Pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) is a contagious infection that primarily affects the lungs. It is caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium tuberculosis. While pulmonary tuberculosis is curable, it can lead to serious complications in certain...
Atrial fibrillation is a heart rhythm disturbance that originates from heart chambers at the top of the heart, called the atria. The abnormal rhythm is fast and irregular and cannot adequately squeeze blood into the pumping chambers of the heart,...
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, is a common lung disease in which the airflow gets blocked, making it difficult for the individual to breathe. There are two main types of COPD: emphysema and chronic bronchitis. With emphysema, the...
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a medical problem that consists of mainly two conditions: emphysema and chronic bronchitis. The Mayo Clinic says that COPD is the leading cause of death globally. Specific symptoms of COPD include...
Botulism is a disease resulting from an infection caused by the bacterium clostridium botulinum, explains Maxine Rosaler in the book "Botulism." Once the organism infects a host, toxin is released that passes through digestive lining into the...
Renal insufficiency, or renal artery disease, is poor functioning of the kidneys, usually caused by a reduction in blood flow. Proper kidney function is disturbed when the arteries in the kidneys become narrowed, decreasing the amount of blood...
Any patient undergoing a surgical procedure is at risk for developing complications afterward, including bleeding, infection, breathing problems and developing blood clots in the legs that can travel to the lungs. The likelihood of developing...
Surgery scars can be unsightly and unwanted. With current medical treatments, scars can be improved in appearance offering an individual renewed self-confidence. These medical treatments are referred to as scar revision surgery and according to...
Certain pulmonary conditions may make SCUBA diving dangerous. One such condition is interstitial lung disease. People with this disease are at high risk for developing a collapsed lung, known as a pneumothorax. The chance of developing this...
Drug induced lung disease is a common clinical problem that develop in a patient who has no previous history of pulmonary disease, according to Merck.com. When certain drugs are used for a long time, changes can occur in the way the lungs...
Surgery of the spine is performed for a wide variety of reasons, such as correcting bony alignments, tumor removal, disc resection and spinal cord decompression. All surgical procedures have risks involved with surgery in general, such as...
Atelectasis, which is a partial or total collapse of the lung, is one of the many post-operative complications of various types of surgery. Operations requiring anesthesia, orthopedic surgery performed in high-altitude locations and surgery that...
The skin is an elastic organ that stretches when underlying fat, muscles or baby growth pushes outward. If stretched for a limited period of time, such as for a pregnancy, the skin rebounds and returns to its normal shape. With advancing age, the...
The number of patients who win the battle against cancer and live for several years after radiation treatments has increased, according to Cancer.net. Unfortunately, some of those people develop late side effects as a result of the radiation...
Ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency is a genetic disorder that affects your liver´s ability to convert ammonia into urea. This disorder results from abnormally low levels of the ornithine transcarbamylase enzymes. Individuals with this...
The population of the United States is advancing in age. The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) predicts 20 percent of the U.S. population will be over the age of 65 by 2030, and a quarter of those elderly people will be over the age of...
Gallstones, hard deposits that block the passage of bile from the gallbladder, cause most gallbladder problems. Gallbladder surgery will prevent gallstones from returning in most cases and will alleviate pain and prevent infection and bursting of...
N-acetylcysteine, or NAC, is a form of the amino acid cysteine. The FDA has approved NAC to treat acetaminophen overdose. NAC's ability to thin mucus and its antioxidant properties have led to many off-label uses. The sulfur molecule in NAC makes...
Scoliosis is the unnatural curvature of the spine, either to the left or right, forming an "S" shape. The detection of scoliosis is especially important in children because they are at the greatest risk of curve progression, as well as secondary...
It has long been a well-established fact that smoking is hazardous to your health. Smoking can cause a myriad of diseases and conditions that can lead to substantial health care costs, lost productivity at work and many smoking-related health...
Your skin and body tissues lack the elasticity to conform to the shape of your body after substantial weight loss. A full body lift after weight loss can improve the shape and tone of underlying tissues that support fat and skin, and remove excess...
Ovarian cancer is the deadliest of all gynecologic cancers, according to the American Cancer Society, and the fifth most common cause of cancer deaths in women. With fewer than 20 percent of ovarian cancer cases caught before they spread past the...
Sickle cell anemia is an inherited blood disease in which red blood cells, which are normally round, become crescent or sickle-shaped under low oxygen conditions. In this condition, sickle cells are not only abnormally-shaped but also fragile and...
Influenza is typically a self-limited illness characterized by fever, dry cough, muscle aches, sore throat, fatigue, and sometimes nausea and vomiting. However, the flu can cause serious complications, especially in people with preexisting health...
If you have experienced a spinal cord injury, you may benefit from exercises and therapies suggested by your doctor and a physical therapist. Injuries to the spine may cause pain along with reduced function, range-of-motion, flexibility and...
The treatment of pediatric cancer has become increasingly successful. In the late 1990's, less than 70 percent of the patients survived for five years. In 2009, Dr. Daniel M. Green and colleagues reported that the five year survival rate was...
Antihistamine therapy is your first line of defense against allergic rhinitis, commonly known as hay fever. Allergic rhinitis is one of the most common medical conditions in the United States, according to Capital Allergy and Respiratory Disease...
Singulair is a prescription drug created to assist in the long-term prevention of asthma as well as relieving stuffy nose and sneezing from allergies. Ingested in either tablet, granule or chewable tablet form, the formula is given to both...
Your brain controls all functions of your body, from walking and speaking, to eating and drinking. When a stroke occurs, blood flow to the brain stops. Without blood flow, brain cells begin to die, damaging the part of the brain where the stroke...
