Pelvic Inflammatory Disease is a common infection in the female reproductive organs like the ovaries, the uterus and the fallopian tubes and also the inside of the pelvis. If left untreated for a long time, PID can lead to severe problems like pregnancy complications, infertility and cancer.
Causes
Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD) like chlamydia and gonorrhea produce vaginal bacteria which travel to the interior organs and cause PID. Having unprotected sexual contact with someone who has an STD is the most common cause of PID. Moreover, medical processes like abortion, miscarriage, childbirth, insertion of contraceptive devices can also lead to bacterial infection. Having sex with a number of different people, or having sex before the age of 20, or having had an STD in the past, also increase the chances of Pelvic Inflammatory Disease.
Symptoms
The disease may show only minor symptoms or it may not show any symptom at all. When it does, the common symptoms are pelvic pain, discomfort while urinating or having intercourse, difficulties with menstruation and unusual fluid discharge from the vagina. Associated symptoms of Pelvic Inflammatory Disease include high fever, nausea, vomiting, indigestion, exhaustion, shivering and fainting.
Diagnosis
A pelvic examination is conducted to check for abnormal bleeding from the cervix (the opening of the uterus), fluid discharge or severe pain in the uterus, fallopian tubes or in the ovaries.
Swabs taken from the cervix and the vagina are tested for STDs or other possible bacterial infections that may cause Pelvic Inflammatory Disease.
An ultrasound or a Computerized Tomography (CT) scan is conducted to make sure that the symptoms are not being caused by other disorders like appendicitis or other kinds of infection in the reproductive organs.
A pregnancy test is also done to take the necessary precautions to protect the fetus from the adverse effects of the infection.
Treatment
The treatment procedures of Pelvic Inflammatory Disease vary depending on the type of bacteria that caused the infection in the specific case. Antibiotic medication is used to treat the condition. In case of severe complications, the patient has to be hospitalized.
Depression is a serious yet common mental health problem that can affect all age groups ranging from young children to the elderly. It is found to be more common among women when compared to men. It can take a toll over one’s peace of mind, physical health, interpersonal relationships as well as job performance (or academic performance). What is deceiving is, the person can also be functioning well, in which case, it can go unnoticed, leading to grave consequences. The good news is that depression is treatable and individuals are able to function much better with treatment. Affected individuals feel sad most of the time. He/she loses the ability to enjoy/be happy.
As a result of this, the daily activities that he/she participates in do not seem to appeal to him/her anymore. This is especially true in the case of socialising. The affected person will just seem to drop out of social circles. This can be said to be ironic because it is times like these when the individual with depression is in need of friends the most!
The individual seems to have an overriding belief that the status quo will not be altered by anything and he or she will be stuck in a rut in perpetuity. In other words, depressed people experience a perennial feeling of helplessness. Negative thoughts can also drive one to commit suicide.
A lot of people who have depression tend to experience a loss of energy. As a matter of fact, this is quite the case with men who enter a phase of depression, as the symptoms which are displayed by them can contrast sharply to those displayed by women. One of the reasons for men tending to report a higher chance of this than women is the fact that they are less likely to express feelings of self loathing. Rather, they usually talk about sleep problems and a loss of interest in things that once they might have found to be interesting or even captivating. They also gradually get quite irritable.
When it comes to women, guilt is quite likely to be felt. They may also sleep a lot longer than what is considered to be normal. Eating habits are a better indication of the presence or absence of depression than most people would realise. Overeating is one of the prime signs, especially in the case of women who are depressed. This leads to them putting on weight, as the rise in the intake of food is compounded by a drop in the amount of healthy physical activity. On the other hand, many may also experience loss of appetite, which over a period of time can even lead to weight loss. Some women who are depressed also complain of aches and pains in the body.
A few individuals who are depressed also complain of weird experiences, like being able to hear voices calling out to them, abusing them in dirty language, asking them to hurt themselves (hallucinations). Some may be found to be extremely suspicious about people around them. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a Psychiatrist.
Only men have prostate gland, and it surrounds that part of the tube which carries urine out of the body from the bladder. When cells in this gland start growing without any control and get clumped with each other, they form tumors. It is then the chances of prostate cancer arise in the men's body. These tumors can be malignant, and they can kill the healthy tissues of your body and spread to other body parts.
Chances of getting prostate cancer
The chances of getting prostate cancer are among men who are over 65 years of age. The ratio of getting prostate cancer is one among six men. It is more common in black men compared to white men, Hispanic men and Asian men. Moreover, when there is history of prostate cancer in your family, the chances of having prostate cancer increases.
Now, let's find out the symptoms that will let you know that you may have prostate cancer.
Symptoms of prostate cancer
There are different stages of prostate cancer and depending upon the stage you can get to know various symptoms.
However, the problem is that in the early stages there are no specific symptoms of prostate cancer. Certain urinary symptoms may suggest that you are suffering from prostate cancer. Such symptoms are
- Frequent urination
- Difficulty with starting urine flow
- Urination that burns
- Blood in the urine
- Weak flow, or 'dribbling'
These symptoms always do not mean that you are suffering from prostate cancer, as these symptoms may be there when your prostate gland gets enlarged.
Another symptom associated with prostate cancer is pain in different parts of the body. When the cancerous cells spread they cause pain around the prostate gland. There can be pain in the hips, pelvis, and lower back or upper thighs.
Prostate gland also plays a major role in the male reproductive system. Thus, if there is any sexual dysfunction, there are chances that it may be due to prostate cancer. If you are having a problem in getting an erection or maintaining it also becomes difficult, one problem can be prostate cancer. Sometimes you may experience painful ejaculation, which also points towards chances of having prostate cancer.
Thus, if you experience any of the above mentioned symptoms, its right time to get to your physician. Remember that as there are no early symptoms, the moment you find any of these symptoms, you should pay a visit to your Doctor.
Gestational trophoblastic disease is a rare condition. It only happens when trophoblast cells abnormally grow inside the uterus. Also, this only happens after conception. These cells surround the egg which has been fertilized in the uterus. It is also worth note that the trophoblast cells usually connect the fertilized eggs to the uterus' walls and also form a part of the placenta. It is only when there is a tumor that this disease is diagnosed. There are many forms of gestational trophoblastic disease. Here they are:
Types
1. Complete hydatidiform moles
2. Partial hydatidiform moles
3. Invasive moles
4. Choriocarcinomas
5. Placental-site trophoblastic tumors (PSTT)
6. Epithelioid trophoblastic tumors (ETT)
It is worth note that most of these diseases have different stages. The stage of how far cancer has developed can be found out using the following techniques.
Testing for cancer
1. Chest X-ray
This is simply an X-ray of the chest.
2. MRI
An MRI is an abbreviation of magnetic resonance imaging. It makes use of a form of the magnet which transfers radio waves to a computer to find out what is going on within your body.
3. CT scan
This is similar to an X-ray except that more detailed and larger pictures inside the body can be taken and the scan has a slightly different procedure.
There are several ways to treat it depending on how far cancer has spread into the body. Here they are:
Treatment
1. Surgery
Surgery is usually done while the mole is still non-cancerous. The chances of the mole becoming cancerous are increased by pregnancy. Therefore, it is crucial that you do not become pregnant until the surgery is complete.
2. Chemotherapy
This is a less-ideal option but has to be taken if the mole has become cancerous.
There are many kinds of conditions and symptoms that require different kinds of surgery for treatment as well as diagnostic management. One such procedure is called a laparoscopy or the laparoscopic surgery. This is a surgical diagnostic management procedure that is known to be a low risk process with minimal invasion and suitable for various types of ailments.
Read on to know everything about laparoscopic surgeries.
Gestational trophoblastic disease is a rare condition. It only happens when trophoblast cells abnormally grow inside the uterus. Also, this only happens after conception. These cells surround the egg which has been fertilized in the uterus. It is also worth note that the trophoblast cells usually connect the fertilized eggs to the uterus' walls and also form a part of the placenta.
It is only when there is a tumor that this disease is diagnosed. There are many forms of gestational trophoblastic disease. Here they are:
Types:
1. Complete hydatidiform moles
2. Partial hydatidiform moles
3. Invasive moles
4. Choriocarcinomas
5. Placental-site trophoblastic tumors (PSTT)
6. Epithelioid trophoblastic tumors (ETT)
It is worthy to note that most of these diseases have different stages. The stage of how far cancer has developed can be found out using the following techniques.
Testing for cancer:
1. Chest X-ray - This is simply an X-ray of the chest.
2. MRI - An MRI is an abbreviation of magnetic resonance imaging. It makes use of a form of the magnet which transfers radio waves to a computer to find out what is going on within your body.
3. CT scan - This is similar to an X-ray except that more detailed and larger pictures inside the body can be taken and the scan has a slightly different procedure.
There are several ways to treat it depending on how far cancer has spread into the body. Here they are:
Treatment:
1. Surgery can be conservative or radical
2. Chemotherapy
Gestational trophoblastic disease is a rare condition. It only happens when trophoblast cells abnormally grow inside the uterus. Also, this only happens after conception. These cells surround the egg which has been fertilized in the uterus. It is also worth note that the trophoblast cells usually connect the fertilized eggs to the uterus' walls and also form a part of the placenta. It is only when there is a tumor that this disease is diagnosed. There are many forms of the gestational trophoblastic disease. Here they are:
Types
1. Complete hydatidiform moles
2. Partial hydatidiform moles
3. Invasive moles
4. Choriocarcinomas
5. Placental-site trophoblastic tumors (PSTT)
6. Epithelioid trophoblastic tumors (ETT)
It is worth note that most of these diseases have different stages. The stage of how far cancer has developed can be found out using the following techniques.
Testing for cancer
1. Chest X-ray
This is simply an X-ray of the chest.
2. MRI
An MRI is an abbreviation of magnetic resonance imaging. It makes use of a form of the magnet which transfers radio waves to a computer to find out what is going on within your body.
3. CT scan
This is similar to an X-ray except that more detailed and larger pictures inside the body can be taken and the scan has a slightly different procedure.
There are several ways to treat it depending on how far cancer has spread into the body. Here they are:
Treatment
1. Surgery
Surgery is usually done while the mole is still non-cancerous. The chances of the mole becoming cancerous are increased by pregnancy. Therefore, it is crucial that you do not become pregnant until the surgery is complete.
2. Chemotherapy
This is a less-ideal option but has to be taken if the mole has become cancerous.
Polycystic Ovarian Disease results from the disorder more commonly known as PCOS or Polycystic Ovary Syndrome. A syndrome is starkly different from a disease, for the former entails a set of symptoms usually occurring in concurrence, while the latter means a particular biological condition with an identifiable reason behind it. A syndrome solicits your concern and forethought in order to eliminate or at least control the chances of an underlying disease. Trigger to a syndrome is undetectable and hence fighting it efficiently is fairly problematic. It is rare to find adolescent girls without hormonal problems.
Hormonal imbalances are just too common to be a novel topic any further. Polycystic Ovary Syndrome is faced due to imbalances in hormone secretions. It refers to the development of multiple cysts in your ovary. This condition usually affects women falling within the age group of 15 to 50. Eight among ten women, at a given point of time, are reported with PCOS. Symptoms of PCOS, when neglected, can lead to Polycystic Ovarian Disease. If you have been facing similar health issues, it is advisable to undergo a check-up and get diagnosed at the earliest possible.
Symptoms of Polycystic Ovarian Disease
1. A receding hairline or increased hair fall can lead to thinning of scalp hair. Such a sign should not be taken lightly as it could be indicative of Polycystic Ovarian Disease.
2. Extremely painful menstruation, irregular periods or prolonged periods with heavy bleeding might be reason enough for worrying.
3. Development of acne could be another sign. Acne is common to girls attaining puberty but an unprecedented growth should be a matter of concern.
4. Patchy skin, pigmentation and discolouration of the skin are the other symptoms.
5. PCOS may also result in continual depression and anxiety.
6. Obesity is the most commonly noticed symptom. People suffering from Polycystic Ovarian Disease have a lower metabolism and thus reducing weight is an ordeal.
7. Many women tend to grow thick facial hair or chest hair. Such a condition discourages the person to go out in public. It leads to social ostracizing which further bears severe effects on one's mental health.
8. PCOS mostly affects women belonging to the childbearing age. As a result of this syndrome, females stop ovulating. Conception becomes extremely difficult as the syndrome may lead to infertility.
Polycystic Ovarian Disease can result in Type 2 diabetes or even cardiovascular problems. If not diagnosed and treated at an early stage, it might lead to ovarian cancer. There is hardly any preventive measure to counter the chances of such a syndrome but certain alterations in your diet under the guidance of a dietician and regular exercising can improve your health.
The diabetic eye is considered to be the leading cause of the blindness among the working age. It is usually caused by the change in the blood vessels on the retina of the eye. Retina is that layer of the eye which is light sensitive. In case of diabetic macular oedema, the blood vessels cause the fluid to leak into the retina.
How does diabetic macular oedema cause vision loss?
The loss of vision only occurs when the fluid reaches the macula. Macula is the center of the retina which is responsible for a sharp vision. When the fluid reaches the macula it builds up and causes inflammation. Initially this is not noticed but with time the diabetic macular oedema causes a change in the vision making it more blurred. A healthy macula is very essential for a good vision.
Who is at risk of diabetic macular oedema?
People with type 1 and type 2 diabetes are at a higher risk of getting diabetic macular oedema. Also other risk factors are:
1. About 0ne in three people with diabetes develop macular oedema
2. Poor control of blood sugars
3. High blood pressure
4. High cholesterol level
5. Pregnancy
6. In smokers
How to reduce the risks of diabetic macula oedema?
The risk of diabetic macula oedema can be reduced by quitting smoking, and to make sure that blood sugar and cholesterol levels are under control. This is achieved by regularly measuring the cholesterol and blood sugar levels.
How is diabetic macular oedema detected?
Diabetic macular oedema can be detected during regular visits to the doctor. Patients with diabetes should be offered screening tests. Digital photographs of the patients can be taken as they show the early signs of diabetic macular oedema, though changes in vision might not be noticed at this time.
What happens when you attend the medical retina clinic?
When you go for an eye checkup you will undergo a comprehensive examination which includes:
1. Visual acuity test: This is a sight test which measures how well you can see the different distances
2. Eye pressure test: This test is done to measure the pressure of the eyes and usually drops which numb the eyes are used when this test is conducted
3. Dilated eye examination: In this the drops are placed in the eye to dilate the pupils and then the back of the eye is examined.
4. Fluorescein angiography: This is a diagnostic test in which an injection of fluorescein dye is given in the hand and then the photographs are taken.
5. Optical coherence tomography: This is done to measure the retinal swelling.
In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!
Updates From Lybrate: A Good and healthy Diabetic diet of nutritious products can help in managing the diabetes problem. You can explore a wide range of diabetic supplements available on Lybrate.
Your eyes are responsible for presenting the world to you, right from the time you wake up until the time you go to bed. In fact, your eyes deliver 80% of the information you take in each day. Therefore, it is important that you keep them safe and healthy.
However, most vision problems develop from early childhood, usually between the age of 2.5 years and 4 years. The most common ones are-
• A wandering eye/crossed eye - Misalignment of the eyes
• Farsightedness - Nearby objects appear blurry
• Nearsightedness/Myopia - Faraway objects appear blurry
• Astigmatism - An imperfection in the curvature of the eye
Quite a few vision problems emerge as you age. These common eye conditions may significantly affect your eyes and eyesight once you are near the age of 60 -
• Age-related Macular Degeneration or AMD - Loss of vision
• Glaucoma - The connecting nerve from the eye to the brain is damaged (can lead to blindness)
• Diabetic retinopathy - A diabetic complication affecting the eyes
In the year 2002, over 161 million people across the world were reported visually impaired. 124 million people out of these 161 million had poor vision, while 37 million people were blind. Considering these shocking figures, it has become crucial to spread awareness and inform the readers about the importance of vision screenings regularly.
What is Low or Poor Vision?
‘Low vision’ or poor vision refers to a significant visual impairment that cannot be rectified with medicine, standard glasses, eye surgery, or contact lenses. People with visual acuity ranging between 20/200 and 70/200 or 6/18 and 6/60 are said to have poor vision.
A number of factors can cause low vision, such as an eye injury, an infection or a disease. Sometimes, the cause can also be hereditary.
Warning signs
The following can be the warning signs that something might be seriously wrong with your vision-
Why early detection is important?
If you encounter the above signs or observe the same in your loved ones, then immediately consult an eye specialist. Detecting the problem early can help restore some of your vision, if not cure the problem.
Just as overall health check-up is required, annual eye check-ups are also important for people, especially in the old age. Comprehensive dilated eye exams and screening tests are recommended. You should ideally have yourself checked once every year. People with macular degeneration, glaucoma, or a family history of eye disorders may require frequent visits and regular monitoring.
Discuss your overall condition with an eye specialist and ensure that you follow up for eye check-ups to the clinic every 6 months.
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