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Genes are the building blocks of heredity. They are passed from parent to child. They hold DNA, the instructions for making proteins. Proteins do most of the work in cells. They move molecules from one place to another, build structures, break down toxins, and do many other maintenance jobs. Sometimes there is a mutation, a change in a gene or genes. The mutation changes the gene's instructions for making a protein, so the protein does not work properly or is missing entirely. This can cause a medical condition called a genetic disorder. You can inherit a gene mutation from one or both parents. A mutation can also happen during your lifetime.
Women are routinely invited to have cervical screening tests (also called smear tests). The tests are done to prevent cervical cancer, not to diagnose cancer. During each test some cells are removed from the neck of the womb (cervix), with a plastic brush. The cells are examined under a microscope to look for early changes that, if ignored and not treated, could develop into cancer of the cervix. You are very unlikely to develop cervical cancer if you have regular cervical screening tests at the times advised by your doctor. If the test shows any abnormality, you will have treatment to stop you ever getting cancer of the cervix. So, an abnormal test does not mean you have cancer. It means you should have some treatment to stop you getting cancer.
Colposcopy (kol-POS-kuh-pee) is a procedure to closely examine your cervix, vagina and vulva for signs of disease. During colposcopy, your doctor uses a special instrument called a colposcope. Your doctor may recommend colposcopy if your Pap test has shown abnormal results.
Intrauterine insemination (IUI) is a fertility treatment that involves placing sperm inside a woman's uterus to facilitate fertilization. The goal of IUI is to increase the number of sperm that reach the fallopian tubes and subsequently increase the chance of fertilization
The core features of migraine are headache, which is usually throbbing and often unilateral, and associated features of nausea, sensitivity to light, sound, and exacerbation with head movement. Migraine has long been regarded as a vascular disorder because of the throbbing nature of the pain.
Microsurgical bipolar cautery tonsillectomy compares favorably with traditional techniques in terms of intraoperative bleeding, postoperative pain, otalgia, and hemorrhage. This technique combines the hemostatic advantage of cautery dissection, the excellent visualization achieved by a microscope, and, with the use of a video, greatly improves the physician's ability to teach how to perform a tonsillectomy.
Tension pneumothorax develops when a lung or chest wall injury is such that it allows air into the pleural space but not out of it (a one-way valve). As a result, air accumulates and compresses the lung, eventually shifting the mediastinum, compressing the contralateral lung, and increasing intrathoracic pressure enough to decrease venous return to the heart, causing shock. These effects can develop rapidly, particularly in patients undergoing positive pressure ventilation.
In Reye's syndrome, a child's blood sugar level typically drops while the levels of ammonia and acidity in his or her blood rise. At the same time, the liver may swell and develop fatty deposits. Swelling may also occur in the brain, which can cause seizures, convulsions or loss of consciousness. The signs and symptoms of Reye's syndrome typically appear about three to five days after the onset of a viral infection, such as the flu (influenza) or chickenpox, or an upper respiratory infection, such as a cold