Remote Telemedicine is Coming Soon to You

Imagine this, Dear Patient.  You wake up and feel like you were hit by a truck.  Your head aches and when you look in the mirror you are shocked to see a rash running along your left ribcage.  It is slightly prickly and tender and you are freaking out.  To make things worse, you are in day two of a long awaited vacation and hundreds of miles  away from your favorite doctor.

What do you do?  Try

Having a Baby in 1930

Flash back to 1930.  Look at this bill for childbirth.  10 days in hospital - $50
Circumcision - $3
Total - $53


According to Forbes, the total charge in 2009 for an uncomplicated birth with 3 day hospital stay at Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles was $36,625.

That seems a little high but good luck trying to find out the actual charge ahead of time.  You better round up between $7,000 and $15,000 and

Brush Your Teeth or Risk Heart Attack

The British Medical Journal reported on a study of  toothbrushing and found that people with poor oral hygiene had an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and heart attack.  We have known for the last two decades that inflammation plays an important role in atherosclerosis.  Markers of low grade inflammation like C reactive protein, are also shown to be higher in heart disease.

The Scottish

Viagra and Hearing Loss

A study published in the Archives of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery reports that men who have taken sildenafil (Viagra) may experience sudden sensorineural hearing loss.  More than 2 dozen reports have indicated an association between sudden hearing loss and taking the phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitor, Viagra.

This study compared subjects with and without hearing loss and looked at whether

Yoga Helps Cancer Survivors

Patients who carry a diagnosis of Cancer can be heartened by the results of a study that will be presented June 5 at the upcoming American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting.  The researchers found that the practice of Yoga helped cancer survivors improve sleep quality and reduce fatigue.

The lead researcher, Dr. Karen Mustian, professor of radiation oncology and community and

Answer to Medical Quiz

The answer to yesterday's medical challenge is #1 Basal Cell Cancer. These cancers are often slow growing and have a pearly appearance.   Basal Cell Cancers are easily removed by excision.

This group of Basal Cell Cancer's shows the different ways they can appear. The only way to confirm the diagnosis is by biopsy.

(photo from WebMD)

Doctor Pricing Upfront and Transparent

A company in the Los Angeles area called HealthyPrice has posted prices on its website for 400 procedures and over 100 physician office visit fees.  For patients without insurance or who have high deductibles, the ability to go online and really "shop" for the best deal is something long overdue.

Here is how it works.  The patient goes online and chooses the provider for the test.  It might be a

Skin Lump - You Be the Doctor

This 71 year old man comes to the office with a lesion on his cheek that has been there for sevdral years. He thinks it is getting larger and it does not bleed or hurt.  You are the doctor.  What is your diagnosis?

1. Basal cell carcinoma
2. Squamous cell carcinoma
3. Wart
4. Seborrheic keratosis
5. Melanocytic nevus

Make your diagnosis in the comments and the answer will be posted tomorrow.

What Women Should Know About Fibroids

Fibroid tumors are benign growths on the muscular wall of the uterus.  They can be tiny in size, like a marble or grow huge and fill up the entire uterine cavity.  Some fibroids are as large as a five month pregnancy.  Here are some facts that women should know about fibroids:
Fibroids can occur at any age but are most common between ages 40-50.
Common symptoms are prolonged or heavy periods,

"Daily Affirmation"

This is how we should all start our day. Happy Monday!

What You Can Do to Lower Cholesterol

Your doctor has just informed you that you have "hyperlipidemia"  or high cholesterol.  She is mentioning lipid lowering drugs (statins) but you said you want to try some things on your own first.  She agrees and you will recheck the blood levels in 3 months.  What are you going to do?  The advise is all over the ballpark and your google searches come up with various supplements and diets that

The Winners!

Announcing the winners for the Subway gift cards.  Congratulations to SML,  Anon2 and Craig.  Each of you will receive a gift card in the mail if you will contact me and send me your address.  Enjoy the free healthy meals from Subway and EverythingHealth.

Keeping Kids Safe On Social Networking Sites

My mom came from the McCarthy communist hunt era.  She would always say,"don't write anything you wouldn't want everyone to read and don't sign anything without reading it...you might be admitting you are a communist".  As a kid, I had no idea what she was talking about but those words stuck with me.  I am careful about what I write and I am careful with emails and the internet too. 

Working Overtime Linked to Heart Disease

The European Heart Journal studied 6000 British civil servants and followed them for 11 years.  They found that working an extra 3-4 hours a day is associated with increased coronary heart disease.  The researchers controlled and adjusted for lifestyle, cardiac risk factors and other factors that would skew the results and still found that people who worked 3-4 extra hours a day had a 60%

Check it Out

Two things:  Head over to The Examining Room of Dr. Charles for this weeks Grand Rounds roundup and also scroll town a bit and enter the Subway free card give-away.  Hey...free is good for your health.

Some Gender Stereotypes are True

I get good info from my blog followers `nd SJ sent me a link that was pretty interesting.  Here are some gender stereotypes that have a basis in science that might be a surprise to you. 

Women spend lots of time with colors, calling them mauve, pure ivory and ecru.  Men see pink, white and yellow.  Are women just color obsessed?
 Science tells us that color blindness only happens in men because

EverythingHealth Giveaway Contest

We all know how important a healthy breakfast is.  But what do you do if you are on vacation? Or have a kid rushing to an early morning soccer or band practice?  What about those times that mom is just not available to get it together?   EverythingHealth loves a contest with a free healthy giveaway and here is your chance to win!

Subway (yes, that fast food subway!) has introduced a nutritious

Older Mothers

An EverythingHealth blog fan requested that this post from 2007 be reposted in honor of Mothers Day.   I've updated it a bit and here it is:
Something has dramatically changed in the appearance of parents from the 1960s and the parents of children in the 21st century. Looking around at the adults with kids at schools, parks and ballgames, I can't help but think, "Gee, is that the parent or

Mothers Day

Happy Mother's Day to all of us who are mothers or who have a mother.  That is everyone!!!  For some touching thoughts, check out today's Post Secret.  It's  Mom's Day tribute.

Things Your Kids Will Never Know About

The one thing we can all agree on is that nothing stays the same. We marvel at the customs and habits of our great grandparent's era and everything looks so grainy and antique.  Here are a few things that we took for granted that our kids and grandkids will never see, except in old photos:



a phone book
a rotary phone, a pay phone stand and eventually any land line phone
a record or

Gulf Coast Oil Spill

On Day 17 of the tragic oil spill from the drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico, this is what it looks like from the air.  Oil continues to pour into the Gulf from the undersea well at about 210,000 gallons per day.  The pinkish oil is now at the shore of New Harbor island, a national wildlife refuge and nesting ground for sea birds.  West of the mouth of the Mississippi River, hundreds of dead

Men With Penis Enlargement Banned From Police Work

Ok, leave it to EverythingHealth to bring you news you can use.  Look, I scour the health news so you can be up to date and informed without leaving the comfort of your computer chair.  Papua is the largest province of Indonesia and men there use a local technique to achieve penis enlargement.   They wrap the penis with leaves from the "gatal-gatal" (itchy) tree which causes the penis to swell. 

Your Genes Determine Which Diet Works

Why do some diets work better than others?  Why can your best friend lose 10 lbs with a low carb diet and your weight just hovers?  Why can some people eat just about everything, and still stay skinny?  It's all in the genes.  Mindy Dopler Nelson, Ph.D., of Stanford U. reported the results of her study at the American Heart Associate conference.  She found that a single nuceotide polymorphism