Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/145000
Friday, July 19, 2013 – Daily News 5A Privacy causes fuss with aunt Hearing your heartbeat is not nothing on FaceDear Annie: book, nor did you My aunt works at make any comthe doctor's office ment to the doctor where I am a or his staff. patient. I am very (Although we private about my wonder how your personal affairs, aunt heard about especially my it.) Hold your head health records. When I first saw Annie's up and let her rant. As difficult as it this physician, I may be, the storm requested that my records be kept in a by Kathy Mitchell will pass eventualseparate area so and Marcy Sugar ly. Your relationship with your they could not be accessed by my aunt and aunt, however, may not would remain confidential. recover. Sorry. Dear Annie: My exThe receptionist assured me that would be done, saying wife and I put our 24-yearmany patients make similar old son through college. He recently was accepted to a requests. Somehow this got back foreign medical school that to my aunt, and she is creat- will cost $50,000 per year ing a huge family fuss over for the next three years. My this, telling everyone she ex decided to remortgage was called in by her boss her house in order to and almost got fired over it. finance a year or two of this She also said I posted expense. I'm sure she will derogatory information feel that any additional concerning this on Face- expense he incurs should book, which is a complete fall upon me. We shared his educationlie. I am beside myself. I never said anything about al expenses up to this point, her looking at my records. I but as a retiree on a fixed only asked that they be kept income, I am not in a position to match her largesse. separate. How do I handle this? This has made me feel inadShe is making something equate as a provider. I took innocent into something out loans to finance my own graduate education and ugly. Please help. — B.K. Dear B.K.: It's a good believe it would do our son thing your aunt doesn't a world of good in the long have access to your records. run to arrange his own It sounds as if she would put tuition through loans and them all over the Internet part-time jobs. I am thankful that my ex out of spite. You have done nothing wrong and should is able to assist our son, but say so. Tell your family it pains me to be unable to members that you posted contribute equally. How can Mailbox I best cope with this feeling of inadequacy? — Worried in Altadena Dear Worried: Please don't feel inadequate because you aren't financing your child's post-graduate degree. That is his responsibility. We understand that your ex wants to make this exorbitant expense easier to bear, but no parent is under an obligation to finance their adult child's continuing education and the accompanying expenses. Remind yourself that you are teaching your son to be self-sufficient — something much more valuable to his future than borrowing from his parents. Dear Annie: ''Parents at Wits' End'' said they are trying to deal with their 31year-old bipolar son, who refuses to take his medication because it makes him feel ''slow.'' You recommended NAMI's Familyto-Family Program. Please suggest to these parents that they also contact Al-Anon Family Groups in their local area. This wonderful organization provides comfort and understanding to the families of alcoholics and those suffering from other addictions. Al-Anon focuses on oneself and not on the alcoholic. Meetings are held almost daily across the country and around the world. They can get more information through alanon.alateen.org. — Nelson your imagination artery and the jugular vein, DEAR DOCTOR K: I can which circulate blood to and hear my heartbeat in my left from the brain. (I've put an ear. Should I be worried that I illustration of these blood vesmight lose my hearing? sels, and where they sit in relaDEAR READER: A few tion to your middle and inner years ago a patient of mine ear, on my website, AskDocasked me the same question. torK.com.) What he was worried about — Carotid artery disease. was not that he might have an Dr. K The accumulation of fatty ear condition which could take by Anthony L. buildup (plaque) inside the away his hearing — he was worried that he might be going Komaroff, M.D. carotid arteries can create turbulent blood flow. This can crazy! I told him that if all he heard was cause a pulsating sound. — High blood pressure. When his heart, he wasn't crazy. On the other hand, if he heard the voice of blood pressure is high, blood flow Abraham Lincoln whispering in his through the carotid artery is more ear, he might have something to worry likely to be turbulent. That turbulence generates the pulsatile tinnitus. about. — Blood vessel disorders. Many A condition called tinnitus causes unusual sounds in the ears: high- blood vessel disorders can cause pulpitched hisses, lower-pitched buzzing satile tinnitus. These include an sounds, clicking. This is a remarkably abnormal connection between an common problem; an estimated 50 artery and vein, twisted arteries, or a million people in the United States benign blood vessel tumor behind the eardrum. have it to some degree. — Ear muscle disorders. Tiny little I consulted with my colleague Dr. David Vernick, assistant clinical pro- muscles that attach to the bones inside fessor of otology and laryngology at the ear can sometimes go into spasms, Harvard Medical School. We agreed and this can cause pulsatile tinnitus. Most of the time, pulsatile tinnitus that what you describe sounds like what's called "pulsatile tinnitus." This is nothing to worry about. If it doesn't is a rhythmic thumping or whooshing go away on its own or becomes really only you can hear, often in time with bothersome, talk to your doctor. Your doctor will likely examine your heartbeat. The most common causes of pul- your ears and listen to the blood flow through the arteries in your neck. He satile tinnitus include: — Conductive hearing loss. This or she will listen for an unusual sound type of hearing loss intensifies inter- that blood makes when it rushes past nal head noises — sounds such as an obstruction. If your doctor hears breathing, chewing, and blood flow- this sound, you'll likely need a test to look for a narrowing or malformation ing through the ear. Conductive hearing loss makes it in your carotid artery — and possibly easier to hear blood flowing through surgery to correct the problem. Othertwo large blood vessels that travel wise, you may need a hearing test or near to each ear. These are the carotid other additional testing. Earnings gains drive stocks higher on Wall Street NEW YORK (AP) — Earnings gains at major U.S. companies and encouraging economic news pushed U.S. stocks to record levels Thursday. A drop in claims for unemployment benefits signaled a healthier economy and encouraged investors to buy stocks. The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia said manufacturing in its region grew at the fastest pace in more than two years this month. Among companies reporting second-quarter earnings, Morgan Stanley was one of the standouts, rising $1.16, or 4.4 percent, to $27.70. The New York bank reported sharply higher earnings driven by investment banking gains and said it planned to spend $500 million buying back its own stock. IBM rose $3.44, or 1.8 percent, to $197.99 after its profit beat analysts' forecasts as software sales grew. Energy companies rose after the price of oil shot up to a 16-month high on signs that the economy is improving. Technology stocks lagged the market after lackluster results from eBay and Intel. Industry bellwethers Google and Microsoft both plunged 5 percent in Wall Street post-market trading after reporting disappointing earnings after the close. The stock market is back at record levels after pulling back in June amid concerns that the Fed was poised to reduce its stimulus program. The S&P 500 has gained 5.2 percent this month and is up 18.5 percent for the year, putting it on track to log its best annual performance since 2009, when it rose 23.5 percent. The Federal Reserve's $85 billion of monthly bond purchases, intended to hold down long-term interest rates, has been a major factor supporting the rally in stocks. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke told the House Financial Services Committee Wednesday that there was no ''preset course'' for ending the stimulus and that any change would depend on how well the economy is doing. Investors have worried that the central bank might reduce its stimulus before the economy was strong enough. Bernanke repeated the comments to the Senate Banking Committee Thursday. ''The economic data continues to be solid and there's less concern that the Fed is going to take away the punch bowl before the economy is healthy enough to handle it,'' said Alec Young, a global equity strategist at S&P Capital IQ. ''On balance, earnings aren't great but they're coming in ahead of expectations.'' The Standard & Poor's 500 index climbed 8.46 points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,689.37. The index has gained for 10 of the last 11 days. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 78.02 points, or 0.5 percent, to 15,548.54. The Dow's gains were led by IBM and UnitedHealth Group, which reported better earnings than Wall Street analysts were expecting. The Nasdaq composite edged up 1.28 points, just 0.04 percent, to 3,611.28. The Nasdaq was held back by weak earnings reports from several major technology companies. eBay fell $3.86, or 6.7 percent, to $53.52 after its CEO John Donahoe said late Wednesday that economic weakness in Europe and Korea will ''continue to be a challenge'' in the second half of the year. Intel fell 91 cents, or Fre forces evacuation of mountain town IDYLLWILD (AP) — Artist Lewis Millett didn't need much more than an order to leave his longtime Idyllwild mountain home after seeing 100 foot flames marching toward the mile-high hamlet that draws tourists, summer campers and students to a year-round arts and music school. Millet and his wife scooped up the precious things that matter most from their three-story Southern California home: their two cats, his paintings and sculptures and one of his family's prized heirlooms — his father's Congressional Medal of Honor. Millet was among the 6,000 residents and tourists told to evacuate the community in the San Jacinto Mountains about 100 miles from Los Angeles as the wildfire grew to more than 35 square miles Thursday, wreathing a ridge about 2 to 3 miles from town, fire officials said. The blaze also was 2 miles away from Palm Springs, but no homes were threatened there. It had already destroyed at least six houses and mobile homes and several cars when winds shifted Wednesday and sent the blaze toward Idyllwild. ''It's never been this bad, and it's never been this close,'' Millett, 61, said as he sat on a cot in an evacuation center in Hemet, a nearby community. ''I have high anxiety.'' Fire officials said the blaze was just 15 percent contained and had been growing in an atypical manner. ''Usually it cools down at night and we get more humidity. That hasn't happened,'' said Tina Rose, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. ''It's been burning like it's daytime for 72 hours in a row.'' Fire officials were worried about the weather during the late afternoon when temperatures peak and the blaze can move more rapidly. ''What we're concerned about is what you see right here,'' said U.S Forest Service Fire Chief Jeanne Pincha-Tulley, pointing to a hazy sky. ''When you get a column that puts out this much smoke, embers get into the column and can drop anywhere.'' She added the column was expected to go right over Idyllwild for the next two days. While authorities said only 5 percent of the town rebuffed evacuating, they cautioned they might not be able to help those who remain if conditions worsen. ''We cannot guarantee your safety if the fire runs into town,'' said Idyllwild Fire Protection District Chief Patrick Reitz. 3.8 percent, to $23.24 after the world's largest maker of computer chips predicted flat sales amid a decline in PC sales. The company's earnings and revenue fell in the second quarter. The weak results are in line with what's expected to be a weak second-quarter earnings season for the U.S. technology industry. Profit growth is expected to contract from a year ago. Companies in the S&P 500 are expected to report profit growth of 3.7 percent for the quarter. The S&P 500 has advanced for nine of the last 10 months. During that period the only significant setback came between May 21 and June 24, when the index fell 5 percent on concern the Fed was set to pull back on its stimulus. The market's unrelenting march higher is starting to concern some investors. ''It doesn't quite feel right going up in a straight line, pretty much since last November,'' said Michael Weiner, Chief Investment Officer at Unified Trust, a wealth management firm. ''It's really unusual to not have a decent correction.'' A correction is typically defined as decline of between 10 and 20 percent. In government bond trading, the yield on the 10-year note edged up to 2.54 percent from 2.49 percent late Wednesday. In commodities trading, the price of oil rose $1.56, or 1.5 percent, to $108.04 a barrel. The price of gold gained $6.70, or 0.5 percent, to $1,284.20 an ounce. The dollar rose against the euro and the Japanese yen.