David Gordon

A complete blood test (CBC) should be able to detect anemia. May want to get a "diferential count" as well with the same blood test (analyzes the types of white blood cells you have circulating). I don't know what your "anemia" symptoms are, but if you haven't already, you might want to have a primary care physician examine you as well. Fatigue is a common symptom of significant anemia, but there are many causes of fatigue which your physician should be able to diagnose. Hope this helps. David Gordon, M.D. "To improve the health of the communities we serve. That is why we are here!" "What I want to know now is what we gonna do?" (B.B. King) David Gordon, M.D. Professor of Pathology (VERY Active Emeritus!) and Director of Cardiovascular Pathology Director of Faculty Programs, Office for Health Equity and Inclusion for the University of Michigan Health System University of Michigan Medical School/Michigan Medicine North Campus Research Center (NCRC) Bldg. 36, Rm. 1361-14 2800 Plymouth Road Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-2800 Tel. 734-615-3638 Pager: #3316

This somewhat depends on where the lymph node to be biopsied is located in the body. Also depends on the method of biopsy (biopsy needle or opening the skin and superficial tissues to get the lymph node). The most easily accessible ones are in the groin, neck and arm pits. I would discuss this with the healthcare provider doing the procedure. They may be able to provide some local anesthetic (as they do when you get skin stitches) and/or some general sedative to help. In general, this is likely to be a bit more painful than a blood test, but not much more. You also may have some pain and tenderness after the procedure, again depending on how the biopsy is done. Again, ask your healthcare provider. David Gordon "To improve the health of the communities we serve. That is why we are here!" "What I want to know now is what we gonna do?" (B.B. King) David Gordon, M.D. Professor of Pathology (VERY Active Emeritus!) and Director of Cardiovascular Pathology Director of Faculty Programs, Office for Health Equity and Inclusion for the University of Michigan Health System University of Michigan Medical School/Michigan Medicine North Campus Research Center (NCRC) Bldg. 36, Rm. 1361-14 2800 Plymouth Road Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-2800 Tel. 734-615-3638 Pager: #3316

The specific side effects depend on the actual types and dosages of chemotherapy given. Check with your doctor/oncologist for this. Some general symptoms and side effects include fatigue, anemia, possible hair loss and increased susceptibility to infections. But again, check with your doctor about the specific regimen to be given. Dave Gordon "To improve the health of the communities we serve. That is why we are here!" "What I want to know now is what we gonna do?" (B.B. King) David Gordon, M.D. Professor of Pathology (VERY Active Emeritus!) and Director of Cardiovascular Pathology Director of Faculty Programs, Office for Health Equity and Inclusion for the University of Michigan Health System University of Michigan Medical School/Michigan Medicine North Campus Research Center (NCRC) Bldg. 36, Rm. 1361-14 2800 Plymouth Road Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-2800 Tel. 734-615-3638 Pager: #3316

Probably the most common cause of a high leukocyte (white blood cell) level is an ongoing infection. If infection, the treatment is to treat the infection. Other causes include much more ominous things such as a leukemia. If you have a primary care physician, you should ask this person to review the results with you. They may want additional tests to determine exactly what class of leukocytes are elevated and if they are abnormal in any way. Depending on the results, you may also get referred to a blood specialist (hematologist) to help figure out exactly what's going on. Hope this helps a bit. David Gordon M.D.

You have a lot of things going on which are disturbing and certainly uncomfortable. Honestly, I do not know what is going on with any of the issues you mention. Do you have a primary care physician who can run some laboratory tests and possibly refer you to certain specialists? For example, the finger and hair loss issue could be a skin condition. These are usually handled by skin specialists (dermatologists) and they may have to do a tissue biopsy (biopsies) to really figure out what is going on. It is possible that you do have some sort of parasitic infection (e.g. ringworm can lead to hair loss and skin itching). I know you have seen several doctors, but my advice is to go to a primary care doctor (e.g. family medicine or general internal medicine doctor), have them thoroughly examine you, and as appropriate refer you to specific specialists who are knowledgeable about different skin and joint conditions. As for your uterus, have you seen a gynecologist? These are the specialists who can generally diagnose uterine conditions and recommend appropriate treatment. Going to an urgent care facility or emergency room is NOT recommended, unless you have a certain emergency (e.g. chest pain, stroke symptoms or acute injury). These latter facilities often don't take the time to run the tests to figure out what you might have; they generally deal with emergencies. I wish I could be of more help, but you need a complete medical examination. Dave Gordon M.D.

Are you having any pain or bleeding via your anus? Any fever? It's possible for such an object to cause tears in the rectal lining which may lead to infection. You should consider going to urgent care or an emergency room just to have a healthcare provider check you out. I know you think it's embarrassing, but believe me, urgent/emergency care folks have seen much worse and this will not phase them! Dave Gordon, M.D.

Not sure what this is based on the photos you show. Is this symmetrical (on both feet), or on both sides of the same foot? You should have a healthcare provider examine this directly. It may be some sort of irritation from your shoes, especially if you have been wearing new shoes. David Gordon, M.D. To improve the health of the communities we serve. That is why we are here! What I want to know now is what we gonna do? (B.B. King) David Gordon, M.D. Professor of Pathology (VERY Active Emeritus!) and Director of Cardiovascular Pathology Director of Faculty Programs, Office for Health Equity and Inclusion for the University of Michigan Health System University of Michigan Medical School/Michigan Medicine North Campus Research Center (NCRC) Bldg. 36, Rm. 1361-14 2800 Plymouth Road Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-2800 Tel. 734-615-3638 Pager: #3316

It should take 2-5 business days usually to get liver biopsy results. David Gordon, M.D. "To improve the health of the communities we serve. That is why we are here!" "What I want to know now is what we gonna do?" (B.B. King) David Gordon, M.D. Professor of Pathology (VERY Active Emeritus!) and Director of Cardiovascular Pathology Director of Faculty Programs, Office for Health Equity and Inclusion for the University of Michigan Health System University of Michigan Medical School/Michigan Medicine North Campus Research Center (NCRC) Bldg. 36, Rm. 1361-14 2800 Plymouth Road Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-2800 Tel. 734-615-3638 Pager: #3316

For liver biopsies, the results should be available in 2-3 days. Depending on what is found on the biopsy, the pathologist may order some additional tests which can be done on the biopsy material, and this may take an extra business day or two. Hope this helps. Dave Gordon "To improve the health of the communities we serve. That is why we are here!" "What I want to know now is what we gonna do?" (B.B. King) David Gordon, M.D. Professor of Pathology (VERY Active Emeritus!) and Director of Cardiovascular Pathology Director of Faculty Programs, Office for Health Equity and Inclusion for the University of Michigan Health System University of Michigan Medical School/Michigan Medicine North Campus Research Center (NCRC) Bldg. 36, Rm. 1361-14 2800 Plymouth Road Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-2800 Tel. 734-615-3638 Pager: #3316

It depends on the cause of the anemia which her doctor should be able to determine with laboratory tests. If it's due to lack of iron (most common cause in women), or a vitamin deficiency, then it certainly can be easily fixed. If it's due to some other disease process (e.g. sickle cell anemia, or God forbid, some sort of cancer or leukemia) then this can be more difficult to fix. She first needs a determination of what's causing the anemia and this should be done very soon by her healthcare provider. Dave Godon To improve the health of the communities we serve. That is why we are here! What I want to know now is what we gonna do? (B.B. King) David Gordon, M.D. Professor of Pathology (VERY Active Emeritus!) and Director of Cardiovascular Pathology Director of Faculty Programs, Office for Health Equity and Inclusion for the University of Michigan Health System University of Michigan Medical School/Michigan Medicine North Campus Research Center (NCRC) Bldg. 36, Rm. 1361-14 2800 Plymouth Road Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-2800 Tel. 734-615-3638 Pager: #3316

The treatment really depends on the type of anemia you have. Some may be easy to treat such as iron deficiency anemia which is common among otherwise healthy women and can usually be treated with iron pills. Other types may be due to specific vitamin deficiencies (need to know cause before you know what vitamin pills to administer). Finally some are genetic (e.g. sickle cell anemia) which may not be readily curable, but treatable with various drugs and blood transfusions (new promising gene treatments for this disease are currently being researched). So it all depends on the type of anemia. Your doctor or clinic should be able to guide you on this. David Gordon, M.D.

For most labs, you should have your should have your results in 2-3 business days. David Gordon, M.D.

You should have at least preliminary results within 2-3 business days. Depending on what is found on the biopsy, further testing of the specimen may be done, adding usually a couple more days for a final report. Dave Gordon "To improve the health of the communities we serve. That is why we are here!" "What I want to know now is what we gonna do?" (B.B. King) David Gordon, M.D. Professor of Pathology (VERY Active Emeritus!) and Director of Cardiovascular Pathology Director of Faculty Programs, Office for Health Equity and Inclusion for the University of Michigan Health System University of Michigan Medical School/Michigan Medicine North Campus Research Center (NCRC) Bldg. 36, Rm. 1361-14 2800 Plymouth Road Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-2800 Tel. 734-615-3638 Pager: #3316

This depends on the type of biopsy. If it's a needle biopsy (where a small needle is used to get a tissue sample) then you may not need anesthesia. However if it's an open biopsy involving a skin incision, then you may need at least some local anesthetic (e.g. injected in the surrounding skin). The decision is up to the patient and the person doing the biopsy. David Gordon, M.D.

Sorry not to see this email before now (went into my spam). I unfortunately don't know the answer to your question. It depends on the person doing the biopsy. They usually use a needle to do this, and may give you some topical anesthetic at the injection/biopsy site before inserting the needle, but you should ask the person doing the biopsy. You can certainly ask for some topical anesthetic, and possibly some relaxant medication, but this is generally a very quick biopsy and I don't think most would use general anesthesia (as though you were going in for a full blown operation). Hope this helps. Take care! Dave Gordon "To improve the health of the communities we serve. That is why we are here!" "What I want to know now is what we gonna do?" (B.B. King) David Gordon, M.D. Professor of Pathology (VERY Active Emeritus!) and Director of Cardiovascular Pathology Director of Faculty Programs, Office for Health Equity and Inclusion for the Michigan Medicine University of Michigan Medical School/Michigan Medicine North Campus Research Center (NCRC) Bldg. 36, Rm. 1361-14 2800 Plymouth Road Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-2800 Tel. 734-615-3638 Pager: #3316

A kidney biopsy is usually a simple procedure in which a biopsy needle is inserted through the skin to get a small sample of kidney tissue. Thus other than the small hole created by the needle, you will likely not notice the biopsy site. As long as you don't have a bleeding disorder, you should not have any problems bleeding after this is done. Talk with the doctor doing the biopsy to learn of any other potential risks. Usually, after some minutes of observing you after the procedure to ensure that you are doing well, you should be able to go home the same day right after the procedure and only feel minimal soreness (if any). David Gordon, M.D.

A number of studies need to be done on a kidney biopsy, including microscopy, even electron microscopy, and other special stains. Also depending on the hospital the biopsy was done at, they may need to send the biopsy to another institution (e.g. the University of Michigan) for this workup. I would say you should have your results in about a week. David Gordon, M.D.

This depends on the type of "sperm test" you get. Is this to check fertility ability of the sperm? if so I would imaging (depending on the laboratory) you should have results within a week. If instead this is after a vasectomy and you want to see if there are no longer any sperm being ejaculated (a sperm count) then you should get the results sooner. Hope this helps. David Gordon, M.D.

What do you mean by “high kidney levels?” Do you have lab test numbers for BUN and Creatinine? This would be most helpful along with how soon these became “high” in interpreting what’s going on. David Gordon

“To improve the health of the communities we serve. That is why we are here!”
“What I want to know now is what we gonna do?” (B.B. King)
David Gordon, M.D.
Professor of Pathology (VERY Active Emeritus!) and Director of Cardiovascular Pathology
Director of Faculty Programs, Office for Health Equity and Inclusion for the University of Michigan Health System
University of Michigan Medical School/Michigan Medicine
North Campus Research Center (NCRC) Bldg. 36, Rm. 1361-14
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-2800
Tel. 734-615-3638
Pager: #3316

First of all, ask this question of the physician who will be doing the biopsy since this may depend on what type of biopsy is planned (e.g. simple needle biopsy or an excisional biopsy which is a bit more extensive) and they may want you to stop eating and drinking for a time before the biopsy. Also let the physician know of any allergies (e.g. to anesthetics) or medications you are on (e.g. blood thinners which may cause more bleeding). In general I'm not aware of any other things you should NOT do (obviously don't injure your breast beforehand) but again ask the physician. Thanks! Dave Gordon