Health & Wellness - March 2015 Archives

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: My mother, 67, was recently diagnosed with peripheral artery disease. She has been having leg pain and other symptoms for many months. She was prescribed medication but her doctor said she may need surgery. What would that involve? Are there any other treatment choices? ANSWER: In people who have peripheral artery disease, narrowed arteries limit blood flow to the arms and legs. When the limbs do not get enough blood, it can trigger a variety of symptoms. The most common include leg pain when walking, leg cramps after doing an activity, leg numbness and leg weakness. If left untreated, pain and other symptoms may get worse over time. Treatment for peripheral artery disease usually includes lifestyle changes and medication. For many people, those two therapies are all they need to effectively manage the disease. If they are not enough, though, a procedure to open blocked arteries (angioplasty) may be recommended. Surgery to bypass a blocked or narrowed artery can be another useful treatment option for some cases of peripheral artery disease. Lifestyle changes often can help ease symptoms and slow the disease’s progress. Smoking is one of the biggest risk factors for peripheral artery disease. Smoking frequently leads to artery narrowing and damage. It also can make the disease get worse more quickly. If your mother smokes, quitting is one of the most important steps she can take to combat peripheral artery disease.

The Major League baseball season is about to begin, and for many of us, it signals the start of outdoor fitness activities. To avoid injury, it's ...

Hernias are a common medical problem. Each year in the U.S., about 800,000 inguinal hernias are surgically repaired. On this week's Mayo Clinic Radio, surgeon ...

THIS WEEK'S TOP STORIES Help yourself to better sleep with these tips Eager to catch more z's? See what to avoid during the day and how to prepare for bedtime. Prophylactic oophorectomy: Preventing cancer by surgically removing your ovaries Angelina Jolie Pitt recently had surgery to prevent ovarian cancer. Get the facts about this procedure and weigh the pros and cons. EXPERT ANSWERS What are superbugs and how can I protect myself from infection? Superbugs are strains of bacteria that are resistant to a lot of antibiotics used today. Cold or allergy: Which is it? Do you get a "cold" each spring? It could be allergies. Learn how to recognize the symptoms. Click here to get a free e-subscription to the Housecall newsletter.

Lake City, Minn. - Migraine is three times more common in women than in men and affects more than 10 percent of people worldwide, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Mayo Clinic Health System Family Medicine physician Rachel Batdorf, M.D., says, "Although any head pain can be miserable, migraines are often disabling."  In about 15 percent of cases, these painful headaches are preceded by a sensory warning sign (aura), such as flashes of light, blind spots or tingling in your arm or leg. Migraines are also often accompanied by other symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting and extreme sensitivity to light and sound. Migraine pain can be excruciating and may incapacitate you for hours or even days.

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: I am 43 and have started having trouble with my vision while reading. I know this is common for someone my age, and I do have “readers” that I sometimes use, but am hoping to put off regular glasses as long as possible. Am I doing harm by waiting? How often should I have my eyes checked? ANSWER: It is true that the vision changes you are noticing are very common in people in their 40s. But you are not harming your eyes by waiting to get reading glasses. You may find it useful to get an eye exam now, though, to see if glasses could be helpful and to check for other eye problems. Regular eye exams are recommended for adults beginning at age 40. As we age, our eyes gradually lose their ability to focus on objects nearby. The medical term for this process is presbyopia. It typically becomes noticeable in the early to mid-40s and continues to get worse through the mid-60s. Many people become aware of presbyopia when vision seems blurry at a normal reading distance, and they have to hold reading material farther away to see it clearly.

Cancer treatment and fertility  Some cancer treatments can affect your ability to have children. If you're planning to have a family, know your fertility ...

It’s a video that's been seen around the world – the first time Allen Zderad sees his wife in more than a decade with the assist of a retinal prosthesis, or “bionic eye implant.” Mayo Clinic ophthalmologist and eye surgeon Raymond Iezzi, Jr.,M.D., talks about what the success of his patient's eye implant means to him as a physician, why this story resonates with people and how this technology is affecting Allen’s life. Dr. Iezzi says Allen is "like a kid in a candy store, experiencing his environment in ways he never has before." Click here to find original video and background on this story. Stay tuned to the Mayo Clinic News Network for an update when reporter Dennis Douda and photographer Andy Shilts visit Allen at home to see how he's navigating life with his new eye. Pronunciation key: Dr. Iezzi:  eye-Eh’-zee Allen Zderad:  zur-Ad’ Journalists: Soundbites with Dr. Iezzi are available in the downloads.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkOkg3Ok5aE Mayo Clinic oncologist and gynecologic surgeon Jamie Bakkum-Gamez, M.D., is available to provide context for reporters wishing to better understand preventive surgery for gynecologic cancers. This is in light of actress Angelina Jolie’s announcement she had her ovaries and fallopian tubes removed as a cancer prevention strategy. MEDIA: To interview Dr. Bakkum-Gamez, contact Joe Dangor at 507-284-5005 or e-mail newsbureau@mayo.edu Journalists: Sound bites with Dr. Bakkum-Gamez are available in the downloads.

The Major League baseball season is about to begin and, for many of us, it signals the start of outdoor fitness activities. To avoid injury, ...

ROCHESTER, Minn. — As employees and employers face higher health care costs, work site wellness centers are becoming increasingly more important to help control the ...

Did you know the menopausal transition known as perimenopause begins four years before a woman’s final menstrual cycle? It’s true. Hormone production from the ovaries often starts to change when a woman is in her 40s, and thus the time between periods begins to shorten. "Some women have menopausal symptoms clustered around the time of menses," says Kathryn Gruenwald, M.D., Mayo Clinic Health System obstetrician and gynecologist. Others do not. It’s important to know that perimenopausal symptoms are common and usually diminish with time. Approximately 80 percent of women experience symptoms such as hot flashes, sleep disturbances, mood changes and vaginal dryness during perimenopause. Other symptoms include: Headache Vertigo (dizziness) Itchy skin Restless leg symptoms Heart palpitations Difficulty concentrating Breast tenderness Constipation Bloating Muscle and joint aches