DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I ask you for an honest opinion on a potential medical-legal matter. My 82-year-old father has been treated for Parkinson’s disease for almost two years. The medicine prescribed didn’t improve him one bit. I took him to a neurologist for a second opinion about a week ago. It turns out my father […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I’m a 67-year-old woman whose back has been acting up for a year. My doctor told me I have spinal stenosis and to take Tylenol for it. The Tylenol doesn’t kill the pain all the time. My doctor says I just have to learn to live with it. I would like a […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I’m a 67-year-old woman whose back has been acting up for a year. My doctor told me I have spinal stenosis and to take Tylenol for it. The Tylenol doesn’t kill the pain all the time. My doctor says I just have to learn to live with it. I would like a […]

Artery hardening still very much with us DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I’m what you’d call an old-timer. When I was young, I used to hear about artery hardening all the time. In his old age, my grandfather was quite out of it, and everyone said he had artery hardening. I don’t hear the term used at […]

Artery hardening still very much with us DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I’m what you’d call an old-timer. When I was young, I used to hear about artery hardening all the time. In his old age, my grandfather was quite out of it, and everyone said he had artery hardening. I don’t hear the term used at […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: Is a blood pressure of 165/95 all that bad? I know my dad’s blood pressure has been over 200, and he’s still alive at age 79. I take a water pill, but I’d like to lower it without any medicine. Is that possible? How? — K.C. ANSWER: Normal blood pressure is a […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: Is a blood pressure of 165/95 all that bad? I know my dad’s blood pressure has been over 200, and he’s still alive at age 79. I take a water pill, but I’d like to lower it without any medicine. Is that possible? How? — K.C. ANSWER: Normal blood pressure is a […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I have had to deal with eczema since I was a kid. The worst part of it is the itching. I try not to scratch, but during sleep I do it without waking. I have seen a number of doctors, but I cannot get rid of this awful curse. Are there any […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I have had to deal with eczema since I was a kid. The worst part of it is the itching. I try not to scratch, but during sleep I do it without waking. I have seen a number of doctors, but I cannot get rid of this awful curse. Are there any […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: When exercising, I sometimes have itching. Will you comment on this? — W.M. ANSWER: One possibility is something called cholinergic urticaria. It’s an outbreak of itchiness and tiny red dots, so tiny they can be hard to see. They’re a miniature version of hives. The cause is an increase in body temperature […]