Shortness of breath that occurs at any time can be a sign of a serious underlying medical condition. However, treatment may be delayed due to dismissing this symptom as a sign of being out of shape or just getting older. Shortness of breath should...
Allergic rhinitis is inflammation of the lining of the nose caused by allergy. Both seasonal and chronic allergic rhinitis impair sleep in adults and children, leading to fatigue and other deficits in quality of life, according to the Burden of...
Platelets are colorless blood cells that are essential for the clotting of blood. Platelets stop blood loss by clumping and plugging holes in blood vessels. A high platelet count, also known as thrombocytosis, may cause few symptoms, but can lead...
Digoxin is a medication used to improve the strength and efficiency of the heart and control the rate and rhythm of the heart, according to MayoClinic.com. It is often prescribed to patients diagnosed with congestive heart failure or atrial...
The best way to recognize alcoholic cardiomyopathy is by having a clear understanding of the condition. Alcoholic cardiomyopathy occurs when the heart muscle weakens significantly because of excessive alcohol consumption. It is a condition marked...
Being able to identify common symptoms of mitral valve stenosis allows you to diagnose this potentially serious heart condition and begin to undergo treatment. People who have mitral stenosis have a narrowing in the mitral valve, which prevents...
Mesothelioma is a rare cancer that affects the layer of tissues that surrounds organs. The Mayo Clinic states that 2,000 to 3,000 people are diagnosed with mesothelioma each year. Mesothelioma is more often seen in men than in women and the...
Congestive heart failure is a potentially life-threatening condition that occurs when the heart is unable to efficiently pump adequate levels of blood and oxygen through the body. Approximately 2.5 million women in the United States are affected...
Congestive heart failure is a serious and progressive disease. It can also be fatal. It occurs when your heart muscle is no longer able to pump enough blood--and the oxygen it carries--to your body. Fluid begins to accumulate and your body becomes...
Trouble breathing, or dyspnea, is very distressing, and has many possible causes. It is often described as a feeling of suffocation or chest tightening, says the Mayo Clinic. Although high altitudes, extreme temperatures or strenuous exercise can...
Scoliosis is a medical condition that defines an unnatural curvature of the spine, according to MayoClinic.com. This condition occurs most often during the maturation process throughout puberty and can cause additional discomfort or medical...
Avandia is the brand name for the drug rosiglitazone. This medication, manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline, treats type 2 diabetes. It is used in combination with diet and exercise to treat the condition. After initially approving the medication, the...
Polycythemia is a blood disorder that causes the overproduction of red blood cells. Since red blood cells thicken the blood, too many red blood cells increase your risk for blood clots, strokes or heart attacks, which can be fatal. Though there is...
Acid reflux, or heartburn, occurs when partially digested foods and stomach acids back up into the esophagus through the lower esophageal sphincter. A constellation of symptoms may occur if you suffer from acid reflux including burning pain in the...
Congestive heart failure, also simply called heart failure, is a usually chronic condition where the heart does not pump an adequate amount of blood, resulting in the tissues not receiving enough nutrition or oxygen, according to the National...
Bronchitis is considered an inflammation of the lungs and airways that occurs from an acute infection or from chronic irritation with the upper respiratory tract. Both acute and chronic bronchitis produce coughing accompanied by mucus production....
If you're one of the thousands of people diagnosed with pericarditis each year, you might have felt you were having a heart attack because the symptoms are similar. Pericarditis can even affect healthy young athletes and children due to a viral...
A diabetic coma is a life-threatening complication affecting people with type I or type II diabetes. Diabetic comas are typically caused by complications from either extremely high or low blood sugar levels. Careful management of your blood...
A chronic cough may stem from a long-term condition; some coughs cannot be cured, merely controlled. Depending on the reason for the cough, certain treatments may be more helpful than others. Because herbs and many conventional drugs may produce...
Whooping cough is a bacterial infection of the mucus membranes in the respiratory tract. It is highly contagious and often affects children. The disease is characterized by sore throat, fever and mucus secretion from the nose and sinuses. The...
Polycythemia vera is a rare disease of bone marrow. When someone has this condition, the bone marrow produces too many blood cells, especially red blood cells. Having an extraordinary amount of blood cells can lead to clots in the veins or...
One of the most unpleasant conditions a person can experience is shortness of breath, or the inability to draw in enough air, a condition physicians refer to as “dyspnea.” Emergency rooms assign urgent priority to patients with...
Whooping cough is a bacterial infection involving the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract. It is contagious and mostly affects children, causing a spasmodic, hard, painful cough. Fever and copious mucus secretions from the throat and nose...
An enlarged heart, or cardiomegaly, is often a symptom of one of several underlying conditions. Some conditions that can cause an enlarged heart include high blood pressure, heart failure, coronary artery disease, a heart valve problem, and...
Vitamin B-12 is a water soluble vitamin that is important for DNA synthesis, formation of red blood cells and the maintenance of healthy nerve cells. Vitamin B-12 is also necessary for metabolism of carbohydrates, proteins and fats in order to...
Iodine is an important trace mineral in the body. It is essential for the synthesis of thyroid hormones, which are chemical signaling molecules that regulate your overall metabolism. Iodine is also required for proper development. It plays key...
Being short of breath can be a frightening experience and it can affect quality of life. Shortness of breath can make activities such as climbing stairs, walking uphill and even just moving around in general difficult. Depending on the cause,...
There are two types of heart disease with enlarged heart ventricles--dilated cardiomyopathy and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. In dilated cardiomyopathy, the cavity is enlarged and the heart muscle is thin and weak. In hypertrophic cardiomyopathy,...
Being short of breath is a scary feeling and can be caused by a number of medical conditions. When a person becomes short of breath it is important to get medical help immediately, especially if the cause is unknown. Until medical help arrives,...
Congestive heart failure, or congestive cardiac failure, is the failure of the heart resulting from any structural or functional disorder. Learn more about congestive heart failure in this health video.
Heart failure, or congestive cardiac failure, is the failure of the heart resulting from any structural or functional disorder. Congestive heart failure is the result of many conditions or diseases; learn more about heart failure in this health...
