"This blog was developed to provide medical updates that are important and have my perspective as additional insight."
….IS RELISHED BY THE WISEST MEN” Among my favorite quotes by Roald Dahl, it’s the motivation for this new column on my website that will focus on humor. A good joke from the internet is great medicine, so I thought to share them on the site and I’ll begin with a series of wonderful …
3-3-3….THE WAY TO BE PAIN FREE….is a little rhyme to help you remember a simple way to take care of significant aches and pains that develop from injuries sustained by over-exertion or injury. This refers to the dosing of Ibuprofen (Advil). You take 3 tablets (200mg each…total of 600mg)….. 3 times per day…… for 3 …
MYTH: Valley Fever, also known as Coccidiomycosis, is a fungal infection found commonly in the Southwestern US. Named after the San Joaquin Valley in California, not our Valley of the Sun, it is caught by inhaling infectious spores from aerosolized dust and the fungus is ubiquitous in Phoenix dust. Dogs are more susceptible to Valley …
Read More “MYTH OR FACT: YOU CAN CATCH VALLEY FEVER FROM YOUR INFECTED DOG”
WB writes: Doctor Doug. Take a look at the accompanying article on how Hemp oil, derived from cannibis, is helping in the fight against cancer. My response: WB. Thanks for sending this on to me as I’m always curious what patients are reading and what influences their thoughts. I always like to keep my mind …
Read More “A PATIENT HEARS THAT HEMP OIL CAN TREAT CANCER….AND I RESPOND.”
What are a PPI and an MI??? Who cares….I saw the wordy “sexy” in the title so I decided to click this article and now I find it’s just a misleading come on. Actually, this header for the article is just the point: Provocative and salacious headlines create interest. And among the older set, the …
Read More “SEXY RESEARCH TOPICS GET COVERAGE…PPI’S AND MI’S”
SHINGLES IS CONTAGIOUS FROM PERSON-TO-PERSON. MYTH!!!! Shingles is reactivated Chicken Pox Virus (Herpes Zoster) from your own body—It comes from within (just like enlightenment!) You cannot catch Shingles from someone else. Shingles occurs when a nerve in your own body releases Herpes Zoster Virus down it’s length, creating a small patch of skin …
Read More “MYTH VS. FACT: SHINGLES IS CONTAGIOUS PERSON-TO-PERSON”
I was recently emailing my patient J.R. and the topic of his upcoming 90th birthday was on my mind. We ran into each other in Las Vegas ten summers ago when he was having a party for his 80th, so I thought I’d ask him his secrets for making it to 90. In his response …
Read More “THIS TIME, DR DOUG ASKS THE QUESTIONS AND A PATIENT RESPONDS”
A recent warning to avoid fish oil during chemotherapy for cancer treatments raises the question: Can vitamins and supplements do more harm than good? In the case of cancer patients taking fish oils, this might be the case. In mice, the administration of fish oil, while getting a common chemotherapy agent cisplatin (used in …
I’ve always been interested in the basis for understand how ‘we know’ things that we know. As a result of this, I became a philosophy major at Arizona State, and although I focused most intently on the Platonic Dialogues, and the Philsophy of Science, Epistimology (theories of knowledge) was an area of fascination. How do …
Yes…..I thought I might brag a little…about how amazing the Class of ’87 was at Hopkins, as the first classmate of mine from Hopkins to become a Dean of Medical School just was announced. Dr. James Hildreth, an MD-PhD from my Hopkins class is now taking up the Medical School Deanship of Meharry Medical College, …
PUBLISHED APRIL 1ST, 2015 “Doctor Doug; I have arthritis and cannot seem to move my fingers well. As a result, I am having a tough time texting my grandchildren and would like some medical tips to help me out.” Signed, B.U. Well BU, there is no question that osteoarthritis, the most common form of …
Read More “A PATIENT ASKS ABOUT TEXTING WITH ARTHRITIS….AND I RESPOND”
A recent study used BOTOX injections in the stomach (through a stomach scope) to delay emptying of the stomach, increase fullness, and to thus result in weight loss. The initial study looks promising, with larger trials to come. In the future, rather than doing surgery, we may be doing every 3-6 month injections of BOTOX …
KISS is a famous acronym that I love: Keep It Simple Stupid That, along with “Brevity is the soul of wit.” are two of my favorites. Here is a nice article with simple recommendations for how to eat in a healthy manner. It does not take an entire book to tell you the rules, …
It came as a shock to me today that my old professor, Dr. Levi Watkins, had suddenly died at the age of 70 from a heart attack and stroke. A tall, lanky cardiac surgeon, renowned at Hopkins for his skill and temperament, he was recognized throughout the institution as a ‘great man’ for his pioneering …
As you know, I’m a big fan of TED TALKS. It’s a great website for expanding our vision of the world and gaining new insights. A patient recently sent me this video that I’d not seen. Louie Schwartzberg is an amazing producer of films about the hidden world all around us. Take a look and …