October 2004
Ask Dr. Marks: 10/04
Subscribers Only I’ve seen a lot of ads for exotic herbs and special supplements that claim to rebuild worn cartilage. Do any of these treatments work? If not, are there any procedures or treatments that do work in rebuilding cartilage? No herbs, dietary supplements, or home remedies have been proven to rebuild damaged cartilage—and you should be wary of any ads that claim their product does so. Surgical procedures can rebuild a type of cartilage, called fibrocartilage,…
New Hip Or Knee? Use It, Don’t Abuse It
Subscribers Only Orthopaedic surgeon Lester Borden, M.D., estimates that about 350,000 knee replacements and 300,000 hip replacements are performed annually in the U.S. At The Cleveland Clinic, where he is section head of adult reconstructive surgery, more than 95 percent of such procedures are successful. Dr. Borden attributes this impressive record to a variety of factors, such as the improved design of replacements, the materials used to construct them, and advances in surgical techniques. …
Cutting Drug Costs
Subscribers Only The cost of medications seems to go in only one direction—up. In 2003, prescription drug costs rose 7.9 percent, more than twice the rate of inflation, and this year isn’t shaping up to be much kinder. Though drug discount cards and planned changes in Medicare may provide seniors with some relief, it may not be enough to keep drug bills from eating up a growing percentage of their income. To help seniors—and anyone else taking…
The Rocky Road To Shoulder Woes
Subscribers Only When something goes wrong in your shoulder over a long period of time, it is not usually an isolated event. It is more likely to have been a progression of events involving the four muscles that make up the rotator cuff. Each condition is a little more painful or restrictive than the previous one, but there are some common measures you can take to deal with all of them. …
In the News: 10/04
Subscribers Only U.S. Population Overdosing On Pain-Relievers More than half of the people who buy over-the-counter (OTC) pain medications either take more than the recommended dose or take them more often than the label advises, according to a large-scale study by the American College of Emergency Physicians and the Emergency Nurses Association. The study, which was sponsored by Pfizer, included 3,443 men and women who had taken pain relievers for a variety of reasons (backache, headache, joint pain,…
Fitness Machines: For You?
Subscribers Only Despite the many health benefits to be gleaned from a well-thought-out exercise program, arthritis patients frequently need all the help they can get when it comes to following a workout schedule. For many of them, that help might very well come in the form of a fitness machine—a treadmill, for example, or a stationary bicycle or stair climber. …