Kidney stones have plagued men throughout recorded history; the problem has even been "diagnosed" in Egyptian mummies that date back some 7,000 years. In the modern world, this old problem is more common than ever. In the U.S., the prevalence of kidney stones increased from 3.2% in the mid-'70s to 5.2% in the mid-'90s, and the rates are continuing to rise. At present, kidney stones send almost three million Americans to the doctor each year, including over 500,000 trips to emergency rooms. Between 5% and 10% of all active stone passers may require hospitalization.

It's a big problem caused by ...

Obesity may soon overtake smoking as the leading preventable cause of death in the United States. Even now, overweight and obesity account for almost 216,000 deaths a year, and if present trends continue, the number is sure to rise.

As scientists have struggled to understand why obesity increases the risk of heart attack, stroke, hypertension, diabetes, cancer, arthritis, and other woes, they have refined the definition of obesity. Because the hazard is not body weight but body fat, simple height and weight charts have given way to a mathematic formula that uses these two measurements to calculate the body mass ...

Warts are extremely common. Most are small and painless. Many will resolve on their own. All are benign. But that doesn't mean warts are trivial. In fact, many are unsightly, some do cause pain, and patients with weakened immune systems can have major problems with warts. However, the most common symptom of all is worry, with embarrassment a close second; both are best treated with a simple dose of information.

What are warts? A wart is a skin infection caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). HPV affects only humans; it spreads from person to person by direct contact. With the ...

Q. I am 72 years old and in good health. I've had left knee pain on and off for almost six months, nothing too severe, but it aches if I walk more than a mile or so, and I sometimes get sharp pain on the stairs. My doctor sent me for an MRI of both knees; it showed "mild to moderate osteoarthritis" in both knees and a torn meniscus in my right knee, which feels fine. I think I know what to do about my painful knee — but what should I do for the torn meniscus in my "good" ...