Occipital Neuralgia

by

What is Occipital Neuralgia? Occipital neuralgia is a very specific type of headache, where the pain is in the back of the head, at the very top of the neck and behind the ears. This location relates to an area supplied by a nerve, called the occipital nerve, which usually gathers information about pain and touch from this exact area. In occipital neuralgia this area can also sometimes not feel normal sensations as well as usual. While it is usually only on one side of the head, it can sometimes be on both. Predisposing Factors Often the exact cause of occipital neuralgia is not found, but some of the more common causes are: Trauma (damage) to the back of the head ‘Pinching’ (entrapment) of the nerve by overly tight neck muscles Osteoarthritis of the bones in the neck, compressing the … Read more

Staying Healthy – TeethRemoval.com Style

by

Here’s some tips on how to stay healthy. This is especially important for all of you freshmen who just went or are about to go off to college. Eat 4 or 5 meals a day. If your still doing the breakfast, lunch, and dinner thing, that’s good. However, try to eat less for these meals and add another 1 or 2 meals in a day. Eating more frequently helps keep off weight  Exercise for at least 20 minutes a day at least 5 days a week. If you don’t have a gym membership, go get one. Not only can you keep the weight off at the gym, you can meet other people. If just can’t afford a gym membership take a walk, run, or go for a bike ride. If you’re worried about the weather, buy a treadmill or exercise … Read more

Describe Your Symptoms

by

My recent letter I wrote to help my doctor visits goes smoother has prompted me to look for information on this. Bring an up-to-date cumulative patient profile with you to the interview. You can create one by summarizing your medical history on a page. Include dates of, and reasons for hospitalizations and surgery. You may not end up needing to refer to it, but if questions about your medical history come up, having one will maximize the time you can spend discussing your current medical issue(s). Bring your current medication bottles, which list the name & dose information, including herbal supplements if applicable. Describe your basic reasons for the visit in one or two sentences. Most doctors will start with the interview with something like, “What brings you here today?”. Preparing an answer to this question in advance will facilitate … Read more

Letter to the Mayo Clinic

by

I am planning to go the the Mayo Clinic next week because of my frustration,  lack of diagnosis, and belief that something can be done. The following is a letter I typed up to help my doctors and I understand the problem. Up until two days following the extraction of all 4 wisdom teeth, I was totally healthy and was experiencing no symptoms. I had a headache possibly once or twice a year and had no problems with chronic pain.  I had all 4 wisdom teeth extracted on 6/23/06. I was given anesthesia and my blood pressure dropped rapidly. Because of this I was sedated, given laughing gas, and awake during the entire procedure. I remember laughing while the teeth were being removed and pieces of the teeth coming out of my mouth. Two days following the extraction I awoke … Read more

Genetic Testing

by

My father had colon cancer at a very young age. Because of this I am going to have a colonoscopy in a few weeks. Colon cancer is certainly a cancer that can be stopped before it becomes serious. All that needs to be done is finding a polyp and removing, but if a polyp is not found due to not have a colonscopy, then you can have colon cancer. In recent years genetic testing as become a tool that parents can use to determine if their sons or daughters are more susceptible to certain types of cancers. However, it is important to remember that even if you test negative for a certain disease, the risk does not go away. A year or so ago my father can genetic testing done on him to determine the likelihood of his children to … Read more