Eyewear
by Editorial Team January 10th, 2012 | Special Interest Section
			If you have vision issues, you know that eyewear is much more than a fashion statement.  Whether you require eyewear to see items near or far, they make the difference between being able to see easily and needing to squint.  To determine what lens prescription you need, you first need to visit your optometrist or ophthalmologist.  After a few simple tests, they can determine the lenses that you will  need to correct your vision issues, and then you can choose the glasses that you like.  Glasses can be purchased at your doctor's office or at an online store, such as
		
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		Flu Update – January 2012
by Lori Sciame January 9th, 2012 | Diseases
			Across the United States, influenza activity so far this season has been sporadic. For the week ending December 24, 2011, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) stated that “No states reported widespread influenza activity. Regional influenza activity was reported by one state (an increase from no states last week). Two states (the same number as last week) reported local influenza activity. Thirty-seven states (an increase from 36 states last week)...Ten states (a decrease from 11 states last week), the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands reported no influenza activity.â€
What does this information mean to you? The good
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		What does this information mean to you? The good
Gout
by Dean Heller MD January 6th, 2012 | Ask the Doctor
			Over Christmas my right big toe became swollen, painful, and red. My cousin said that he has gout, and it caused the same symptoms. Do you think he may be correct about my big toe?
Your cousin MAY be correct. Although there may be other causes, the big toe is a common place for a gout attack. The symptoms of gout are a painful, red, swollen joint, as it is a form of arthritits. There are a number of causes; the most common is just an elevation of the uric acid levels in the blood, which accumulates in the joint,
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		Your cousin MAY be correct. Although there may be other causes, the big toe is a common place for a gout attack. The symptoms of gout are a painful, red, swollen joint, as it is a form of arthritits. There are a number of causes; the most common is just an elevation of the uric acid levels in the blood, which accumulates in the joint,
Cholesterol and Children
by Tom Seman MD FAAP January 5th, 2012 | Pediatrician on Call
			There's been a lot of news stories on lately about having a child's cholesterol level checked. Should I ask my children's pediatrician to consider doing this for my kids?
We all know how high cholesterol levels affect the heart and the blood vessels in adults and the necessity of checking it regularly as well as treating those with levels higher than recommended. Before it was known that it takes a long time for cholesterol plaques to develop within the arteries and vessels, it was initially hard to correlate childhood behaviors and cholesterol levels with adult outcomes; however, in the 1960's and
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		We all know how high cholesterol levels affect the heart and the blood vessels in adults and the necessity of checking it regularly as well as treating those with levels higher than recommended. Before it was known that it takes a long time for cholesterol plaques to develop within the arteries and vessels, it was initially hard to correlate childhood behaviors and cholesterol levels with adult outcomes; however, in the 1960's and








