Neurosciences - October 2016 Archives

As a commercial airline pilot, Tyrone Nanton spends his days in a standard blue-and-white uniform. But in his off-hours, Tyrone’s creativity emerges in two favorite hobbies: creating colorful, elaborate costumes for carnival in his native Antigua, and painting. From 2006 to 2015, though, a tremor that got progressively worse made his hands shake so much that it kept him not only from those artistic pursuits, it eventually kept him from flying. When the tremor started, Tyrone went to see a neurologist near his home in Brandon, Florida. To control the shaking, he was given a medication typically used for seizures. Due to regulations, however, the airline barred use of that medication. Tyrone had to find a different drug to manage his symptoms. Over time, however, even with an ever-increasing dosage of that medication, his tremor worsened. “I couldn’t hold a glass with one hand. I couldn’t eat with a knife and fork,” Tyrone says. At that point, Tyrone could not continue flying. He had to take medical leave and go on disability. Tyrone says he couldn’t imagine no longer being a commercial airline pilot. Seeking options after his local neurologist said there was nothing else that could be done, he decided to get a second opinion. 

For people with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), everyday tasks can be daunting. Symptoms such as fatigue, dizziness and stomach problems greatly impact quality ...

Everyone has one of those days, now and then, from the minute you wake up, you're dragging. But for people with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome ...

Oct. 23, 2015, is a date that Nikole Prins will always remember. It’s the day she finally learned the reason for the bizarre symptoms she had been dealing with for more than half her life. Nikki precisely recalls the time she heard the news. It was 1:24 in the afternoon when her doctor called with the results of an MRI she had the previous day. “I was diagnosed with Chiari malformation,” says Nikki, who lives in Owatonna, Minnesota, and received care at Mayo Clinic Health System in Owatonna. “No one wants to be told at 21 that you have a brain malformation. I cried a lot.” For years, Nikki had experienced a range of symptoms that included lightheadedness, fainting and extremities that tingled when she stood up, as well as migraines that got worse while she was standing. As a preteen, she was told she was having syncope episodes when she got lightheaded. Later, physicians made the diagnosis of postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome. But neither diagnosis nor any treatment had an effect on her symptoms.

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: My father, who is 79 years old and in good health, has become quite forgetful. He seems to recognize that it’s ...

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — In what the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has described as a pioneering effort, a research team at Mayo Clinic’s campus in ...

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Mayo Clinic recently was added to Wal-Mart’s Centers of Excellence network for spine care. Wal-Mart associates will receive a benefit that provides them ...

ROCHESTER, Minn. — The Ryder Cup may be over, but maybe you’re revved up to get on the greens for  some fall golf. You ...