  "People will forget what you said... People will forget what you did... But people will never forget how you made them feel.... " -- Mark Twain Depression and anxiety often lead people to smoke, drink excessively, and gain weight, behaviors that can definitely promote hypertension and heart disease. But the CDC study suggests that the connection between mood and hypertension may be more direct than that. Experts suspect that anxiety and depression put the body on constant alert, which places a strain on many organ systems. Happy and Healthy Get happy: It might make you less susceptible to colds. In a recent study, researchers discovered that when they gave nasal drops containing cold viruses to study participants, the happy people in the group were least likely to get sick. To lift your spirits, set goals that emphasize strengthening personal relationships. They are one of the keys to life satisfaction, research suggests.
Give Me a Break Don't wait until you get home in the evening to unwind. Adding a few stress-reducing moments to your workday is a good health habit. Recent research shows that high job strain may have a negative impact on your health. In a study, high job strain was associated with an increase in cholesterol levels, a marker of heart disease risk. Keep your cool at work by taking short breaks. Use the time to stretch, breathe deeply, or sip a cup of soothing tea. Stress Management Learn more about stress management.  RealAge Benefit: Taking care of your emotional health and well-being can make your RealAge up to 16 years younger. During a patient's two-week follow-up appointment with his cardiologist, he informed me, his doctor, that he was having trouble with one of his medications. "Which one?" I asked. "The patch. The nurse told me to put on a new one every six hours and now I'm running out of places to put it!" I had him quickly undress and discovered what I hoped I wouldn't see. Yes, the man had over fifty patches on his body! Now the instructions include removal of the old patch before applying a new one. Dr. Rebecca St. Clair, Norfolk, VA Seven appears to be the magic number when it comes to getting a good night's sleep. "A study recently revealed that people who routinely averaged 7 hours of sleep each night had the lowest mortality rates. Most people need between 6 and 8 hours of sleep each night, so listen to your body and get the amount of rest that feels appropriate for you. Getting an appropriate amount of sleep each night may help improve several measures of well-being. Good sleep habits can improve mood and productivity during the day. Sleep also appears to help with the organization and formation of memories. And people who routinely get enough sleep each night appear to have lower mortality rates compared to people who sleep too much or too little." Medical Search Links Complete List of DSM-IV Codes Free online searchable 2004 ICD-9-CM and Medical Terminology Dictionary You can find out what the diagnosis is when the MD simply list the ICD code. ICD-9-CM diagnosis codes Medical Diagnostic codes ICD-9 Codes short list. ICD-9 Codes for Family Practice 2003-2004 Long list of codes. American Heart Association MedicineNet PatientLinx Depression "They call it "the invisible illness," and for good reason: Depression affects nearly one in 10 U.S. adults each year, but experts say the disease is treatable in most cases." Are you one of the ten? "Eighty-three percent of women in the workforce with depression perceive it as the leading barrier to success in the workplace, according to a new survey sponsored by the American Medical Women's Association (AMWA) and the National Mental Health Association (NMHA), and funded by Wyeth Pharmaceuticals. The surveyed women reported behaviors such as leaving work early or not returning from lunch, avoiding contact with coworkers, and being unable to face work as a result of their depression, a condition that affects an estimated 5 million employed American women." Not included is the fact depression causes increased tearfulness, irritability, slower speech, difficulty concentrating, increased sensitivity to criticism which all leads to people avoiding or rejecting the depressed person. Therefore management will promote someone else and view the depressed employee as not a good candidate for promotion. Genetic and Rare Conditions Site From Aarskog syndrome to Zellweger syndrome. Also includes RealAge Assessments include quizzes and other tools to help you determine your risk of disease--and what you can do to reduce that risk. Each assessment is based on state-of-the-art scientific research tailored to you. Medscape searchMedical conditions information. About.com Health & Fitness Diseases/Conditions, Mental Health, Recovery/Addiction & Disabilities. American Academy of Family Physicians Medical conditions, health issues & medications information. PatientLinxInformation & news on medical conditions. You can also subscribe to newsletter sent daily online. The Merck Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy Medscape Publications Search.com "searches Google, Ask Jeeves, LookSmart and dozens of other leading search engines to bring you the best results." BlueCross BlueShield of South CarolinaHealth & Wellness includes info on medical conditions. Merckmedco Respiratory health Physical Activity fundamental to preventing disease healthfinder "your guide to reliable health information". Medscape access to medical dictionaries and news. U.S. National Library of Medicine Search medical conditions using MEDLINE/PubMed, MEDLINEplus & NLM Gateway. Also has research information including "Computational Molecular Biology, Medical Informatics, Visible Human Project, UMLS" and a link to clinical trials. Brain Injuries Search Links National Association of State Head Injury Administrators"The mission of the National Association of State Head Injury Administrators is to assist state government in promoting partnerships and building systems to meet the needs of individuals with brain injury and their families." I was performing a complete physical, including the visual acuity test. I placed the patient twenty feet from the chart and began, "Cover your right eye with your hand." He read the 20/20 line perfectly. "Now your left." Again, a flawless read. "Now both," I requested. There was silence. He couldn't even read the large E on the top line. I turned and discovered that he had done exactly what I had asked; he was standing there with both his eyes covered. I was laughing too hard to finish the exam. Dr. Matthew Theodropolous, Worcester, MA ADHD Search Links Information for Adults with ADD (ADHD) CHADD Lots of info on ADD/ADHD. National Resource Center on AD/HD "A Program of CHADD has been established with funding from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to be a national clearinghouse of information and resources concerning this important public health concern. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD) is a neurobehavioral disorder that impairs the functioning of millions of American children and adults each and every day." ADHD's Effect on Social Skills BrainTrainLinks of Interest ADD/ADHD Educational & cognitive retraining site. Attention Deficit Disorder Association "Serving the needs of people with ADD/ADHD since 1989." ADHD links and resources Lots of links pertaining to ADHD. Adult ADHD Characteristics Cardiovascular Disease Heart Center Online.com Look up heart disease, tests and procedures information. HeartCenterOnline Medical Encyclopedia Topic list "HeartCenterOnline’s Medical Encyclopedia has been edited by its Cardiovascular Board." The Merck Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy Cardiovascular Disorders Physiology of Murmurs "When a valve is stenotic or damaged, the abnormal turbulent flow of blood produces a murmur which can be heard during the normally quiet times of systole or diastole. This murmur may not be audible over all areas of the chest, and it is important to first note where it is heard best and where it radiates to. Next, you should try to discern if the murmur occurs in systole or diastole by timing it against S1 and S2. Then, listen carefully to tell if the murmur completely fills that phase of the cycle (i.e., holosystolic), or if it has discrete start and end points. Regurgitant murmurs, like mitral valve insufficiency, tend to fill the entire phase, while ejection murmurs, like aortic stenosis, usually have notable start and end points within that phase. The quality and shape of the murmur is then noted. Common descriptive terms include rumbling, blowing, machinery, scratchy, harsh, or musical. The intensity of the murmur is next, graded according to the Levine scale: I - Lowest intensity, difficult to hear even by expert listeners II- Low intensity, but usually audible by all listeners III - Medium intensity, easy to hear even by inexperienced listeners, but without a palpable thrill IV - Medium intensity with a palpable thrill V - Loud intensity with a palpable thrill. Audible even with the stethoscope placed on the chest with the edge of the diaphragm VI - Loudest intensity with a palpable thrill. Audible even with the stethoscope raised above the chest. Finally, it is important to decide if this murmur is clinically significant or not. Just as a murmur can be caused by normal flow through a stenotic valve, it may also be created by high flow through a normal valve. Pregnancy is a common high-volume state where these physiologic flow murmurs are often heard. Anemia and thyrotoxicosis can cause high-flow situations where the murmur is not pathologic itself, but indicates an underlying disease process. Children also frequently have innocent murmurs which are not due to underlying structural abnormalities. How can a physician determine if a murmur is significant? The most important thing to consider is the clinical scenario. In a population of unreferred young adults, the prevalence of systolic murmurs ranges from 5% to 52%, with 86% to 100% of these patients having normal echocardiograms. Important questions to ask would include the presence of symptoms such as effort syncope, chest pain, palpitations, shortness of breath, or paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea. In terms of the examination, there is no one way to rule in or out a murmur as being physiologic, but in general, physiologic murmurs tend to be located between the apex and left lower sternal border, have minimal radiation, occur during early to mid-systole, have a crescendo-decrescendo shape, and a vibratory quality. They will usually change intensity with positional maneuvers, becoming quieter on standing and louder with squatting. A Valsalva maneuver will decrease the intensity of the murmur because the increase in intrathoracic pressure will decrease venous return, which will decrease flow through the heart and lessen the turbulence. Additionally, they will not be correlated with additional audiologic findings, such as an S3 or S4." Charge Syndrome CHARGE Characteristics and Diagnostic Criteria CHARGE Syndrome Foundation, Inc. "CHARGE Syndrome - Choanal Atresia, Posterior Coloboma, Heart defect, choanal Atresia, Retardation, Genital and Ear anomalies. CHARGE Syndrome refers to children with a specific set of birth defects. "CHARGE" originally came from the first letter of some of the most common features seen in these children: C = coloboma, H = heart defects, A = atresia of the choanae, R = retardation of growth and development, G = genital and urinary abnormalities, E = ear abnormalities and/or hearing loss. The diagnosis of CHARGE is based on finding several of these and possibly other features in a child. The diagnosis should be made by a medical geneticist who has ruled out other disorders with overlapping findings." CHARGE Association Minnow's Place Charge Syndrome It's a personal website created by a mother who has a child with Charge's Syndrome. It does have a lot of links & was created by the mother because she couldn't find a lot of info on Charge Syndrome. Hey, that's why I created a couple of websites. Search Links on Charge If you want to search out more info on Charge Syndrome. Fibromyalgia & Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Search Links Hunter-Hopkins Center Dr. Charles Lapp and Dr. Laura Black specializes in the diagnosis and management of CFIDS and FM. Canadian Expert Consensus Panel clinical case definition for myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome "It is summarized as follows: 1. POST-EXERTIONAL MALAISE AND FATIGUE: There is a loss of physical and mental stamina, rapid muscular and cognitive fatigability, post-exertional fatigue, malaise and/or pain, and a tendency for other symptoms to worsen. A pathologically slow recovery period (it takes more than 24 hours to recover). Symptoms exacerbated by stress of any kind. Patient must have a marked degree of new onset, unexplained, persistent, or recurrent physical and mental fatigue that substantially reduces activity level. [Editor’s note: The M.E. Society prefers to use “delayed recovery of muscle function,” weakness, and faintness rather than “fatigue.” Further, we disagree that the muscle dysfunction is “unexplained.” See our M.E. Definitional Framework and researchers’ medical explanations on this website.] 2. SLEEP DISORDER: Unrefreshing sleep or poor sleep quality; rhythm disturbance. 3. PAIN: Arthralgia and/or myalgia without clinical evidence of inflammatory responses of joint swelling or redness. Pain can be experienced in the muscles, joints, or neck and is sometimes migratory in nature. Often, there are significant headaches of new type, pattern, or severity. [Editor’s note: neuropathy pain is a common symptom and should be added here as well.] 4. NEUROLOGICAL/COGNITIVE MANIFESTATIONS: Two or more of the following difficulties should be present: confusion, impairment of concentration and short-term memory consolidation, difficulty with information processing, categorizing, and word retrieval, intermittent dyslexia, perceptual/sensory disturbances, disorientation, and ataxia. There may be overload phenomena: informational, cognitive, and sensory overload -- e.g., photophobia and hypersensitivity to noise -- and/or emotional overload which may lead to relapses and/or anxiety. 5. AT LEAST ONE SYMPTOM OUT OF TWO OF THE FOLLOWING CATEGORIES: AUTONOMIC MANIFESTATIONS: Orthostatic Intolerance: e.g., neurally mediated hypotension (NMH), postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), delayed postural hypotension, vertigo, light-headedness, extreme pallor, intestinal or bladder disturbances with or without irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) or bladder dysfunction, palpitations with or without cardiac arrhythmia, vasomotor instability, and respiratory irregularities. [Editor’s note: low plasma and/or erythrocyte volume should be added as another explanation for orthostatic intolerance in this disease. We also hold that more cardiac symptoms should be listed such as left-side chest aches and resting tachycardias, which, in addition to low blood volume, have also been documented in the research. The full text of the case definition does suggest 24-hour Holter monitoring, and when tachycardias with T-wave inversions or flattenings are present that they not be labeled as nonspecific since they aid in the diagnosis of ME/CFS. See the above link to access the diagnostic part of the document.] NEUROENDOCRINE MANIFESTATIONS: loss of thermostatic stability, heat/cold intolerance, anorexia or abnormal appetite, marked weight change, hypoglycemia, loss of adaptability and tolerance for stress, worsening of symptoms with stress and slow recovery, and emotional lability. IMMUNE MANIFESTATIONS: tender lymph nodes, sore throat, flu-like symptoms, general malaise, development of new allergies or changes in status of old ones, and hypersensitivity to medications and/or chemicals. 6. The illness persists for at least 6 months. It usually has an acute onset, but onset also may be gradual. Preliminary diagnosis may be possible earlier. The disturbances generally form symptom clusters that are often unique to a particular patient. The manifestations may fluctuate and change over time. Symptoms exacerbate with exertion or stress." CFIDS Association of America "detailed information about CFIDS, its symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, important research findings, and how it affects the lives of those who live with it everyday." ImmuneSupport Very large site that contains research & overview on fibromyalgia (FM) & chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). Co-Cure Information on FM & CFS. Mayo Clinic offers timely, accurate information drawn from the expertise of 2,000 Mayo Clinic doctors. Physiologic Factors Involved in Fibromyalgia, Contradicting Psychogenic Attribution "Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and neuroendocrine studies of people with fibromyalgia reinforce the notion that altered responses to pain and exercise are physiologically based. "When patients with fibromyalgia tell us that they're tender, that they're experiencing pain at a much lower [pressure] level than people without the condition, they are in fact experiencing that pain," Dr. Daniel J. Clauw, of the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor, told Reuters Health. Fibromyalgia patients reported pain at about half the level of pressure that caused the same feelings of pain among the healthy controls (p<0.005). When all study participants received the same level of mild pressure, which was painful to the fibromyalgia patients, 12 brain areas were activated in patients with fibromyalgia, but only two were activated in the control group. Increased blood flow--a surrogate measure of nerve activity, according to Dr. Clauw--occurred in the primary and secondary somatosensory cortex, the insula, the putamen, and cerebellum. Moreover, pain in the control group activated regions in the thalamus, the anterior cingulate cortex and other regions involved in motor responses, which were not activated in the patient group. The investigators attribute these differences to "tonic inhibition maintained by persistent excitatory input associated with ongoing and spontaneous pain" in fibromyalgia patients. Dr. Clauw said the findings suggest that something is awry with the way the central nervous system processes painful stimuli in fibromyalgia patients, resulting in a lowered pain threshold." Headache Search Links We all get headaches from sinuses, work, PMS, etc. Knowledge about the headache can help us decrease the frequency and severity of the headache. World Headache Alliance Got a headache? Read about it here. Understanding of Headaches Improves with Revised Criteria Types of Headaches: "Primary headaches – whose diagnoses require the exclusion of any other disorder that might be the cause of the headache – are divided into four categories: migraine, tension-type headache, cluster headache and other primary headaches. Each category is further broken into subtypes. In the second edition, migraine added a subtype for "chronic migraine," defined as a migraine lasting 15 or more days per month for three or more months, without medication overuse. Tension-type headache – the most common primary headache – was revised into three subtypes: infrequent episodic, frequent episodic and chronic. Unlike migraine, tension-type headache is characterized as non-pulsating, mild-to-moderate intensity and no aggravation by routine activity. Trigeminal autonomic cephalalgias (headaches involving the trigeminal nerve) were added to cluster headache in the second edition. Cluster headache is characterized by sharp, drilling or stabbing pain. Also added was episodic paroxysmal hemicrania, which consists of at least 20 severe yet brief attacks in the span of a few days, followed by an attack-free interval of one month or more. The miscellaneous category for other primary headaches introduced hypnic headache (short-lived attacks of nocturnal head pain), primary thunderclap headache (severe, abrupt pain similar to a brain aneurysm) and new daily-persistent headache (daily, constant headache present for more than three months)." Learning Disabilities Search Links Learning Disabilities Association of America Info & advocacy info. Brain Imaging in Learning Disabilities and Developmental Disorders Kenneth A. Bonnet Research Committee Excellent artical. LDindepth All kinds of information on various types of learning disabilites & compounding effects of LD that may not necessarily be contributed to LD. EXTREMELY LOW BIRTH WEIGHT CHILDREN OFTEN HAVE COMPLEX LEARNING DISABILITIES "Complex learning disabilities in multiple academic areas are common in extremely low birth weight (ELBW) children with broadly average intelligence." Mental Illness Search Links Medscape FOCUS ON SERIOUS MENTAL ILLNESS "Approximately 23% of American adults each year have a diagnosable mental disorder and as many as 5.4% of American adults have a serious mental illness. Medscape's Serious Mental Illness Resource Center gives you the latest medical news and information on the evaluation and treatment of persons with serious mental disorders." Thyroid Disease WebMD Health Hypothyrodism  Medication Information Consumers Report Best Buy Drugs "The information on this website can help you learn about more affordable drug treatment options to discuss with your physician. We work with respected doctors and pharmacists to compare drugs and point you to those that are proven to work based on current scientific evidence. In concise, easy-to-read reports, we tell you what you need to know about the effectiveness, safety and cost of many widely used prescription drugs." Want to research the medications you are taking? RxList You can search medications you may be taking such as doxycycline for atypical pneumonia. Winn-Dixie Pharmacy "Drug Information and Interaction Database: We are also excited to provide drug reference information online, as well. To learn more about a particular prescription you are taking, check out the Drug Information section. If you're curious as to whether or not your prescription interacts with other drugs or foods, the Drug Interactions section provides some helpful information." Zocor Information on Zocor & high cholesterol. Center for Drug Evaluation & Research Center is a consumer watchdog in America's healthcare system. Has latest information on new drugs and recently identified risks. Explains generic drugs versus brand name drugs. Link to search information on any drug. This is a good place to check for information before starting a new medication. Medscape Drug Info Good source to find medical and drug manufacturers information on medications. "Drug Search 2000 is a market-leading drug information search tool based on our integrated database. This database was developed as a joint effort of First DataBank, the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists and Medscape. The database combines information from the National Drug Data File with information from the American Hospital Formulary Service Drug Information." Drug Infonet Another resource to research information on medications. Food and Drug Administration website MedWatch, the FDA Safety Information and Adverse Event Reporting Program Site provides "important and timely clinical information about safety issues involving medical products, including prescription and over-the-counter drugs, biologics, dietary supplements, and medical devices." Mis Info National Disabilities Organizations & Information Groups Various links to organizational sites on various conditions & disabilities. Healthlinks.Net "A Complementary Resource Site for Healthcare Consumers and Professionals Providing links to Services and Products, Alternative Health, Education, Dental and Medical Resources, Hospitals, Employment, Healthcare Publications, Mental Health and Much More!." Providence They have a couple of interesting "products" or new innovative medical inventions I found interesting. Ever heard of an IV warmer? How about "cold laser" used to treat various types of "bodily complaints" (muscle sprains, low back pain, carpal tunnel syndrome and arthritis). Is your Pain Med Causing Stomach Irritation? Genes Explain Why Pain Hurts More for Some Research & Training Center on Full Participation in Independent Living Survey Results U.S. Department of Justice Americans with Disabilities Act ADA HOME PAGE In these days when flying has become humorless, here's a short tale that may make you smile. A plane was flying from Seattle to San Francisco. Unexpectedly the plane stopped in Sacramento along the way. The flight attendant explained that there would be a delay, and if the passengers wanted to get off the aircraft, the plane would reboard in 30 minutes. Everybody got off the plane except one gentleman who was blind. You could tell the man was blind because his Seeing Eye dog lay quietly underneath the seats in front of him throughout the entire flight. It was obvious he had flown this very flight before because the pilot approached him, and calling him by name, said, "Keith, we're in Sacramento for almost an hour. Would you like to get off and stretch your legs?" The blind guy replied, "No thanks, but maybe the dog would like to stretch his legs." Picture this: All the people in the gate area came to a complete quiet standstill when they looked up and saw the pilot walk off the plane with the Seeing Eye dog! The pilot was even wearing sunglasses. People scattered. They not only tried to change planes, but they were trying to change airlines! Have a great day and remember............. Things aren't always as they appear!   |