Mayo Clinic Talks

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guests: Robin M. Lloyd, M.D., & Michael Silber, M.B. Ch. B. In most people, sleep is a peaceful activity. Dreaming is a normal component of our sleep and represents activity of the brain at a time the rest of our body is inactive. However, for some individuals sleep is not a peaceful activity. Some can experience very violent dreams, often associated with p...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. @ChutkaMD Guest: Gerald W. Volcheck, M.D. Food allergy is an immune reaction that develops following ingestion of sometimes even a very small amount of the offending food product. It’s thought to occur in up to 4% of adults and is not to be confused with a food intolerance, which is much more common. It’s important to recognize patients who develop a food allergy as th...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Michael Silber, M.B. Ch. B. It’s estimated that up to 10% of the U.S. population has restless leg syndrome, with most patients middle aged or older. Since it tends to occur in the latter part of the day, it commonly interferes with an individual’s ability to sleep and is one of several known sleep disorders. Unfortunately, there is no cure, however t...

Hosts: Dawn Marie R. Davis, M.D . and Sanjeev (Sanj) Kakar, M.D . Guest: Erin K. O'Brien, M.D . Guest: Bobbi S. Pritt, M.D . Guest: Sandhya Pruthi, M.D . Our society is changing with women assuming more prominent roles. We have a female Vice President and recent books by Sheryl Sandberg (Lean In) and Michelle Obama (The Light We Carry), have highlighted the importance in inequities women have, and...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Bhanuprakash (Bhanu) Kolla, M.D. A common question we get from patients is “What can you give me to help me sleep?”. Explaining how our sleep changes with age; becoming less efficient, more fragmented with multiple reasons for nighttime awakenings is met with understanding from the patient but is always followed by the question “So, what are you goin...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Elitza S. Theel, Ph. D. Lyme disease is quite common with more than 400,000 new cases per year in the United States alone. It’s associated with a constellation of typical symptoms, but it can also produce symptoms which are very unusual and vague. As a result, it can mimic a variety of other diseases. An accurate diagnosis of Lyme disease can be chal...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Michael H. Silber, M.B.Ch. B. Difficulty initiating and maintaining sleep is a common problem for many patients. Over-the-counter sleeping aids are used by many and we commonly get asked for prescription medications to help with their sleep. Unfortunately, the ideal sleeping medication doesn’t exist and many have potentially worrisome adverse effects...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Mansi J. Kanuga, M.D. Millions of Americans suffer from seasonal allergies causing a variety of symptoms which often force them to stay indoors and limit their activities. Allergic rhinitis carries a significant economic burden accounting for an estimated 2 million lost school days, and 6 million lost workdays per year. Fortunately, there are numerou...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D., [@chutkaMD] Guest: Timothy I. Morgenthaler, M.D. It’s estimated that about 30 million people in the U.S. have sleep apnea and most don’t even know they have it. Only 20% of those with sleep apnea have been diagnosed with the condition. Sleep apnea becomes more common with advancing age and is thought to be present in up to 80% of men over the age of 80. With an increa...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D., [@chutkaMD] Guest: Bradley C. Liebovich, M.D. Testicular cancer accounts for only around 1% of all cancers in men and is most common in males from age 15 to 35. Around 10,000 new cases are diagnosed per year resulting in about 400 deaths. While testicular cancer is relatively uncommon, other abnormalities occur in the scrotum which are quite common and fortunately, re...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Eric J. Olson, M.D. It’s estimated that about 30 million people in the U.S. have sleep apnea and the worldwide prevalence is approaching 1 billion. The traditional treatment is continuous positive airway pressure or CPAP which is quite effective and used to enhance ventilation. Unfortunately, there are a significant number of patients with sleep apne...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Michael H. Silber, M.B., Ch. B. Depending on the patient, a complaint of feeling tired, fatigued or sleepy may all mean the same thing. In others they may not feel that sleepiness is the same as fatigue or tiredness. Once we sort out what the patient is actually describing, how do we evaluate the sleepy patient? How much sleep do we need per night an...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Michael D. Leise, M.D. The liver is the second-most transplanted organ; nearly 10,000 patients received a liver transplant in 2021. The major factor, which has limited the transplants performed, has been the availability of the donated organs and some patients have waited several years before an acceptable organ becomes available. Transplants can be...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Samy M. Riad, M.D. Kidney transplants are quite common; over 20,000 transplants will have been performed by the end of 2022 and there are currently just under 90,000 individuals on the national transplant waiting list. They’ve been remarkably successful in giving patients with renal failure an improved quality of life. However, patients who have had...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Scott M. Cheney, M.D. Except for skin cancer, prostate cancer is the most common malignancy in males. 1 in 8 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime, most over the age of 65. If diagnosed early, treatment is quite effective and results in a very favorable survival rate. Several very effective treatment options are now available...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Alan H. Bryce, M.D. Prostate cancer is the second most common malignancy in men, second only to skin cancer and due to increased efforts in screening, most prostate cancers are found very early, and these men have an excellent survival rate. Unfortunately, a percentage of men develop an advanced prostate cancer and the disease becomes much more aggre...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Nahid Punjani, M.D., M.P.H. Issues related to the prostate can play a significant role in a man’s sexual function. We commonly use medications for benign prostate problems such as BPH which can produce adverse effects. It’s also very common for the treatment of prostate cancer, whether we use radiation therapy, surgical prostatectomy, or hormonal the...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: R. Jeffrey Karnes, M.D. Prostate cancer is the most common solid organ malignancy in males, and it’s estimated that 1 in 8 men will develop prostate cancer during their lifetime.  When diagnosed early, it has an excellent survival rate with a variety of very effective treatment options. What are the advantages and disadvantages of each?  Why would on...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Daniel M. Frendl, M.D., Ph. D. Prostate cancer is one of the most common malignancies in men, second only to skin cancer. It’s estimated that 1 in 8 men will develop prostate cancer during their lifetime. The predominant screening test for prostate cancer has been the prostate specific antigen or PSA.  However, there has been some controversy surroun...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Mitchell R. Humphreys, M.D. Benign prostatic hyperplasia or BPH is quite common in middle-age and older men. It’s estimated that up to 70% of men over age 60 have symptoms from BPH. While BPH is not a life-threatening condition, it does produce symptoms which can negatively affect the lifestyle of our patients. Since most of the patients with BPH are...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Colin P. West, M.D., Ph. D. The practice of medicine is often stressful and at times, even frustrating. Sometimes the stress and frustration can get out of hand and lead us to feeling overwhelmed and hopeless. This has been described as burnout. There’s good evidence to suggest that well over half of all physicians practicing in the U.S. have exhibit...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Tara Schmidt, MEd, RDN, LD Nutrition is so important to our health. What and how much we eat can help keep us healthy or increase our risk of developing a number of health problems including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, malignancy or a variety of degenerative health conditions. Unfortunately, many of our patients obtain their information regardi...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Thom W. Rooke, M.D. Today, we’re excited to bring back a special lecture by popular demand from Season 1 of Mayo Clinic Talks Podcast. We’ll be discussing varicose veins and venous insufficiency with Thom W. Rooke, M.D., from Cardiovascular Medicine at the Mayo Clinic. Connect with the Mayo Clinic’s School of Continuous Professional Development onlin...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Eoin Flanagan, M.B., B.Ch. Nearly 1 million individuals in the U.S. have multiple sclerosis. Most acquire the disease between the ages of 20 and 50. It’s often difficult to establish a diagnosis as the symptoms can be vague and often vary significantly from one individual to another.  The disease can be very frightening, often debilitating, and progr...

Host: Darryl S. Chutka, M.D. [@chutkaMD] Guest: Andrew C. Storm, M.D. Determining the source of GI blood loss can be a challenging dilemma. On occasion, we have clues regarding where we should start looking, but in some cases, no such clues exist. It’s best to use a stepwise approach to determining the source and in most cases, this will give us the answer we need. When a cause is found, most tend...