Periorbital edema: Causes, symptoms, and treatment
Periorbital edema, or eye puffiness, is the medical condition where the tissues surrounding the eye become swollen. This is primarily due to an inflammatory process that results in fluid buildup around the eyes (called the orbits).
The process of swelling around the eye can happen suddenly (acute) or develop over an extended period of time (chronic) due to aging and other pre-existing medical problems. There are various causes for both acute and chronic types of periorbital edema, such as infection or a long-term condition like kidney disease. Continue reading…
Psychogenic amnesia (also known as functional or dissociative amnesia) is an abnormality of memory function that is not attributed to structural brain damage or of a known neurobiological origin. The common presenting symptom is retrograde amnesia, whereby the individual is unable to recall any event leading up to the onset of amnesia itself. This includes all previously stored memories, especially ones that are stressful or traumatic in nature. They are able to form new memories moving forward. There are two types of psychogenic amnesia:
Global amnesia: Also called fugue state, whereby a sudden loss of personal identity occurs that may last from a few hours to an entire day.
Situation-specific: Can occur as the result of a particularly stressfully or traumatic event. Continue reading…
A person with an abnormally long colon can suffer from redundant colon. This means that the colon (large intestine) is lengthier than the average 47- to 60-inch colon. While in some cases, people have no idea they have redundant colon, others do suffer from uncomfortable symptoms. If left untreated, it can lead to complications.
The colon is an important part of our digestive system. It attaches to our small intestine at one end and our rectum and anus at the other. The colon absorbs water and moves waste to the rectum so it can be expelled from our bodies. With a redundant colon, the colon can have additional loops and twists. Continue reading…
Getting some well-needed rest can be all that’s necessary to feel great, as it grants your body and mind time to rejuvenate. However, due to the struggle of long work days—or the increased level of distraction this technologically inclined world offers—more and more people are becoming sleep deprived. So much so that over the past century, American citizens have been found to sleep an estimated 1.5 to 2 hours less, with working populations sleeping less than six hours a night. According to research from the University of Washington, this lack of sleep is leading to immune system suppression and a subsequent rise in illness.
The immune system in the human body is a network of cells, tissues, and organs that work together to defend the body against attacks by tiny organisms, such as bacteria, viruses, and other infections. It achieves this by having many specialized cells and components that are trained to seek out disturbances found in the body that may pose a potential threat and then either keep them from infecting the body or destroy them. Researchers of this particular study report that people get sick more often when they don’t get adequate amounts of sleep, and it is due to the suppression of this bodily defense. Continue reading…
Prostate health is one of those subjects that easily gets sidelined by other health topics. Men are usually reluctant to discuss their prostate concerns, even with their family doctor. The easiest screening option, a blood test checking your PSA levels that increase in cases of prostate growth, causes a lot of anxiety associated with the anticipation of results and is often skipped. Digital rectal exams are also frequently passed on. They are recommended as a yearly screening measure for men over 50, or even as early as 45 for men in high-risk categories (for example, African-Americans and men with a family history of prostate cancer).
Aside from human factors playing a role in the irregularity of prostate screenings, there is another problem—one concerning the diagnosis, or rather, misdiagnosis.
The results of PSA testing may not always be accurate. The levels of prostate-specific antigens rise due to prostate enlargement, and the protein can be produced by both benign and malignant tissues in the organ. Other conditions, such as prostate infections or UTIs, can affect the results too. This can be quite misleading. Thousands of men are referred for biopsies or even surgeries that they don’t really need, as it turns out that their tumors are harmless and growing slowly. (Is your pee playing a trick on you?) Continue reading…