Multiple sclerosis or MS is an autoimmune disease where the protective cover around the nerves is lost. This affects the communication between the brain and the rest of the body. Symptoms commonly experienced by patients suffering from this condition include partial or complete loss of vision, weakness or numbness in one or more limbs, double vision, tremors, slurred speech, tiredness and lack of energy, and issues with bladder and bowel movements. In the early stages of this disease, these symptoms come and go. Allopathy has no cure for this disease but can help patients manage the symptoms and slow the speed at which the disease progresses.

What causes MS?
Damaged nerve signals can cause debilitating symptoms, including:

muscle weakness
walking problems
fatigue
vision problems
MS affects everyone differently. The severity of the disease and the types of symptoms vary from person to person. The exact cause of MS is still unknown. However, it is belived that the aforementioned factors may play a role in the development of the disease.

Symptoms-

Numbness or weakness in one or more limbs 
Partial or complete loss of vision
Prolonged double vision
Tingling or pain in parts of your body
Electric-shock sensations that occur with certain neck movements 
Tremor, lack of coordination or unsteady gait
Slurred speech
Fatigue
Dizziness
How Homeopathy Can Help?

Homeopathy is also a very effective way of managing the symptoms of this disease. This is a constitutional form of medication that takes into account the patient s overall physical and mental health, emotional state and symptoms being seen to prescribe a remedy. Unlike allopathic remedies, homeopathy not only addresses the symptoms being presented but it also addresses the root cause of the disease. It has negligible side effects and can be prescribed to children and adults of all ages. The goal of a homeopathic treatment for multiple sclerosis is to reduce the severity and number of flare-ups and slow down the disease s progression rate. It also seeks to improve the patient s outlook, attitude, and energy levels thereby improving his or her quality of life.

There is no standard homeopathic remedy for this condition. As mentioned earlier, a homeopathic doctor takes into account many different factors to prescribe a remedy. Thus, two MS patients may be given different remedies if they have different physiques, personalities etc. For this reason, it is not advisable to self-medicate with homeopathy. Homeopathic treatment also requires patience as it takes a while for the body s immune system to adapt. That said, it is important to note that homeopathy cannot be considered a miracle cure for patients suffering from advanced stages of multiple sclerosis. As with allopathic medication, the earlier a homeopathic remedy is prescribed, the more effective it will be.

In addition to following a homeopathic prescription or MS, the patient is also usually advised to make a few lifestyle changes. Stress is one of the biggest triggers for an MS episode. Hence, it becomes important for MS patients to de-stress and avoid high-stress events. A healthy diet and vitamin supplements can also help to strengthen the body.

Multiple Sclerosis And Homeopathy - How Does It Help?

Alzheimer s disease is a neurological, irreversible, progressive brain disorder. It is a chronic neurodegenerative dementia that causes the death of brain cells, causing memory loss and cognitive decline. It affects a person s thinking and behavior. The symptoms develop slowly and get worse as time passes.

Causes:
As it is a kind of dementia, Alzheimer s is caused by the death of brain cells. Over a course of time, brain cells die progressively and at the end, the tissue is left with fewer nerve cells and connections. As a result, the total brain size shrinks. Tiny inclusions called plaques and tangles can be seen in the postmortem. These cannot be seen or tested in a living Alzheimer s affected brain. These plaques are given the name  amyloid plaques  because they are found among the dying cells of the brain when a protein called beta-amyloid builds. The tangles stay in the neurons; they are formed from a protein called tau.

There are several reasons behind all this, some of which are listed below-

Anti-anxiety medications
Hitting on the head too many times
Regularly sleep-deprived
Loneliness
Diabetes in the brain
Old age
Genetic line
Down s syndrome
Cardiovascular diseases
Symptoms:
Alzheimer s disease damages the brain, so the clinical signs and symptoms begin to show very early. The symptoms are-

Memory loss
Agitation and mood swings
Poor judgment
The trouble with money calculations
Difficulty doing familiar tasks
Trouble in planning or solving a problem
Confusion with time and place
Difficulty in communicating
Loss of motivation
Inappropriate behavior
Aggressive personality
Childlike behavior
Preventing Alzheimer s disease:
Alzheimer s disease ultimately results in death. Even if there are treatments, they cannot fully cure it. So it s better to try to prevent it before it happens. Ways to prevent Alzheimer s disease are-

Eating more fruits and vegetables.
Eating berries every day.
Increasing omega-3 fatty acids.
Taking folic acid supplements.
Drinking grape juice or red wine with evening meal.
Doing the Mediterranean style diet.
Controlling the blood pressure.
Having strong social support.
Treatment of Alzheimer s disease:

Treatment of Alzheimer s disease is a long time process.
First of all, doctors perform a physical exam to check the overall neurological health. By this, they check muscle strength, reflexes, walking ability, sense of sight and hearing, coordination and balance.
Then comes the blood test to find the cause of confusion and memory loss by checking the thyroid disorder and vitamin deficiency.
Then they perform the neuropsychological test and check the mental status.
Then there are other tests, like MRI, CT, and PET.
After all this, drugs are given and a safe and supportive environment is created with proper exercise and nutrition.
Alzheimer s disease is undoubtedly the worst kind of disease. Hence, it is highly recommended to contact a doctor as soon as any symptom is noticed.

All About Alzheimer's Disease!

Study of the brain has fascinated specialists all over the globe since time immemorial. The brain being the most vital organ for survival and coordination is perhaps the most complex of them all too. This has led to a limited understanding of its working in spite of the available advanced technology. However, with the advent of techniques for diagnosis and treatment, therapeutic strategies are evolving. This is a major step towards rendering Neurosurgery safer than ever in the history of mankind.

Neurosurgery through the 20th Century-

During the beginning of the 20th century, Neurosurgery was considered as a specialty. The clinical-neurologist would draw conclusions related to lesions in the brain through neurological examination and clinical history. It enabled diagnosis of vascular lesions, spinal disorders, and brain tumors. During the second and third decades of the 20th century, vascular pathologies and brain tumors could be diagnosed indirectly through techniques like angiography, ventriculography, and pneumoencephalography. But since the operative techniques were too crude and the lack of skilled professionals were rampant, there were high rates of morbidity and mortality due to neurological conditions. Generally, after diagnosing the nature of brain lesion and its site, surgery was performed with inadequate maintenance and control of intracranial pressure and through not too sophisticated surgical instruments.

During the fifth and sixth decades of the 20th century, chemotherapy and radiation treatment came into the picture for treating malignant brain tumors, thereby reducing mortality to a good extent.

During the seventh decade of the 20th century, Computed Tomography (CT) scan provided a better understanding of the location of lesions in the brain which slightly substantiated the earlier techniques. Then, the procedures for cerebrospinal fluid diversion significantly improved management of intracranial pressure during surgery.

It was only during the last decade of the 20th century that the Neurology saw a giant progressive leap through the introduction of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and powerful high magnification microscopes. Combined with Neuroanesthesia and Intracranial Pressure Management, this aided surgeons to work on a relaxed brain. This promoted safe removal of the brain tumor and better management of vascular lesions. Moreover, the understanding of micro-surgical anatomy improved drastically, leading to a boost in confidence levels of the micro-neurosurgeons performing the operation.

Neurosurgery in the 21st Century-

The 21st century is actually a revolutionary era that uses powerful computers in almost all the fields possible. Computer-based applications such as Neuro-imaging, Neuronavigation, Intra-operative Neuro-monitoring, and Neuro-modulation are now used in standard neurosurgical practice as a part of the routine. Extremely powerful CT scans and MRIs are used for diagnosis before surgery. The advent of nanotechnology and its application in Neurosurgery is doing great and has a promising future ahead based on the current study of scenarios. Moreover, there is a possibility of most of the Neurosurgical procedures becoming minimally invasive. Frameless Stereotaxy is another technique that helps in locating the exact position of the tumor, which further helps the neurosurgeon in navigating with great precision the very sensitive, high-risk areas of the brain. Such techniques, to a great extent, have lowered mortality and morbidity, lessened the rate of recovery, and chances of infection related to Neurosurgery.

Take Away-

A number of techniques for diagnosis and precise location of the tumor in the brain have made Neurosurgery much safer today, due to advancement in science and technology, than it ever had been in the history of mankind.

Advancements In Neurosurgery - Know How Safe It Is!

How Physiotherapy Can Help with Neurological Disorders

Neurological disorders are problems with any one or a combination of the central nervous system or any of its peripheral systems such as cranial nerves, neuromuscular junctions, and the autonomic nervous systems among others.

Some extreme examples of neurological disorders are:

- Dementia
- Alzheimer's disease
- Parkinson's disease
- Epilepsy
- Disorders brought on by strokes
- Multiple sclerosis and others

What is physiotherapy and how can it help?

Physiotherapy is a form of treatment where practitioners use physical forms of treatment such as massages, exercises, heat treatment and other controlled forms of external stimuli to treat physical disorders.

This method of treatment can be very effective in correcting neurological disorders.

Some of the physiotherapy techniques, which can be implemented to help patients, are as follows:

Electrical Stimulation: This method is commonly used to treat muscular problems, especially incurred after an accident or any other form of injury. In this method, controlled electric stimulation is given to specific nerve areas over the skin to stimulate them.

Heat treatment: This method involves applying heat to parts of the body such as joints or muscles where there is nerve or muscular damage. This treatment is especially effective for muscle related problems.

Ice or cold treatment: Vertically opposite to the principle of heat treatment, ice or cold treatment is used to contract muscles within the body. This is especially effective where inflammation needs to be controlled.

Manual therapy: Possibly the most common form of physiotherapy, this method employs massages, pressure points, stretching and hands on strengthening exercises and helps regularize nerve impulses to areas where they have been affected.



How Physiotherapy Can Help with Neurological Disorders

Asperger's Syndrome or Asperger's Disorder is a neurotypical condition that affects the development of the child the effects of which continue into adulthood. This condition typically shows up as difficulties faced by the patient when it comes to social interactions as well as other nonverbal means of communication. It should not be confused with autism as the patient has no speech and cognitive development delay. 

Asperger's syndrome can show up as restricted and repetitive patterns in the behaviour of the patient. It lies at the higher end of the autism spectrum and the signs are usually less obvious. Here are a few ways with which you can effectively deal with someone who is suffering from this disorder.

1. Routine: The patient suffering from this condition will need a certain kind of stability as it is very difficult to predict what will happen in the near future or to even plan for it. The best way to tackle this scenario is with the help of a proper routine that can help the patient achieve some kind of control over the situation surrounding him or her so that he or she is better equipped and more capable of handling normal functioning and social situations as well.

2. Information: It is also a good idea to help these patients in looking at and in processing information. While normal people may easily be able to discard insignificant or unimportant information, the brain of the patient suffering from asperger's syndrome does not allow him or her to do so. In many cases, the patient is not able to filter the important and the unimportant information. This can debilitate many functions. So, it is important to be present to help the patient in making decisions and processing information that is actually relevant to his or her functioning.

3. Learning: One of the most crucial things to remember with the Asperger's patient is that they tend to understand and process things when they have a visual presentation rather than being told verbally. So showing them things practically in the proper manner is the right way to help them learn and process situations in a correct way. This will prevent them from doing things in the same old way even when their brains tell them that it will lead to wrong results.

4. Physical Abilities: Poor motor skills as well as lack of proper organisation skills are traits that usually characterise these patients. It is important to make them aware of this during games and activities that require management as well as use of social skills. For example, football and other such activities can be introduced in the routine. This will promote interaction with the team in order to play and enjoy the game.

How to Deal With a Patient Suffering From Asperger's Syndrome?

Firstly, what you need to realise is that Alzheimer s is not dementia and the main point you need to remember about the difference between the two is that the former is a disease while the latter is a syndrome. Alzheimer s is a neurodegenerative disease, it breaks down the cognitive functions of the brain and reduces a person s ability to function properly. It s one of the foremost reasons for untimely senility in middle-aged to old-aged persons.

It can be a scary time for the patient themselves as well as for friends and family alike but fear not, there are ways to reduce the chances of suffering from this painful predicament. Here are a few easy hacks to keep in mind to stave off the risk of Alzheimer s:

Fix your diet: Cut down on saturated fats and construct a diet combining lots of healthy vitamin and mineral rich foods, fruits and vegetables. Vitamin E is essential as well as vitamin B12 which can also be taken in the form of supplements. Vitamin E can be found in foods like spinach and even nuts. Rush University Medical Centre in Chicago has, after a lot of research, developed the MIND and DASH diets. The Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND) diet collates portions of the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet to create the perfect combination that has been shown to reduce the risk of Alzheimer s by 53 percent.
Exercise mental and physical: A sedentary lifestyle is one of the major causes of Alzheimer s because it leads to slower brain activity and an overall unhealthy lifestyle. To break out of this you need to regularly exercise and not just physical exercises but also mental exercises such as solving mental maths and crosswords and reading books and newspapers. There are a lot of apps concerning games that help boost brain activity on the market that can help as well. Physical exercise can include swimming, brisk walking, joking and even gardening.
Reduce stress: Stress proves to be a huge issue for the brain contributing to its damage by putting a lot of pressure on it. Try to relax more by improving your sleep cycle, resting as and when required, and not overworking yourself.
Aromatherapy: Essential oils have been shown to work wonders, by reducing stress and relaxing the mind. Lavender, rosemary, lemon and even orange are some great options you can try out. These oils can help rejuvenate damaged brain and nerve cells.
Meditation: Studies have shown that regular meditation helps boost grey matter in the brain, and along with yoga, keeps the minds and bodies of middle-aged people active and better focused contributing to the overall health of the brain.

Life Hacks! How To Beat Alzheimer's

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