Doctor Column

Untangling the Mysteries of the Aging Voice

July 25, 2024

Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD Medical Advisory Board One of the things we take for granted is a good voice, one that is strong, easily understood and of good quality. We have a problem when a voice disorder interferes with our ability to communicate with family and friends, or to earn a living. As we get older, our voice can change. People, in their sixties or older, can experience changes in the voice box

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Choline and Pregnancy. How Does Choline Boost Fetal Brain Development?

July 15, 2024

Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD Medical Advisory Board “The risk of mental illness in a child is about one in 10. The risk of spinal bifida in a child is about one in 1000. Yet, every woman takes folic acid to avoid spina bifida risk. We ought to think about every woman taking choline to avoid that mental illness risk which is one in 10. If we could make sure that a baby builds a better

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BOTOX: An Accidental Discovery .. From Deadly Poison to Smooth Wrinkles — Cosmetic and Medical Uses

July 05, 2024

Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD Medical Advisory Board At times, medical breakthroughs happen by sheer accident, and keen observation. Such accidental discoveries have changed the course of medicine. Consider the accidental discovery of penicillin. “In 1928 Dr. Alexander Fleming returned from a holiday to find mold growing on a Petri dish of Staphylococcus bacteria. He noticed the mold seemed to be preventing the bacteria around it from growing. He named the chemical

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Exosomes — Extracellular Vesicles: What Are They? Could the “Cargo” Onboard Be Dangerous?

June 25, 2024

Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD Medical Advisory Board Exosomes are microscopic, round, or oval sac-like structures that contain proteins, lipids, RNA, and DNA. They’re produced inside the cell by almost all cell types, and are released into the extracellular space, the space outside the cell. They’re about one 100th the size of a human cell and are also known as Extracellular

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Green Tea: From Leaves to Teacup to Good Health? The Science of Green Tea

June 15, 2024

Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD Medical Advisory Board Aside from water, green tea ranks as the world’s second most popular beverage. People have been drinking green tea for thousands of years and in almost the same fashion. It all started, according to one legend, when the Chinese Emperor Shennong in 2737 BC was sitting under a tea tree. A few leaves fell from the tree

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Snapshot of Mouth Sores, and Mouth Cancer

June 05, 2024

Joeph R. Anticaglia, MD Medical Advisory Board Mouth sores are tender or painful lesions that appear on the inside of your mouth. They can appear on the tongue, gums, inner cheeks, roof of the mouth, or be found on the inside of the lip. The lesions damage the mucous membrane, a delicate tissue that lines the inside of the mouth making it difficult to swallow, eat, and talk.

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Dialysis: Beyond Needles, Tubes, and Filtration

May 25, 2024

Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD Medical Advisory Board I was saddened when a close friend and colleague informed me that he was diagnosed with lung cancer. He was advised of the treatment choices, and opted for a combination of radiation treatment and chemotherapy. After four months of treatment, I received another call from Daniel letting me know that his kidneys completely shut down due to the chemotherapy drugs.

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Chronic Kidney Disease Insights — Unraveling the Five Stages of CKD

May 15, 2024

Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD Medical Advisory Board Chronic kidney disease (CKD causes a gradual loss of kidney function over time. CKD happens when the kidneys are unable to remove waste products and excess fluid from the blood causing a buildup of toxic material in the bloodstream. You may have ongoing kidney damage for many months to years without symptoms until the kidneys

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From Pollen to Panic: Demystifying How Allergic Reactions Happen

May 05, 2024

Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD Medical Advisory board Springtime is “allergytime” for millions of Americans. But inhaling substances like pollens is not the only way to provoke an allergic reaction. Breathing in animal dander, dust, mold and mildew can cause an allergic response. The list of allergic “provocateurs” is a long one. Eating foods such as peanuts, shellfish and eggs, or taking medications like amoxicillin can cause an allergic

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Glaucoma: “Thief of Sight”

April 25, 2024

Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD Medical Advisory Board Glaucoma is a chronic eye disease that progresses slowly over time causing loss of eyesight. There is a buildup of pressure within the eye, because the eye’s drainage system is malfunctioning. A narrowing or complete blockage of the drainage system prevents fluid from flowing out of the eye in a normal fashion. This causes an excessive buildup of pressure within the eye that

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