DR Jeff Foster is The Sun on Sunday’s resident doctor and is here to help YOU.
Dr Jeff, 43, splits his time between working as a GP in Leamington Spa, Warks, and running his clinic, H3 Health, which is the first of its kind in the UK to look at hormonal issues for both men and women.
Dr Jeff Foster is The Sun on Sunday’s resident doctor and is here to help you
See h3health.co.uk and email at [email protected].
Q: MY six-year-old daughter had a rash appear on her face last week.
She had been unwell the week before and is on antibiotics for an ear infection.
The rash looks like chickenpox, which she has had before.
It is very itchy and more spots keep appearing.
Can you get chickenpox twice?
Claudia Ray, Crawley, West Sussex
A: Chickenpox is caused by the varicella-zoster virus and is very common.
In many other countries, chickenpox is now vaccinated against, but complications in the UK are still deemed low enough that it would not meet the criteria to go on the national vaccination schedule.
Once you have had chickenpox, the virus actually stays dormant in your body and can flare up when your immune system is weak or challenged many years later.
This is shingles.
Not all of us develop a full immune response, so it is possible to get chickenpox more than once.
If you or your child have had it multiple times, then speak to your doctor about whether a vaccination would help – and to also look at any other medical problems that could affect the immune system.
Q: I’M a 55-year-old man and, since I had Covid a year ago, I’ve had an issue with my saliva.
My GP diagnosed it as post nasal drip and referred me to the ear, nose and throat clinic.
But I feel my issue is not something dripping down, but my saliva bubbling up.
I mentioned it to my dentist and he was aware of another patient with a similar issue.
My mother had cancer in her oesophagus and had Barrett’s syndrome, where her oesophagus became damaged by acid reflux.
Are you able to offer any advice, or have you heard of others with similar issues?
Andy Hix, Bradford
A: When we notice our saliva appears to be too thick, it is not the viscosity but actually just that the mouth is becoming dry.
There are multiple causes for this, common ones being certain medications such as beta blockers or antihistamines, mouth breathing, anxiety, diabetes, anaemia or an autoimmune condition called Sjogren’s syndrome.
This is a condition that causes widespread dryness of our body’s secretions and can be quite unpleasant.
We don’t know why people get the condition, but it is possible that a virus could trigger the symptoms so it could be Covid-induced.
If your dentist has ruled out local causes, then speak to your doctor to get a blood test.