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OTC product may soften skin on feet and fingers

September 30, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: Tell your readers that A&D Ointment is absolutely wonderful to use on dry areas, such as fingertips, cracked heels, hands, elbows and more. I get cracks in my heels. I have learned to wear only 100 percent cotton socks and not to wear sandals too frequently. Open sandals quickly contribute to dryness and dirt.

I soak the affected area in warm, soapy water (using mild soap) before bedtime, apply the ointment, and then put on the socks. It is amazing how much healing occurs during one night. It can be repeated as often as needed and is also inexpensive and safe.

I have tried this with Vaseline and have found that it doesn’t have the same healing power.
[Read more...]

Filed Under: Daily Column, Leading Letter Tagged With: , , ,

Thigh burning/stinging may be due to sciatica

September 30, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: Your column has helped me with my leg cramps. I am writing because I have a concern. For many years, I have had intermittent burning sensations on my inner thighs and buttocks, sometimes with the feeling of pins and needles. I have seen a dermatologist, but because she could not see anything on my skin, she said she couldn’t help. I am at my wits’ end.

DEAR READER: Burning, stinging, pain, pins and needles, and other abnormal sensations of the buttocks and thighs are often the result of a spinal problem, most commonly sciatica. This condition is caused by impingement of the sciatic nerve in the lower back, usually caused by a slipped, ripped, torn or otherwise displaced disc. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Daily Column Tagged With: , , , ,

Pleasing everyone is impossible

September 29, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: In regards to the person who was irritated because he or she thinks your answers are too long, thus he or she did not enjoy your column as much as when the answers were shorter, I think if this person wants only short answers, he or she should get a medical encyclopedia.

I hope you keep your answers just as they are. This person obviously does not have a serious health issue right now or has not had a health concern, whereas many letter writers have suffered for months, if not years, and are still suffering after seeing many doctors and specialists without relief.
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Filed Under: Daily Column, Leading Letter Tagged With: , ,

Heat-induced nausea common

September 29, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: I have had recurring nausea for several years that occurs only in warm weather over 75 F. It starts in April and continues until September.

I’ve been to six doctors, including a cardiologist, neurologist, physiologist, ear-nose-and-throat specialist and the VA. I’ve had all their tests but no diagnosis.

DEAR READER: It may be a surprise to you to discover that heat-induced nausea is rather common. These illnesses occur when a person’s body-temperature control system overloads. We cool our bodies by sweating. With some of us, sweating is inadequate and body temperatures rise.
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Filed Under: Daily Column Tagged With: , , ,

Abnormal bruising needs testing

September 28, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: My mother is 63 and doesn’t take anticoagulants or OTC pain relievers but bruises for no apparent reason. An area of her body will begin to itch and then bruise. The bruise follows the normal course of color change and then disappears.

Her eye doctor saw “floaters” in her eye and sent her to a specialist because he thought she had a detached retina. After testing, it was discovered her “floaters” were flecks of blood.
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Filed Under: Daily Column Tagged With: , , ,

Osgood-Schlatter possible cause of ‘growing pains’

September 28, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: I wonder why you didn’t mention Osgood-Schlatter disease in your column about growing pains. Our son, who is now 38, had this condition when he was 12 and had to have both legs (one at a time) put into a cast for two months.

DEAR READER: Osgood-Schlatter (OS) causes a painful lump below the kneecap (where the tendon attaches to the shinbone) in some children. It results from growth spurts during puberty and typically occurs in children who participate in sports that involve jumping, running and swift changes in direction.
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Filed Under: Daily Column, Leading Letter Tagged With: , , ,

How many envelopes do I send?

September 26, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: If I order two or more of your health reports, do I need to send more than one self-addressed stamped envelope along with the check?

DEAR READER: This is a question I have been receiving more and more frequently, so I have decided to print the answer in the hopes that others will benefit, as well.
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Filed Under: Daily Column Tagged With: , ,

Readers offer advice for dealing with motion sickness

September 26, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: Please tell your reader about Sea Bands. They really work. My local doctors are even giving them to chemo patients, pregnant women suffering from morning sickness and patients suffering from postoperative sickness.

DEAR DR. GOTT: I guess you don’t have motion sickness. In my opinion, the worst thing you could have a kid do is look out the side window of the car. Watching the trees and things flash by would always set me off as a child, whereas looking out the windshield was fine. The best thing that helped me was having the window down and the air blowing directly on my face. Even now, if I become queasy in an airplane, adjusting the vent to blow onto my face takes care of it.
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Filed Under: Daily Column, Leading Letter Tagged With: , ,

Sarcoidosis treatment: Watch and wait

September 25, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: I was diagnosed with sarcoidosis after many bone-marrow tests, blood work, X-rays, pet scans and finally by removal of my spleen, which was greatly enlarged and filled with nodules. I requested a second opinion on the diagnosis, and the second doctor agreed with the first. It is inactive but in my lungs, and he tells me the normal treatment is 60 milligrams of prednisone daily for up to two years to reduce the scarring and inflammation. But, with that high dose, it will cause other major problems.

I am white, in my late 50s and have multiple other problems — asthma, fibromyalgia, high blood pressure, rosacea, borderline high cholesterol, osteoarthritis and low oxygen at night that isn’t sleep apnea. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Daily Column, Leading Letter Tagged With: ,

Skin condition has few treatment options

September 24, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: I have been plagued for years by an incurable skin condition I am told is called prurigo nodularis. Nothing has helped in clearing it up, and it has been active for more than two years. I have tried a sunlight box and a tanning bed, as well as cortisone injections, medical cortisone tape and creams — both over-the-counter and prescription. All seem to help only a little.

Do you have any idea as to how I can get rid of this or at least keep it under control? I eat healthy and take vitamins.
[Read more...]

Filed Under: Daily Column Tagged With: , ,
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