There are very few anomalies of the thyroid that require immediate medical attention and one of them is the dreaded thyroid storm. It is a serious condition that could result in death in several hours without prompt medical attention.
What is It?
This is a serious condition wherein there is an aggravation of the symptoms of hyperthyroidism. It is hyperthyroidism but in its most severe, life-threatening form. In the past, this condition usually follows a recent surgery but now, it is mostly due to poorly treated or untreated infections.
What sets this condition apart from other forms of hyperthyroidism is the extremely high body temperature of patients with this condition. These patients may reach temperatures of as high 105-106°F.
What Causes the Attack?
This sudden aggravation of hyperthyroidism, in the past, may follow a recent surgery but this has largely been eliminated by the development of modern preoperative procedures. This may happen in patients prepared for thyroid surgery with potassium iodide alone. A few weeks prior to administering iodides, a hyperthyroid patient must first be given doses of propylthiouracil or methimazole until basal metabolic rate is within normal levels.
Another cause of this acute hyperthyroid attack is an infection that has been poorly treated or remains largely untreated. Lung infections, especially, may produce an exaggeration of thyrotoxicosis. Other causes include noncompliance or stopping medications for hyperthyroidism, a high dose of thyroxine treatment for hypothyroid patients, treatment with radioactive iodine, pregnancy, and heart attacks and other heart attack emergencies.
What to Watch Out For
Most signs and symptoms of this sudden condition are exacerbated effects of hyperthyroidism. These include rapid heart beat, chest pains, shortness of breath, anxiety and irritability, disorientation, increased sweating, weakness and heart failure. The hallmark of this particular condition is an extremely increased body temperature. A patient may reach body temperatures of as high as 106°F in the middle of the attack.
Sometimes, the attack takes on another turn wherein the patient may experience extreme weakness, emotional apathy and confusion. The high excitability and delirium of usual thyroid storm patients is not evident and fever may not even be rise as high. This is called apathetic storm.
Intervention
This particular state of hyperthyroidism takes on suddenly and a patient may not be able to help himself once it sets in. It is important that family members or anybody bring the patient to a hospital for immediate treatment. This condition constitutes a medical emergency and it is only through prompt recognition of the signs and aggressive medical treatment that mortality due to this particular disease has been decreased.
The patient is advised to rest and may necessitate mild sedation. Fluids and electrolytes may be replaced intravenously and vitamins and nutritional support may be needed. Antibiotics may also be given if an infection is found to be the cause of the episode.
Other specific therapy given to thyroid storm patients include propanolol, antithyroid drugs such as propylthiouracil and methimazole, large doses of potassium iodide, and dexamethasone. Most of these drugs serve to lower the thyroid hormone in circulation and prevent further production and secretion of thyroid hormone.
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In the Face of the Storm – The Terror Which is Thyroid Storm
The Treatment For Hay Fever
Hay fever does not always require medical treatment. Avoid known or suspected allergens. Hay fever symptoms lend themselves to home treatment.
Gargle with warm salt water, 1-2 tablespoons of table salt in 8 ounces of warm water, to soothe a mildly sore throat. Take nonprescription antihistamines such as diphenhydramine (Benadryl) to relieve symptoms of sneezing, runny nose, and itchy throat and eyes. Caution these medications may make you too drowsy to drive a car or operate machinery safely.
For stuffy nose, a combination of an antihistamine and a decongestant such as pseudoephedrine (Sudafed, Actifed) may work better. The best treatment overall is to avoid contact with your allergen. Since this is rarely possible, you may want to take medication to reduce the symptoms.
The treatment of hay fever depends on the severity, symptoms, and consequences of the disease. The medications most often used to treat hay fever symptoms are listed in the next paragraph.
These sprays work very well in most people with few of the side effects of corticosteroids taken by mouth or by injection. They reduce congestion (stuffiness) and swelling. Examples are beclomethasone (Beconase), triamcinolone (Nasacort), and fluticasone (Flonase).
These are not the steroids taken by some people to increase athletic performance. Sprays take a few days to work, but when they reach an effective level, they do a very good job of decreasing symptoms without causing drowsiness. They must be used daily if they are to work properly.
Nonprescription antihistamines (diphenhydramine [Benadryl], clemastine [Tavist], tripelennamine [PBZ], hydroxyzine [Atarax]) are the most commonly used drugs. Loratadine (Claritin), a long-acting, nonsedating antihistamine is also now available without a prescription.
These antihistamines are inexpensive and readily available. The effects do not last long. They may make you too drowsy to drive a car or operate machinery safely. You may start using them at bedtime. Drowsiness often lessens with continued, regular dosage.
Many hay fever sufferers choose to take longer acting prescription antihistamines, such as fexofenadine (Allegra), loratadine (Claritin), and desloratadine (Clarinex). These drugs are more expensive, but they have to be taken only once or twice a day. The biggest advantage of these drugs is that they cause only mild sleepiness, if any at all.
Montelukast (Singulair) is a leukotriene inhibitor approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for treatment of hay fever. It is available with a prescription and comes in tablet, chewable tablet, or granule forms. The granules may be sprinkled directly on the tongue or mixed with cold or room temperature soft food like applesauce or pudding.
Leukotrienes are powerful chemical substances that promote the inflammatory response seen during exposure to allergens. By keeping these chemicals from producing swelling, leukotriene inhibitors reduce inflammation. Leukotriene inhibitors are particularly effective when used with an antihistamine.
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Diabetes has been considered a risk factor of heart disease.
Coffee has been a drink that people consume everyday, especially during breakfast. There are many negative reports on consuming coffee mainly due to its caffeine. A study reported in the Archives of Internal medicine that there is a link between drinking coffee and a reduced risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. Nevertheless, it is still not clear that whether the protective effect is due caffeine or other ingredients presented in coffee.
Diabetes has been considered a risk factor of heart disease, and Type 2 diabetes develops when pancreas does not make enough insulin or when insulin cannot be used by the body properly. Insulin is a hormone that converts sugars into energy. This form of diabetes is commonly found among people aged 40 and above, especially those overweight and physically inactive.
The study, conducted by the University of Minnesota, examined over 28,000 postmenopausal women over a period of 11 years (1986 -1997). Women who drank more than 6 cups of coffee per day were less likely to be diagnosed with diabetes. Those who drank decaffeinated coffee showed a further reduced risk.
Questions were answered by these women about risk factors for diabetes, and details given about their lifestyle and beverage consumption (including regular and decaffeinated coffee). After adjusting the data for other risk factors for diabetes, it was found that women who drank more than 6 cups of any type of coffee daily were 22 percent less likely to be diagnosed with diabetes than non-coffee drinkers. Those who drank more than 6 cups of decaffeinated coffee per day had a 33-percent reduced risk.
The overall intake of caffeine did not appear to be related to diabetes risk, suggesting that another ingredient in coffee might have contributed to the effect. The researchers suggested that magnesium, and other minerals and nutrients found in coffee bean such as polyphone’s and antioxidants, may be responsible for this beneficial effect. However, further studies are required to ascertain this.
Other experts expressed some concerns about this study. Firstly, the participants were only limited to postmenopausal women and so are not representative of the population. Secondly, there is no objective measure to ensure that the reported diet or incidence of diabetes were accurate because data were collected from self-administrative questionnaires. Thirdly, there are many kinds of foods containing hundreds of different phytochemicals and antioxidants. It may not be appropriate to simply rely on any single food to obtain these nutrients. Finally, taking too much coffee can cause side effects. More than 3 cups of coffee a day can cause nervousness, stomach distress, insomnia, and for some people, irregular heartbeat.
While awaiting further research confirmation about the beneficial effect of drinking coffee, people with diabetes, however, still need to maintain healthy eating habits, regular physical activity, and more importantly, maintain a healthy body weight?
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Myths You Should Know Of Before You Choose A Free Weight Loss Plan
You will find numerous websites endorsed by trainers who promise to offer you a free weight loss plan. However, you will need to decide for yourself if you are looking for a long time plan or a short term weight loss plan. It is however recommended that you choose a long term plan. This will ensure that you learn how to keep off the fat from your body forever. With short term plans or goals, you will only end up putting on more weight after the plan is over.
Before you choose any type of program, there are a few myths that you need to know of.
Spot reduction is the best way to reduce weight in a particular part of your body. There are several programs that wrongly advice you about spot reduction and how successful they have been. However, the fact is that your body cannot be forced to reduce fat from a particular part of your body. For example, if you want to reduce belly fat, leg lifts alone will not help. Instead, you will need to add in the right diet that will help you burn weight fast!
Cutting down on calorie intake cannot be done at a drastic pace. In fact, this is just another form of crash dieting which instead of helping the body only harms it. When you deprive your body of the regular foods, your body enters starvation mode and starts building up on fat reserves. This is because the body feels that it may soon not receive any food. The metabolism rate lowers and the muscles are burned so that your body receives energy. This is the worst form of dieting. After you’re done with your calorie, your body gets back to normal and you put on more weight.
It is therefore essential that before you choose any free weight loss plan, you educate yourself well about the pros and cons of that diet.
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Major Depression—the Joy Stealer: How to Reclaim your Life
Major depression is one of the biggest joy stealers in life. The most severe category of clinical depression, major depression can be triggered by any of three causes .
First, a major trauma in your life can set off a major depression. A severe loss like the death of a loved one, a divorce, a job loss, or other significantly dramatic life experience can start an episode of major depression. or setback or other trauma can trigger a major depression.
Second, you can develop major depression slowly over time if you experience a number of personal disappointments or life problems.
Third, you can simply manifest major depression seemingly out of nowhere. This happens when you develop a chemical imbalance in your brain function. Genetics can also be a cause of this type of depression.
If you’re lucky, you’ll suffer major depression only once in your lifetime. Known as single episode depression, this kind of one-time depression generally responds well to treatment, either medical or alternative.
Unfortunately, many people experience recurring depression. They suffer for weeks or months or even years and then respond to treatment or get well practically overnight. They’ll experience months or years depression-free and then begin feeling depressed again. This type of depression is also treatable, but depression treatment for recurring depression is more complicating and less exact.
When a person suffers from major depression, no matter what the cause, she will struggle with everyday tasks. Getting out of bed in the morning is a major struggle. Focusing is difficult. Pleasure is a thing of the past. The sufferer feels alone and hopeless. Life seems meaningless and purposeless.
So how do you cope with major depression?
You basically have two choices. You can either ride it out and allow it to pass naturally or you can seek depression treatment.
If you’re suffering depression as a result of a major trauma, riding it out is a possible option. Even so, it’s an option that has risks.
Depression that’s caused by trauma may start with a reaction to life events, but it can become chemical. When this happens, the depression may linger far past when you think you should have recovered from your trauma. This lingering depression can go on and on if you don’t get depression treatment.
How long do you want to be without joy in your life?
The smart response to any kind of major depression is depression treatment. Depending on your preferences, either seek medical help and get depression medicine or use alternative therapies like natural depression supplements, energy healing, and depression self care.
Talking through the problems and trauma in your life can help you heal depression. Get therapy or ask for help from loved ones. Don’t suffer through a major depression alone. Keeping your dark despair bottled up inside will only make major depression worse.
No matter what causes your major depression, you can’t afford to let it stay around any longer than necessary. Choose at least one form of depression treatment and make it a daily part of your life. Prioritizing your mental health care will help you heal major depression more quickly.
Major depression robs life of joy. To reclaim your life, take steps to banish major depression.
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