Tag Archives: medicine

Living with atrial fibrillation

Atrial fibrillation (AFib for short) is a very common and potentially life changing heart arrhythmia which affects millions of individuals globally. This is seen as an irregular and frequently rapid heart rate originating in the atria, the two upper compartments of the heart. Atrial fibrillation might be brought about by numerous variables, such as age group, heart problems, high blood pressure, obesity and diabetes. Generally there also appears to be a genetic predisposition which adds to the risk. Lifestyle factors including too much consumption of alcohol, smoking, and also illegal drug use along with a not enough physical exercise might also contribute to its development. The signs and symptoms of atrial fibrillation could vary for every person, with some individuals experiencing absolutely no noticeable symptoms and other suffering from very distressing symptoms. The most common features include a perception of palpitations, fatigue, shortness of breath, dizziness, and also chest soreness. The actual irregular heartbeat linked to atrial fibrillation can also increase the danger to get a cerebrovascular accident, which makes it important to recognize and address the problem quickly. The investigation generally involves a variety of medical history assessment, a physical assessment, as well as tests. Electrocardiography (ECG or EKG) is the principal tool helpful to diagnose irregular heart rhythms. Monitors and event recorders can be employed for more longer tracking, in particular when symptoms are intermittent. Imaging techniques such as echocardiography can help as well detect underpinning physical cardiac issues.

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The Harmful Side Effects of Urine Therapy

Urine therapy is a practice where individuals consume or apply their urine for supposed health benefits. This practice has been around for centuries, and proponents claim it can cure a wide range of illnesses and ailments from cancer to infections to chilblains to headaches to bee stings. However, despite the supposed benefits, there are several harmful side effects associated with urine therapy.

One of the most significant risks associated with urine therapy is the potential for bacterial infections. Urine is sterile when it leaves the body, but it quickly becomes contaminated with bacteria once it comes into contact with the skin. This contamination can lead to the growth of harmful bacteria, which can cause a wide range of health problems, including bladder infections, kidney infections, and sepsis.

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Protecting the toes

The toe foams are a variety of tubular foam products that are typically made use of by podiatry practitioners for a range of problems that may affect the large and lesser toes. The foams are made of a polyurethane foam fashioned into a tube form with a cloth fabric support inside. The toe foams usually can be found in a larger length to enable them to be cut down into the size that’s required. Additionally they typically are available in several width dimensions so that they can be matched to the size of the toe that it’s meant for. And also they can be found in a single thickness about the entire diameter of the foam and also as a dual thickness one that has got a dual thickness of foam on one edge. All these toe foams do seem to be relatively big, and queries are typically brought up about how precisely it can fit around the toe then put the foot into the shoe. Even though the toe foams are bulky, they’re soft and can contract down a great deal, so can let the foot to fit in the shoe. However, because of the softer characteristics of them, they will degrade and ought to be replaced every so often. You can find significantly less cumbersome alternatives to the toe foams like the silicone tube pads, but the advantages which the toe foams have got is they will breath and let the air to circulate in between the toes, which has cleanliness effects. Using the silicon kind of pads, they don’t really allow that air to circulate.

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How does obesity affect the body?

Obesity is turning into an increasingly urgent public health problem simply because it increases the risk for so many health problems, most of which could be very major which places a substantial burden on health care systems around the world. It is estimated that in the majority of the western world, 40 to 50% of people might be considered to be within the obese classification. The medical impacts of being overweight have an impact on virtually any body system which includes the human brain, blood vessels, heart, liver, gall bladder, bone tissues along with joints. Carrying too much weight or having obesity drastically increases the chance of having a cerebrovascular accident and the repercussions and problems of this. Excessive fat that is stored round the neck can certainly make the air passage not big enough that may raise the risk for sleep apnoea which is in the event the respiration may actually cease for short intervals at night in people with sleep apnoea. Those with overweight problems have been associated with a greater risk of gastroesophageal reflux disease and that is when the stomach acid leaks into your oesophagus. There is also a greater risk of getting gall stones. Fat is especially an issue for gathering surrounding the liver and resulting in liver damage and even liver failure. In those who find themselves obese the heart and also the vascular system needs to keep working harder to pump blood about the entire body ultimately causing elevated blood pressure that also adds to the chance of a stroke, heart attacks and kidney disorder. Being overweight furthermore helps to make the body’s tissues more resistant to insulin which is an important factor in raising the risk for diabetes type 2. Diabetes subsequently furthermore raises the chance for a range of other medical problems, which includes heart disease, renal disease, cerebrovascular accident, loss of limb and loss of sight. Being overweight makes it harder for a woman to become pregnant and in those who do conceive, it can increases the likelihood of critical difficulties throughout the pregnancy.

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The Saddle Bone

The top part of the foot has every now and then been referred to as the “saddle” as it is considered to resemble the back of the horse the place that the saddle could go. You can find a distinct disability or bump which may develop at the top of the foot, that is why this sometimes referred to as a Saddle Bone deformity. Technically this is what’s called a dorsal metatarsal cuneiform exostosis. This is a overgrowth of some bone which develops on the top of the feet near the base of the 1st metatarsal along with the bone behind this. It really is very rarely referred to as a saddle bone deformity in the medical literature. The bone becomes increased because of jamming of the joints on the bottom of the first metatarsal and the bone tissue develops as a result of this specific jamming due to the increased motion of the 1st metatarsal. It might appear to be to be a lump over the top of the mid-foot. This enlarged bit of bone tissue can get uncomfortable due to pressure about the lump from the footwear, especially if the laces are done up firmly. This could be also a specific problem in sports activities including snow skiing or ice skating since the footwear that happen to be used may be rigid and may place a great deal of pressure on the swollen bone tissue. The pressure could perhaps cause a bursitis to form, which can get inflamed. If there are shooting type discomfort linked to this then that could signify that a nerve may be impinged, or else the pain is often identified as a dull or perhaps sharp in its character. There might be a bit of inflammation over the region. The bigger bone is not difficult to see on a x-ray. There may also be some osteo arthritis in the joints seen on the x-ray which might be triggering the symptoms. There are other conditions that could imitate the saddle bone deformity for example a ganglion cyst or a tendinitis.

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Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (Mad Cow disease)

Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) which had been known as ‘mad cow disease’ within the popular mass media is a degenerative brain illness that is deadly. It has a variety of characteristics of Alzheimer’s disease simply because it commences with a fast progress of memory problems; behavioural variations such as paranoia, obsessive-compulsive signs and psychosis; poor balance and falls in addition to vision disturbances. At a later time the signs and symptoms include things like dementia along with involuntary jerky actions. CJD is much more rapid in its development as compared to Alzheimer’s disease and they soon end up in a coma with around 70% of individuals having CJD passing away inside a year of the diagnosis. The disease was named after the German doctors Hans Creutzfeldt and Alfons Maria Jakob back in 1920. The cause of CJD is an infectious variety of irregular proteins that are called prions. Most cases of CJD take place for unidentified reasons with almost 10% are passed down from the person’s parents in an autosomal dominant method. There are actually three kinds of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, sporadic, familial and also acquired. Being exposed to brain or perhaps spinal tissue from an infected individual can even lead to the diseases spread. There is not any data that CJD may spread between people through regular contact with an infected individual. Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease has an affect on about 1 person per million individuals per year and the onset is usually about 60 years of age.

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