Does taking methotrexate for rheumatoid arthritis cause hair loss? I have been taking methotrexate for over 8 years and my hair has thinned a lot. Is there any way to control this hair loss ?
I am a 46 year old man and over the last few years have been seeing the appearance of numerous red spots on my body. The spots are small and slightly raised and do not itch or hurt. What could these be? Is there any way I can treat them?
Doctor's Answer
Hi,
These spots sound like Cherry Angiomas. Cherry angiomas (also called Campbell De Morgan spots) are an age related change, often first appearing in a person’s forties or fifties. They are caused due to localized dilation of blood vessels in the skin.
They are completely harmless and you may get a few more with age. They can be removed for cosmetic reasons if so desired, and for this I would recommend the CO2 laser. Just one sitting is required and this is done by dermatologists. Ano ... Read Full Answer
I am feeling pain in the right knee joint. the pain is felt starting from lower back spine , then in right kneew joint, then in the muscles below the knee join and in the foot .
Also on movement of the knee , bending or unfolding or folding, a sound like tuk is heard.
I had an x-ray which is stating that possible loose calcific opacity in the joint.
Please let me know is this is a serious problem, can this lead to arthritis or is this the start of the arthritis.
Is there any permanenet treament to get rid of this and can this be permanently cured.
I am very much worried about the problem, please help me on this.
thanks.
Doctor's Answer
Please Get X ray or MRI of your Lower Back !! will have to clear whether the pain arising is from back and referred to knee and foot, or is solely knee joint pain. when you hear sound like tuk while folding or unfolding ie bending and straightening your knees, that means your popliteus muscle ie behind the knee joint is weak and complete load is taken by the meniscus or ligament supporting the knee. i would advise you 3 things, get mri scan for lower back, strengthen the muscle and ligament of y ... Read Full Answer
My father is 78 years old and has been suffering from constipation for the last 2 years. He has also lost a lot of weight around 10 kgs in this time span. In the last couple of months he has been complaining that his abdominal muscles have torn due to bowel straining and now he says there is loss of muscle in his stomach area. Which is why when he lies down everything is fine but when he sits up and walks around he feels like he is carrying a weight in his stomach. After intake of food it becomes worse and he also gets bloating. We have done all possible tests - colonoscopy, CT scan, ultrasound sometime last year and everything was clear. The doctors gave a verdict of idiopathic constipation and left it at that. His blood work is fine, haemoglobin levels, cholestrol etc. He still suffers from constipation. His prostrate is enlarged but results are fine. What is the solution to his stomach muscle problem ? Is it lack of exercise, lack of protein ? He doesnt have a pot belly and has never had and had always been physically active and fairly slender.
Doctor's Answer
Hi,
History told by you favours irritable bowel syndrome ( IBS ). There are two alarming signs in your case :
Firstly, loss of weight and that to10kg approx.
Secondly, sensation of carrying a weight in stomach.
Both of them do occurs in IBS. But to be on safer side,I would suggest you to go for colonoscopy again because it was done 1 yr back and symptoms have aggravated few months back.
Treatments available for IBS -
- Increase the level of physical activity.
- Have regular meals and take t ... Read Full Answer
Hello, I have had a nail fungus for a good ten years or so. When I first noticed it, I went to my doctor and he game me lamasil which I stopped taking after a few days since it had negative affects on me. Thereafter, I stopped taking care of it and just let it go for a good 7 or 8 years. I eventually grew up and started getting very self conscious of how it looked and wanted to wear sandals and flip flops and not have people think nasty things about me. A few years ago I went to my doctor again and he gave me a topical oil which I used for over a year and did not see any results. About two years ago, I noticed that a vertical brown line was starting to grow from the bottom up. I went to a dermatologist who took a sample of my nail but did not take a sample of the nail bed or from the cuticle. Biopsy came back as of course it being a fungus. He in turn gave me pills to take which I also had to stop taking since it was having a bad affect on my liver. After that, my dermatologist said that he would give me laser treatments which I did two of. They did not clear it but it looks a little bit better then what it was before. Still thick, yellow, crumbling below the nail, nail bed where new nail is growing is darker then the others and the brown line is still there. It is a thick brown line. How did I get this brown line? Did I get it because of the prolonged damage of the nail bed due to the years of having the nail fungus?
Doctor's Answer
You're most welcome. Nail Melanoma does not affect multiple nails together while Longitudunal Melanonychia (LM) often does. The fact that an additional nail is showing changes is nearly conclusive that this is LM, which as I said is harmless. However it would be best to see your doctor to get this confirmed since I cannot see the affected area.
I would recommend getting the entire nail removed if its the only one affected by fungus, but this will be solely to treat the fungus not because I thin ... Read Full Answer
A few years back after having visited a hill station in India.. i got this sort of coating on my upper lip that couldn't be scraped off easily, a lot of my friends did too.. but even now my problem persists, this was followed by dryness around my lip and white patches that were spreading and cuts started forming. on consulting several dermatologists, they prescribed Fluticasone Propionate ointments of varying concentration saying that its caused by the fact that I was born by extremely dry skin and the saliva dries the area more, but I've been using petroleum jelly on my lips since I was small as I always used to get chapped lips.. I similar sort of dry patch developed on my finger which went on to spread over the years to my entire finger, for which i use the the same medication.. the itching on the finger and the dryness goes away after a couple of days of use but then it comes back when not used and the texture of my finger has turned out to be slightly glossy looking compared to the rest of my fingers..
Doctor's Answer
Hi,
As you said that you don't have leucoderma,and it is just simply dried lips then primary cause for dried lips is allergy.
Try out following methods
1) Use oil based prepartion,use petroleum gel
2) Cover your lips with something when going out
3) Avoid licking your lips
4) Drink a lot of water
5) Try and breathe through your nose
6) Avoid allergens,if you know about them(dust,skin care cosmetics)common allergens
7) You may try ayurvedic treatment also,i have seen some people benefit out of ... Read Full Answer
