During an eye exam, an eye healthcare provider looks at your health history and gives you a series of eye tests. The tests are done to check the health of your eyes.
Detailed information on dental sealants
Healthcare providers usually don't look inside your nose unless they have a specific reason. Usually, they are looking for an infection or allergy. Sometimes, they're looking for other sources of your breathing problem, such as a deviated septum, the term healthcare providers use to describe a misalignment of the cartilage that runs down the center of your nose.
Keep these guidelines in mind when looking for allergy relief.
Several kinds of medicine are commonly prescribed for high blood pressure. Here are some of the main types.
Here are some helpful tips for understanding the air in your house and the air-quality appliances that can alter it.
Sometimes a pill gets stuck. That tends to happen at the ring of muscles at the top of the esophagus.
The key to cardiovascular fitness is getting a good but safe aerobic workout. Heart rate monitors, which monitor your heart rate while you exercise, can help you do that with ease.
When your healthcare provider presses on your belly, he or she is feeling to see if any major internal organs are enlarged or tender, making them painful to touch, which could mean disease.
Here's a look at some of the more common medicinal herbs. Most herbs have not been thoroughly tested for effectiveness or interactions with other herbs, supplements, drugs or foods.
Prescription medicines have joined the ranks of new cars and breakfast cereals. Many of them are being marketed directly to the public through ads on television and in magazines. Some medicines get so much free publicity they don't need to be advertised.
Hypnosis is an altered, relaxed state of mind, often used to help learn to control bad habits, pain, and stress.
Most older people are independent. But later in life, you or someone you love may need help with everyday activities, such as shopping, cooking and bathing.
A cataract is a clouding of the eye's lens, a clear, soft structure behind the pupil that works much like a camera lens. The top cause of cataracts is aging. In fact, more people over 70 have cataracts than not.
Over-the-counter medicines can help ease a child's aches and pains, but you should know a few things before you pop open a bottle.
Where can you as a parent turn to for the facts about vaccine safety? The first place to go is your child's healthcare provider.
The benefits of being an active medical consumer include better health, more effective health care, and lower health costs.
Many children of aging parents wait until there's a crisis, and then they're left scrambling for mediocre options.
When your life seems to be spinning out of control, it's OK to seek professional mental health help.
Laser vision surgery is a popular treatment of vision problems that eliminates the need for eyeglasses or contact lenses.
Technology has given us the automated external defibrillator (AED), which is turning up far from hospitals. Some schools and public buildings already have AEDs.
Although you may not be able to avoid a hospital stay, there are ways to trim the expenses.
If seemingly contradictory health news has you confused, it's time to learn how to read between the lines.
Your relationship with your health care provider is one of the most important in your life.
Most children should begin regular dental care by the time they turn 1 year old.
Having a child with diabetes can be overwhelming. Fortunately, a team of experts can guide you now and in the years to come.
For some people, taking medication every day can help prevent migraines and make them less painful when they occur.
People who are actively involved in their medical care stay healthier, recover quicker when they're ill and live longer, healthier lives.
These medicines take time to be effective. It may take weeks to know if one is helping you.
If your provider suggests non-emergency surgery or a major medical test, it can be worthwhile to get a second opinion
A PHR can help reduce or eliminate duplicate tests and allow you to receive faster, safer treatment and care in an emergency. It also can help you play a more active role in your health care.
A living will tells others how you want to be treated when it comes to life-sustaining measures.
OTC drugs have information on the bottle or box. Always read this information before using the medicine.
There are 5 main types of cholesterol-lowering medications.
Being involved in a clinical trial has risks and benefits. Being informed and asking lots of questions can help you make a decision.
Here are strategies from the Food and Drug Administration to help you cut your prescription costs by 50 percent or more.
A medicated nasal decongestant spray may offer fast relief when your nose is congested and running. It can reduce swelling and clear mucus from your nasal passages quickly.
Many forms of emergency treatment take place outside the emergency room, and even many surgeries are performed in locations other than a hospital operating room.
You don't have time to choose a hospital if you have a health emergency. But if you’re facing surgery or treatment for a particular health condition, taking time to find a hospital that meets your needs is well worth the effort.
Well-informed people who play a significant role in deciding how they’re going to treat their health conditions are likely to feel better about the decision process.
When people of any age need others to help them with medical, physical or emotional needs over an extended period of time, they need long-term care.
Insulin pumps are used most often by people with type 1 diabetes, but some people with type 2 diabetes use them, too.
It’s important to ask your provider questions during your visit to make sure you understand your condition and what your treatment involves.
Whether you take prescription drugs, over-the-counter medicine or both, there are important guidelines to follow to get the most from them.
Spinal stenosis is a condition in which the spinal canal narrows and pinches the nerves. This results in back and leg pain.
Here are common problems you may run into as a healthcare consumer, with tips for wise responses.
Over-the-counter (OTC) cough and pain relievers, laxatives, and headache remedies may treat different conditions, but they all have one thing in common: They’re serious medicines that need to be taken with care.
Children who have ADHD are often given medicine as part of their treatment plan. The type of medicine most often chosen is a psychostimulant.
Although most medicines are safe when you take them the right way, some of them can cause dizziness, loss of consciousness, bleeding, irregular heartbeats, and other side effects in some cases.
Detailed information on dental implants, including types and potential risks
Always read the label. All OTC medicine labels have detailed usage and warning information to help you choose and use the products.
Detailed information on the use of antibiotics and children
These medications are life-giving and powerful. It's important to take them just as your doctor has prescribed.
Mental health care can be expensive even for people with health insurance. Here are ideas on ways to save.
Being active and involved in care decisions and taking extra precautions to avoid infection when in a hospital can help keep you and your family safe.
Patient advocates fulfill many roles, even, in some cases, staying with hospitalized patients around the clock to help guard against medical errors.
Rheumatoid arthritis can be a frustrating condition to deal with because it doesn’t have an easily identifiable cause. It’s an autoimmune disorder, which means your immune system literally attacks your body—in this case, your joints.
For parents of a newborn, first-time parents, or any anxious mom or dad, it may be hard to tell a true health threat that needs a healthcare provider's attention from a frightening, yet simple, illness that doesn't need medical treatment. Most sniffles, sneezes, and stomachaches don't need medical attention. But how do you know when it's time to call the healthcare provider?
Experts recommend that all herbal supplements be stopped two to three weeks before surgery. That's because these herbs can have side effects that could make surgery more dangerous for you.
Palliative care focuses on improving a patient’s quality of life by improving the symptoms of his or her illness, such as pain, shortness of breath, and difficulty sleeping. It's used with a variety of ailments, including cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, kidney failure, or congestive heart failure.
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medicines are a popular choice for pain relief. But even though you can buy them without a prescription, that doesn’t mean they aren’t without risks. Here’s what you need to know to use them properly.
Many different plans of Medicare available, with many factors to consider.
Medicare is the federal program that helps people 65 and older pay for their health care. Here is a step-by-step process to help you get started.
Although filling out all the enrollment forms for Medicare can be overwhelming, there are a number of resources available to help you.
It starts out as the sniffles, but by the time you wake up the next morning, you know it’s here: a cold. And it feels like a bad one. Stuffy head, sore throat, coughing, sneezing, the works. Time to call the doctor and get some antibiotics, right? Maybe not.
Antibiotics can be powerful medicine. But you have to use them safely and correctly. And sometimes that means not using them at all.