health-letter
My platelet count has always been on the low side – 110,000. I don’t have any symptoms. But a recent lab report mentioned “giant platelets.” Is this something to worry about?
I am 78, and for about 10 years, I have been taking an 81-mg aspirin every morning with a glass of grapefruit juice. I heard that it’s not a good idea to drink grapefruit juice with some blood-thinning drugs. Is that true of aspirin too?
I am 63 and have tears running down my face at odd times. Most of the information I’ve found on the Internet is about infants with blocked tear ducts. Can you provide some information about tearing in adults?
Finasteride has been prescribed for my BPH. I think that the most frequent side effect is erectile dysfunction or loss of sexual desire. Would Levitra or a similar drug (like Viagra or Cialis) overcome the side effects of finasteride?
I heard about a new test for prostate cancer that’s better than the PSA test. Should I get this test?
A MET is a metabolic equivalent, a measure of how much energy is expended doing a given exercise or activity. Researchers gauge levels of physical activity in METs. A chart shows various activities and how many METs they expend.
About 20 percent of people with pancreatic cancer are candidates for a surgery called the Whipple procedure that removes the part of the organ where most of this type of cancer originates.
Body mass index is the most well-known way of measuring fat stored in the body, but waist circumference and waist-to-hip ratio measure different types of fat that may increase the risk of certain health problems.
I developed cellulitis in my arm and didn’t realize it was such a serious infection. It took three months to heal without treatment. Can you tell me more about cellulitis?
Following the now-established benefits of moderate alcohol consumption, research now shows that chocolate and coffee also provide some measure of benefit to health, as do sleep, sex, and a strong social network.