I’ve been dealing with some pretty significant hearing loss lately—it's gotten much worse than it used to be. I managed to brush it off for the longest time, but honestly, I can't ignore it anymore. It’s starting to mess with my focus at work and makes hanging out with friends a total struggle. I was wondering if anyone could point me toward the best clinics in the US, Canada, Mexico, or Canada for getting a really thorough, high-end checkup, especially since I might end up needing hearing aids. Also, if you know any top-tier private clinics in Europe that come highly recommended for specialized testing, please let me know.
Thanks in advance for the help!🙂
Mayo Clinic
You'll probably find most of what you're looking for right here. They operate at a world-class, top-tier level. 👍
So, about five years back, I went to see my doctor because my sinuses were acting up. Out of nowhere, during the visit, the doc mentioned that my finger joints looked swollen, which pointed toward some kind of inflammation. Honestly, I hadn't even noticed it myself—no pain, no redness, nothing. Just following the doctor's lead, I went in for some tests, and a rheumatologist over at the Mayo Clinic basically told me it was nothing to worry about, noting it as just synovial thickening in the report. He based that on my blood work and X-rays coming back clear. Fast forward five years, and a colleague mentions that there’s actually a chance this could be RA, so I was advised to get a second opinion. This new specialist suggested I go for an MRI and HLA typing, along with more blood work. The blood work and the MRI didn't show any signs of active inflammation... but I'm totally lost when it comes to interpreting these HLA results. I have a follow-up scheduled to go over everything, but I'm getting a little impatient and was wondering if anyone here might be able to make sense of these findings for me.
I'm leaning towards what the other folks here have been saying regarding whether HLA typing is even useful in these cases 👍
Looking through this whole forest of tests and data you've gathered, there are a few key things you haven't mentioned:
-How long those "swollen" joints have actually been looking like that -The progression (meaning, are they always the same, or are they getting worse over time?) -What you do for a living (like, if you're doing any kind of manual labor) and your environment (dealing with cold or sudden temp changes...)
Since you brought up the sinus issues—it's entirely possible you dealt with a strep infection (throat, sinuses, whatever) a while back that wasn't fully cleared out, leading to a sort of "reactive arthritis." In that scenario, those "swollen joints" would essentially be a lingering consequence of that infection. But hey, that's just me speculating. 😉
Basically, maybe the first step should have been targeted testing to check for any lingering evidence of strep activity in your system. 🧐
Once your trauma surgeon gets those follow-up X-rays back, they’ll sit you down and give you the verdict on whether we can just play it safe with conservative treatment or if you’re heading straight to surgery. It really comes down to how the bone fragments are sitting, whether the healing process has actually kicked in the right way, and—honestly—just how things are feeling for you physically when you try to move.
It’s honestly a bit too early to call it right now, so we won't know what the game plan looks like for 🤔
lonemoose18 said:Charles Wilson8, I seriously cannot believe Mumio actually worked for you. Please let me know how many tablets you’re taking a day and where on earth you picked it up... Please hit me back, and thank you so much!
lonemoose18 said:Ugh, my jaw is killing me and the pain is radiating straight into my teeth. Seriously, someone please help... I'm desperate!
So, we're talking about the stuff known as Lyrica.
Plus, you’re digging up a three-year-old post from 2012 by some guy who basically vanished from the forums back then, acting like Mumio was some kind of magic cure-all for every little ache and pain you could imagine. There’s actually zero data out there on how much his sales spiked once he started moving that stuff.
If you’re looking to get into a deep dive about Mumio, there’s actually a perfect thread for that—one that gets a ton of traffic and stays pretty active. Alternative treatments for PPDF You could honestly spend an eternity rambling on about how these "miracle" supplements supposedly work, and you’d still barely scratch the surface.
Jeffrey Garcia6 said:Just to touch on how these systems actually work—my dad almost died in the ER at Cedars-Sinai because they completely botched his initial triage. They misjudged how bad things were, and he was just sitting there while his ulcers started rupturing. It wasn't until after a few frantic interventions that they finally realized they needed to move. To make matters worse, the doctor was actually threatening us with security.
Then there's my mom—she was stuck in that same ER waiting room from 7 PM all the way until 5 AM. We eventually lost our minds and caused a bit of a scene just to get some attention. By 8 AM, she was finally in surgery having a ruptured gallbladder removed.
Between those two experiences and a handful of other stories I’ve heard or dealt with, I've come to realize that the triage system at Cedars-Sinai is pretty much broken.
Honestly, once we actually have a properly trained professional—a legit medical doctor—serving as the true first point of contact for every single patient walking through those doors, then these kinds of life-threatening screw-ups will become rare. But unfortunately, given a bunch of different reasons (some of which are actually quite valid), it's probably going to be a long time before we see that kind of change...
The gastronomy pdf is a pretty laid-back and chill corner of this site.
We generally let people drift off-topic, throw a little troll at someone, or engage in minor mischief—think of it like how a highway patrol officer might ignore you if you're just doing 5 over the limit, or how a fast-food joint might label their burgers as "98% beef"—you just squint, plug your nose, and pretend you didn't notice that tiny gap.
The mod team almost never reaches for the ban hammer here, mostly because we want to keep the conversation flowing and the threads active without constant interruptions.
After checking in with the rest of the crew, moderator Michelle Evans (so, a lady, not a gentleman ) laid out exactly why you caught a penalty.
To put it bluntly, you jumped into a thread where nobody had contributed anything meaningful lately, and then you went ahead and called another user out specifically for being "unconstructive." It’s kind of like if you were cruising through a residential zone with a speed limit of 31 miles, decided to blast past some guy going 37 miles in your own car, and then immediately ran to a cop to report him for being a slow driver. 56 miles 😵
I honestly can't think of a simpler way to justify your 40-point penalty.
Given what you actually brought to the table, that number could have easily been much higher. But, like I said at the start, our gastronomy pdf is moderated loosely and liberally; handing out penalties is definitely not our idea of a good time.
Any well-intentioned, constructive post is always welcome on this board. Catch you guys around later. 👋
My mom (85) broke her hip on Monday morning, so it’s been about 60 hours now. The hospital actually missed the fracture for the first 30 hours after she was admitted. Now, we’ve been waiting about 24 hours for a cardiologist to weigh in on whether she’s even cleared for surgery, given her heart issues. From what I can tell, the evaluation was pretty basic—just a stethoscope, nothing like an ultrasound or anything more intensive. I have this nagging feeling they might just tell us tomorrow that her heart is too weak and call it quits.
Based on what I’ve gathered, if she doesn't get the surgery for the broken hip, the chances of her ever standing on her own two feet again are basically zero, and she'll probably be in constant pain every time she moves. Am I reading this situation correctly?
Does it make any sense to go out and seek a second opinion right now? If so, how and where should we look, and is there a specific window of time after the break where surgery still makes sense?
It's a tough reality, but a hip fracture combined with advanced age is one of the most common drivers of disability. You end up dealing with serious complications like infections—mostly pneumonia or UTIs—and various blood clot issues that, unfortunately, can be fatal even when the doctors follow every single standard protocol perfectly.
The fact that she's 85—even if she’s surprisingly healthy for her age, which is pretty impressive—really bumps up the risks associated with any kind of general anesthesia.
A standard pre-op workup usually involves basic blood work, a quick stethoscope check, and an EKG. An echocardiogram isn't actually part of a routine pre-surgical screening.
And honestly, a hip fracture isn't always caught immediately upon arrival at the hospital, even with a top-tier clinical exam and X-rays. In older patients, it sometimes doesn't even show up clearly until about ten days later.
If the medical board decides the surgical risk is just too high or the chances of a successful recovery aren't there, there's a very strong possibility they won't move forward with surgery at all.
Looking at the whole picture, in either scenario, the odds of your mom walking again are unfortunately pretty slim. 😢
Sitting here tonight waiting on some urgent lab results, I found myself drifting into a bit of a functional-philosophical deep dive regarding insect bites and whatever creepy crawlies decide to target us.
During the summer—basically whenever the heat starts cranking up—most of us end up in this sort of "vasodilatory" skin phase; our blood vessels and capillaries tend to dilate more, making them more permeable and prone to leaking fluid, which is just physics doing its thing under the heat. Every little bug bite triggers a local inflammatory response (mostly allergic, usually), though sometimes things can escalate into a full-blown systemic reaction.
So, to put it very simply, you’re dealing with two sides to a bug bite: a physical component and an immunochemical one.
Those summer temperatures can definitely crank up the physical side of the equation.
Since I'm already philosophizing... From my own experience, once you take that first hit of the season from a mosquito or something similar (just so we're clear on what kind of bugs we're talking about 😬 ), it helps to take an antihistamine—think Telfast, Xyzall, Aerius, or Claritin—for a few days straight. At the same time, get some Synopen on the bite site immediately (just don't let it sit in direct sunlight!), then after about an hour, wash off the residue with soap and follow up with a decent local corticosteroid, like a mometasone or Elocom cream. Doing this has really helped me dial down the local inflammation. In my experience, if you follow this routine, every subsequent bite tends to be significantly milder for a good chunk of people—for some, they become almost negligible. Why that happens might be something worth pondering at another time 👋 The bottom line is: act fast and be aggressive with it 🧐
-Just a heads-up, these are just my own philosophical, medical, and empirical musings; they aren't necessarily a one-size-fits-all solution for everyone in every situation.
Finally, a bit of philosophy for our little corner of the internet 🙂
So, fair warning, this whole thing is mostly just me speculating and throwing out unvetted thoughts 🙂
Honestly, I’m starting to get really suspicious of the anti-TPO antibody test reagents we're seeing lately over at 🤔 LabCorp . I have this patient, maybe 80 years old, whose anti-TPO is sitting near 500—when the normal range is supposed to be around 40. She’s never had thyroid issues before in her life. It just seems like, lately, anti-TPO is coming back positive for pretty much everyone. It makes me want to just grab a needle, draw my own blood, and check 😬 myself . Vaccines? Well, you see some pretty intense reactions quite often, even in people with zero history of anything. I usually suggest taking something like a basic antihistamine preventatively—either a bit before or an hour or two after the shot.
Mosquitoes? Or bugs in general? When it's bone-dry and scorching hot like this, the venom in biting insects tends to be more "concentrated," so most people end up having a much nastier reaction to any bite. And apparently, there are these "new" kinds of mosquitoes or bugs going around; people are showing up with these weird, atypical bites that get secondary bacterial infections or sometimes even look almost necrotic. Spiders? Some other kind of bug? Usually, they need antibiotics paired with an antihistamine.
Total chaos.
Yeah, when the immune system basically loses its mind, it starts swinging wildly and hitting way too many targets with way too much force.😵 I feel like I've lost my compass here... You can sort of view anti-TPO as a gauge for how hyperactive and agitated an immune system has become. It’s rare for an autoimmune disease to just exist in a vacuum. There’s usually this "disease progression" where different organ systems start getting caught in the crossfire. For instance, I had this young patient with high anti-TPO who is now "developing" diabetes. Her HbA1c is up, and she'll probably fail the glucose tolerance test.
The question is: should we be more bold—and I won't say aggressive—in treating patients with autoimmune diseases that don't fit neatly into our standard boxes? If the patient is clearly getting worse, but hasn't technically ticked every single box required by the official treatment protocols, do we just sit on our hands? Basically, what happens when the patient "doesn't follow the textbook."
I had more points to make, but honestly, even I am feeling extra forgetful in this heat, especially with the pace of things lately where half the staff is out on vacation but we're still expected to give 100% productivity. 🙂
Raymond Garcia33 said:Is it actually safe to mix antidepressants and sedatives with supplements that contain grapefruit extract and garlic? (Not trying to push an ad here, lol). I was thinking about using the second one to help deal with some Candida issues.
Grapefruit is notorious for messing with a huge range of medications in certain people. It can really throw things out of whack.🧐
You might want to look into a different way to tackle that Candida instead.😉
restlessmason4 said:Honestly, I’ve been leaning on Naproxen lately, and if I didn't have it on hand, I don't even know how I'd manage to get through the day. It’s really just your standard over-the-counter pain reliever, but man, it makes a world of difference when things start aching. I’ve been tossing some B-complex into my daily routine lately, mostly because I heard through the grapevine that B vitamins can actually help dial down nerve inflammation. It’s one of those things you hear people mention in passing, and since I'm always looking for ways to stay on top of things, I figured it was worth a shot.
Should I go see a neurologist? Hey, if you're looking for some kind of guide or manual, you might have come to the wrong corner of the internet—unless you're asking for my personal take on how things work around here. I don't really do "official" instructions, but if there’s something specific you're stuck on, just lay it out for me. I've spent enough time navigating the chaos of various forums and help centers to know that most "guides" are just a bunch of fluff anyway. So, tell me what's actually on your mind, and we can figure it out together.? My doctor only ever mentioned physical therapy when we were talking about my treatment plan—she didn't even bring up any other specialists or anything like that. Honestly, though, at this point, I’d be willing to see just about anyone who could actually help me feel better.
It’s honestly such a headache, but you basically need to get a specific referral for every single specialist if you want the insurance companies to actually cover it—it's like following the gospel according to the major health insurance providers here in the States. 🙂)
Look, Diclofenac—or Naklofen if you're looking at certain brands—is a perfectly fine option from the NSAID family, but honestly, it’s really just one small piece of the puzzle when it comes to actually fixing what you're dealing with. It might take the edge off for a bit, but it isn't exactly a magic bullet for the root cause.
So, I was sitting there yesterday, just nursing a lukewarm coffee and staring out at the rain hitting the window, thinking about how much we obsess over these tiny little micronutrients. You know, like B-vitamins. It’s funny how we treat them like some kind of magic wand for our energy levels, isn't it? I remember back when I was living in Chicago, working that grueling desk job where the fluorescent lights felt like they were actually sucking the soul right out of my skin, I used to go down to the health food store every single week convinced that if I just hit my B12 targets, I’d suddenly feel like a superhero instead of a walking zombie. It’s one of those things where the science is solid—obviously, you need them for your metabolism and your nervous system to function without throwing a tantrum—but the way people talk about them makes it sound like a quick fix for burnout. We all want that easy answer, right? Just pop a supplement and suddenly the brain fog clears and you’re ready to tackle a marathon or a Monday morning meeting. But honestly, it’s rarely that simple. Most of the time, it’s more about the slow burn of getting enough whole foods into your diet, though I’ll be the first to admit that on those days when I’ve lived entirely on takeout and espresso, a little extra boost doesn't hurt. It’s just one of those quiet, fundamental things we tend to overlook until we start feeling a bit frayed at the edges. Honestly, if you’re the only one reaching for Neurobion, you might find it actually does something for you, but even then, it’s not some magic bullet. It really only seems to hit the mark in very specific, strictly selected cases where someone's body chemistry is just right for it. It's definitely not a one-size-fits-all kind of thing.
restlessmason4 said:I had an X-ray on my spine, but everything else has just been through my primary care doctor. At first, she put me on these injections for three days along with some pills. Things settled down for a bit, but now the pain is back and honestly, it’s worse than ever. I've spent the whole day calling doctors all over Chicago, and the best they can offer me is an appointment eight months from now.
I'm actually thinking about heading over to the ER tonight. I’ve got a referral here specifically for outpatient physical therapy.
That sounds like you haven't even scratched the surface of testing yet. If you go to the ER, they’re probably just going to screw you over—that's kind of how the system works there, especially since you didn't experience a major trauma within the last 24 hours.
You really ought to see a neurologist. You definitely need more diagnostic work done. What exactly are you taking for it right now?
So, here I am at just 27 years old, dealing with sciatica so bad that I can barely function like a normal human being.
It all started pretty subtly back in April. At first, I thought I could just manage it on the fly with some over-the-counter pills and topical creams. There were stretches where things felt okay, but lately, everything has just gone south. It’s getting brutal. I can’t even stand still for two minutes without this excruciating pain hitting me, so I’ve basically been living on painkillers.
I went to see my primary care doctor, and she initially just threw some meds and B-complex vitamins at me. When that didn't do squat, she finally wrote me a referral for a physiatrist and physical therapy.
The problem is, the earliest appointment I can snag for a specialist in Chicago is late August. I’ve been bouncing from one clinic to another, but nobody can squeeze me in any sooner. Honestly, I feel like I'm going to lose my mind from the pain and having to pop pills every single day until then.
If anyone has any advice on how to fast-track an appointment, please let me know. Also, if I decide to go to a private physiatrist instead, can I still use my insurance referral later to get treatment somewhere else? I don't really care which specialist I see, as long as they can prescribe a treatment plan that I can actually follow through with somewhere in the city.
Any tips or info would be hugely appreciated.
Honestly, it might make more sense to try and see a neurologist first. It sounds like you've been stuck in this loop for quite a while now, 🙄.
When you're in that acute, "everything hurts" phase, standard physical therapy doesn't actually have much it can do for you. For right now, you really need rest—and by rest, I mean staying in bed a lot—along with pain management, whether that's pills, injections, or those medicated patches. Once things settle down a bit and you're out of the worst of it, that's when seeing a physiatrist actually starts to make sense. What kind of diagnostic tests have you had done so far?
While we’re all just sitting here twiddling our thumbs waiting for those gluten enteropathy test results to come back:
-Just curious, how does your family tree stack up against yours? Like, what’s the general build of your parents, grandparents, the whole crew? -And what does your actual daily intake look like—I mean, strictly speaking—over a typical two-week stretch? Are you tracking everything in a food diary, calculating the numbers, getting into the weeds of both calories and quality? -How old are you, anyway?
Sean Ross8 said:Does anyone happen to know if a ventral hernia is actually the same thing as diastasis recti? My OB-GYN told me it’s just diastasis and doesn't require surgery, yet an abdominal surgeon insists it’s a ventral hernia that needs an operation!
Look, whenever a doctor suggests you go under the knife, they should be giving you the full rundown—whether it's an emergency or an elective thing you can take your time with, all the perks of getting it fixed, the potential risks involved, and honestly, what kind of mess you're looking at if you decide to just walk away and do nothing.
So, basically, you just need to go back to that surgeon with some very specific questions 😉
By the way, let's be real: an OB-GYN and an abdominal surgeon are rarely looking at the same situation through the same lens 😉
neonstag63 said:Hey guys, when you all started working on your posture, did your shoulders start acting up? 🤔 I feel like my shoulders have been rolled inward for way too long—now, every time I remember to actually sit up straight (you know, pulling them back properly), they start aching. It’s weird... if I slouch again, the pain just vanishes. But the second I try to fix it, it feels like everything is just tightening up... 🤷
Honestly, what you're feeling is totally normal. It’s exactly what you’d expect to deal with after spending way too much time slouching around with terrible posture.
You’re honestly going to have to stick with those corrective exercises for a few weeks—maybe even a couple of months—before that initial discomfort finally starts to chill out. It’s one of those things where you can't really rush the process; you just have to put in the reps and let your body adjust.
Honestly, if you’re looking to actually fix the issues rather than just masking them, you really need to lean into corrective exercise. I’m talking about that specific, targeted movement work that actually addresses why things feel off in the first place. You can spend all day hitting the heavy weights at Gold's Gym, but if your alignment is trashed, you're just reinforcing bad habits. In my experience, you shouldn't just DIY this stuff based on some random video you found online. You really want to find a solid kinesiologist or a high-end physical therapist—someone who actually understands biomechanics and won't just hand you a generic stretching routine. It’s about finding that pro who looks at how your body actually moves through space and prescribes movements meant to reset your foundation. It’s less about "working out" and more about recalibrating the system. It takes longer, sure, but it's the only way to stop playing whack-a-mole with nagging aches and pains. 😉