DEAR DR. DONOHUE: Since my first periods until now, at age 30, my menstrual periods have never been regular. My husband and I have tried to have a baby for the past four years. Could my menstrual cycles be involved with not being able to get pregnant? What would you recommend? — L.R. ANSWER: I’d […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I’ve played sports all my life and have been on many school teams, including college-level teams. Always before practices and games we had to do stretching exercises. I wondered then what good they did, and I still wonder. I don’t see many teams going through those drills. Maybe they’re doing them in […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: Four months ago, while getting out of my car, I slipped and twisted my ankle. It swelled quite rapidly. I went to the nearest emergency room, where they took X-rays. Nothing was broken, but the doctor called it a strain and told me what to do for it. Two months later, there […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: Please help us learn more about a disease called Peutz-Jeghers syndrome. Two years ago, when she was 16, my granddaughter had periodic, terrible stomach pain. My daughter took her to the emergency room for one of these episodes. Two hours later, she was in surgery for a bowel intussusception. Last week, she […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I am a 57-year-old woman. Seven years ago I had a bone density test that showed I had osteoporosis. I was put on Fosamax. I started getting kidney stones a couple of years ago, so my kidney doctor took me off Fosamax. I had a recent bone density test, and my osteoporosis […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I believe I read in your column about something that can be given for hepatitis C. My doctor says there isn’t any treatment. Will you please advise me? — Anon. ANSWER: Chronic infection (lifetime infection) happens to about 80 percent of those infected with the hepatitis C virus. Worldwide, the virus infects […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: We have a baby boy who just turned 1. Two weeks ago, he had a seizure. I knew he was out of sorts, but I thought it was just a minor, passing thing. My husband and I were scared silly when he began shaking. It didn’t last long, and as soon as […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: My 12-year-old son is something of a phenomenon when it comes to baseball, and he loves playing the game. I haven’t pushed him into it. He’s a particularly awesome pitcher, and his coaches are amazed at what he can do. I practice with him every day. He now has a sore elbow […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I have suffered with shingles for the past six months. My daughter, who lives a long distance from me, is coming for a visit. She’s pregnant with her first child. I wonder if I should let her come because of my shingles. I know shingles is related to chickenpox, and I don’t […]

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: For three springs in a row, I’ve had poison ivy. I don’t recognize the plant and wouldn’t know what to do if I did recognize it. What exactly should I do? — R.B. ANSWER: You need to look at pictures of poison ivy and burn those images into your brain. You’ll find […]