jueves, 22 de enero de 2015

What Do You Want to Know About Bipolar Disorder?

Bipolar is a complex illness. There are many different symptoms and several different types of bipolar disorder. The primary symptoms of the disorder are dramatic and unpredictable mood swings. The various types of bipolar disorder range from mild to severe.

Symptoms

Bipolar Symptoms

The primary symptoms of bipolar disorder are dramatic and unpredictable mood swings.

Mania Symptoms

Mania symptoms may include excessive happiness, excitement, irritability, restlessness, increased energy, less need for sleep, racing thoughts, high sex drive, and a tendency to make grand and unattainable plans.

Depression Symptoms

Depression symptoms may include sadness, anxiety, irritability, loss of energy, uncontrollable crying, change in appetite causing weight loss or gain, increased need for sleep, difficulty making decisions, and thoughts of death or suicide.

Types


Bipolar Types
There are several types of bipolar disorder; all involve episodes of depression and mania to a degree. They include bipolar I, bipolar II, cyclothymic disorder, mixed bipolar, and rapid-cycling bipolar disorder.
Bipolar I
A person affected by bipolar I disorder has had at least one manic episode in his or her life. A manic episode is a period of abnormally elevated mood, accompanied by abnormal behavior that disrupts life.
Bipolar II
Bipolar II is similar to bipolar I disorder, with moods cycling between high and low over time. However, in bipolar II disorder, the "up" moods never reach full-on mania.
Rapid Cycling
In rapid cycling, a person with bipolar disorder experiences four or more episodes of mania or depression in one year. About 10% to 20% of people with bipolar disorder have rapid cycling.
Mixed Bipolar
In most forms of bipolar disorder, moods alternate between elevated and depressed over time. But with mixed bipolar disorder, a person experiences both mania and depression simultaneously or in rapid sequence.
Cyclothymia
Cyclothymia (cyclothymic disorder) is a relatively mild mood disorder. People with cyclothymic disorder have milder symptoms than in full-blown bipolar disorder.
Bipolar Spectrum
Learn about the bipolar spectrum, what it means, and how bipolar is categorized.

If you would like to obtain more information you can follow this link:  http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/bipolar-disorder/basics/symptoms/con-20027544
http://education-portal.com/academy/lesson/what-is-bipolar-disorder-symptoms-treatment-quiz.html












miércoles, 21 de enero de 2015

What Is Sickle Cell Anemia?

Sickle cell anemia is an inherited form of anemia — a condition in which there aren't enough healthy red blood cells to carry adequate oxygen throughout your body.
Normally, your red blood cells are flexible and round, moving easily through your blood vessels. In sickle cell anemia, the red blood cells become rigid and sticky and are shaped like sickles or crescent moons. These irregularly shaped cells can get stuck in small blood vessels, which can slow or block blood flow and oxygen to parts of the body.
There's no cure for most people with sickle cell anemia. However, treatments can relieve pain and help prevent further problems associated with sickle cell anemia.

Signs and symptoms of sickle cell anemia often don't appear until an infant is at least 4 months old and may include:



  • Anemia. Sickle cells are fragile. They break apart easily and die, leaving you without a good supply of red blood cells. Red blood cells usually live for about 120 days before they die and need to be replaced. But sickle cells die after an average of less than 20 days. This results in a lasting shortage of red blood cells (anemia). Without enough red blood cells in circulation, your body can't get the oxygen it needs to feel energized. That's why anemia causes fatigue.
  • Episodes of pain. Periodic episodes of pain, called crises, are a major symptom of sickle cell anemia. Pain develops when sickle-shaped red blood cells block blood flow through tiny blood vessels to your chest, abdomen and joints. Pain can also occur in your bones. The pain may vary in intensity and can last for a few hours to a few weeks. Some people experience only a few episodes of pain. Others experience a dozen or more crises a year. If a crisis is severe enough, you may need to be hospitalized.
  • Hand-foot syndrome. Swollen hands and feet may be the first signs of sickle cell anemia in babies. The swelling is caused by sickle-shaped red blood cells blocking blood flow out of their hands and feet.
  • Frequent infections. Sickle cells can damage your spleen, an organ that fights infection. This may make you more vulnerable to infections. Doctors commonly give infants and children with sickle cell anemia vaccinations and antibiotics to prevent potentially life-threatening infections, such as pneumonia.
  • Delayed growth. Red blood cells provide your body with the oxygen and nutrients you need for growth. A shortage of healthy red blood cells can slow growth in infants and children and delay puberty in teenagers.
  • Vision problems. Some people with sickle cell anemia experience vision problems. Tiny blood vessels that supply your eyes may become plugged with sickle cells. This can damage the retina — the portion of the eye that processes visual images.

Our Story: Living with and Managing Sickle Cell Disease (Nicholas H.)



lunes, 19 de enero de 2015

What are the differents types of pregnancy?


While pregnancy may seem like a simple term, there are different typesof pregnancies. Most are a result of physical differences between women,but some are related to multiple egg release, among other reasons.




Ectopic Pregnancies and Tubal Pregnancies

Ectopic pregnancies occur when the fertilized egg implants in a place other than the fallopian tube or uterus. It can be in the neck of the uterus or in the abdomen. The pregnancy is not viable and the body will most likely spontaneously abort the fetus.


Chemical Pregnancy

A chemical pregnancy is like a cruel joke. You take an early pregnancy test around the time your period is due that shows a faint positive. Naturally, you get excited and start spreading the joyful news that you're expecting. Then, a few days later you get your period and the doctor says, "It was just a chemical pregnancy."




Molar Pregnancy

Molar Pregnancies can have scary health complications, requiring months of precautionary monitoring after treatment, which is usually a D&C. Most of the time molar pregnancies go away without further complications, but the added worries can make coping even more difficult than usual.



Blighted Ovum

The term blighted ovum sounds more than a little strange and confusing. After all, the word "blight" is a pretty strongly negative word and ovum isn't a common word for most people. A blighted ovum is a type of miscarriage in which the baby either never develops or stops growing at a very early stage in pregnancy and then disintegrates -- but a gestational sac does develop and the body does not recognize that the baby is missing.



If you would like read more about this you can follow this link: http://www.babymed.com/tubal-pregnancy/different-types-pregnancies 









What is huntington's disease? What causes huntington's disease?


Approximately 30,000 people in the United States have Huntington's Disease, which affects men and women equally across all ethnic and racial lines. While more common in adults, juvenile Huntington's accounts for about one-sixth of all cases.






Huntington's disease (HD) is a progressive, inherited, degenerative brain disorder that produces physical, mental and emotional changes. Named for George Huntington, the physician who first described the illness in 1872, Huntington's Disease used to be known as Huntington's chorea, from the Greek for choreography, or dance. The name refers to the involuntary, jerky movements that can develop in later stages of the illness.



Watch this video so you get more information about the huntington disease








Tips to Help Smokers Finally Quit in 2015


 It's never too late to get benefits from quitting tobacco.



Stopping smoking is not easy. Below are some tips which may help you to quit smoking. At the end of this you can follow the link and observe more details of further resources that may help.






Link: http://consumer.healthday.com/mental-health-information-25/addiction-news-6/expert-tips-to-help-smokers-finally-quit-in-2015-694871.html




Video about

Best Way to Quit Smoking - Tips to Quit Smoking in 2015









Umbilical Cord Accidents and Preventions

The term "cord accident" is a general term for something having disrupted the blood flow to the baby through the cord. A cord accident might mean a true accident due to an entangled umbilical cord cutting off the baby's blood supply, or it might mean the cord failed because of medical factors.










They occur between two umbilical cords of exclusively twin pregnancies (a single placenta) monochorionic - monoamnioticos (a single amniotic sac where are both identical fetuses and same-sex) and given that they are in the same cavity entangled cords and also form knots which in their turn can be adjusted and a decisive compromise the life of both twins by what may end in the deaths of the two babies , this event that can not prevent its occurrence and that happens between the 2 nd and 3 rd trimester of pregnancy.



How to prevent an umbilical cord accident? 

If you would like to get more information about the prevention of an umbilical cord watch this video: