Greetings, Dr. Roach One of my close friends is nearly seventy-seven years old. Up until around 14 years ago, he smoked a lot. He made the decision to stop smoking and used nicotine gum to aid in his decision. According to what I understand, using nicotine gum to help someone stop smoking should only be done for a brief amount of time.
He freely acknowledges that he is hooked to it, nevertheless, and continues to use it several times a day. What adverse effects might this have on his health? — J.K.
ANSWER: I frequently hear people complain that opiod use disorder therapies like methadone, nicotine replacement, or comparable medications are like exchanging one addiction for another. This is not a useful perspective, though, as nicotine replacement has comparatively modest negative impacts on a person’s health, but smoking has very substantial health repercussions.
Heart palpitations, nausea, vomiting, other gastrointestinal issues, and insomnia were the most frequent side effects of nicotine replacement treatment. Particularly, nicotine gum can result in coughing or hiccups, mouth ulcers, and pain in the mouth and throat. Nicotine replacement is far safer than smoking, which has numerous health risks, including lung disease, heart disease, and numerous malignancies.
Reducing health hazards is the aim of treatment for nicotine use disorder. I would commend your acquaintance for stopping and maintaining their quitting behavior after so many years, even if it is preferable to be smoke-free without utilizing nicotine replacement therapy.
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Greetings, Dr. Roach Regretfully, my brother, who is 73, will soon need dialysis due to failing kidneys, according to his doctor. Farxiga won’t improve his kidney issues, he added, but why wouldn’t it? Would I be a good kidney donor for him, as I’m his brother? — B.F.
ANSWER: Chronic kidney failure can have a variety of causes, but dialysis or a kidney transplant are required to prolong and improve quality of life after the kidneys reach a certain degree.
SGLT-2 inhibitors, including dapagliflozin (Farxiga), function by blocking the kidney’s ability to reabsorb sugar. It works particularly well for kidney illness linked to diabetes, but it also works well for kidney problems where the urine contains a lot of protein. Dapagliflozin may have been prescribed too late to be helpful, or he may have a kidney disease that isn’t linked to protein in the urine.
You have a good probability of being a suitable kidney donor because you are his brother. Out of all the treatments available for end-stage kidney disease, a kidney transplant would provide your brother with the highest quality and longest lifespan. The lengthy waiting list for a cadaver kidney is avoided by using a living relative as a donor.
But that doesn’t mean that you two will get along. Furthermore, he must be in generally good health. Additionally, you must be in good physical shape and some clinics have an age restriction on donations. You should discuss a referral to a transplant program with your brother’s renal doctor. They will counsel you on your risks in becoming a donor.
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