Emphysema gradually damages the air sacs (alveoli) in your lungs, making you progressively more short of breath. Emphysema is one of several diseases known collectively as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease Smoking is the leading cause of emphysema. Your lungs' alveoli are clustered like bunches of grapes. In emphysema, the inner walls of the air sacs weaken and eventually rupture — creating one larger air space instead of many small ones. This reduces the surface area of the lungs and, in turn, the amount of oxygen that reaches your bloodstream. When you exhale, the damaged alveoli don't work properly and old air becomes trapped, leaving no room for fresh, oxygen-rich air to enter. Treatment may slow the progression of emphysema, but it can't reverse the damage.

The exam should be performed in an orderly fashion as follows: 1. Have the patient stick out their tongue so that you can examine the posterior pharynx (i.e. the back of the throat). Ask the patient to say "Ah", which elevates the soft palate, giving you a better view. If you are still unable to see, place the tongue blade � way back on the tongue and press down while the patient again says "Ah," hopefully improving your view. This causes some people to gag, particularly when the blade is pushed onto the more proximal aspects of the tongue. It may occasionally be important to determine whether the gag reflex is functional (e.g. after a stroke that impairs CNs 9 or 10; or to determine if a patient with depressed level of consciousness is able to protect their airway from aspiration). This is done by touching a q-tip against the posterior pharynx, uvula or tongue. It is not necessary to do this during your routine exam as it can be quite noxious!
2. Note that the uvula hangs down from the roof of the mouth, directly in the mid-line. With an "Ah," the uvula rises up. Deviation to one side may be caused by CN 9 palsy (the uvula deviates away from the affected side), a tumor or an infection. CN9 Pasly Cranial Nerve 9 Dysfunction: Patient has suffered stroke, causing loss of function of left CN 9. As a result, uvula is pulled towards the normally functioning (ie right) side. 3. The normal pharynx has a dull red color. In the setting of infection, it can become quite red, frequently covered with a yellow or white exudate (e.g. with Strep. Throat or other types of pharyngitis).
4. The tonsils lie in an alcove created by arches on either side of the mouth. The apex of these arches are located lateral to and on a line with the uvula. Normal tonsils range from barely apparent to quite prominent. When infected, they become red, are frequently covered by whitish/yellow discharge. In the setting of a peritonsilar abscess, the tonsils appear asymmetric and the uvula may be pushed away from the affected side. When this occurs, the tonsil may actually compromise the size of the oral cavity, making breathing quite difficult.
5. Look carefully along the upper and lower gum lines and at the mucosa in general, which can appear quite dry if the patient is dehydrated.
6. Examine the teeth to get a sense of general dentition, particularly if the patient has a dental complaint. Pain produced by tapping on a tooth is commonly caused by a root abscess. Tooth Abscess: Tooth abscess involving left molar region. Associated inflammation of left face can clearly be seen. 7. Have the patient stick their tongue outside their mouth, which allows evaluation of CN 12. If there is nerve impairment, the tongue will deviate towards the affected side. Any obvious growths or abnormalities? Ask them to flip their tongue up so that you can look at the underside. If you see something abnormal, grasp the tongue with gauze so that you can get a better look. Left CN 12 Dysfunction: Stroke has resulted in L CN 12 Palsy. Tongue therefore deviates to the left.
8. Make note of any growths along the cheeks, hard palate (the roof of the mouth between the teeth), soft palate, or anywhere else. In particular, patients who smoke or chew tobacco are at risk for oral squamous cell cancer. Any areas which are painful or appear abnormal should also be palpated. Put on a pair of gloves to better explore these regions. What do they feel like? Are they hard? To what extent does a growth involve deeper structures? If the patient feels something that you cannot see, try to get someone else to hold the light source, freeing both your hands to explore the oral cavity with two tongue depressors.

An InterActive Medical Technologies Training Video

QuikRead CRP is a quantitative assay of CRP (C-reactive protein) in whole blood, serum or plasma, using the QuikRead® 101 Instrument and is FDA cleared.

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Loa loa filariasis (also known as loiasis, loaiasis, Calabar swellings, Fugitive swelling, Tropical swelling and African eyeworm) is a skin and eye disease caused by the nematode worm, loa loa. Humans contract this disease through the bite of a Deer fly or Mango fly (Chrysops spp), the vectors for Loa loa. The adult Loa loa filarial worm migrates throughout the subcutaneous tissues of humans, occasionally crossing into subconjunctival tissues of the eye where it can be easily observed. Loa loa does not normally affect one's vision but can be painful when moving about the eyeball or across the bridge of the nose.The disease can cause red itchy swellings below the skin called "Calabar swellings". The disease is treated with the drug diethylcarbamazine (DEC), and when appropriate, surgical methods may be employed to remove adult worms from the conjunctiva.

A video showing normal colonoscopy

The essential steps of a translaminaterminalis approach for removal of craniopharyngiomas

A salivary gland stone -- also called salivary duct stone -- is a calcified structure that may form inside a salivary gland or duct. It can block the flow of saliva into the mouth. The majority of stones affect the submandibular glands located at the floor of the mouth. Less commonly, the stones affect the parotid glands, located on the inside of the cheeks, or the sublingual glands, which are under the tongue. Many people with the condition have multiple stones. Salivary Gland Stone Causes and Symptoms Salivary stones form when chemicals in the saliva accumulate in the duct or gland. They mostly contain calcium. The exact cause is not known. But factors contributing to less saliva production and/or thickened saliva may be risk factors for salivary stones. These factors include: dehydration, poor eating, and use of certain medications (such as antihistamines), blood pressure drugs, psychiatric drugs, and bladder control drugs. Trauma to the salivary glands may also raise the risk for salivary stones. The stones cause no symptoms as they form, but if they reach a size that blocks the duct, saliva backs up into the gland, causing pain and swelling. You may feel the pain off and on, and it may get progressively worse. Inflammation and infection within the affected gland may follow. Salivary Gland Stones Diagnosis and Treatments If you have symptoms of a salivary gland stone, your doctor will first check for stones with a physical exam. Sometimes tests may also be ordered, such as X-ray, CT scan, or ultrasound.

Your egg usually lives for just 12 to 24 hours, but sperm will live inside you for anything from a few hours to seven days, with one to three days the optimum time. ... But because a small number of sperm are long-living, having sex up to six days before ovulation can also result in pregnancy.

Thoracentesis is a procedure to remove fluid or air from around the lungs. A needle is put through the chest wall into the pleural space. The pleural space is the thin gap between the pleura. The pleura are a double layer of membranes that surrounds the lungs.

Watch that video of the 10 Most Invasive Parasites in the World

Bipolar disorder, also known as manic-depressive illness, is a brain disorder that causes unusual shifts in mood, energy, activity levels, and the ability to carry out day-to-day tasks. There are four basic types of bipolar disorder; all of them involve clear changes in mood, energy, and activity levels.

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Pyogenic liver abscess Email this page to a friend Email this page to a friend Facebook Twitter Google+ Pyogenic liver abscess is a pus-filled area in the liver. Causes There are many potential causes of liver abscesses, including: Abdominal infection, such as appendicitis, diverticulitis, or a perforated bowel Infection in the blood Infection of the bile draining tubes Recent endoscopy of the bile draining tubes Trauma that damages the liver The most common bacteria that cause liver abscesses are: Escherichia coli Bacteroides Enterococcus Klebsiella pneumoniae Staphylococcus aureus Streptococcus In most cases, more than one type of bacteria is found.

ADH's job is to act on the kidneys to promote water reabsorption. In this lesson, we'll compare and contrast diabetes insipidus, or DI, in which there is too little ADH, and syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone secretion , or SIADH, in which there is too much ADH.

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You may have recently found out that you are deficient or know someone who is. It's shocking for most people when they have never had a problem before and believe nothing has changed to make it a problem now. The truth is that a lot has changed, and vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency is now a global public-health problem affecting an estimated 1 billion people worldwide. The most well-known consequences to not having enough vitamin D are rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults. These are far from the only problems associated with a vitamin D deficiency.

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-Rectocele is a relatively common condition in older women and is characterized by the displacement of the rectum through posterior vaginal wall defect(s). The condition is typically caused by damage to the rectovaginal septum incurred during vaginal childbirth and is exacerbated by periodic increases in intraabdominal pressure (e.g., when laughing or coughing) and the effects of gravity. Women with symptomatic rectoceles who are poor surgical candidates may be treated with pessaries, which are structures designed to support the vaginal wall. Pessaries should only be used in conjunction with vaginal

Histology of Inner Ear 1