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The circulatory system, also known as the cardiovascular system, is a simple loop which starts, and ends, with your heart. It is a closed system, meaning blood does not enter or leave the system during its journey from your heart to your body and back again. In such a system, a continuous flow of the same liquid can be pumped through the loop again and again. Blood is circulated throughout your body via your arterial system—arteries, arterioles, and capillaries—​​and returned to your heart via the venous system—veins and venules....

Most likely, you’ll never have to deal with a gunshot wound. Some paramedics even go their whole careers without treating one. But prompt medical attention often prevents a gunshot wound from being deadly. If you’re ever faced with a gunshot wound emergency, it’s important to be prepared. This article walks you through what to do and how to handle gunshot wounds in different parts of the body. Call 911 If you or someone around you is shot, these three steps are vital:...

The human growth hormone (HGH) is a hormone that is made by your body in the pituitary gland and many claim that it has anti-aging properties. It is often marketed as an anti-aging hormone for adults. In children, it is important for normal growth. In adults, HGH helps regulate and maintain your tissues and organs. Children sometimes receive HGH injections because a lack of the hormone in their body is impacting their growth rate....

“Passing gas” is a pretty personal part of day-to-day life. So it may seem strange that doctors and nurses want to know if you have released gas after you’ve had anesthesia. After surgery, you may be told to let your nurse know if you pass gas. A child may be told that the nurse would like to know if they “toot” or “fart," which may cause some giggles. Why focus on passing gas?...

Kids who play contact sports are at risk of repeated head trauma and concussion. Studies suggest that around 130,000 children under the age of 18 experience sports-related head trauma every year. Most kids who are diagnosed with a concussion recover; however, research indicates that repeated concussions throughout childhood and adolescence may cause permanent changes in how the brain functions. This is because the brain is actively developing throughout childhood. Brain injuries take energy and time away from learning and development processes....

Munchausen syndrome by proxy, now formally known as factitious disorder imposed on another, can take the form of child abuse in which a mother makes up or induces illnesses in her child. The mother uses the child’s illnesses to join the child in the sick role and gain attention. In the vast majority of cases, the mother is the one abusing the child this way; in other cases, the father, grandparent, or even babysitter may be the abuser....

Polyunsaturated fat (PUFA) and monounsaturated fat (MUFA) are both types of healthy fats that, among other things, promote good cholesterol levels and offer other heart-health benefits. The difference between them starts on a molecular level. Polyunsaturated fats have more than one carbon bond in their structure, known as a double bond, while monounsaturated fats have a single carbon bond. The body both makes monounsaturated fats and gets them your diet (e....

Symptom flares are an unavoidable part of life for a lot of people with fibromyalgia (FMS) and chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). Both illnesses can include flares when symptoms get significantly worse; and remissions, when symptoms recede to lower levels. (However, not all cases feature flares and remissions.) Sometimes, you have a pretty good idea a flare is coming. Symptom triggers such as the holiday season, your menstrual period, busy times at work, and seasonal temperature changes may be easy to predict and prepare for....

The retina is a thin layer of tissue that lines the very back of the inside of the eyeball. The retina contains millions of cells that perceive light, color, and fine details in the things you see. A number of diseases can affect the retina, including cancer. If any part of the retina becomes damaged, your vision may be compromised. This article gives an overview of the anatomy of the retina, its function, conditions that may affect it, and tests used to evaluate its health....

Osteoarthritis can often be managed under the care of a general physician. However, if your condition is severe, you might need to see a specialist. A rheumatologist is a physician who specializes in treating inflammatory diseases and joint diseases, which include osteoarthritis as well as rheumatoid arthritis and related disease. Whether or not you need a specialist depends on the stage of your disease and how typical your case may be....

A stroke can lead to difficulty swallowing, which is referred to as dysphagia. This can cause serious complications if your food goes down the wrong pipe. Choking and aspiration pneumonia are two of the complications of dysphagia. If you have dysphagia, it could be caused by problems with the neurological control of your swallowing reflex, or by impairment of the nerves that control the muscles of your mouth or throat....

Telehealth allows for the delivery of care without having to step foot in a doctor’s office. There are many times telehealth visits are appropriate, including visits for bladder cancer. When to Use Telehealth for Bladder Cancer Telehealth visits for bladder cancer can be a convenient option for a visit with your cancer team. These appointments may be with various members of the team, including an oncologist, nurse practitioner, or physician assistant....

Atrial fibrillation is not the most common of the cardiac arrhythmias, but it is the most common arrhythmia that that can produce dire consequences. But not all atrial fibrillation is the same. Sometimes the risk posed by atrial fibrillation is substantial; in other cases, the risk is not as high. So, in an effort to categorize the degree of risk posed by atrial fibrillation in individual patients, healthcare providers over the years have devised several different classification systems to describe the various “types” of atrial fibrillation....

Buteyko breathing is a non-medical form of therapy which proposes to use specific breathing exercises to improve asthma and other respiratory disorders. It is similar in many ways to a form of breathing used in yoga, called pranayama, which also uses breathing exercises as a means to “treat” respiratory illnesses. Buteyko breathing was developed in the 1950s by a Ukrainian physiologist named Konstantin Buteyko, who believed that numerous illnesses were caused by hyperventilation or a chronically increased respiration rate....

The word disability is generally used as a catchall term for a physical or mental condition that may limit a person’s mobility, senses, or the ability to engage in certain activities. Though the term disability also carries important legal implications, the focus of this discussion is less medical or political as it is social. While in many ways the United States has made great strides to ensure rights like equal access to health care, employment, housing, and education for those living with disabilities, we still have our challenges, particularly with the pervasive stigma and the perceptions of disability....

If you are considering surgery there is always a risk of death due to the procedure or anesthesia that is given during the procedure. This is true of outpatient procedures and inpatient procedures, even with the surgery is an optional procedure such as plastic surgery. While there is always a risk of death, this risk varies widely between types of surgeries and patients. This is why surgery should never be taken lightly, the possibility of death is very real, even with minor dental procedures....

Going bald is a fact of life for millions of men. Adults lose about 10,000 scalp hairs each and every day. Hair normally lives for around five years. With male pattern baldness, these hairs do not always get replaced and gradually bald areas appear. This process can, however, take a long time and the age at which you start to lose hair does not necessarily provide any clues as to how long it will be until you define yourself as bald....

Urticaria, the medical term for hives, is a condition that can affect up to one in five people at some point during their lifetime. The rash of urticaria is usually bumpy, red and itchy. The bumps can be the size of mosquito bites to coin-size or larger and can group together into irregular shapes, which is called coalescing. The rash will tend to come and go within a few hours, moving from one place on the body to another....

If you have no time for a professional pedicure, there are some easy and effective at-home ways to keep your feet pretty and healthy. Besides saving time, a simple do-it-yourself treatment has the added benefit of being easy and cost-effective because it uses inexpensive products you probably already have at home. This article offers easy-to-follow steps that will soothe and refresh your feet and have them looking and feeling better fast....

If you live with an egg allergy, you are probably aware that egg lurks in many foods and non-food products, some obvious and others obscure. If you are allergic to eggs, you need to be able to read an ingredient label and know the various names used to describe eggs or egg components. Doing so can help prevent a potentially harmful allergic reaction. Egg allergy is the second most common food allergy behind milk....