irregular, curved toenails. footwear that places a lot of pressure on the big toes, such as socks and stockings that are too tight or shoes that are too tight, narrow, or flat for your feet. toenail injury, including stubbing your toe, dropping something heavy on your foot, or kicking a ball repeatedly. poor posture.

Congenital heart defects I: ASD, VSD, AS, PS, PDA and PFO

The rotator cuff is a group of muscles and tendons that surround the shoulder joint, keeping the head of your upper arm bone firmly within the shallow socket of the shoulder. A rotator cuff injury can cause a dull ache in the shoulder, which often worsens when you try to sleep on the involved side. Rotator cuff injuries occur most often in people who repeatedly perform overhead motions in their jobs or sports. Examples include painters, carpenters, and people who play baseball or tennis. The risk of rotator cuff injury also increases with age. Many people recover from rotator cuff disease with physical therapy exercises that improve flexibility and strength of the muscles surrounding the shoulder joint. Sometimes, rotator cuff tears may occur as a result of a single injury. In those circumstances, medical care should be provided as soon as possible. Extensive rotator cuff tears may require surgical repair, transfer of alternative tendons or joint replacement.

Post-streptococcal GN is a form of glomerulonephritis. It is caused by an infection with a type of streptococcus bacteria. The infection does not occur in the kidneys, but in a different part of the body, such as the skin or throat. The strep bacterial infection causes the tiny blood vessels in the filtering units of the kidneys (glomeruli) to become inflamed. This makes the kidneys less able to filter the urine. Post-streptococcal GN is uncommon today because infections that can lead to the disorder are commonly treated with antibiotics. The disorder may develop 1 to 2 weeks after an untreated throat infection, or 3 to 4 weeks after a skin infection. It may occur in people of any age, but it most often occurs in children ages 6 through 10. Although skin and throat infections are common in children, post-streptococcal GN is a rare complication of these infections. Risk factors include: Strep throat Streptococcal skin infections (such as impetigo)

Digoxin is derived from the leaves of a digitalis plant. Digoxin helps make the heart beat stronger and with a more regular rhythm. Digoxin is also used to treat atrial fibrillation, a heart rhythm disorder of the atria (the upper chambers of the heart that allow blood to flow into the heart).

Early Signs that Cancer is Growing in Your Body

A cataract is a clouding of the lens in the eye that affects vision. Most cataracts are related to aging. Cataracts are very common in older people. By age 80, more than half of all Americans either have a cataract or have had cataract surgery. A cataract can occur in either or both eyes. It cannot spread from one eye to the other.

Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) is a common complication after an allogeneic transplant, a transplant in which cells from a family member, unrelated donor or cord blood unit are used. In GVHD, the immune cells from the donated marrow or cord blood (the graft) attack the body of the transplant patient (the host).

X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy is a genetic disorder that occurs primarily in males. It mainly affects the nervous system and the adrenal glands, which are small glands located on top of each kidney. In this disorder, the fatty covering (myelin) that insulates nerves in the brain and spinal cord is prone to deterioration (demyelination), which reduces the ability of the nerves to relay information to the brain. In addition, damage to the outer layer of the adrenal glands (adrenal cortex) causes a shortage of certain hormones (adrenocortical insufficiency). Adrenocortical insufficiency may cause weakness, weight loss, skin changes, vomiting, and coma.

Primary aldosteronism, also known as primary hyperaldosteronism or Conn's syndrome, is excess production of the hormone aldosterone by the adrenal glands resulting in low renin levels. Often it produces few symptoms. Most people have high blood pressure which may cause poor vision or headaches.

Parathyroid cancer is a rare disease in which malignant (cancer) cells form in the tissues of a parathyroid gland. The parathyroid glands are four pea-sized organs found in the neck near the thyroid gland. The parathyroid glands make parathyroid hormone (PTH or parathormone). PTH helps the body use and store calcium to keep the calcium in the blood at normal levels.

The usual reason given for people getting fat is that they eat too much and/or exercise too little. That reflects one of the basic laws of thermodynamics—I forget which one. The amount of energy you put into a system minus the energy you take out has to be stored somewhere i.e. FAT! This formulation—true though it is—does not entirely explain obesity since some people seem to eat more than fat people and exercise no more than these same fat people, and yet they are not fat! Chalking this fact up to the general perversity of the universe is not sufficient explanation. Other factors must come into play. I mention below some of the ideas thoughtful people have proposed to explain why fat people become fat:

What Happens When You're In a Coma?

Warfarin is an anticoagulant medication - it is used to slow down the blood-clotting process. Anticoagulants are used to prevent blood clots which may cause vein blockages, heart attack and stroke. Warfarin is known under the brand names Warfant, Jantoven, Coumadin, Lawarin, Marevan, and Waran.

A ventricular assist device (VAD) — also known as a mechanical circulatory support device — is an implantable mechanical pump that helps pump blood from the lower chambers of your heart (the ventricles) to the rest of your body. A VAD is used in people who have weakened hearts or heart failure. Although a VAD can be placed in the left, right or both ventricles of your heart, it is most frequently used in the left ventricle. When placed in the left ventricle it is called a left ventricular assist device (LVAD). You may have a VAD implanted while you wait for a heart transplant or for your heart to become strong enough to effectively pump blood on its own. Your doctor may also recommend having a VAD implanted as a long-term treatment if you have heart failure and you're not a good candidate for a heart transplant.

A cervical rib in humans is an extra rib which arises from the seventh cervical vertebra. Sometimes known as "neck ribs", their presence is a congenital abnormality located above the normal first rib. A cervical rib is estimated to occur in 0.2% (1 in 500 people) to 0.5% of the population.

Is it possible to prevent cytomegalovirus infection? Is there a CMV vaccine? Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection facts CMV is a common virus in the same family as herpesvirus, and it can infect anyone. CMV is spread by direct contact of body fluids, such as saliva, blood, urine, semen, vaginal fluids, and breast milk. Thus breastfeeding, blood transfusions, organ transplants, and sexual contact are possible modes of transmission. Most healthy people do not experience any symptoms when infected with CMV, and it does not pose a serious health concern. A majority of adults have antibodies consistent with past infection. Most healthy children and adults who do have symptoms will recover from CMV infection without complications and do not require antiviral treatment.

Causes of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome|| Common gynaecological problems in women Polycystic ovarian syndrome, or PCOS, is a condition where a woman's ovaries and adrenal glands produce more androgens than normal, resulting in increased body hair, acne and irregular periods. While researchers are not certain of the exact cause of PCOS, it is known that an imbalance of the endocrine system is responsible for many of the changes associated with it. However, it is still not known exactly what causes those changes.