Doctor Column

Corticosteroids and Prednisone: Pros and Cons

January 05, 2020

Joseph R Anticaglia MDMedical Advisory Board Corticosteroids (steroids) are a group of anti-inflammatory systemic medications produced naturally in the body or manufactured synthetically outside the body. They relieve redness and itchiness, reduce swelling, used to treat people in shock and are used to counteract severe allergic reactions. These medicines treat a variety of conditions such as arthritis, asthma and other diseases. They are not to be confused with

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Atrial Fibrillation (‘A Fib’) What is Holiday Heart?

December 25, 2019

Joseph R. Anticaglia MD Medical Advisory Board Atrial fibrillation, also known as AFib or AF, often causes the heart to beat faster with an abnormal rhythm. It is the most common chronic, irregular heart rhythm in the U. S. It strikes more than two and half million people in America and the incidence of AFib rises with age. It’s most prevalent in people over the age of 65 affecting about

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How Does the Healthy Heart Work?

December 15, 2019

Joseph R. Anticaglia MD Medical Advisory Board Have you ever run to catch a bus, worked on a strenuous job, played sports or run up a flight of steps? Whether you’re exercising, stressed-out or working hard, the heart needs to adjust to the added physical or emotional stress. It does so, in part, by beating much faster than normal to get more blood circulating around the body. The lungs also adjust by breathing

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Subdural Hematoma Hospitalizes Jimmy Carter. “What is It?”

December 05, 2019

Joseph R. Anticaglia MD Medical Advisory Board Former President Jimmy Carter was hospitalized and underwent surgery at Emory University Hospital in November, 2019 to relieve pressure in his brain. The 95 year old and 39th president of the U. S. suffered a head injury after falling which his doctors described as a subdural hematoma (SDH). Subdural hematoma is a collection of blood between the skull and the brain.

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Floaters and Flashes of Light in Your Eye: “When Should You Worry?”

November 25, 2019

Joseph R. Anticaglia MD Medical Advisory Board We recognize people and the world around us when light passes into the eye, travels across the vitreous material of the eye on its way to the retina. The vitreous is a clear, jelly-like substance that occupies about 80% of the space within the eye and is normally attached to the retina. The retina has light sensitive nerve cells

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Anabolic Steroids: “Bargain with the Devil?”

November 15, 2019

Joseph R. Anticaglia MD Medical Advisory Board Faust’s legend has been and continues to be reenacted everywhere in modern life. Sell your soul to the devil and Satan will quench your burning desire, in exchange for you being a slave to his every command. No country is out of reach and no person is exempt from its appeal. The devil insinuates itself in politics, business, sports arenas, universities

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Dizziness and Vertigo: How Do We Keep Our Balance?

November 05, 2019

Joseph R. Anticaglia MD Medical Advisory Board Dizziness is an imprecise word people use to describe symptoms of feeling lightheaded, the sensation that the room is spinning or unsteadiness. Most of the time the problem is not serious or long lasting but it can make your life miserable. Less frequently, it can lead to a permanent loss of hearing or the diagnosis of a life threatening disease. Dizziness is not a disease. It’s a subjective

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‘Beware’ of Drug Reactions and Interactions

October 25, 2019

Joseph R. Anticaglia MD Medical Advisory Board With every new drug on the market, there’s one more chance that you’ll suffer an unwanted reaction that ranges from mild to severe. However, such reactions are not limited to drugs. Food, herbs and supplements can be as dangerous as drugs. Most of the time medicines make us feel better. They can bring down high blood pressure,

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Persistent Itching: A Misery Go-Round

October 15, 2019

Joseph R Anticaglia MDMedical Advisory Board “Coming up with the right diagnosis for constant itching is difficult, frustrating and maddening,” according to Cecilia. “One morning, it was 3:47 a. m. I woke with intolerable, unbearable itching all over my body. I went to the emergency room and the doctor prescribed an antihistamine and steroid cream — No relief! I called my internist and the ‘misery go around’ began in earnest. He referred me to a well-respected dermatologist

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E-cigarettes, Pulmonary Sickness and Death: U. S. vs. UK

October 05, 2019

Joseph R. Anticaglia M. D. Medical Advisory Board E-cigarettes and the United States The Center for Disease Control (CDC) on August 30, 2019 issued a health advisory warning the public and clinicians about severe pulmonary disease associated with using e-cigarette and vaping products. According to the CDC, e-cigarettes (vaping) products “can contain harmful or potentially harmful substances, including nicotine, heavy metals (e. g.,

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