CHICAGO -- It was 422 days at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

That’s the length of Chicago resident Colette Hurd’s stay due to her idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension, a condition that affects blood vessels in the lungs and the right side of the heart and causes the heart and lungs to weaken over time.

“I didn’t even realize ...Read more

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: Our daughter has attended school virtually for the past five years and enjoyed the experience. Now that she is heading into ninth grade, she wants a more traditional high school experience. However, she has become more nervous as school gets closer and complains about stomachaches. How can I ease the transition for her and help...Read more

What used to be known as a simple, fun activity for kids now is a tool for practicing good mental health. Coloring has increased in popularity recently, especially for adults.

While children's coloring books feature cartoon characters and simple designs, adult coloring books have intricate patterns of flowers, artwork, mandalas or animals. ...Read more

"Buffy the Vampire Slayer" star Nicholas Brendon, best known for playing the titular heroine's pal Xander in the TV series, was hospitalized recently after suffering another cardiac incident, according to his sister.

The actor, 51, was rushed to a hospital about two weeks ago because of tachycardia, a condition that makes the heart beat ...Read more

Soon after giving birth to a daughter two months premature, Terri Logan received a bill from the hospital. She recoiled from the string of numbers separated by commas.

Logan, who was a high school math teacher in Georgia, shoved it aside and ignored subsequent bills. She was a single mom who knew she had no way to pay. “I avoided it like the ...Read more

SEATTLE — The service advertised by Care Net of Puget Sound might seem startling to those unfamiliar with crisis pregnancy centers.

"Reverse Your Abortion," the organization's website proclaims. If you've started a medical abortion, taking only the first of two drugs, "you can still change your mind."

The proposed solution: a highly ...Read more

Folks of a certain vintage have the tell-tale crater on their upper arms: The discolored, shallow scars from the smallpox vaccine.

This ceased being a rite of passage in 1972, when the disease was eradicated from the U.S. The smallpox vaccine was also protective against monkeypox, though, and the question now arises: Do folks who got a smallpox...Read more

Vaccines helped neutralize the global threat of polio, a dreaded scourge that can cause paralysis and death, but that life-saving drug may have led unintentionally to the virus’ reappearance this year in the U.S. and other countries.

A form of the vaccine taken by mouth that uses a weakened live version of the poliovirus is believed to have ...Read more

Adults with mild to moderate hearing loss will now be able to buy hearing aids without getting their hearing tested by an audiologist or other specialist, under a new FDA rule announced Tuesday.

The move is expected to lower prices for the devices, some of which cost several thousand dollars and often are not covered by insurance.

Some ...Read more

The Biebers are holding on.

Hailey Bieber is peeling back the curtain on some of the hardships she and husband Justin have endured of late — most of which have had to do with the couple’s string of health issues.

“I just think life is changing all the time,” the model, 25, who tied the knot with the 28-year-old “Hold On” singer in ...Read more

The idea of having vitamin supplements formulated to meet your specific nutrient needs is appealing. Are custom supplements truly beneficial and are they worth the price, which tends to be greater than you might find at the local drugstore or health food store?

Personalized vitamin companies

Several online companies, including Persona ...Read more

Plenty of people cruise by beets at the grocery store or consciously avoid them because they’re not sure what to do with them. But there’s no reason to be intimidated by this root vegetable just because it looks a little different or is unfamiliar. Beets, or beetroots, are definitely worthy of a second look — they’re not only delicious, ...Read more

Migraine is a common and disabling headache disorder. Painful migraine headaches frequently affect people between the ages of 18 and 44. Many common medication treatments for migraine may cause side effects that are difficult to tolerate, and can lead people to not take their medications as recommended, or to stop taking them altogether. A ...Read more

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: I have several unsightly skin tags on different areas of my body. As I age, I notice more of these skin tags appearing out of nowhere. What are skin tags, and are they harmful? Can I do something to get rid of them myself, or do I need to see a dermatologist?

ANSWER: Skin tags are common, and, as in your situation, they can ...Read more

Before kids head back to school this fall, make sure a COVID-19 vaccination is on their back-to-school list.

Dr. Nipunie Rajapakse, a Mayo Clinic Pediatric Infectious Diseases expert, says everyone 6 months of age and older is now eligible for an authorized COVID-19 vaccination. With vaccines becoming widely available for school-aged children, ...Read more

When you have a pounding headache, it can be rough waiting for the pain meds to kick in. So don’t wait too long, say researchers at Johns Hopkins University.

The scientists took a look at the fastest way, using gravity and anatomy, to position your body to get the drugs out of your stomach and into your intestines and to work. The verdict: ...Read more

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: I am an athletic director at a middle school, and a new school year is almost here. I anticipate seeing an increase in sports-related injuries from soccer, football, cheerleading, flag football and other activities. Young athletes get plenty of bumps and bruises, but how can they avoid injuries? Any advice on how long they ...Read more

Health officials are scrambling to stretch scarce doses of vaccine to slow the mounting monkeypox outbreak, but do older people already vaccinated as kids for the related but deadlier smallpox virus already have protection?

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention isn’t betting on it. The U.S. health agency says those exposed to the ...Read more

The same wastewater surveillance techniques that have emerged as a critical tool in early detection of COVID-19 outbreaks are being adapted for use in monitoring the startling spread of monkeypox across the San Francisco Bay Area and some other U.S. communities.

Before the COVID pandemic, wastewater sludge was thought to hold promise as an ...Read more

The W-Curve Model was first proposed in 1963 to explain adjustment to culture shock. Starting college is a culture shock for many young people. It is often the first time students are away from home for an extended period.

Freshman year is known for new experiences, but it also presents various challenges. Each new college student's experience ...Read more