Archive for April, 2009
Osteoporosis
Monday, April 13th, 2009
There is a normal decline in bone mass after the age of 40 in both sexes (2% loss/year); women at much greater risk due to lower bone density prior to the age of 40; post-menopausal (PM) osteoporosis is the most common form; 1 in 4 PM women has osteoporosis (OP).
The diagnostic summary of osteoporosis is as follows:
Could Social Behaviour be in your Blood?
Thursday, April 9th, 2009
Many Doctors believe that psychiatric disorders imply that the cause or even the disorder itself is psychological. “all your tests are negative” it must be all in the mind. But absence of evidence is not the same as evidence of absence.
The last ten years have seen a vast amount of research, which has consistently shown that the brain is functionally or anatomically abnormal in most if not all psychiatric disorders. The evidence is breaking down long held beliefs that diseases are either physical or psychological. We now know that doctors must consider both physical and psychological factors in their investigation in order to understand and thus help their patients.
Changes in the behaviour of an individual can easily be put down to “just a phase” especially true in young adults. If these behavioural changes become extreme they can lead to antisocial behaviour, which can cause grief and stress (more…)
Gallstones
Monday, April 6th, 2009
Diagnostic summary:
Asymptomatic or biliary colic with irregular pain-free intervals of days or months; real-time ultrasonography provides definitive diagnosis.
General considerations
‘Western diet’ – induced disease; 20% of women and 8% of men over the age 40; 20. In the US 20 million have gallstones; each year 1 million more develop gallstones; > 300,000 cholecystectomies annually due to gallstones; (more…)
Obesity
Thursday, April 2nd, 2009
The simplest definition of obesity is an excessive amount of body fat i.e. being greater than 10% above ‘normal’ weight. In terms of body fat percentage obesity is defined as a body fat percentage greater than 30% for women and 25% for men.
According to the results of The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III, the frequency of obesity in adults living in the United States is now greater than one in three. Even more alarming is the number of obese children – the number doubled from 1960 to 1991. This situation is serious as the odds are 4:1 against a child ever achieving normal weight as an adult if they enter their teenage years obese, and 28:1 if they end their teenage years obese.
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