General Health (Page 56)

If you have coronary artery disease, that means an artery that supplies blood to your heart has plaque in it, which can obstruct or limit blood flow. With chronic total occlusion (CTO), a form of coronary artery disease, an artery in the heart becomes completely blocked. [caption id="attachment_10966" align="alignright" width="350"] Smoking is…

Ryan Gentzler, MD, specializes in thoracic oncology at UVA and is part of the multidisciplinary lung cancer team at UVA Cancer Center. In this post, Gentzler debunks common myths about lung cancer in support of Lung Cancer Awareness Month. Lung Cancer: Get The Facts 1) All patients who get lung…

You wake up in the middle of the night with that tingly pins-and-needles feeling in your hand, like you were sleeping on it. Or maybe while you're doing computer work, you've noticed some wrist pain or numbness in your fingers. It might go away, but, over time, it becomes more…

Up to one million Americans have Parkinson's disease. According to the Parkinson's Disease Foundation, that's more than the combined number of people suffering from ALS, multiple sclerosis and muscular dystrophy. It tends to affect people who are over 60. You can inherit Parkinson's disease. However, even if a close relative…

"Are you claustrophobic?" That was one of the first questions UVA Imaging asked when I got an MRI recently. It made me a bit nervous. "Well, yes, but my head isn't going in the machine, right?" I was already anxious. I'd never had an MRI before, and the results were going to determine if…

About 17,000 adults and children in the U.S. are waiting for a liver donation, according to the American Liver Foundation, and some will die before they get one. However, they can increase their odds by asking friends and family members to consider a living donation. [caption id="attachment_10838" align="alignright" width="350"] Liver transplant surgeon…

Aortic dissection almost sounds like some kind of surgery, but it's actually a life-threatening condition. The aorta, the largest blood vessel in your body, can develop a tear in its inner layer, and blood gets into the tear. Depending on what part of the aorta is involved, you may need…

Thyroid nodules, or lumps on the thyroid gland, often cause no symptoms and are discovered during a routine doctor visit. Your doctor will want to rule out cancer, but in many cases these nodules don't cause any health problems.

People tend to confuse palliative care with end-of-life/hospice care. But palliative care is about symptom and pain management. Palliative care helps cancer and heart failure patients manage pain. Even after cancer is in remission, you could still have pain, nerve damage, fatigue and mood problems.

Chances are, if you don’t have a runny nose right now, you’ve had one recently. But it can be tough to tell whether you have a cold or seasonal allergies. Do you have allergies? Find an allergy clinic near you. In this week’s podcast, Monica Lawrence, MD, who specializes in…