Some old wives' tales, such as arthritis resulting from cracking knuckles, have not held up to scientific scrutiny.  Others have stood the test of time, such as the idea that drinking cranberry juice can help fight urinary tract infections.  The concept of fish being good for the health of the brain has also gained credibility…...

Heart murmurs are sounds made by blood moving through the valves that control the flow of blood between the chambers of the heart or to the major blood vessels leaving the heart.  They are usually described as a "whooshing" sound, occurring at a certain point during the "lub-dub" cycle of each heartbeat.  Click here to…...

Heart murmurs are sounds made by blood moving through the valves that control the flow of blood between the chambers of the heart or to the major blood vessels leaving the heart.  They are usually described as a "whooshing" sound, occurring at a certain point during the "lub-dub" cycle of each heartbeat.  Last week we…...

What do Michael J. Fox, Mohammed Ali, and more than a million people in the U.S. have in common? All have a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system known as Parkinson's disease. It is named after the English doctor James Parkinson, who in 1817 called the disease "shaking palsy", after one of the condition's…...

This summer has seen record breaking heat, particularly in the northeast part of the U.S. Based on news reports, this summer may set a record for heat-related illness and deaths also.  Heat-related illnesses (e.g., heat cramps, heat exhaustion, heat syncope, or heatstroke) can develop when high temperatures overwhelm the body's natural ability to dissipate heat. …...

Skin tags, known in medical terms as "acrochordons" or "fibroepithelial polyps", are very common benign skin growths affecting over half of the general population at some time in their lives.  They most commonly occur in skin folds, especially in the neck region, armpits, and groin.  Other common areas for the development of skin tags include…...

Taking a cue from a Guy Clark song in which he sings the praises of practical possessions, such as his "ol' blue shirt" and his "used car", today's Health Tip focuses on simple, yet effective home remedies. Honey for children's cough. Treatment options for symptomatic relief of a cough associated with colds are fairly limited. …...

Over the past decade, the incidence of West Nile virus disease (WNV) was highest in 2006 when 4269 cases were reported with 177 deaths attributed to this illness.  This year, a total of 693 cases of WNV have been reported to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), resulting in 26 deaths.  While these numbers are…...