DEAR DR. ROACH: My husband and I are both 74 and in general good health. He never washes his hands when he comes in from working as a public accountant. He doesn’t wash his hands when he sneezes, or after touching meat and poultry when he cooks. He smokes and is a functioning alcoholic. He […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: About five years ago, I came down with essential tremor. I have tried many medicines. Currently, I’m taking propranolol and primidone, but nothing seems to help. The only thing that stops the shaking is a glass of wine. I have inquired about a laser procedure, but I found out that it’s a […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am 61 years old and in good shape. I have Crohn’s disease, which makes eating a good diet difficult. Fruit and fresh vegetables go right through me. I can digest a banana. My doctor just told me that my total cholesterol is 215, HDL 45 and LDL 146. Should I consider […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: In January 2014, I was diagnosed with a benign neoplasm of my cerebral meninges (meningioma). I am a healthy 64-year-old Caucasian woman. I do not take any medications. The finding was incidental. I have no symptoms from the meningioma. I sometimes feel as if my mental capacity has declined somewhat (such as […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: Last summer I went camping and ran out of clean water. I had to boil water and drink it without any treatment tablets. That evening, I had painful cramps in my stomach, and in my upper abdomen, under my ribcage. Since then, my digestion has been horrific. I have constant rank gas […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: What do you know about flesh-eating bacteria? After going to a hospital to get a mole checked, I developed an itchy rash that won’t go away. I am worried. — H.W. ANSWER: Let me reassure you that this isn’t flesh-eating bacteria. Itchy rash around a mole can be due to eczema, or […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am a 69-year-old white male. I take one 20-mg pravastatin per day to manage my cholesterol. One of the side effects is joint pain. Are you aware of a substitute that does not have this joint pain side effect? — H.L. ANSWER: Statins are one of the most common medicines used, […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am an 84-year-old female with a protruding stomach bulge. My surgeon confirmed that it’s a hernia, which I got while taking care of my handicapped husband (who recently passed away). Since I had two abdominal surgeries two years ago, he does not want to do surgery again. The hernia is located […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: I have a stent, but also a knee replacement, for which I take four 500-mg capsules of amoxicillin each time I go to the dentist, including just for cleaning. This is per my surgeon’s orders. Do you have any information that would question the necessity of this? — M.W. ANSWER: Bacteria can […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: My daughter-in-law has stage 1 breast cancer and has just started her chemotherapy. I am concerned about her decision to fast for two days before and one day after each treatment. She weighs only 90 pounds, and fasting while you are trying to fight cancer does not sound like a good idea. […]