Continue reading »]]> The body is made up of many types of cells. Normally, cells grow, divide, and produce more cells as needed to keep the body healthy and functioning properly. Sometimes, however, the process goes wrong and cells become abnormal, forming more cells in an uncontrolled way. These extra cells form a mass of tissue, called a growth or tumor. Tumors can be benign, which means not cancerous, or malignant, which means cancerous. Lung cancer occurs when a tumor forms in the tissue of the lung. There are two major types of lung cancer – non-small cell lung cancer and small cell lung cancer. Each type of lung cancer grows and spreads in different ways, and each is treated differently. Non-small cell lung cancer is more common than small cell lung cancer. Small cell lung cancer, sometimes called oat cell cancer, grows more quickly and is more likely to spread to other organs in the body. Lung cancer may spread to the lymph nodes or other tissues in the chest, including the lung opposite to where it originated. It may also spread to other organs of the body, such as the bones, brain, or liver. When cancer spreads from its original location in the lung to another part of the body such as the brain, it is called metastatic lung cancer, not brain cancer. Doctors sometimes call this distant disease.

Our lungs are a pair of large organs in our chest. They are part of our respiratory system. Air enters our body through our nose or mouth. It passes through our windpipe (trachea) and through each bronchus, and goes into our lungs. When we breathe in, our lungs expand with air. This is how our body gets oxygen. When we breathe out, air goes out of our lungs. This is how our body gets rid of carbon dioxide. Our right lung has three parts (lobes). Our left lung is smaller and has two lobes. A thin tissue (the pleura) covers the lungs and lines the inside of the chest. Between the two layers of the pleura is a very small amount of fluid (pleural fluid). Normally, this fluid does not build up.

Using tobacco products has been shown to cause cancer. Cigarette smoking is the number one cause of lung cancer. Scientists have reported widely on the link between cancer and smoking. Since then, study after study has provided more proof that cigarette smoking is the primary cause of lung cancer. Before cigarette smoking became popular in the early part of the 20th century, doctors rarely, if ever, saw patients with lung cancer. But today, lung cancer is the leading cause of death by cancer. Nearly 90 percent of people with lung cancer developed it because they smoked cigarettes. If you smoke cigarettes, you are at much higher risk for lung cancer than a person who has never smoked. The risk of dying from lung cancer is 23 times higher for men who smoke and 13 times higher for women who smoke than for people who have never smoked. Lung cancer can affect young and old alike. Smoking cigars and pipes also puts you at risk for lung cancer. Cigar and pipe smokers have a higher risk of lung cancer than nonsmokers. Even cigar and pipe smokers who do not inhale are at increased risk for lung, mouth, and other types of cancer. The likelihood that a smoker will develop lung cancer is related to the age smoking began; how long the person smoked; the number of cigarettes, pipes, or cigars smoked per day; and how deeply the smoker inhaled.

Many studies suggest that non-smokers who are exposed to environmental tobacco smoke, also called secondhand smoke, are at increased risk of lung cancer. Secondhand smoke is the smoke that non-smokers are exposed to when they share air space with someone who is smoking. Each year, about 3,000 non-smoking adults die of lung cancer as a result of breathing secondhand smoke. Exposure to radon can put a person at risk for lung cancer, too. People who work in mines may be exposed to this invisible, odorless, and radioactive gas that occurs naturally in soil and rocks. It is also found in houses in some parts of the country. A kit available at most hardware stores allows homeowners to measure radon levels in their homes. Another substance that can contribute to lung cancer is asbestos. Asbestos is used in shipbuilding, asbestos mining and manufacturing, insulation work, and brake repair, although products with asbestos have been largely phased out over the past several decades. If inhaled, asbestos particles can lodge in the lungs, damaging cells and increasing the risk for lung cancer.

When lung cancer first develops, there may be no symptoms at all. But as the cancer grows, it can cause changes that people should watch for. Common signs and symptoms of lung cancer include:

1. a cough that doesn’t go away and gets worse over time
2. constant chest pain

Common signs and symptoms of lung cancer include:

1. coughing up blood
2. shortness of breath, wheezing, or hoarseness
3. repeated problems with pneumonia or bronchitis
4. swelling of the neck and face
5. loss of appetite or weight loss
6. fatigue.

If lung cancer is suspected, the doctor may order a test called a sputum cytology. This is a simple test where a doctor examines a sample of mucous cells coughed up from the lungs under a microscope to see if cancer is present. But to confirm the presence of lung cancer, the doctor must examine fluid or tissue from the lung. This is done through a biopsy – the removal of a small sample of fluid or tissue for examination under a microscope by a pathologist. A biopsy can show whether a person has cancer. A number of procedures may be used to obtain this tissue.

Bronchoscopy — The doctor puts a bronchoscope — a thin, lighted tube — into the mouth or nose and down through the windpipe to look into the breathing passages. Through this tube, the doctor can collect cells or small samples of tissue.

Here are the tests doctors use to stage lung cancer:

1. Computed axial tomography, also called CAT Scan or CT scan, is a computer linked to an x-ray machine that creates a series of detailed pictures of areas inside the body.
2. Magnetic resonance imaging, or MRI, is a powerful magnet linked to a computer that makes detailed pictures of areas inside the body.
3. Radionuclide scanning uses a mildly radioactive substance to show whether cancer has spread to other organs, such as the liver.
4. A bone scan uses a small amount of a radioactive substance to show whether cancer has spread to the bones.
5. A mediastinoscopy or mediastinotomy can help show whether the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes in the chest by removing a tissue sample. The patient receives a general anesthetic for this procedure.

The choice of treatment depends on the type of lung cancer, whether it is non-small or small cell lung cancer, the size, location, the stage of the cancer, and the patient’s general health. Doctors may suggest many different treatments or combinations of treatments to control the cancer and/or improve the patient’s quality of life.

Here are the standard treatments for lung cancer:

1. Surgery is an operation to remove the cancer. Depending on the location of the tumor, the surgeon may remove a small part of the lung, a lobe of the lung, or the entire lung and possibly even part of the ribcage to get to the lung.
2. Chemotherapy uses anti-cancer drugs to kill cancer cells throughout the body. Doctors use chemotherapy to control cancer growth and relieve symptoms. Anti-cancer drugs are given by injection; through a catheter, a long thin tube temporarily placed in a large vein; or in pill form.
3. Radiation therapy uses high-energy beams to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. An external machine delivers radiation to a limited area, affecting cancer cells only in that area. Doctors may use radiation before surgery to shrink a tumor or after surgery to destroy any cancer cells remaining in the treated area.
4. Photodynamic therapy, a newer technique, is laser therapy that is used in combination with a chemical to kill cancer cells. Doctors may use it to reduce symptoms of lung cancer, such as bleeding, or to treat very small tumors.

Continue reading »]]> As we normally use our muscles, they alternately contract and relax as we move our limbs back and forth. Similarly, the muscles that maintain our posture contract and relax in a synchronized fashion. A muscle that involuntarily contracts without our consciously willing it is called a “spasm.” If the spasm is forceful and sustained, it becomes a cramp. A muscle cramp is an involuntarily and forcibly contracted muscle that does not relax. Muscle cramps cause a visible or palpable hardening of the involved muscle. Muscle cramps can last anywhere from a few seconds to a quarter of an hour or occasionally longer. It is not uncommon for a cramp to recur multiple times until it finally goes away. The cramp may involve a part of a muscle, the entire muscle, or several muscles that usually act together, such as those that flex adjacent fingers. Some cramps involve the simultaneous contraction of muscles that ordinarily move body parts in opposite directions. Muscle cramps are extremely common, and nearly everyone experiences a cramp at some time in their life. Cramps are common in adults and become increasingly frequent with aging. However, children also experience cramps.

Any of the muscles that are under our voluntary control (skeletal muscles) can cramp. Cramps of the extremities, especially the legs and feet, and most particularly the calf (the classic “charley horse”), are very common. Involuntary muscles, those we cannot control, of the various organs (heart, uterus, blood vessel wall, intestinal tract, bile and urine passages, bronchial tree, etc.) are also subject to spasms and cramps but those will not be considered in this review. This post focuses on cramps of the muscles that move joints, the muscles we can consciously control, the voluntary muscle known as skeletal muscle. Muscle cramps are felt to be caused by excessively excited nerves that stimulate the muscles. This can occur particularly after injury to nerve and/or muscle; dehydration; with low blood levels of calcium, magnesium, or potassium; from certain medications; and even at rest. The pain that is associated with muscle cramps that are caused by poor circulation to the legs that worsens with walking is referred to as claudication. Deficiencies of certain vitamins, including thiamine (B1), pantothenic acid (B5), and pyridoxine (B6), can also cause muscle cramps. Muscle cramps cause local pain, tenderness, and firmness of the involved muscle. This disturbs the function of the involved extremity. When a hand muscle is affected, it can lead to difficulty in writing (writer’s cramp) or grasping. When the muscles of the calf or foot are affected, it can lead to difficulty walking.

Muscle cramps usually cause a temporary nuisance and typically resolve on their own without treatment. When muscle cramps continually recur, it is time to seek an evaluation by a health-care professional. The primary treatment of muscle cramps involves methods to relax the affected muscle. This typically involves stretching, massage, and heat application. Other treatments are directed toward the underlying cause of the muscle cramps and can include rehydration, electrolyte repletion, hormone treatment, calcium supplementation, etc. Most cramps can be stopped if the involved muscle can be stretched. For many cramps of the feet and legs, this stretching can often be accomplished by standing up and walking around. For a calf muscle cramp, the person can stand about 2-2½ feet from a wall (possibly farther for a tall person) and lean into the wall to place the forearms against the wall with the knees and back straight and the heels in contact with the floor. Another technique involves flexing the ankle by pulling the toes up toward the head while still lying in bed with the leg as straight as possible. For writer’s cramp (contractures in the hand), pressing the hand on a wall with the fingers facing down will stretch the cramping finger flexor muscles. Gently massaging the muscle will often help it to relax, as will applying warmth from a heating pad or hot soak. If the cramp is associated with fluid loss, as is often the case with vigorous physical activity, fluid and electrolyte (especially sodium and potassium) replacement is essential. Medicines are not generally needed to treat an ordinary cramp that is active since most cramps subside spontaneously before enough medicine would be absorbed to even have an effect.

Continue reading »]]> The term hydrocephalus is derived from the Greek words “hydro” meaning water and “cephalus” meaning head. As the name implies, it is a condition in which the primary characteristic is excessive accumulation of fluid in the brain. Although hydrocephalus was once known as “water on the brain,” the “water” is actually cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)–a clear fluid that surrounds the brain and spinal cord. The excessive accumulation of CSF results in an abnormal widening of spaces in the brain called ventricles. This widening creates potentially harmful pressure on the tissues of the brain.

The ventricular system is made up of four ventricles connected by narrow passages.. Normally, CSF flows through the ventricles, exits into cisterns (closed spaces that serve as reservoirs) at the base of the brain, bathes the surfaces of the brain and spinal cord, and then reabsorbs into the bloodstream. CSF has three important life-sustaining functions: 1) to keep the brain tissue buoyant, acting as a cushion or “shock absorber”; 2) to act as the vehicle for delivering nutrients to the brain and removing waste; and 3) to flow between the cranium and spine and compensate for changes in intracranial blood volume (the amount of blood within the brain). The balance between production and absorption of CSF is critically important. Because CSF is made continuously, medical conditions that block its normal flow or absorption will result in an over-accumulation of CSF. The resulting pressure of the fluid against brain tissue is what causes hydrocephalus.

The causes of hydrocephalus are still not well understood. Hydrocephalus may result from inherited genetic abnormalities or developmental disorders. Other possible causes include complications of premature birth such as intraventricular hemorrhage, diseases such as meningitis, tumors, traumatic head injury, or subarachnoid hemorrhage, which block the exit of CSF from the ventricles to the cisterns or eliminate the passageway for CSF into the cisterns.

Hydrocephalus is most often treated by surgically inserting a shunt system. This system diverts the flow of CSF from the CNS to another area of the body where it can be absorbed as part of the normal circulatory process. A shunt is a flexible but sturdy plastic tube. A shunt system consists of the shunt, a catheter, and a valve. One end of the catheter is placed within a ventricle inside the brain or in the CSF outside the spinal cord. The other end of the catheter is commonly placed within the abdominal cavity, but may also be placed at other sites in the body such as a chamber of the heart or areas around the lung where the CSF can drain and be absorbed. A valve located along the catheter maintains one-way flow and regulates the rate of CSF flow.

Continue reading »]]> Osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) is a genetic disorder characterized by fragile bones that break easily. It is also known as “brittle bone disease.” A person is born with this disorder and is affected throughout his or her life time. In addition to fractures people with OI often have muscle weakness, hearing loss, fatigue, joint laxity, curved bones, scoliosis, blue sclerae, dentinogenesis imperfecta (brittle teeth), and short stature. Restrictive pulmonary disease occurs in more severely affected people. OI is caused by an error called a mutation on a gene that affects the body’s production of the collagen found in bones, and other tissues. It is not caused by too little calcium or poor nutrition. A person with mild OI may experience a few fractures while those with the severe forms may have hundreds in a lifetime.

The OI type descriptions provide general information about how severe the symptoms probably will be. Health issues frequently seen in children and adults who have OI include:

1. Short stature
2. Weak tissues, fragile skin, muscle weakness, and loose joints
3. Bleeding, easy bruising, frequent nosebleeds and in a small number of people heavy bleeding from injuries
4. Hearing loss may begin in childhood and affects approximately 50% of adults
5. Breathing problems, higher incidence of asthma plus risk for other lung problems
6. Curvature of the spine

Doctors who see children and adults with OI include primary care physicians, orthopedists, endocrinologists, geneticists and physiatrists (rehabilitation specialists). Other specialists such as a neurologist may be needed. Treatments focuses on minimizing fractures,  maximizing mobility, maximizing independent function and general health

Treatments include

1. Physical therapy and safe exercise including swimming
2. Casts, splints or wraps for broken bones
3. Braces to support legs, ankles, knees and wrists as needed
4. Orthopedic surgery, often including implanting rods to support the long bones in arms or legs
5. Medications to strengthen bones

Continue reading »]]> Virus is a small infectious agent that can only replicate inside the cells of another organism. Viruses are too small to be seen directly with a light microscope. Viruses infect all types of organisms, from animals and plants to bacteria and archaea, although there are millions of different types. Viruses are found in almost every ecosystem on Earth and these minute structures are the most abundant type of biological entity. The study of viruses is known as virology, a sub-specialty of microbiology.

Unlike prions and viroids, viruses consist of two or three parts: all viruses have genes made from either DNA or RNA, long molecules that carry genetic information; all have a protein coat that protects these genes; and some have an envelope of fat that surrounds them when they are outside a cell. Viroids do not have a protein coat and prions contain no RNA or DNA. Viruses vary from simple helical and icosahedral shapes, to more complex structures. Most viruses are about one hundred times smaller than an average bacterium. The origins of viruses in the evolutionary history of life are unclear: some may have evolved from plasmids—pieces of DNA that can move between cells—while others may have evolved from bacteria. In evolution, viruses are an important means of horizontal gene transfer, which increases genetic diversity.

Viruses spread in many ways; plant viruses are often transmitted from plant to plant by insects that feed on sap, such as aphids, while animal viruses can be carried by blood-sucking insects. These disease-bearing organisms are known as vectors. Influenza viruses are spread by coughing and sneezing. The norovirus and rotaviruses, common causes of viral gastroenteritis, are transmitted by the faecal-oral route and are passed from person to person by contact, entering the body in food or water. HIV is one of several viruses transmitted through sexual contact or by exposure to infected blood.

Viral infections in animals provoke an immune response that usually eliminates the infecting virus. These immune responses can also be produced by vaccines, which give immunity to specific viral infections. However, some viruses including HIV and those causing viral hepatitis evade these immune responses and cause chronic infections. Microorganisms also have defenses against viral infection, such as restriction modification systems. Antibiotics have no effect on viruses, but a few antiviral drugs have been developed. However, there are relatively few antivirals because there are few targets for these drugs to interfere with. This is because a virus reprograms its host’s cells to make new viruses and almost all the proteins used in this process are normal parts of the body, with only a few viral proteins. Examples of common human diseases caused by viruses include the common cold, influenza, chickenpox and cold sores. Many serious diseases such as ebola, AIDS, avian influenza and SARS are caused by viruses.

Viruses are important to the study of molecular and cellular biology as they provide simple systems that can be used to manipulate and investigate the functions of cells. The study and use of viruses have provided valuable information about aspects of cell biology. For example, viruses have been useful in the study of genetics and helped our understanding of the basic mechanisms of molecular genetics, such as DNA replication, transcription, RNA processing, translation, protein transport, and immunology

Continue reading »]]> Definition of Rabies

Rabies is a disease (caused by the rabies virus) primarily of animals, including both wild and domestic animals and human beings. Although people usually associate rabies with dogs, among domesticated animals, rabies today is more likely to be found in cats.

Description of Rabies

Cats, dogs and cattle account for nearly 90 percent of rabies cases in domestic animals, with horses, mules, sheep, goats and ferrets making up the remaining cases. Among wild animals, the disease is most often reported in skunks and raccoons. Other wild species in this country in which rabies is commonly found include bats, foxes, and rodents.

The rabies virus, present in the saliva of an infected animal, is usually spread by a bite or scratch that punctures the victim’s skin. The virus has a strong affinity for cells of the nervous system. It enters nerve cells at the site of the wound, travels to the brain, and then follows other nerve pathways to muscles and organs that are especially affected by rabies.

The virus concentrates in the salivary glands, which explains why it is usually spread by bites. It also invades and damages the muscles involved in drinking and swallowing.

Most human victims and apparently lower animals as well, suffer excruciating pain on swallowing liquids. Though they suffer from thirst, animal and human rabies victims can be terrified by the sight of water, hence another name for the disease, hydrophobia.

Symptoms of Rabies

Symptoms usually develop between 20 and 60 days after exposure. Rabid animals may become aggressive, combative, and highly sensitive to touch and other kinds of stimulation. And they can be vicious. This is the extreme form of rabies, the kind traditionally associated with mad dogs. There is also a “dumb” form of the disease in which the animal is lethargic, weak in one or more limbs, and unable to raise its head or make sounds because its throat and neck muscles are paralyzed. In both kinds of animal rabies, death occurs a few days after symptoms appear, usually from respiratory failure.

In humans, the course is similar. After a symptom-free incubation period that ranges from 10 days to a year or longer the patient complains of malaise, loss of appetite, fatigue, headache, and fever. Over half of all patients have pain (sometimes itching) or numbness at the site of exposure. They may complain of insomnia or depression.

Two to 10 days later, signs of nervous system damage appear, hyperactivity and hypersensitivity, disorientation, hallucinations, seizures, and paralysis. Death may be sudden, due to cardiac or respiratory arrest, or follow a period of coma that can last for months with the aid of life-support measures.

Prevention of Rabies

The advent of scientific medicine makes rabies control possible, not by cure but by prevention. Unlike other immunizations, the rabies vaccine is administered after exposure to the virus. This unusual technique is successful because the rabies virus takes a comparatively long time to induce disease, a minimum of 10 days, and in rare cases, up to a year. The length of the incubation period apparently depends on both the location of the wound – the farther from the brain, the longer the incubation – and the dose of virus received. No matter where the wound, authorities emphasize that the first and most valuable preventive measure is thorough cleaning of the site with soap and water, and immediate medical attention.

If rabies vaccine treatment is called for, it should be started as soon as possible after exposure. Counting the first day of vaccine treatment as day 0, injections are administered on days 0, 3, 7, 14, and 28. In addition to vaccine, patients who have not previously been vaccinated for rabies also receive an injection of rabies immune globulin (RIG) on the day they get the first vaccine (day 0). RIG is prepared from the blood of persons who have been immunized against rabies and contains antibodies to the rabies virus. This “passive” immunity helps protect patients during the period before the rabies vaccine causes their own immune system to counter the virus (active immunity).

Continue reading »]]> The earliest evidence of life on planet Earth may date as far back as 3.85 billion years ago.At that time the first simple, single-celled organisms called prokaryotes may have appeared. The exact scientific process that led to the creation of prokaryotic life still eludes scientists today. Whether these early organisms metabolized energy through the process of photosynthesis or by another method, such as chemosynthesis, is also unknown.

The origin of life on planet Earth has long baffled the scientific community. Although many theories have been proposed, there is no consensus as to how life first originated on the Earth. Science believes that the Earth’s early atmosphere consisted of gases such as methane, hydrogen, ammonia, and steam. These gases may have combined with electrical discharge from lightning to produce organic compounds. Organic compounds, which include amino acids, are recognized as the building-blocks of life.

Scientists acknowledge that even simple single-celled organisms are far more complex than the organic compounds that could have been formed from the pre-biotic conditions of ancient Earth. Yet, the origin of life is believed to have begun from some similar natural process and progressed through many steps over the span of millions of years, until the first singled-celled life was created.

There are many scientific problems with this scenario, but the timing involved may prove most problematic. Before 3.8 billion years ago scientists believe that the Earth’s surface was still in a state of considerable upheaval, as the last of the nebular debris bombarded the Earth. The appearance of life at that time is puzzling to many scientists, since it is not believed that the precursors of life could have survived such an inhospitable environment. Yet, life managed to make its appearance at the conclusion of that turbulent time and survive. This allows an almost a negligible time-frame for the building-blocks of life to progress naturally into living organisms.

The natural processes that scientists have theorized to explain the origin of life are far too complex to be explained here. But from a Biblical perspective all of these theories contradict the Biblical Genesis. If life can only propagate according to their kinds as proclaimed by the Bible, it would be unacceptable to embrace the concept of life arising from non-living matter. Even if the change occurring within each individual step of the transformation was so minuscule and so gradual that such steps could be argued as acceptable Biblical propagations, the overall transformation from lifeless matter to living creatures over time cannot be accepted.

We are seemingly in a contradiction between the Bible’s claims and the theories of science. Science proclaims that life originated on our world through natural processes; the Bible declares that life can only originate from God. Although the contradiction between the two cannot be bridged by any other acceptable translation of the Creation Story, it must be noted that no scientific theory on the origin of life has proven conclusive, nor has any been accepted as a standard model.

This is not to suggest that the science offered on this subject is illegitimate. There are numerous problems when attempting to reconstruct the natural processes that initiated life. In many ways, this is very different from dating fossils or unlocking the secrets of plate tectonics. Fossils are tangible, and the process of dating their age is accepted science. Once the age of the fossil is determined, its place in the Earth’s history is also known. And we can see plate tectonics in action today in many places in the world. The various fault lines visible on land, and the spreading of the sea floor along the mid-Atlantic ridge definitively support this theory. In contrast, merely duplicating the conditions of the early Earth is, in itself, significantly more complicated than either of the previous examples.

The problem is that the further back in time we travel into the Earth’s history, the more alien our world becomes. The atmosphere and temperature of the Earth, the composition of the oceans, and even the energy received from the sun have all changed over time. Any attempt to recreate the processes that led to life must take into account those unique conditions. In addition, the chemistry and biology employed here is extremely complex, operating at the sub-cellular level. The functions and capabilities of amino acids and nucleic acids are only partially known to us. There is much to be learned about them even in the form they exist today; four billion years ago their structure and functions may have been greatly different. Even if most of the science were understood, there is always the possibility that some essential piece of the natural process is missing – forever lost in that ancient world. If that scenario is true – and there is a distinct possibility that it is – then the origin of life on Earth may never be duplicated in a laboratory or completely explained.

Although the origin of life remains a mystery, the slow transformation of non-living materials into simple life may still have transpired. Most scientists are convinced that some type of natural process – as opposed to a divine intervention – must still be accepted as factual, notwithstanding the lack of any standard model. Many believe that given enough time, more money, and additional research, the natural process that brought life to our world will someday be understood by science and, perhaps, duplicated by man. In any event, it would be wrong at this point for Creationists to reject the concept of a natural genesis; it has simply not been disproved.

Until such a natural process is proven conclusively, or at the very least, survives the scrutiny of the scientific method, we cannot reject a divine origin of life either. It is possible that the essential missing pieces of the natural-process puzzle are lost forever because they are of divine origin. Until we are able to prove otherwise, it is acceptable to believe that only the God of the Bible is capable of creating life.

Continue reading »]]> Leukemia is a cancer of the blood or bone marrow and is characterized by an abnormal proliferation (production by multiplication) of blood cells, usually white blood cells (leukocytes). Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases. In turn, it is part of the even broader group of diseases called hematological neoplasms.

Leukemia is clinically and pathologically subdivided into a variety of large groups.

1. Acute leukemia is characterized by the rapid increase of immature blood cells. This crowding makes the bone marrow unable to produce healthy blood cells. Immediate treatment is required in acute leukemia due to the rapid progression and accumulation of the malignant cells, which then spill over into the bloodstream and spread to other organs of the body. Acute forms of leukemia are the most common forms of leukemia in children.
2. Chronic leukemia is distinguished by the excessive build up of relatively mature, but still abnormal, white blood cells. Typically taking months or years to progress, the cells are produced at a much higher rate than normal cells, resulting in many abnormal white blood cells in the blood. Whereas acute leukemia must be treated immediately, chronic forms are sometimes monitored for some time before treatment to ensure maximum effectiveness of therapy. Chronic leukemia mostly occurs in older people, but can theoretically occur in any age group.

Damage to the bone marrow, by way of displacing the normal bone marrow cells with higher numbers of immature white blood cells, results in a lack of blood platelets, which are important in the blood clotting process. This means people with leukemia may easily become bruised, bleed excessively, or develop pinprick bleeds.

White blood cells, which are involved in fighting pathogens, may be suppressed or dysfunctional. This could cause the patient’s immune system to be unable to fight off a simple infection or to start attacking other body cells. Because leukemia prevents the immune system from working normally, some patients experience frequent infection, ranging from infected tonsils, sores in the mouth, or diarrhea to life-threatening pneumonia or opportunistic infections. Finally, the red blood cell deficiency leads to anemia, which may cause dyspnea and pallor.

Some patients experience other symptoms. These symptoms might include feeling sick, such as having fevers, chills, night sweats and other flu-like symptoms, or feeling fatigued. Some patients experience nausea or a feeling of fullness due to an enlarged liver and spleen; this can result in unintentional weight loss. If the leukemic cells invade the central nervous system, then neurological symptoms (notably headaches) can occur.

No single known cause for all of the different types of leukemia exists. The different leukemias likely have different causes. Known causes include natural and artificial ionizing radiation, viruses such as Human T-lymphotropic virus, and some chemicals, notably benzene and alkylating chemotherapy agents for previous malignancies.

Most forms of leukemia are treated with pharmaceutical medications. Some are also treated with radiation therapy. In some cases, a bone marrow transplant is useful.

Continue reading »]]> Obesity and overweight have in the last decade become a global problem – according to the World Health Organization back in 2005 approximately 1.6 billion adults over the of age 15 were overweight, at least 400 million adults were obese and at least 20 million children under the age of 5 years were overweight.

Overweight and obesity are defined by the WHO as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that presents a risk to an individual’s health. Overweight and obesity are major risk factors for a number of chronic diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and cancer and while it was once an issue only in high income countries, overweight and obesity has now dramatically risen in low- and middle-income countries. Such countries are now facing a “double burden” of disease, for while they continue to deal with the problems of infectious disease and under-nutrition, they are also experiencing a rapid upsurge in chronic disease risk factors such as obesity and overweight, particularly in urban settings.

Under-nutrition and obesity often exist side-by-side within the same country, the same community and even within the same household and this double burden is caused by inadequate pre-natal, infant and young child nutrition followed by exposure to high-fat, energy-dense, micronutrient-poor foods and lack of physical activity.

A crude population measure of obesity is the body mass index (BMI) which is a simple index of weight-for-height that is commonly used in classifying overweight and obesity in adult populations and individuals – a person’s weight in kilograms is divided by the square of the height in meters (kg/m2). BMI provides the most useful population-level measure of overweight and obesity as it is the same for both sexes and for all ages of adults but it is merely a rough guide because it may not correspond to the same degree of fatness in different individuals. The WHO defines an adult who has a BMI between 25 and 29.9 as overweight – an adult who has a BMI of 30 or higher is considered obese – a BMI below 18.5 is considered underweight, and between 18.5 to 24.9 a healthy weight .

The basic cause of obesity and overweight is an energy imbalance between calories consumed and calories expended and maintaining your current body weight indicates you are in caloric balance and to gain or lose weight, will need the balance scale to tip in one direction or another to achieve a goal. Whether you want to lose weight or maintain a healthy weight, the connection between the energy the body takes in, through the food and drink consumed and the energy the body uses through the activities, must be taken into consideration. A number of factors play a role in obesity and it is a complex health issue to address – behavior, environment, culture, socioeconomic status and genetic factors in disorders such as Bardet-Biedl syndrome and Prader-Willi syndrome - all play a part and may have an effect in causing people to be overweight and obese.

Overweight and obesity are the result of an energy imbalance where too many calories are eaten and not enough physical activity takes place. Behavior and environment play a large role causing people to be overweight and obese and are the greatest areas for prevention and treatment actions. Maintaining a healthy weight for a lifetime involves balancing the number of calories consumed with the number of calories the body uses or “burns off.”

A calorie is defined as a unit of energy supplied by food and is a calorie regardless of its source -carbohydrates, fats, sugars, or proteins, all of them contain calories. It takes approximately 3,500 calories below your calorie needs to lose a pound of body fat – to lose 1 to 2 pounds a week; the caloric intake must be reduced by 500-1000 calories per day. There has been a global shift in diet towards increased intake of energy-dense foods that are high in fat and sugars but low in vitamins, minerals and other micronutrients and this along with a trend towards decreased physical activity has had a large impact on worldwide increase in obesity rates. The increasingly sedentary nature of many forms of work, changing modes of transportation and increasing urbanization have added to the problem.

Healthy diets and regular, adequate physical activity are major factors in the promotion and maintenance of good health throughout the entire life course and unhealthy diets and physical inactivity are two of the main risk factors for raised blood pressure, raised blood glucose, abnormal blood lipids, overweight/obesity, and for the major chronic diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, cancer, and diabetes.

Continue reading »]]> Dementia means “deprived of mind”. It is a serious cognitive disorder. It may be static, the result of a unique global brain injury or progressive, resulting in long-term decline in cognitive function due to damage or disease in the body beyond what might be expected from normal aging.

Although dementia is far more common in old people, it may occur in any stage of adulthood. This age cutoff is defining, as similar sets of symptoms due to organic brain syndrome or dysfunction, are given different names in populations younger than adult. Up to the end of the nineteenth century, dementia was a much broader clinical concept.

Dementia is a non-specific illness syndrome in which affected areas of cognition may be memory, attention, language, and problem solving. It is normally required to be present for at least 6 months to be diagnosed; cognitive dysfunction that has been seen only over shorter times, in particular less than weeks must be termed delirium.

Symptoms of dementia can be classified as either reversible or irreversible, depending upon the etiology of the disease. Less than 10 percent of cases of dementia are due to causes that may presently be reversed with treatment.

Causes include many different specific disease processes, in the same way that symptoms of organ dysfunction such as shortness of breath, jaundice, or pain are attributable to many etiologies. Without careful assessment of history, the short-term syndrome of delirium can easily be confused with dementia, because they have all symptoms in common, save duration, and the fact that delirium is often associated with over-activity of the sympathetic nervous system. Some mental illnesses, including depression and psychosis, may also produce symptoms that must be differentiated from both delirium and dementia. Chronic use of substances such as alcohol as well as chronic sleep deprivation can also predispose the patient to cognitive changes suggestive of dementia.

It appears that the regular moderate consumption of alcohol and a Mediterranean diet may reduce risk. A study has shown a link between high blood pressure and developing dementia. There is no cure to this illness, although scientists are progressing in making a type of medication that will slow down the process. Cholinesterase inhibitors are often used early in the disease course. Cognitive and behavioral interventions may also be appropriate. Educating and providing emotional support to the caregiver is of importance as well.