Primary sclerosing (skluh-ROHS-ing) cholangitis (koh-lan-JIE-tis) is a disease of the bile ducts, which carry the digestive liquid bile from your liver to your small intestine. In primary sclerosing cholangitis, inflammation causes scars within the bile ducts. These scars make the ducts hard and narrow and gradually cause serious liver damage. In most people with primary sclerosing cholangitis, the disease progresses slowly and can lead to liver failure, repeated infections, and tumors of the bile duct or liver. Liver transplant is the only known cure for primary sclerosing cholangitis. The search for other treatments to slow or stop primary sclerosing cholangitis is ongoing, and scientists have turned up many promising leads. Until better treatments are proved safe and effective, though, care for primary sclerosing cholangitis focuses on monitoring liver function, managing symptoms and, when possible, doing procedures that temporarily open blocked bile ducts.

Tooth loss can make you look older. When you lose a tooth and don’t replace it with a dental implant, you risk the chance of jawbone loss. Normally, your tooth root stimulates the continued growth and health of your jawbone. Dental implants mirror your natural tooth root and keep your jawbone healthy.

There’s a strange, mysterious world inside us, an alien-looking environment that turns the food we eat into nutrients that keep us alive. Michael Mosley swallows a camera to take a closer look.

AZT Mechanism of Antiviral Activity

Anatomy of The Brain

People whose back or neck pain has not been relieved by back surgery or other treatments may have another option to consider: spinal cord stimulation. Around the world, some 14,000 patients undergo spinal cord stimulator implants each year. Spinal cord stimulation (SCS) delivers mild electrical stimulation to nerves along the spinal column, modifying or blocking nerve activity in a non-medicinal way to minimize the sensation of pain reaching the brain.

Iron is a mineral that plays a vital role in health and well-being. Without it, many bodily functions would malfunction. “The primary role of iron is to carry oxygen in the blood to every cell in the body,” says Beth Thayer, RDN, MS, director of the Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention at Henry Ford Health System in Detroit. Iron is an important component of hemoglobin, the protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen from the lungs and transports it throughout the body.

The majority of all headaches are tension related headaches. The blockage of blood circulation along with contraction/shortening of muscles is what causes this condition. This simple technique can take away most tension related headaches in seconds.

Don't cleanse your contact lenses with tap water.

Too much cholesterol in the blood can lead to cardiovascular disease. Heart disease is the No. 1 cause of death in the United States. Over 2,100 Americans die of cardiovascular disease each day, an average of one death every 40 seconds. The good news is, you can lower your cholesterol and reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke. Working with your doctor is key. It takes a team to develop and maintain a successful health program. You and your healthcare professionals each play an important role in maintaining and improving your heart health. Work with your doctor to determine your risk and the best approach to manage it. In all cases, lifestyle changes are important to reduce your risk for heart attack and stroke. In some cases, cholesterol-lowering statin medicines may also provide benefit. Learn how to make diet and lifestyle changes easy and lasting. Also make sure you understand instructions for taking medication because it won't work if you don't take it as directed. Lifestyle Changes Your diet, weight, physical activity and exposure to tobacco smoke all affect your cholesterol level. Know Your Fats Knowing which fats raise LDL cholesterol and which ones don't is the first step in lowering your risk of heart disease.

Paget's disease of bone disrupts your body's normal bone recycling process, in which old bone tissue is gradually replaced with new bone tissue. Over time, the affected bones may become fragile and misshapen. Paget's disease of bone most commonly occurs in the pelvis, skull, spine and legs.

Alcoholic hepatitis can occur in people who drink heavily for many years. Symptoms include yellow skin and eyes along with increasing belly size due to fluid accumulation. Treatment involves hydration, nutritional care, and stopping alcohol use. Steroid drugs can help reduce liver inflammation.

The goal of breast cancer surgery is to remove the entire tumor from the breast. Some of the lymph nodes in the underarm area (axillary nodes) may also be removed to see if cancer cells are present.

Vertigo is a sensation of spinning. If you have these dizzy spells, you might feel like you are spinning or that the world around you is spinning. Causes of Vertigo Vertigo is often caused by an inner ear problem. Some of the most common causes include: BPPV. These initials stand for benign paroxysmal positional vertigo. BPPV occurs when tiny calcium particles (canaliths) clump up in canals of the inner ear. The inner ear sends signals to the brain about head and body movements relative to gravity. It helps you keep your balance. BPPV can occur for no known reason and may be associated with age. Meniere's disease. This is an inner ear disorder thought to be caused by a buildup of fluid and changing pressure in the ear. It can cause episodes of vertigo along with ringing in the ears (tinnitus) and hearing loss. Vestibular neuritis or labyrinthitis. This is an inner ear problem usually related to infection (usually viral). The infection causes inflammation in the inner ear around nerves that are important for helping the body sense balance

The digestive system is a group of organs working together to convert food into energy and basic nutrients to feed the entire body. Food passes through a long tube inside the body known as the alimentary canal or the gastrointestinal tract (GI tract).

Posterior dislocations with associated fractures, also known as complex posterior dislocations, often require open reduction and fixation (ORIF). These dislocations are often associated with significant ligamentous injury. In some cases, complex posterior elbow dislocations may be managed with closed reduction. Posterior elbow dislocations that are neglected, as is not uncommon in developing countries, can often be effectively treated with open reduction. [9] Delayed vascular compromise is an important complication after reduction. All patients should be observed for a period of approximately 2-3 hours after reduction. If no evidence of vascular compromise arises, patients can be sent home with appropriate follow-up and instructions to watch for further problems.

The condition is caused by a blockage in the lymphatic system, part of the immune and circulatory systems. Lymphedema is most commonly caused by lymph node removal or damage due to cancer treatment. The main symptom is swelling in an arm or leg that may be accompanied by pain or discomfort. Exercise, wrapping, massage, and compression can help.

Electrical injuries can present with a variety of problems, including cardiac or respiratory arrest, coma, blunt trauma, and severe burns of several types. It is important to establish the type of exposure (high or low voltage), duration of contact, and concurrent trauma. Low-voltage AC injury without loss of consciousness and/or arrest These injuries are exposures of less than 1000V and usually occur in the home or office setting. Typically, children with electrical injuries present after biting or chewing on an electrical cord and suffer oral burns. Adults working on home appliances or electrical circuits can also experience these electrical injuries. Low-voltage AC may result in significant injury if there is prolonged, tetanic muscle contraction. Low-voltage AC injury with loss of consciousness and/or arrest In respiratory arrest or ventricular fibrillation that is not witnessed, an electrical exposure may be difficult to diagnose. All unwitnessed arrests should include this possibility in the differential diagnosis. Query EMS personnel, family, and coworkers about this possibility. Inquire if a scream was heard before the patient’s collapse; this may be due to involuntary contraction of chest wall muscles from electrical current. High-voltage AC injury without loss of consciousness and/or arrest Usually high-voltage injuries do not cause loss of consciousness but instead cause devastating thermal burns. In occupational exposures, details of voltage can be obtained from the local power company. High-voltage AC injury with loss of consciousness and/or arrest This is an unusual presentation of high-voltage AC injuries, which do not often cause loss of consciousness. History may need to come from bystanders or EMS personnel. Direct current (DC) injury These injuries typically cause a single muscle contraction that throws the victim away from the source. They are rarely associated with loss of consciousness unless there is severe head trauma, and victims can often provide their own history. Conducted electrical devices Conducted electrical weapons (CEWs) such as tasers are weapons used by law enforcement that deliver high-voltage current that is neither true AC or DC but is most like a series of low-amplitude DC shocks.[16] They can deliver 50,000 V in a 5-second pulse, with an average current of 2.1 mA.[17] Though they have been temporally associated with deaths in the law enforcement setting, conducted electrical devices (CEDs) in healthy volunteers have been shown to be safe without evidence of delayed arrhythmia or cardiac damage as measured by troponin I.[18, 17] One study of their use in 1201 law enforcement incidents showed mostly superficial puncture wounds from the device probes, and significant injuries only from trauma subsequent to shock, not from the device itself. Of 2 deaths in custody, neither was related to CEW exposure.[19]

Hepatitis D, also known as the delta virus, is an infection that causes the liver to become inflamed. This swelling can impair liver function and cause long-term liver problems, including liver scarring and cancer. The condition is caused by the hepatitis D virus (HDV). This virus is rare in the United States, but it’s fairly common in the following regions: South America West Africa Russia Pacific islands Central Asia the Mediterranean