How Is Acid Reflux Diagnosed & Treated?
Acid reflux refers to when the contents of your stomach flows back into the esophagus, which is the tube that connects your throat to your stomach. When this condition is chronic, it is known as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). In this post, we review how GERD is diagnosed and treated. How Is GERD Diagnosed? To…
What to Know About Vocal Cord Damage
When we speak, air passes from the lungs through the vocal cords, which are two bands of muscle tissue within the larynx, causing them to vibrate. This vibration produces sound. Anything that causes difficulty in producing sound naturally and comfortably is a voice disorder that can be medically treated. Two common signs of vocal cord…
What Is Laryngitis?
Within the larynx are two folds of mucus membrane covering muscle and cartilage called your vocal cords. Under normal circumstances, the vocal cords open and close smoothly and form sounds by moving and vibrating. When the vocal cords are swollen, sounds become distorted, making your voice sound hoarse. Laryngitis is inflammation of the larynx (voice…
Loss of Smell and Taste Linked to COVID-19
By now, we’re all familiar with the main symptoms of COVID-19: fever, body aches, dry cough, breathing difficulty. But for some people, additional symptoms include a loss of smell and taste; these can occur even in the absence of any other symptoms. Anosmia and ageusia (the medical terms for loss of smell and taste) are…
How Do You Stay Safe From Coronavirus (COVID-19)?
According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), COVID-19 is a respiratory illness that can spread from person to person. The virus that causes COVID-19 is a novel coronavirus that was first identified during an investigation into an outbreak in Wuhan, China. Defined by any family (Coronaviridae) of single-stranded RNA viruses, it infects birds and…
Vape Tongue: One of the Many Side Effects of e-Cigarettes
Vaping has been in the news a lot lately, and most of the press has been negative. Once seen as a safer alternative to cigarettes, a number of vaping-related illnesses have caused health officials to deem vaping a danger. One common side effect ENT doctors in West Chester are seeing more frequently these days is…
Cigarette Smoke Makes Head & Neck Cancers More Aggressive
The fact that cigarettes are bad for your health shouldn’t come as a surprise to anybody. The Surgeon General has been warning about the dangers of smoking for decades and the list of health complications caused by cigarettes is lengthy. Evidence shows that smokers in Phoenixville not only have a much higher risk of developing…
When Should You See an ENT?
Doctors who specialize in ear, nose and throat disorders are called otolaryngologists (or simply ENT doctors for those who have trouble with seven-syllable words). You’ve probably heard of them – but do you know when to see one? The Field of Otolaryngology Otolaryngology is a medical specialty that focuses on diseases of the ears, nose…
Antibiotics: Choose Wisely for ENT Infections
It often seems like bacterial infections and childhood go together like peanut butter and jelly (or wine and cheese if you’re the more cultured type). In most cases your child’s ear, nose and throat infection will be treated with antibiotics – but before you commit, it’s important to understand that your decision could affect your…
Research Shows Thyroid Disease is Overtreated
Thyroid disease is pretty common in Abington and throughout the U.S.; doctors estimate about 20 million people are affected – and up to 60 percent aren’t even aware of their condition. New research indicates those who are receiving treatment for one common type of thyroid disorder might not be benefitting and that physicians should reconsider…