Mayo Clinic Health Letter Tip of the Month - January 30, 2002

Tuesday, January 29, 2002

Help Your Skin Weather the Winter

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.- Cold air and low humidity during winter months can take a toll on skin. Here are some winter skin care tips from the January issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter.

• Use mild, super fatted or glycerin soaps.
• Bathe fast. Keep baths and showers to no more than 10 to 15 minutes. Use lukewarm water. Use a towel to pat your skin, leaving it moist. Don't rub.
• Moisturize. Apply a cream while your skin is still wet. Creams work better than lotions.
• Maintain humidity in your home. If the air in your home is dry, increase the humidity and keep it cool.
Contact your doctor if home-care remedies don't help. You could have eczema or dermatitis - skin conditions that cause swollen, reddened skin.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - A new hearing device that is implanted in your middle ear may provide better sound quality than conventional hearing aids, according to the January issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter.

The device includes internal and external parts that work together to deliver sound to the middle ear. The external part, called a processor, includes a battery, microphone, speech processor and transmitter. About the size of a quarter, it attaches magnetically just above the ear. The processor picks up sound and transmits to a receiver implanted in the skull.

The device mimics how normal hearing works, transmitting sound straight to the bones in the middle ear. In traditional hearing aids, sound is transmitted through the ear drum, which can give the wearer the feeling of talking in a barrel. They also can produce feedback - squeaks and whistles that are audible to others.

Hearing experts say the new device can provide clearer sound and less feedback than other hearing aids. However, surgically implanted devices cost substantially more. Discuss your individual situation with your hearing specialist.

Generic Drugs Offer Quality, Value - But Check with Your Physician Before Switching

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - Your pharmacist offers you a choice between a brand-name medication and its generic equivalent. In most situations, the only difference is a lower price, according to the January issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter.

Here are some facts about generic medications:

Quality: Generic drugs are required by the Food and Drug Administration to have the same quality, strength, purity and stability as their brand-name counterparts.

Effectiveness: Generic drugs deliver the same amount of active ingredients in the same amount of time as the original brand-name drugs.

Side effects: The FDA monitors reports of adverse drug reactions and has found no difference between generic and brand-name drugs.

Manufacturing: The FDA conducts thousands of inspections annually to ensure that the manufacturing facilities for all drug makers meet specific standards. (About half of all generic drugs are produced by brand-name firms that make copies of their own or other brand-name drugs.)

Even though generic drugs are the bioequivalent to their brand-name counterparts, it's still a good idea to check with your doctor before switching. Certain drugs need to be maintained within narrow levels in your blood to avoid toxic side effects. These include some medications for epilepsy, heart rhythm regulation, lung disease, thyroid disorders and blood thinning. Changes in these medications are best done in close consultation with your physician.

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Mayo Clinic is a private group practice of medicine dedicated to providing diagnosis and treatment of patient illnesses through a systematic focus on individual patient needs. Mayo Clinic Scottsdale offers outpatient healthcare in 66 medical and surgical specialties and programs. Mayo Clinic also provides care at primary care practices located throughout the Valley and at the new Mayo Clinic Hospital. The hospital is located at 56th Street and Mayo Boulevard (north of Bell Road) in northeast Phoenix, and provides inpatient care to support the medical and surgical specialties of the Clinic.

Contact:
Anne Tewksbury
480-301-4368

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