Minimally Invasive Surgery Improves Symptoms Of Chronic Sinus Infection Sufferers

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BOSTON – Researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) have found that patients who suffer from chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS), a long term viral or bacterial sinus infection, can find relief from symptoms which include nasal obstruction, discolored nasal drainage, loss of smell, facial pressure or pain, fatigue and headache, through endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS), a noninvasive outpatient procedure. In addition, study results suggested that ESS helps reduce dependence on antibiotics and antihistamines to mange these symptoms. CRS is a debilitating form of sinusitis whose symptoms can lead to substantial physical and emotional impairment. According to the Sinus and Allergy Health Partnership (SAHP), approximately 31 million Americans are believed to have a sinus infection each year with approximately 20 million Americans experiencing CRS at some point during their lifetime. Sinusitis is more prevalent than arthritis and hypertension and, when chronic, sinusitis … Read more

How Much Water Should You Drink a Day?

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Eight glasses a day? More or less? The amount of water we need to drink each day can vary. The August issue of Mayo Clinic Women’s HealthSource lists factors that can increase the need for fluid, including: Increased physical activity Hot and humid weather Dry indoor air and high altitudes, which reduce moisture in the air Having an illness, particularly one accompanied by fever, vomiting or diarrhea   Data show that women who are adequately hydrated consume about 2.7 liters (91 fluid ounces) of total water a day. Since food typically accounts for about 20 percent of fluid intake, this means drinking roughly 2.2 liters (74 ounces or about 9 cups) of beverages a day. While drinking water is often the best way to replace lost fluids, other liquids including milk, tea, soup, fruit juice and sports drinks also are … Read more

Could a Heart Defect Be Causing Your Headache?

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Researchers of the heart and headaches at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital are combining efforts to determine if a common heart defect may be the cause of some forms of migraine headaches.Investigators from the Jefferson Heart Institute and the Jefferson Headache Center are enrolling participants in a blinded study to determine if closing a Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO), a small hole or flap that can allow blood to flow between the right and left sides of the heart, can stop migraines. In newborns, the PFO closes at or shortly after birth, but in 20 percent of adults the gap remains open to some degree.More than 28 million Americans suffer from migraine headaches. Debilitating migraine headaches cause major disruption in individual’s lives and cost billions of dollars in lost work, school and medical treatment each year. More than one quarter of the … Read more

Combination Treatment for Migraines More Effective

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Combining two different types of treatment for migraine results in better symptom relief than taking either one of the medications, according to a study in the April 4 issue of JAMA.”Migraine is a prevalent, often debilitating disease manifested by attacks of bilateral or unilateral headache and associated symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting, and sensitivity to light and sound,” according to background information in the article. While advances have been made in treatment, results are still often unsatisfactory for many patients. None of the currently available medications taken alone provide broad coverage of the multiple pathogenic processes in migraine, which is thought to involve multiple neural pathways. A multimechanism-targeted therapy may confer advantages over a single therapy.Jan Lewis Brandes, M.D., of the Nashville Neuroscience Group, Nashville, Tenn., and colleagues evaluated the effectiveness and safety of treating migraine by combining the migraine … Read more

A Protein that may Promote Headaches?

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A University of Iowa study may provide an explanation for why some people get migraine headaches while others do not. The researchers found that too much of a small protein called RAMP1 appears to “turn up the volume” of a nerve cell receptor’s response to a neuropeptide thought to cause migraines.The neuropeptide is called CGRP (calcitonin gene-related peptide) and studies have shown that it plays a key role in migraine headaches. In particular, CGRP levels are elevated in the blood during migraine, and drugs that either reduce the levels of CGRP or block its action significantly reduce the pain of migraine headaches. Also, if CGRP is injected into people who are susceptible to migraines, they get a severe headache or a full migraine.”We have shown that this RAMP protein is a key regulator for the action of CGRP,” said Andrew … Read more