From day one I have sought to be an “on time” doctor. This has been met with challenges however. With maximum effort I still run about 15-20 minutes late every four hours (so my morning and afternoon office sessions usually are 20 minutes behind by the end). The wait times for individual patients may vary […]
Category Archives: Unique Content
Snoring and obstructive sleep apnea are some of the most prevalent medical conditions we face. The causes are multiple: age, weight, upper airway anatomy, and neurological predispositions. Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP devices) remain the gold-standard in therapy, although compliance is still low. Adjustable oral appliances are making a strong foothold in treatment. These custom […]
Question: My nose almost always runs when I work out. Usually it is thin and watery but sometimes thicker. It can be embarrassing since I’m constantly blowing my nose like I’m sick. -Barbara in St. Pete Beach, Florida Answer: The nasal mucous glands can get inappropriately activated during a number of otherwise normal scenarios. The […]
Cerebrospinal fluid rhinorrhea is the medical term for spinal fluid dripping from your brain cavity though your sinuses and out of your nose. It is a very rare condition, usually seen only after head trauma or as a complication of sinus surgery. More rarely, it can be seen occurring spontaneously in the condition of benign […]
Just how we make the impression (or “mold”) of the ear canal has a ton to do with how well the device works, feels, and therefore how successful it is in practice. One of the commonest reasons for hearing aid noncompliance or disuse has to do with fitting issues, directly related to the feel, and indirectly […]
http://digitalderm.com/ Survivors of melanoma (or those at risk) will benefit from a whole-body photography service to photograph your moles. This is particularly helpful for those with a lot freckles and moles (like me) with a history of heavy sun exposure. Us with numerous moles are a challenge for dermatologists because we rely on the derm’s […]
The start back of school, new daycare classmates, and the upcoming cold season are a ripe time for ear infections. The earliest middle ear drainage procedures were performed in the late 18th century as a treatment for eustachian tube failure. This involved cutting the eardrum with a small knife (called a myringotomy). It was not […]
Rhinologists and otolaryngologists recently are at a crossroads about new treatments for chronic sinus infections. This biggest game changer is the Acclarent Ballon Sinuplasty technology that allows for a tiny catheter to thread an inflatable balloon across narrow sinus openings and stretch it (think heart catheters & angioplasty). This technology has been available in the […]
Comparative Effects of Two Oral Appliances on Upper Airway Structure in Obstructive Sleep Apnea. These two devices were compared in this recent Sleep journal study published April 2011. The paper points out the growing evidence toward adopting oral appliance therapy for the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea. In this paper the authors reviewed the airway […]
A new patented genetic test seeks to reduce the number of unnecessary thyroid surgeries. Veracyte is a company that has a patent on Afirma, a genetic testing tool that extracts genetic information from thyroid needle biopsies and compares it to a database of known thyroid cancer-associated genetic mutations. Statistical rigor is applied and the specimen […]