Q I have been suffering from hyper-acidity as a result of antibiotics. Please advice.

Hyper-acidity is a common side effect of most antibiotics. Most physicians will prescribe an antacid or a H2 blocker along with antibiotics to circumvent this side-effect. If your physician hasnt done so, please visit him and ask him to prescribe the same. If you are on long term antibiotics, a multivitamin will help. As a home measure, include plenty of cold milk and yogurt in your diet to counteract hyper-acidity.

Q Can delusional disorder be cured?

A delusional disorder usually goes along with another illness,eg schizophrenia,psychosis. Delusions can be managed with medication. Seek psychiatric help, they will be able to help & find underlying causes and treat it. Psychotherapy is usually the most effective help in person suffering from delusional disorder. People who have emotional struggles and abuse drugs or are under significant stress might more likely develop delusional disorder than those who dont experience those situations.

Q Is it possible to raise your IQ?

Intelligence is mostly hereditary. Intellectual ability grows until about age 16, and after that changes very little. Practicing various skills which are tested on IQ tests will increase your IQ score some, but it is not likely to increase your intelligence. Intelligence is basically the abilities to learn, to reason, to remember, to think abstractly, to problem-solve, etc. These abilities are very difficult to improve once you are an adult, though you may improve specific skills. E.g. you can improve basic mathematical skills by practicing them often and learning certain mathematical shortcuts, or you can learn to read faster by pushing your reading speed and learning to scan for meaning. Generally, the best way to improve your performance in specific work tasks is to do those tasks a lot. When you do that, you gradually learn the best possible techniques to efficiently and accurately complete that work, in the minimum necessary amount of time.

Q How is a rhinophyma (the w.c. Fields nose) treated?

Surgery is the treatment option for rhinophyma. Different surgical options include using a scalpel, laser, electro surgery, dermabrassion and cryosurgery.rnrn 

Q Entamoeba histolytica infection

Entamoeba histolytica is a parasite and you must start anti parasitic drugs under care of a physician. Here are a few guidelines to avoid reinfection as well as to avoid spraeding infection to others. 1. Wash your hands before eating and after using the washroom. 2.Wash fresh vegetables carefully. Many people get E. histolytica by eating contaminated raw fruit and vegetables. 3.Wear gloves when gardening or working with soil or sand, because it is contaminated with the eggs of the parasites. 4.If you have pet, deworm him regularly.

Q Does smoking can lower sperm count?

Apart from the other major side effects of smoking, prolonged smoking can affect sperms. The effect is seen on the quantity as well as quality. Smoking can decrease the motitlity of the sperms. So if you are worried that your chance of being a father will be blown away with the puff then it is the right time either to reduce or quit smoking.

Q My 10 year old daughter continues to wet the bed. Not every night, but i thought it would stop as she grows but still hasnt. I wonder if there is something medically wrong.

If you daughter has nocturnal enuresis sometimes, it may need further evaluation, as this is not so common in teenagers. There are some factors that may affect urine control in teens. These include excessive intake of caffeine drinks like tea or coffee, deep sleep pattern which can be a normal for growing teen, excessive emotional stress or fear of something, inconsistent sleep timings etc. These things can be corrected in order to fix the problem. Other things to give consideration are certain medications, diabetes of other medical diseases, family history of parents having the same problem, urinary tract infection, etc. If she is having this problem since her childhood, then this can be considered as primary nocturnal enuresis and she can be out of 2% of girls who continues with this till they reach their teen. This thing can be improved with proper counselling to her. Making her to use bathroom before going to bed. Limiting her fluid intake before going to bed. She can be effectively treated with moisture alarms while asleep. It will be less likely that she will need medications for this. Proper counselling and educating her may motivate her to take initiation to cure herself. You may take her to physician to rule out underlying disease if any.

Q What types of tests are used to evaluate patients with pelvic and abdominal pain?

To find out the cause of pelvic and abdominal pain your doctor will do physical examination to determine the location of the pain. Based upon that your doctor may order investigation. Investigations will include blood tests and imaging studies like x-ray, CT scan, MRI scan, ultrasound study. In female a pap smear may be ordered.rnrn 

Q Body too thin...some diet tips

Weight gain depends upon your diet and exercise pattern. Include calorie and protein rich foods in your diet such as eggs, chicken, fish, milk and milk products, nuts, pulses etc. Every morning have a glass of milk with honey and 2 bananas. Consume handful of mixed nuts everyday. Weight gain should be healthy and hence you should limit your intake of junk food. Instead of 3 large meals have 5-7 small meals. Join a gym and practice weight training under supervision.

Q My 1 year old baby is passing greenish stool after every 2 hours. I am afraid, what exactly I should do?

Your baby is suffering from enteritis which is causing diarrhea. This is quite common during the teething phase. Dehydration can cause many complications especially in an infant. So make sure that you keep giving him fluids in the form of ORS solutions available at all chemists. Since the child is passing stools so frequently, it would be prudent to visit a physician as soon as possible.