Am I losing my sight?

What you need to know:

  • Migraines, which are apparently genetic, affect women more than men and seem to result from how the brain interacts with the nerve that serves the head (trigeminal nerve). Once it has occurred, certain triggers may perpetuate it.

After getting married and having a baby, I have started suffering blinding episodes. During the episode, I blink a lot and after an hour or two, I get a severe headache and foggy vision which clears with time. After checks, a doctor prescribed eye glasses which have not helped. What is the cause? Pauline

Dear Pauline,
It is likely that you suffer from migraine headaches, usually a one-sided headache accompanied by nausea, vomiting, and fear to look into light. It is likely you could have had both migraines and other eye problems which were addressed but not the migraine and eye symptoms resulting from it.
 
The migraine, which may begin at any age but mostly during childhood, can have early warning symptoms including neck stiffness and later progress into reversible symptoms of the nervous system (aura) before the real headache begins. However, the aura, that may or may not precede the headache, may have symptoms including seeing dark or bright spots or lines, a temporary or reversible loss of vision as well as arm or leg tingling sensations.

Migraines, which are apparently genetic, affect women more than men and seem to result from how the brain interacts with the nerve that serves the head (trigeminal nerve). Once it has occurred, certain triggers may perpetuate it.

These include hormonal changes in women (during menstrual periods and menopause or those caused by hormonal contraception), drinks such as alcohol or those containing caffeine, stress and anxiety, flickering lights say from TV or mobile phone, missing sleep or sleeping too much, physical exercise including sexual activity, and drugs including those for pressure (say nifedipine). 

These triggers need to be addressed to mitigate the headache and, therefore, the blinding episodes.
Visit your doctor for further advice and treatment because your symptoms may be caused by other disease conditions which may need more investigations such as a brain CT scan or MRI. 


What can I do about urinary dribbling?

I am 60 years old and even when I take a moment after urinating to shake the penis, I still find urine drops in my pants. I fear that with time, this might increase and cause an unpleasant odour. What can I do? Linos

Dear Linos,
Urinary incontinence happens when one loses voluntary control of urine so that it flows out without control. 

As men age, many may release without control a few or more drops of urine (after-dribble) shortly after they have finished passing urine, and the bladder feels empty regardless of whether they have properly shaken the penis or not. This urine, which may wet both the underwear and trousers may result in someone smelling of urine, and the embarrassment that comes with it may force one to become withdrawn due to fear of passing urine in public places.

Although it occurs more often as people get older, this so-called post-micturition dribbling is not always an inevitable consequence of aging. Mostly blamed on age-related weaknesses in the urethra muscles that may not squeeze hard to expel the remaining urine in the urethra after passing urine, this after-dribble may be started or worsened by medication (water pills), urinary tract infections, prostatitis, diabetes or taking lots of caffeine-laden fluids, among others.

Twice or thrice, milking out urine using a finger starting from where the scrotum ends and the base of the penis starts and then shaking the penis may suffice in many cases. If not, pelvic floor exercises as advised by your doctor, managing weight, minimising or avoiding drinks containing caffeine, or drugs such as water pills may further be useful.


Treating irritable bowel syndrome naturally

Since there is no sure cure for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), people develop their own ways of living with it. Once you have a system for controlling your symptoms, IBS will trouble you less.

Go easy on your intestines
Minimise fried foods, meats, oils, margarine, dairy foods, and other fatty foods since these cause your colon to contract violently, which can lead to diarrhoea and abdominal pain. Stay away from spicy foods. The capsaicin in hot peppers, for example, makes your large intestine go into spasms, which can cause diarrhoea.

Fit in more fibre
Soluble fibre soaks up liquid in your intestines, helping to prevent diarrhoea. Good sources are beans, oatmeal, and some fruits, such as apples, strawberries and grapefruit. 

If constipation is your main complaint, fill up on insoluble fibre, found in whole wheat, bran, other whole grains, salad greens, and other foods. Insoluble fibre bulks up stool, which speeds its passage through the intestines. Drink at least six to eight glasses of watera day to keep fibre moving smoothly through your system.

Graze, don’t gorge
Eat smaller meals more frequently rather than a couple of large meals each day. Taking in too much food at once can overstimulate your digestive system.
If you usually bolt down your meals, go more slowly and pay more attention to chewing your food. Fast eaters often swallow too much air, which turns into bothersome intestinal gas.

Eat yogurt
Having diarrhoea can drain away good bacteria that help prevent harmful bacteria from growing out of control. When you are having IBS-related diarrhoea, eat plenty of yogurt containing active bacteria, such as acidophilus.
 
Drink tea
Every day, drink a cup or two of peppermint tea, which relaxes your intestines, reduces spasms, and relieves gas pain. Make sure to buy the kind that contains real peppermint, rather than black tea with peppermint flavouring.

Get some exercise
Whenever possible, get at least 30 minutes of exercise such as walking. Exercise helps relieve stress, releases natural painkilling endorphins, and keeps your body ‘including your digestive system’ working smoothly. Source: besthealthmag.ca


Help! I have a stone stuck under my tongue

If you are getting sudden pain inside your mouth when meal times reach or have a lump under your tongue that is very painful; then you may have an obstruction in the “pipe” running from the salivary gland to the mouth (salivary duct) caused by a stone. This condition is called Sialolithiasis (salivary gland stones). 

Salivary glands are structures that produce saliva. They are found underneath the tongue, at the bottom of the mouth near the jawline and on the inside of your cheeks. They may get obstructed by stones that form within the glands. 

These stones are formed from calcium, carbonate and phosphate ions as well as other organic substances found within the salivary glands.

Salivary gland stones can occur at any age. However, most occur in patients in their third to sixth decade of life (20 – 60 years of age). This condition rarely occurs in children. While the cause is not yet generally accepted, certain risk factors for developing stones include dehydration, medications that reduce saliva production such as antihistamines and blood pressure drugs, kidney diseases, radiation therapy to the head and neck region as well as age, among others.

The size of the stones varies from less than one millimetre to a few centimetres in largest diameter. The stones obstruct salivary outflow through the salivary duct, causing saliva to flow backwards and eventually stagnate, leading to swelling, pain and infection in the gland. 
The small stones may resolve on their own spontaneously, or they may be “milked” out in the clinic by the dentist. The dentist may take an x-ray to see their location better and plan for management.

Prevention of salivary gland stones involves drinking a lot of water, eating a healthy balanced diet and having regular dental checkups to aid early detection.
For more information concerning salivary gland stones, visit our website at www.ugadent.org. 

Dental Surgeon
Dr Biren Yajnik