restricted. Requires subscription
Assertive community treatment
Assertive community treatment offers individualized, multidisciplinary care to the more severely mental ill, allowing them the opportunity to live and function in their communities instead of in institutions.
Content restricted. Requires subscription
New insights into the nocebo response
Patients in clinical trials sometimes experience the nocebo effect, which describes what happens when those assigned to receive the placebo exhibit side effects associated with receiving the real medication.
Content restricted. Requires subscription
Ask the doctor: What is agoraphobia?
My daughter tells me her new roommate is afraid to leave a 10-block area around their apartment in New York City. She has something called agoraphobia. What is that?
Content restricted. Requires subscription
Editor’s note
The editor in chief of the Harvard Health Letter introduces the 2011 edition of a special issue comprised entirely of “Ask the doctor” letters from readers.
Content restricted. Requires subscription
Ask the doctor: Nuclear stress tests
I recently had a nuclear stress test and the contrast agent got stuck in my gut, so the image couldn’t be read. Is this a common problem, and is there anything that can be done about it?
Content restricted. Requires subscription
Ask the doctor: Seborrheic keratoses
I have a bad case of seborrheic keratoses on my back and chest. What can you tell me about this skin problem?
Content restricted. Requires subscription
Immune System Suspected in Type 2 Diabetes
New research suggests that type 2 diabetes may result when the immune system makes antibodies against fat cells. The antibodies attack the cells so they can’t use insulin properly. This is called insulin-resistance. Researchers fed mice that weren’t yet insulin-resistant a high-fat diet. After several weeks, the researchers gave some of the mice a drug called anti-CD20 (a drug for humans called rituximab). The rest of the mice (the control group) got no treatment. The drug-treated mice didn’t develop insulin resistance. They had normal blood sugar levels. The other mice all became insulin-resistant. The researchers say that the results suggest the possibility of one day having a vaccine that protects obese people from developing type 2 diabetes. The study was published online April 17 in the journal Nature Medicine. HealthDay News wrote about it on April 17.
Content restricted. Requires subscription