Maarten Vasbinder lives in Isaan. His profession is general practitioner, a profession that he mainly practiced in Spain. On Thailandblog he answers questions from readers who live in Thailand.
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Dear Martin,
I'll start with the good news about my prostate. A year ago my PSA value was 11.89 and now after using finasteride stercia 5mg for 1 year is back at 3.45. So it helps for me.
Now to my new problem about balance disorder. I've had this for 4/5 months and I've already been to an ENT doctor 3 times and he said nothing wrong. The strange thing is that if I run 3 laps (4,5 km) in the morning and lose my balance a bit at the 4/5 lap. I'm not dizzy, but I have to fight to keep the road straight. Also in the house I sometimes have a little trouble that I have to correct when I make a move too fast.
I went to a neurologist in the clinic and he gave me pills, including Simvastatin 20 mg, which would lower my fat content and cholesterol. He also gave me a referral letter for an MRI scan. I have not done this yet because this is an expensive matter and I have read on the internet that you can also have a CT scan done which is 50% cheaper.
I know that my balance problem normally comes from the ear and this was not an examination but just looking into the ear and saying there is nothing wrong. I would like to hear your opinion on this and only then make a decision.
My cholesterol is a little high LDL 171 normal 160 HDL-c48 normal according to the list 35/44. The doctor said that given my age (80) I do not need any medication.
Thanks in advance.
Regards,
J.
******
Dear J,
Your balance is a very complicated property depending on the middle ear, the eyes, receptors in joints, the brain and the blood flow of all of that. That is why the neurologist wants an MRI scan, which is indeed more expensive, but does provide more information. An ultrasound Doppler of the carotid (the arteries in the neck) can also provide valuable information and is the cheapest.
The doctors think of a lack of oxygen in the brain during exercise and they may be on the right track. That also fits well with your age.
You can do a few things:
- Go into the medical mill and be busy with it for the rest of your life. Not really pleasant.
- Taking medication. I completely agree with your doctor on that. So don't. You can also stop the simvastatin. Completely pointless. Measuring cholesterol makes no sense.
- Reduce the walking distance and do nothing else. Enjoy life as much as possible.
I would go for the latter.
Yours faithfully,
Dr. Maarten
Do you have a question for Maarten and do you live in Thailand? Send this to the editor: www.thailandblog.nl/contact/ It is important that you provide the correct information (see list at the top of the page).