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Blood Pressure

February 17th, 2012 Posted by Dean Heller MD | Ask the Doctor
My doctor says that I have to do a better job of watching salt intake, and take medication every day because my blood pressure is high when he checks it. I have no symptoms, and I feel really good, and just don't really want to take medication if I can avoid it. If I have no symptoms, then why should I be taking medicine?

Obviously, you don't know the facts about what doctors commonly call high blood pressure. They call it "the silent killer." The reason for this is that unless the blood pressure is very high, there are no symptoms associated with it.
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Aortic Dissection

February 10th, 2012 Posted by Dean Heller MD | Ask the Doctor
One of my favortie actors was John Ritter. I know he died suddenly of an aortic aneurysm while he was on the set of his show, and I heard his wife talking about the symptoms which seemed relatively vague. Is that usually the case with this medical problem? What should I be looking for? I am worried.

You are close; he actually died of an aortic dissection, which is a tear in the inner lining of the aorta. This is the largest artery in the body, which comes right off the heart and supplies blood to the entire body. It is frequently associated with an
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HPV and Cervical Cancer

February 3rd, 2012 Posted by Dean Heller MD | Ask the Doctor
My OB/GYN doctor told me that I have been exposed to HPV virus, and this puts me at risk for cervical cancer. How did I contract this, and what should I do about it?

HPV, or human papilloma virus, is a virus that is contracted through sexual contact. Men can carry this virus and remain asymptomatic. Not all women who are exposed will develop cervical cancer, so the most important thing is to follow-up with your gynecologist for regular exams, including a PAP smear. For those not exposed, there is a new vaccine which prevents you from contracting the virus, and thus can lower your risk of
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Pericarditis

January 27th, 2012 Posted by Dean Heller MD | Ask the Doctor
I am 32 years old and had chest pain a few weeks ago that I thought felt like what people describe for a heart attack, so I went to the doctor. He told me it was not a heart attack, but it was inflammation around the heart due to a viral infection that I recently had. He treated me with medication, and I felt better for a week or so, but now the symptoms have recurred. Should I see another doctor; could he have given me the wrong diagnosis?

Your doctor probably told you that you have pericarditis. This is
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Raw Cookie Dough

January 20th, 2012 Posted by Dean Heller MD | Ask the Doctor
I have been eating raw cookie dough since I was a kid, and I can't remember ever getting sick from it; however, a friend recently told me that doing this can make you ill. Please tell me I don't have to stop eating raw cookie dough; it is my favorite part of making cookies.

Unfortunately, I have bad news for you. There is some risk of food bourne pathogens (basically bad bacteria) from eating raw cookie dough, just like eating some other raw food. It is the flour and eggs that can carry these bacteria, such as E Coli. The
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Psoriatic Arthritis

January 13th, 2012 Posted by Dean Heller MD | Ask the Doctor
I have had psoriasis for many years, and now I have developed arthritis in multiple joints. It causes quite a bit of pain, and Advil has not been helping recently. My general doctor told me that it may be related to the psoriasis. Do you think that may be the case? If so, what kind of doctor should I see, and are there treatments other than the usual anti-inflammatory medications?

If you suffer from psoriasis, a common skin condition, there is a 30% chance that you will develop arthritis in your lifetime; this is known as Psoriatic Arthritis. It causes
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