Vocal tics are sudden verbal sounds or words not in a person’s control. These tics range from subtle sounds to shouting or yelling repeated words or phrases. Vocal tics are not harmful but can be embarrassing for some people. Symptoms can occur without a known cause, as part of an underlying health condition, or as a side effect of medication. This article discusses symptoms of vocal tics, potential causes, and treatments....
Most children with autism have a tough time fitting in with their peers. In fact, because autism’s core symptoms include difficulty with social communication, social problems are almost inevitable. But while your child with autism may not ever become the homecoming king or queen (though nothing is impossible), there are some concrete steps you can take as a parent to help your child make sense of the expectations of people around them....
Saturated fat has received a bad rep for many years in the diet world. Although there is emerging evidence to suggest that not all foods containing saturated fat are necessarily bad, current dietary recommendations recommend limiting the amount of saturated fat you consume in your cholesterol-lowering diet. The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends that saturated fats should make up no more than 5% to 6% of your daily caloric intake....
Many people find STD screening to be extremely stressful. Why? They may be reluctant to ask their healthcare provider for testing or talk about their risk factors. Visiting a free clinic can seem stigmatizing or overwhelming. They may resent dealing with practitioners who are reluctant or unwilling to test patients for STDs. These factors, combined with expectations of privacy and ease, can make Internet STD test sites seem like an excellent option....
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is an inflammatory disorder characterized by the restriction of airflow into and out of the lungs. It affects more than 600 million people worldwide and accounts for more than four million deaths annually. The Global Initiative for Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) classifies COPD into four stages, with the mildest form being stage I and the most severe being stage IV. If you are diagnosed with stage III COPD, it means that your lung function has been seriously impaired with increased shortness of breath, wheezing, and fatigue making daily function increasingly difficult....
Omicron and its subvariants like BA.2 are spreading across the United States, with cases increasing by about 33% between April 18 and April 25. Key Takeaways The BA.2 subvariant of Omicron is highly contagious and has high rates of asymptomatic transmission.Asymptomatic people can still spread COVID-19.This stresses the importance of testing and following isolation/quarantine procedures. The BA.2 variant now accounts for 68% of COVID cases in the United States, and like Omicron, has been associated with mild or oftentimes no symptoms in people who test positive and are vaccinated....
When you’re breaking out, people often say, “It’s your hormones.” Sure, that sounds good, but what exactly does that mean? How do hormones affect acne? Hormones Stimulate Your Skin’s Oil Glands The main players here are androgen hormones. Basically, androgens are sex hormones that are released by the adrenal glands, ovaries, and testes. The androgen you’re probably most familiar with is testosterone. And it’s testosterone that plays the biggest role in acne development....
The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a member of the herpesvirus family and one of the most common human viruses. It has long been tentatively connected to chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), with some researchers saying it’s an important causal factor while others say it’s not involved with this disease at all. Those who believe it is connected often talk about reactivation. All herpesviruses stay in your system forever but generally remain dormant most of the time....
If you could choose the most cutting-edge medical cure, would you want to? When the reality of a serious illness hits, most patients and their loved ones want the best possible treatment available. For many, this means getting the safest, most up-to-date, intervention possible. But the definitions of “best” and “most up to date” differ for different individuals. Medical research is moving at a fast pace. Medical scientists are discovering new ways to treat illnesses that may take years to validate and to deem safe enough for the public....
Fitness trackers have long been hailed as a great source of personal and public health information. From stories of them predicting pregnancies to studies suggesting they can help track flu outbreaks, wearable devices have proven to be a useful tool for medical researchers. Key Takeaways A recent study shows analyzing health data from activity trackers can help detect potential cases of COVID-19.Study authors found when combined with symptom data, information about changes in heart rate, sleep, and activity levels helped effectively predict who was likely to have COVID-19....
If you’ve had your cholesterol checked before, you have probably noticed a lot of different types of cholesterol listed on your lab result. LDL, VLDL, HDL—what do they all mean? All of these types of cholesterol may be made up of similar parts, but their functions in the body are different. Having elevated or lowered levels of some of these forms of cholesterol may increase your risk of developing heart disease....
Gynecologic cancer is a group of cancers that affect the tissue and organs of the female reproductive system. Each type of cancer is named after the organ it originates. Types of gynecologic cancer include: Cervical cancerOvarian cancerUterine cancerVaginal cancerVulvar cancer Causes and Risk Factors The causes and risk factors of gynecologic cancer vary among the different types, but there are some common risks: HPV infectionDES exposure (synthetic estrogen given to women before 1971 during pregnancy to prevent miscarriage, but ultimately causing health risks to the expectant mother and daughters/son they carried)smokingHIV/AIDS infection There are also gynecologic risk factors that we have no control over like age, race, and family history of certain diseases and conditions that elevate our risk....
Hemolytic disease of the newborn (HDN) is a condition of red blood cell mismatch between a mother and her baby. This occurs when the mother’s blood type is Rh-negative and the baby is Rh-positive. During the pregnancy the mother produces antibodies that attack and destroy red blood cells, resulting in anemia in the fetus. A similar condition occurs with platelets called neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenia. Causes Our red blood cells are coated with antigens, substances that induce an immune response....
Viruses, bacteria, fungi, and parasites spread from person to person, sometimes causing diseases as they move in and out of people’s bodies along various routes. When the disease spreads through the fecal-oral route, it means that contaminated feces from an infected person are somehow ingested by another person. For obvious reasons, this almost never happens deliberately. Usually, the situation occurs when an infected person might forget to properly wash their hands after using the toilet....
Immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) is a diagnosis made when the immune system destroys platelets inappropriately, resulting in low platelet counts in the blood. It is often considered a diagnosis of exclusion—when other testing to determine the cause of the low platelets has not shown any specific cause. Therefore, it is likely due to the immune system’s destruction of platelets. It may also be diagnosed when ITP is suspected and platelets increase with the medications used to treat ITP....
Special days often trigger powerful emotions and memories in survivors regardless of how much time has passed since the death of a loved one. A holiday reaction or anniversary response can occur because you associate a date on the calendar or the event itself with someone significant, such as a spouse, family member, or friend. For anyone mourning a loss due to death, Valentine’s Day can feel particularly cruel because it emphasizes the togetherness, love, and romance....
Even if you prepare most of your heart-healthy meals at home, you may find yourself in a situation where you either leave your lunch at home or need to snag a quick bite to eat. Fast food restaurants are usually the quickest way to grab your meal on the go. Unfortunately, they can also add unwanted calories, sugar, and fat to your diet. If you’re watching your lipids and find yourself in a situation where you need to either eat or starve, fast food may be your only option....
There are many reasons why you might want to stop taking painkillers, but before you decide to quit cold turkey, know this: doing so is dangerous. You should not stop taking painkillers without consulting your healthcare provider first. If not, you may go into painkiller withdrawal. Quitting your painkiller cold turkey can be disastrous and even dangerous, especially if you have a chronic pain condition. This is true whether you are taking NSAIDs or other analgesics, opioids, anticonvulsants, or antidepressants to control your chronic pain symptoms, and it’s especially true if you have been on your medication long enough to develop a physical dependence....
Immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) is a disorder in which the immune system inappropriately sees platelets as foreign in the body and destroys them. Platelets are a type of blood cell made in the bone marrow with the job of helping the blood to clot, stop bleeding, and heal blood vessel walls. In ITP, platelets are destroyed, causing the total number of platelets in the blood to decrease. Decreased platelets can lead to bleeding or bruising....
While removing old hardware implanted in the body may seem straightforward, it can be one of the more challenging orthopedic procedures. In fact, many orthopedic surgeons describe hardware removal to new trainees and residents to be “the most difficult procedure.” In reality, hardware removal is probably not the most difficult surgery—complex spine surgery, correction of congenital deformities, reconstruction of damaged joints—are all difficult, time-consuming surgical procedures. However, hardware removal surgery often lulls the unsuspecting surgeon, and patient, into thinking the surgery will be quick and easy....
