Author Archive

Andrew: We have another question that's been e-mailed to us from Marilyn who is in Everett, Washington. And she writes, "My 3-year-old daughter has had asthma for a year now, and right now she's been two weeks on, two weeks off Prelone. Are there side effects of Prelone?" Dr. Shapiro: Prelone is an oral steroid medication, and it's the most potent. It's like ... Full story

Gina: We've talked about smoking triggering asthma attacks. Does smoking cause asthma? Dr. Redding: First of all, very few people are allergic to smoke. That's the first response. The second is that smoking clearly has adverse effects in ... Full story

Dick: Our question is from Carl in California. Carl asks, "Does the number of lesions and their locations - brain or spinal cord - seem to predict the course of MS? What if many of these lesions haven't caused any symptoms that I'm aware of?" Dr. Phillips: ... Full story

Andrew: How do we stand today? Do you have in your armamentarium, if you will, medications that you can use during pregnancy to control asthma that you feel comfortable with? Dr. Schatz: Yes. Fortunately, it's a relief for everybody that although we certainly don't have as much information as we would like or ... Full story

Andrew: Dr. Shapiro, we've gotten an e-mail question from England from a woman named Anne, and here's a little bit of Anne's story. When she was pregnant with her son she had a severe asthma attack, and it was acute. She said she nearly died and also nearly lost the baby. She was on the highest amount of oxygen permitted, and her blood level remained ... Full story

Nancy: And what's sad is, I talk to families whose children have died from asthma. You know, I'm thinking of this one. Her name is Vicky Modica, and her son, Mikey, died, a few years ago now, about three years ago, when he was 8 years old, of an asthma attack ... Full story

Nancy: So what I wanted to do is I figured, "You know what? I'm going to write about this for other patients in my doctor's office." And so I just started a little newsletter, wanting to bridge that research directly to families, and a newspaper reporter picked up on ... Full story

Andrew: Peggy? You're joining us from Lewiston, Idaho. Tell us your question for Dr. Shapiro. Peggy: I had a concern about how much I'm using the albuterol inhaler. I was diagnosed about a year and a half ago, and up until then I never had any major lung problems. It started out just with a cough, and it kept getting worse ... Full story

Tonya: I've been diagnosed with cough variant asthma. My asthma seems different from what other people I know experience with the disease. I never wheeze, and my peak flows can be high even when my chest feels extremely tight. My reaction to irritants is to cough, so hard that it feels like I'm choking and I ... Full story

My daughter has chronic sinus disease. Is surgery necessary? Teresa: My 5-year-old daughter has been diagnosed with chronic sinus disease (infection) and has tried several antibiotics with no relief. Her current ENT wants to do surgery and put ear tubes back in her ear. This will be the fourth surgery on her ears ... Full story