DEAR MAYO CLINIC: I’ve been hearing a lot about regenerative medicine lately. What is it exactly, and what can it be used for? ANSWER: Regenerative medicine is an emerging discipline in medicine and surgery focused on finding ways to boost the body’s ability to heal itself. It examines new therapies and advances new ways to manage diseases that go beyond current medical treatment. Regenerative medicine is really poised to revolutionize disease management, offering potential solutions throughout a person’s life for a spectrum of diseases. Today, treatment for many diseases focuses on managing symptoms. For example, insulin therapy keeps diabetes under control. Dialysis does the work of a failing kidney. Medications ease the strain on a damaged heart. In contrast, the aim of regenerative medicine is to reverse the course of the disease by targeting its root cause and repairing diseased, injured, or defective tissues and organs to restore their function and structure.
DEAR MAYO CLINIC: My daughter developed numerous hemangiomas, most of them on her face and stomach, when she was a few months old. She is now 6 years old and they have not gone away. She is self-conscious of them and people are always asking about her condition. Is there a safe way to surgically remove them? Will she have them her whole life? I had been told they should resolve on their own before she was in school. ANSWER: Even though they usually are not present at birth, hemangiomas are considered a type of birthmark. Typically these red marks on the skin grow during a child’s first year of life and then begin to slowly shrink and fade. Hemangiomas can take a long time to go away and in some cases they never disappear completely. There are ways to remove hemangiomas that last or that cause problems. Hemangiomas are caused by an abnormally dense group of extra blood vessels. Many hemangiomas appear as flat, red marks on the skin during the first several weeks or months of life. They can be on any part of the body, but are most commonly located on an infant’s face, scalp or neck.
DEAR MAYO CLINIC: I am newly pregnant and not looking forward to the terrible morning sickness I experienced with my first two pregnancies. There were weeks when it felt like I could not keep any food down. What causes morning sickness? Is there any way to prevent it? At what point should I be seen by a physician? ANSWER: It is not clear what causes morning sickness — the nausea and vomiting many women have during pregnancy. There are home remedies you can try that may help. If you start to lose weight, if you can’t keep liquids down or if vomiting becomes severe, see your doctor right away. Although it is called morning sickness, that term is not accurate, as the symptoms can happen any time and, in some women, may last all day. Morning sickness is most common during the first trimester. But when it starts and how long it lasts can vary quite a bit. In a small number of cases, morning sickness can be an issue throughout pregnancy.