Children born with hydrocephalus will have heads that are noticeably larger than those of other children. The frontal lobe area, in particular, will be enlarged, and it will appear that the skull is pushing outward. This is due to the buildup of...
Children born before the 37th week of the pregnancy are considered premature babies, according to the American Pregnancy Association. Because these children did not have the full gestational period, they have risks for certain conditions, which...
Astrocytoma is a type of tumor arising from astrocytes, which are a type of glial cell in the brain. Astrocytomas can affect people of any age, but they are most common in children. Cerebellar astrocytomas develop in the part of the brain...
During pregnancy, all substances that the mother consumes, either beneficial and dangerous, are passed on to the child. If a pregnant woman consumes cocaine during her pregnancy, the child may not develop properly. Consulting a doctor is the ideal...
Spina bifida is a birth defect that affects the spinal cord. There are two forms of spina bifida--spina bifida occulta and spina bifida manifesta. Spina bifida occulta is the more common form of the defect that may affect as many as 24 percent of...
Spina bifida is a developmental birth defect that occurs when the brain, spinal cord or meninges do not fully develop. Each year, between 1,500 to 2,000 newborns in the United States are born with spina bifida, according to the National Institute...
Agent Orange is a type of herbicide. It was used throughout Vietnam during the Vietnam War between 1962 and 1971. The herbicide was used to kill vegetation that the enemy forces used for cover. After many military service people returned from war,...
Bone diseases are illnesses that result in the damage of normal bone function and can cause the bones to become weak. Common forms of bone diseases are osteoporosis, a bone disease in which the amount of bone is decreased and becomes weak;...
Group B strep is a common bacterium found in the urinary tract of pregnant women. During the pregnancy, women get screened for the presence of this bacterium. Health care providers administer antibodies during the delivery to prevent infection of...
Malignant tumors of the central nervous system, or CNS -- meaning the brain and spinal cord -- are relatively rare compared to other cancers, but when they do occur, they are often deadly. The Central Brain Tumor Registry of the United States...
Thanatophoric dysplasia, also referred to as thanatophoric dwarfism, is a form of skeletal dysplasia characterized by abnormal skeletal growth and development which occurs in approximately 1 in 20,000 to 50,000 births, according to the National...
External hydrocephalus, which is also known as benign external hydrocephalus because of it's self limiting condition, is simply fluid that has collected around the outside of the skull. In more general terms, it's simply "water on the brain."...
Hydrocephalus, derived from the Greek words hydro, meaning water, and cephalus, meaning head, is a medical condition caused by the abnormal accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid in the ventricles, or cavities, of the brain. Hydrocephalus causes an...
The brain is the center of all neurological processing activity and can be affected by more than 600 known neurological disorders. Causes of neurological disorders include genetics, injury and environment with symptoms ranging in severity from...
With shuttlecocks whizzing through the air at more than 200 miles per hour, it's easy to understand why badminton is known as the fastest racket sport. And, it doesn't stop there. Badminton players make twice as many shots in a competitive game...
The gestation of human pregnancy is approximately 38 to 42 weeks from the first day of the mother's last menstrual period, or roughly 266 days from conception. The fetus grows in a double-layer membrane sac filled with amniotic fluid during most...
Early childhood growth and development is essential to a healthy body and mind later in life. While there are guidelines for the average expected weight and height growth during the early childhood years, many children grow at their own rate. It...
To history buffs, John Merrick is often better known by the sad nickname, "The Elephant Man." Born Joseph Carey Merrick in 1862, he suffered from what scientists now believe to be a condition called Proteus syndrome, which was characterized by the...
Virchow-Robin spaces surround the arteries in the brain, and can only be seen using a microscope or in magnetic resonance images when dilated. According to a January 2006 study published in the "Brain Injury Journal," the relationship between the...
Response to headache medicines can vary between individuals, and many different pain medicines are available to treat headaches, including combination products with caffeine. These medicines should be used cautiously as they may cause health...
Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a virus that, once it infects a person, it remains in the body for life. CMV belongs in the herpes virus group with herpes simplex viruses, varicella-zoster virus (chickenpox) and Epstein-Barr Virus (infectious...
Some headaches caused by a fever are an indication that your body is working to fight off the flu virus. Blood vessels become enlarged, which increases the pressure in your head. Fever is crucial to fighting influenza because the virus can't...
Also called epidermal cysts, flesh-colored growths on the scalp are a mere annoyance posing no medical danger. These slow-growing cysts collect excess keratin and skin secretions, forming a sac underneath the skin. According to Merck, these sacs...
Approximately one in 500 children develop hydrocephalus, excessive cerebrospinal fluid accumulation in the ventricles of the brain, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke states. Obstruction of cerebrospinal fluid drainage or...
Head injuries are common among infants and young children and often result from trauma caused from falls. A concussion occurs when there is a temporary loss of brain function following an injury to the head. Concussion symptoms in infants can be...
Yerba mate is a South American tea used by many alternative medicine practitioners as a treatment for migraine headaches, although some people complain that consuming the tea often causes migraines to develop. Yerba mate -- also known as Jesuit's...
Doryx (doxycycline hyclate) is a prescription tetracyclic antibiotic used to treat certain types of bacterial infections that may affect specific body regions, including the eyes, bladder or intestines. This medication is typically administered...
Most hair disorders involve hair loss, with the exception of hirsutism, which is a disorder affecting nearly eight percent of all women. Hirsutism is the unusual male pattern growth of hair on women and is usually accompanied by a host of other...
Migraines are intense headaches that normally begin behind the right or left eye, creating pain in that side of the head. A migraine headache can last for hours or days, and it can be caused by a number of factors. Generally migraines occur when...
Melanoma is a serious skin cancer, generally caused by sun damage. Learn more about melanoma skin cancer in this video.
