For patients and caregivers, understanding clinical progression, diagnostic imaging results, and pharmacological treatment options is vital for managing acute and chronic health conditions.
Nitrates, naturally occurring compounds consisting of oxygen and nitrogen, are found in soil, water and a number of foods, such as vegetables. Nitrates themselves are not harmful. Cured meats may contain nitrates as preservatives. Once eaten, nitrates convert to nitrite.
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Conditions affecting your urinary tract can make daily tasks uncomfortable. Urine is normally sterile and does not contain blood cells. The presence of white blood cells -- WBCs -- in a urine sample indicates an abnormal condition within the urinary tract or kidney.
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Healthcare providers often need to know how well your lungs are functioning in transferring oxygen to your blood. Cells, tissues and organs need oxygen to function, and lack of it can cause a host of complications throughout your body.
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Since your finger has 14 bones, it may seem that a break in one shouldn't affect you much. But you need all of your finger bones in working order to carry out normal daily activities, from lifting a cup to your lips to writing a report.
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Approximately 5 percent of all Americans will develop appendicitis. The Merck Manual states that before surgery and antibiotics were readily available, 50 percent of those patients would die, a rate that is now almost zero.
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Anytime you experience abdominal pain with vaginal spotting, there is a good chance the cause is related to your reproductive system. Vaginal spotting most often comes from the uterus, although bleeding from the cervix or vagina could also cause spotting.
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People who for religious or health reasons need to avoid alcohol often have concerns about hidden alcohol in foods. No foods naturally contain alcohol -- except alcohol -- but some foods have alcohol added, although the amounts are usually very small.
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Overdosing on garlic can cause more than a distinctive and pungent odor. While garlic has a number of potential health benefits, too much garlic can interfere with blood clotting, reports a 2007 study published in "Molecular Nutrition and Food Research."
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Tramadol HCL is a prescription pain medication that increases the affect of narcotics on the body. Although not classified as a narcotic, tramadol has similar properties and acts on the central nervous system. Tramadol also has similar actions to antidepressants, affecting chemicals in your brain.
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Thyroid stimulating hormone, usually abbreviated TSH, is manufactured by the pituitary gland. Release of TSH stimulates the thyroid to make T3 and T4, the hormones responsible for thyroid function. If the thyroid stops functioning, TSH levels rise as the body attempts to “force” the thyroid to produce hormones.
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Uric acid forms when purines break down in the body. Purines come from certain foods such as organ meats, asparagus, spinach, lentils, beer or wine as well as from the breakdown of proteins in the body.
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The gallbladder serves mostly as a storage unit for bile, which is released from the liver to digest fats so they can be absorbed. During gallbladder surgery, your surgeon removes the gallbladder, usually because it has filled with gallstones.
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A number of diseases in infants require respiratory treatment using a nebulizer. Nebulizers deliver medications that help open the bronchial tubes in a fine mist spray that easily enters the lungs.
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Elevated liver enzymes in the blood are often the first, and sometimes only, sign of liver problems. Liver enzymes increase when damage to the liver causes the liver cells to release enzymes into the bloodstream.
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Rashes, pimples, sores and other skin disruptions appear and disappear frequently. Any number of problems could cause a sore and blister to appear on your back, from a boil to an outbreak of shingles.
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Much of what’s called “licorice” actually contains little to no licorice. Licorice, produced from the roots of the plant Glycyrrhiza glabra, contains the active ingredient glycyrrhizin, which has properties similar to aldosterone, a hormone released by the adrenal glands to regulate blood pressure.
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Over 15 million Americans have food allergies, according to the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network. Certain foods are more likely to cause allergic reactions than others.
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Many people turn to chicken as a healthy alternative to red meat because of its lower fat content, but chicken can also cause health problems. In 2009, "Consumer Reports"
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Lactated Ringer Solution, sometimes called Lactated Ringer’s or simply LR in the hospital, is a type of intravenous, or IV, fluid. Choosing an IV fluid for administration requires consideration of the type of fluid as well as the patient’s particular diagnosis.
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Cirrhosis of the liver was the twelfth leading cause of death in the United States in 2005 and developed as a consequence of alcoholism in over 45 percent of cases, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism reports.
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