Disease and Treatment
October 24 2005 Monday
Soothing Preparations : containing mild astringents, antiseptics or vasoconstrictors can be applied locally as creams, ointments, suppositories or foam to relieve pruritus ani or the pain of haemorrhoids. All should be applied after defaecation and local toilet.
Local anaesthetics of the ester type, but not of the amide type, can produce skin irritation and sensitisation....
Occupational lung diseases are caused by harmful particles, mists, vapors, or gases inhaled while a person works. Where in the airways or lungs an inhaled substance ends up and what type of lung disease develops depend on the size and kind of particles inhaled. Larger particles may get trapped in the nose or large airways, but the smallest ones reach the lungs. There, some particles dissolve and...
A common underlying feature in night-time fidgeting is a condition known as restless legs syndrome (RIS), characterised by an uncomfortable sensation in the legs which gives rise to an overwhelming urge to move them. This condition overlaps with another known as periodic limb moverments during sleep (PLMS), in which involuntary jerks of the muscles occur at night. There is evidence that caffeine...
A rare but potentially life-threatening disease, rheumatic fever is a complication of untreated strep throat, caused by streptococcus A bacteria. The main symptoms-fever, muscle aches, swollen and painful joints, and in some cases, a red latticelike rash-typically begin one to six weeks after a bout of strep, although in some cases the infection may have been too mild to have been recognized....
Basic Introduction to Causes
Changes that Occur During Alzheimer's Disease
Genetic Issues
Cellular and Molecular Mechanisms
Basic Introduction to Causes
The exact cause of Alzheimer's Disease, a form of dementia, is still unknown. However, scientists have been able to indentify several contributing factors. Alzheimer's Disease is known to have a genetic componant as well as an environmental...
What is hepatitis A, and what causes it?
Hepatitis A is a liver disease caused by the hepatitis A virus (HAV). It is one of the most widely reported diseases that is preventable by a vaccine.
Other viruses can cause hepatitis, most commonly the hepatitis B and C viruses. However, hepatitis has many causes, including certain medications, long-term alcohol use, and exposure to certain industrial...
Postmenopausal women who have taken long-term estrogen replacement therapy (ERT) have an overall lower risk of death from all causes than women who have not taken ERT, according to a study in the January 1996 issue of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
The primary apparent effect of long-term ERT use was a reduction in coronary heart disease and other cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death...
Osteomyelitis is a difficult-to-treat infection of bone and bone marrow. It is progressive and results in inflammatory destruction of the bone, bone necrosis, and new bone formation. Bacterial osteomyelitis causes substantial morbidity worldwide, despite continued progress toward understanding its pathophysiology and optimal management.
The approach to osteomyelitis depends upon the route by...
Pleurisy is an inflammation of the pleura, often characterised clinically by pain worsened by respiration and cough. The pleura is a thin, transparent membrane that covers the lungs and also limes the inside of the chest wall: The surface that covers the lungs lies in close contact with the surface that lines the chest wall. Between the two thin flexible surfaces is a small amount of fluid that...
Why do I need this procedure?
What are the benefits of this procedure?
How is it done?
Is the kidney damaged by this?
What are the possible complications?
How successful is it?
How long does it take?
How long will I be in hospital?
Are there any alternatives to surgery?
Is there any thing I need to do before or after the operation?
After the operation
Are there any things I shouldn't do?
What...
Sjogren's syndrome classically features a combination of dry eyes, dry mouth, and another disease of the connective tissues, most commonly rheumatoid arthritis.
Sjogren's syndrome is an autoimmune disease, characterized by the abnormal production of extra antibodies in the blood that are directed against various tissues of the body.
This particular autoimmune illness is caused by inflammation in...
Rheumatic fever arises out of streptococcal infections and affects the valve of the heart and causes a chronic heart condition. A heart-healthy diet that helps the rheumatic fever patient is the same common-sense balanced regimen that protects against cancer, adult-onset diabetes and obesity. Ideally prudent dietary habits should be instilled during childhood when the child is vulnerable to...
Background:
Rheumatic fever (RF) is a systemic illness that may occur following group A beta hemolytic streptococcal (GABHS) pharyngitis in children. RF and its most serious complication, rheumatic heart disease (RHD), are believed to result from an autoimmune response; however, the exact pathogenesis remains unclear. Studies in the 1950s during an epidemic on a military base demonstrated 3 per...
Valvular heart disease affects a large number of patients who require diagnostic procedures and decisions regarding their long-term management. Unlike many other forms of cardiovascular disease, there is a scarcity of large-scale multicenter trials addressing the diagnosis and treatment of patients with valvular heart disease. Recently, the American College of Cardiology (ACC) and the American...
Myth: Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is normal.
Fact Though more than 50 million Americans have high blood pressure, hypertension is not a "normal" condition. The Sixth Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood 1997 guidelines (JNC VI) defines hypertension as blood pressure greater than or equal to 140 mm Hg systolic pressure...
More than 100 million sports injuries are treated each year worldwide. The principles of sports medicine can be applied to the treatment of many musculoskeletal injuries, which resemble sports injuries but have different causes. For ex-ample, tennis elbow can be caused by carrying a suitcase, turning a screw, or opening a stuck door, and runner's knee can be caused by excessive in-ward rolling of...
An obstruction may occur anywhere along the intestine. The part of the intestine above the obstruction continues to function. As it fills with food, fluid, digestive secretions, and gas, it swells like a soft hose.
In newborns and infants, intestinal obstruction is commonly caused by a birth defect, a hard mass of intestinal contents (meconium), or a twisting of the intestine on itself (volvulus...
Block (atheroma) formation in the coronary arteries is the biggest killer in the world. Coronary artery disease (angina and heart attack) remains the leading cause of death in men over 45 years and in women over 65 years through out the world now. The underlying atherosclerosis (block) develops insiduously, and is generally advanced and difficult to reverse once symptoms occur. Thus, treatments...
1. Manifestation of Dengue Infection
All four dengue virus (Den 1, 2, 3 and 4) infections may be asymptomatic or may lead to undifferentiated fever, dengue fever (DF), or dengue haemorrhagic fever (DHF) with plasma leakage that may lead to hypovolemic shock, dengue shock syndrome (DSS).
Manifestation of dengue virus infections:
2. Recognition of Dengue Fever/Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever (DF/DHF)...
Monsoon with its cloudy skies, sudden rains, and sudden sunshine makes it one of the beautiful. For some people it's a very enjoyable time, getting drenched in the rain specially after the scorching heat, but for some it's a dreadful time. A single drop of rain can trigger bouts of sneezing and a runny nose. Once it starts it keeps going for days, and makes life difficult and embarrassing as the...
