DEAR DR. ROACH: I suffer from varicose veins in my lower left leg, into the ankle and top of the foot. My question is whether it is good for my veins if I wear compression socks (knee or ankle) over the bad area, or if I should be wearing the higher thigh or full compression […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: Cough seems to be going around here in the Northwest. My wife has coughed excessively for months now. She was given hydrocodone-homatropine syrup for a month, but the doctor won’t re-prescribe it. So now my wife takes many OTC cough syrups and suppressants, plus nighttime cold formulas. None of them does anything, […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: I have a carotid artery problem. My right side is 79 percent blocked, but the left side is clear. My eye doctor said that surgery would not be necessary because the left side could take over if the right side is blocked. My regular doctor will neither confirm nor deny this. I […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: I’m a 69-year-old woman. I still have hot flashes since a partial hysterectomy at age 24. I have them day and night, and they are really getting on my nerves. My doctor is treating me with venlafaxine, which helps some. I was on an estrogen patch years ago. Is there something else […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: My wife, who is 66, has been leaving cupboard doors and some dresser drawers open for the past year or so. Is this a sign of anything to be concerned about? — Anon. ANSWER: It sounds like this is a new behavior for her, and I would indeed be concerned about it. […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am an active 68-year-old woman. I still work part time, walk 2-3 miles a day and enjoy gardening. In late April, I noticed that I was short of breath after exertion, like when walking upstairs or with intensive gardening. Two weeks later, I was so short of breath that I was […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am a 67-year-old male in fair to good health (more good than fair, really). In a recent column, you mentioned that a good testosterone level for a man taking a replacement would be between 500-600 ng/dl. In November 2016, I was tested for my testosterone level. At the time, I was […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: An almost 90-year-old friend has osteoporosis. In January, she collapsed while walking home. Now, five months after having a compression fracture of her vertebra, she says she is most comfortable while lying in bed. She has been taking OxyContin and oxycodone. She is afraid of becoming addicted. She has been advised that […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: My running friends and I are in our mid-70s (with a couple of 80-plus guys), and we continue to run, albeit at a much-reduced pace. All of us have been running for about 40 years and used to be pretty good marathoners/10K racers. We now run usually three times a week, with […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am an 85-year-old female. I had a stent placed in my heart artery in 2008, and I have been well since then. I have been on statins for many years. My present dose is 20 mg of Crestor daily. My recent values are LDL 82, HDL 53 and total cholesterol 154. […]