ArcaMax

DEAR DR. ROACH: In a recent column that touched on taking laxatives daily, you mentioned a sugar called lactulose that you recommend for constipation. I'm wondering if other sugars have the same effect. My 70-year-old wife drinks several cans daily of diet lemon-lime soda that contains sucralose. She also tends to have fairly loose, even runny...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: My wife recently underwent a successful open heart surgery with two valves repaired and one replaced. During her post-surgery recovery, she experienced an issue with the timing of several prescriptions and their impact. We learned that there is a big difference between taking a prescription medicine "twice a day," versus taking...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: I'm a 67-year-old healthy male, but I do take Humira for rheumatoid arthritis (RA). It does a wonderful job for me with no side effects. It does such a good job that I can periodically extend the time between injections, such as one every three weeks instead of the recommended dose every two weeks. I can even go as long as six ...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am a 62-year-old female who has focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) that was diagnosed in 2001. After several years of treatment with prednisone and cyclosporine, along with an ACE inhibitor, I was in "remission" and listed as stage 3. At the time, the life expectancy of someone with FSGS was 10-20 years, which I have ...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am an 80-year-old female and a 25-year survivor of ovarian cancer. In the past three years, I have also had Merkel cell cancer, breast cancer, and now squamous cell cancer on my lip.

I have been on an aromatase inhibitor for the past eight months and have side effects that keep me from having a good quality of life. I am ...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: Are there any studies that show who might be more seriously affected by COVID, whether it's based on risk factors such as genetics, vitamin deficiencies, etc.? -- F.F.

ANSWER: There are many disease conditions that put a person at risk for a severe illness if they get infected with the virus that causes COVID. These include ...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am a 73-year-old who underwent successful treatment for prostate cancer, using hormone suppression and radiation in 2015. After the treatment concluded, my testosterone level increased back to 435 ng/dL, and my PSA remained below 0.1 ng/mL. I was once again able to perform sexually, although not at the same frequency I did ...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am an active, 5-foot-2-inch, 125-pound, 72-year-old Caucasian woman without a history of known osteoporotic risk factors, other than demographic ones. I exercise daily, eat calcium through food, take 2,000 units of vitamin D, and follow a Mediterranean-style diet.

My last dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scan showed a ...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: I had a total thyroidectomy in July 2022 for Graves' disease. All the time leading up to this and almost all the time since, I've only had one short "active" period of thyroid eye disease (TED). My only noticeable symptom was double vision, but it went away after surgery.

However, in May of this year, I suffered a dog bite in ...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: How much power do you think administrative employees in a doctor's office should have over patient care? I like my doctor and his nursing staff, but I'm quite upset about a situation where a specialist from out of town faxed a request for a CT scan to my primary care physician's office. The assistant that received the request ...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: My friend is 63 years old. She was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease two years ago. She started having tremors probably two years before her diagnosis, but they were being attributed to longtime use of a psychiatric medication that was prescribed for her bipolar disorder. She is opting not to take any medications for Parkinson...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: After 11 years of medical uncertainty, over 50 doctors, and my daughter's diligence, my 19-year-old granddaughter was finally diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS). This is a rare condition that affects the connective tissues and comes with a variety of issues, most of which she has experienced.

While it was a blessing ...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: I'm 85 years old and in basically good health for my age. I am an active nonsmoker, eat healthy, practice tai chi, and enjoy having many friends. I have no reason to experience extreme anxiety.

Yet, for months, I have had unexplained blood pressure spikes. The highest I had was 243/127 mm Hg, and this is when I called local ...Read more

DEAR DR. ROACH: My blood sugar level is around 150 mg/dL on average without medication. With metformin, I have diarrhea 24 hours a day. I am 82 and very active. I walk about six miles a day on average. I tried to tell my doctor about the severity of my problem, and with a smile, he said, "Metformin can do that."

I insisted on a replacement ...Read more