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Survival of the fittest for the holidays

Staying Focused on the Right Routine for the Best Results In the midst of holiday shopping and parties, it’s easy to rationalize skipping or postponing your regular workout. Don’t! “Stay active. Monitor your time. Make sure you schedule those workouts,” advises Rob Ciccone, a certified fitness trainer at Anytime Fitness in Auburndale. More than ever,…
Flu shot pop quiz

What’s Your Influenza IQ? Achoo! Flu season is upon us and now is the time to take the family for their flu vaccines, whether they want them or not. As you sit in the clinic lobby waiting for your turn for the vaccine, test your knowledge of precautions, symptoms and immunizations to for the influenza…
Coping with cancer

Tips for Helping Children with a Sick Parent Why is this happening to me? Who is going to take care of me? Children are likely to ask questions like these when a parent has cancer or another serious illness. “When cancer hits a younger patient, it’s usually someone who’s in his/her late 30s or 40s…

Brain Attack (Stroke or Mini-stroke): Are You at Risk?

Approximately 700,000 strokes occur in the United States annually. Stroke or brain attack is a disease that involves the blood vessels that supply blood to the brain. A stroke occurs when a blood vessel that brings oxygen to the brain gets blocked by a blood clot most commonly. With the oxygen supply to the brain…
Punctal Plugs

Many patients suffer from dry eye, and eye care professionals have many tools at their disposal to help with symptoms. For many patients, over-the-counter lubricating drops such as Blink or Systane can be helpful. It is important to avoid redness relieving drops, as these tend to cause more problems over time. When over-the-counter drops are…
Understanding Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction

Last year, I wrote about heart failure. At that time, I had said that about half the patients admitted with congestive heart failure have normal systolic function. This is true. The most common way to express heart function is by measuring ejection fraction (EF). This is the proportion of the amount of blood in the…