_ Medical Care ΓÇ£Lab Developed TestsΓÇ¥: FDA to Ensure Reliability By Sondra Forsyth article On July 31st 2014, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration took important steps to ensure that certain tests used by health care professionals to help diagnose and treat patients provide accurate, consistent and reliable results.
_ Complicated Grief: When Sorrow Is Overwhelming By Jane Farrell article Losing a loved one is one of the most distressing and, unfortunately, common experiences people face. Most people experiencing normal grief and bereavement have a period of sorrow, numbness, and even guilt and anger. Gradually these feelings ease, and it's possible to accept loss and move forward. For some people, feelings of loss are debilitating and don't improve even after time passes. This is known as complicated grief. In complicated grief, painful emotions are so long lasting and severe that you have trouble accepting the loss and resuming your own life.
_ Breast Cancer Acupuncture Helps Breast Ca Patients By Sondra Forsyth article Use of electroacupuncture (EA) ΓÇô a form of acupuncture where a small electric current is passed between pairs of acupuncture needles ΓÇô produces significant improvements in fatigue, anxiety and depression in as little as eight weeks for early stage breast cancer patients experiencing joint pain related to the use of aromatase inhibitors (AIs). That is the finding of a randomized, placebo-controlled trial examining the intervention led by researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and published online in July 2014 in the journal Cancer.
_ Kidney Disease Drug Halves Risk of Kidney Transplant Rejection By Sondra Forsyth article Oxford University scientists in the UK have shown that a powerful drug given at the time of a kidney transplant operation not only halves the early risk of rejection, but that it also allows a less toxic regimen of anti-rejection drugs to be used after the operation.
Blended By blog Are you an Adam Sandler fan? We are all fans here in our house. One year for Christmas, [my late husband] Tim got me every Adam Sandler movie he had made so far. I love most of his stuff, but I donΓÇÖt really ever buy videos because I keep things simple when I can. I appreciated the thoughtful gesture, though. My favorite duo is Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore.
_ Exercise Does Air Pollution Make Outdoor Exercise Risky? By Sondra Forsyth article By Edward R. Laskowski, M.D. While aerobic activity is one of the keys to a healthy lifestyle, air pollution and exercise can be an unhealthy combination. This is especially true if you have asthma, diabetes, heart or lung conditions, or lower respiratory disease. Even when you're not exercising, exposure to air pollution can cause health problems. But with the combination of air pollution and exercise, the potential health problems are increased.
_ Alcohol and Aging By Jane Farrell article Although we often associate drinking too much with younger people (parties, bars, spring break vacations), alcohol abuse is a problem at any age. And while itΓÇÖs true that younger people drink more than older people, alcohol abuse presents some age-specific issues for seniors. Here, from the SeniorHealth division of the National of Health (NIH), is an explanation of the damaging effects, and how you or a loved one can get help if itΓÇÖs needed.
_ Medical Care Update on Telehealth By Sondra Forsyth article By Miles E. Drake, Jr., MD ΓÇ£TelehealthΓÇ¥ or ΓÇ£telemedicineΓÇ¥ have been used more or less interchangeably over the past 50 years to describe the provision of health care services and exchange of health information by electronic means. The initial concept of telephonic and later computer-based medical interaction and education was defined by the Institute of Medicine as ΓÇ£the use of electronic information and communications technologies to provide and support health care when distance separates participantsΓÇ¥.
_ Breast Cancer Breast Ca Screening for Older Women = High Cost But No Benefit By Sondra Forsyth article Medicare spending on breast cancer screening increased substantially between 2001 and 2009 but the detection rates of early stage tumors were unchanged, according to a study done at Yale and published July 16th 2014 in the JNCI: Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
Aging Well Senior Health WhatΓÇÖs Really Keeping You From Aging Well? By Sondra Forsyth article By Dr. Kevin J. McLaughlin During my experience as a health care provider, I have realized that, when it comes to aging well, many older women are worried about developing cancer, especially breast cancer, more than any other age-related diseases.
Excellent Advice from Maya Angelou By blog ΓÇ£Never make someone a priority when all you are to them is an option.ΓÇ¥ ΓÇô Maya Angelou Now thereΓÇÖs something I wish I had known at 18, instead of waiting until I was in my 40s! I know I made far too many others priorities throughout my life, when they only saw me as one of many options. This came from my unfortunate habit of not valuing myself fully. Get some self-respect early on. DonΓÇÖt wait.
Aging Well A Drug to Slow Aging By Sondra Forsyth article A drug called rapimycin may mimic the effect of dietary restriction, one of the most-researched methods for slowing the aging process, according to an article published in The Journals of Gerontology, Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences/em> in June 2014.
_ 7 Colonoscopy Myths Debunked By Jane Farrell article By Digestive Health Team, Cleveland Clinic Everyone has reasons for not getting a colonoscopy. Often, itΓÇÖs based on misunderstandings ΓÇô both about the procedure and about colon cancer, says Carol A. Burke, MD, Director of the Center for Colon Polyp and Cancer Prevention in Cleveland ClinicΓÇÖs Digestive Disease Institute. People may not realize that colon cancer is one of the most preventable cancers ΓÇô and that a colonoscopy is a short, mildly uncomfortable test that can save their life.
_ Menopause Are You Setting Off Your Hot Flashes? By Sondra Forsyth article By Gary Elkins If you start taking note of your hot flashes, you may recognize some events, emotions, or activities that actually seem to contribute to, or ΓÇ£trigger,ΓÇ¥ the onset of a hot flash. Scientifically speaking, while the physiology of hot flashes is associated with a decrease in estrogen level or an increase in gonadotropin concentrations, the actual physiological mechanism of hot flashes is not known.
_ Pain Management Getting Rid of Chronic Pain By Jane Farrell article As people age, chronic pain becomes a real problem. In your younger years, you probably had pain for a short while ΓÇô from a broken arm, say, or a bad toothache. But pain can become a constant, unwelcome companion for older people who have age-related illnesses like arthritis, cancer or diabetes. However, though chronic pain often accompanies aging, that doesnΓÇÖt mean itΓÇÖs something you should put up with. DonΓÇÖt delay going to your doctor. Here, from the National Institute on Aging (NIA), are tips on how to talk to your doctor so your pain problem can be solved.
_ Medical Care Docs Say ΓÇ£AMENΓÇ¥ When Patients Pray for a Miracle By Sondra Forsyth article Cancer clinicians and a chaplain at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center have developed a new tool to help doctors, nurses, and other health care providers talk to dying patients and families who are, literally, praying for a miracle.
_ Beauty & Style Cancer Center Hair Skin Skin cancer Summer Beauty, Health, and Fitness Dilemmas By Sondra Forsyth article Top experts share tips on how to sidestep some top seasonal ailments so you can savor your summer days. DonΓÇÖt Get Burned by Skin Cancer