YOU DOCS | Snipping vagus nerve shows few if any side effects
In your book YOU: On a Diet, you mentioned how surgeons realized cutting the vagus nerve curbed a person's appetite. Why isn't vagotomy surgery an option for weight loss?
A. It might be, but it's still experimental. In the 1970s, docs were snipping the vagus nerve in ulcer patients to cut down on gastric acid when they discovered an unexpected side effect: The patients lost weight. Then it was major surgery. Today, it can be done with a few tiny cuts that remove about 1 centimeter of the nerves between the esophagus and stomach with almost no short-term side effects.
Researchers are also investigating a reversible procedure called VBLOC in which implanted electrodes deliver electrical impulses to block the signals the vagus carries between your brain and digestive system.
But are these as effective as gastric bypass or lap band surgeries? We may not know until the results from a major study on both techniques is released later this year.
Q. I'm hard of hearing and have a steady noise in my ears: A "sh sh sh" that sounds like it's coming from a tunnel. I used to have it occasionally, but now it is a steady noise. Any suggestions?
A. It's very likely that you have tinnitus; about 90 percent of people with hearing loss do. Although in Latin the word "tinnitus" means "ringing" -- which is how most people describe the phantom noise in their ears -- it also can sound like hissing, buzzing, chirping or roaring. You may have had tinnitus for a long time before you noticed it; hearing loss may have just revealed it because you were no longer picking up the sounds in your environment that masked it.
Why did you get it in the first place? One theory is that exposure to loud noise (explosions, jack hammers, Black Sabbath cranked to the max on your iPod) damages tiny, delicate hairs that move in response to sound.
There aren't any cures for tinnitus, but there are many effective treatments. You should see an otolaryngologist (an ear, nose and throat doctor), who will rule out other possible causes and may recommend hearing aids. Or choose a subspecialist who just cares for people with tinnitus. Sometimes, improving your ability to hear can cover up tinnitus.
The doc also might recommend a masking device. It essentially replaces tinnitus with a more pleasant sound, like rain or the ocean, that you can ignore as easily as you do any background noise.
See The Dr. Oz Show on TV (check local listings). To submit questions, go to www.RealAge.com.
King Features Syndicate
