Aggrenox, a combination of aspirin and extended release dipyridamole, is a prescribed medication that is approved by the FDA to reduce the risk of stroke in patients who have previously had an ischemic stroke. An ischemic stroke occurs when the...
A brain aneurysm is also known as spontaneous cerebral hemorrhage, hypertensive parenchymal hemorrhage, or hemorrhagic stroke. Approximately 13.5 percent of all strokes are hemorrhagic. Risk factors include hypertension (high blood pressure),...
Stroke is the third leading cause of death in the United States, with an estimated 700,000 occurrences per year, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Stroke occurs when the blood supply to the brain is...
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) states that over a million people each year in the United States have a concussion, a type of brain injury that does not fracture the skull. A concussion is caused by blunt force to the head, such as from a...
An embolic stroke is a type of ischemic stroke that occurs when a blood clot forms within an artery outside the brain, cutting off the blood supply and oxygen to the brain tissues. Without oxygen, the cells in the effected part of the brain begin...
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends flu vaccination for all children younger than 19. Children--especially those younger than 5 and those with health problems--are more likely to develop complications from the flu than...
The Mayo Clinic defines "encephalitis" as inflammation of the brain. Encephalitis is a rare and comes in two forms. The primary form of the disease is the result of the brain and spinal cord being infected with a virus. Secondary encephalitis...
Encephalopathy refers to altered brain function. When this malfunction is related to severely elevated blood pressure, it is termed hypertensive encephalopathy. Symptoms include headache, confusion, altered level of consciousness, seizures, visual...
According to the Mayo Clinic, meningitis is an inflammation of the membranes, known as meninges that cover the brain and spinal cord, usually due to the spread of an infection. Meningitis can be bacterial or viral. Signs of viral meningitis can be...
Tamiflu is a brand-name prescription drug developed and marketed by the pharmaceutical company, Roche. The active ingredient in Tamiflu is oseltamivir phosphate, an anti-viral approved by the FDA in 1999. RxList.com notes that oseltamivir is only...
The adrenal glands release two important hormones, cortisol and aldosterone, responsible for maintaining blood pressure, alertness and a sense of well-being, fluid balance and metabolism. In an article published in the March 2010 "American Nurse...
Typhus is a group of illnesses that share some commonalities. They are caused by species in the bacterial tribe Rickettsiae. The two typhus fevers are louse-borne typhus fever and murine typhus fever. Although they are caused by different...
Mental status changes are one of the most common presentations of electrolyte imbalances. According to "Cecil Medicine," the prevalence of acute cases of mental confusion during hospital stays is approximately 60 percent in elderly patients, with...
Alcoholic steatohepatitis is defined as an accumulation of fat in the cells of the liver resulting from alcohol consumption. Approximately one-third of the patients who are diagnosed with alcoholic steatohepatitis are asymptomatic. According to...
Liver disease involves a wide spectrum of illnesses and causes. Some common causes of hepatic disease include viral hepatitis, alcoholic liver disease and cancer. Some symptoms that result from liver disease may impact walking or gait function.
The thyroid is a hormone-producing gland located in the front of the neck. The surgical removal of the thyroid gland may be necessary with conditions such as hyperthyroidism or thyroid cancer. While this may be effective in treating a thyroid...
Your heart is a muscle that sits on the left side of your chest. It is about the size of your fist, and it beats, on average, about 70 times each minute. When you start to work, your muscles need more oxygen and sugar to make fuel. Your heart...
Dextrose is a simple sugar, also called glucose, which supplies energy to your body. It is used in a variety of medications and health conditions for providing fluids with sugar to your body, as a transport for other injectable medicines, to treat...
Seizures--a symptom of epilepsy--are characterized by behavioral and physical changes (such as blackouts) caused by abnormal electrical activity in the brain. The presentation of symptoms varies depending upon the type of seizure and part of the...
Vitamin D's role in preventing several conditions such as rickets, osteomalacia and osteoarthritis is well accepted. It is evident that vitamin D plays significant roles in calcium balance, insulin secretion, immunity and the regulation of blood...
According to MedlinePlus, herpes is the common name for infections caused by the herpes simplex virus (HSV). HSV, says Dr. Lawrence Corey in "Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine," has been isolated from nearly every site on and inside the...
According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), herpes is an infection that is caused by a herpes simplex virus (HSV). Most people are familiar with the two main types of herpes--oral and genital. However, there are five other types of...
Dehydration occurs when more water is lost from the body than taken in. In different age groups, there are specific clues to look for to identify dehydration. These symptoms are particularly harsh in the young since babies and toddlers as they do...
Alcohol abuse and hepatitis C are the most common causes of cirrhosis in the United States. Cirrhosis is the final stage of liver disease and is characterized by severe scarring of the liver tissue. This tissue prevents blood from flowing through...
Sodium is one of the electrolytes in your body. Low sodium is also referred to as hyponatremia. It can occur in people of all ages, but is more common in older adults. This may be due to other medical conditions the elderly may already have that...
