The eye is composed of delicate tissue with the front part exposed to the environment. It is prone to a host of diseases, especially infections from microbes in the environment. However, the eye has several mechanisms to prevent infections including tears to wash away microbes and protective layers that can minimize entry >> Read More ...
Blood in the urine (hematuria) is not uncommon but most bleeding in the urine is invisible to the naked eye. The discovery of blood during a urine dipstick test concerns most people. However, it is not always a serious problem. There may be no other symptoms as would be expected and the cause is not always easily >> Read More ...
There are many different types of abnormal growths that can arise on the skin. Most of us think of it simply as a pimple, wart or mole. However, there are several different ways in which the skin may be diseased or abnormal thereby leading to the formation of a growth. One rare type of growth is a folliculoma. It is not a >> Read More ...
Eye dryness (xeropthalmia) is a common occurrence that most of us will experience many times in life. It is usually not a persistent problem and often self-resolves with blinking a few times or changing environment. However, with the rise in computer use in the workplace, dry eyes has become a common symptom that is more >> Read More ...
There is a common misconception that solid foods should be stopped when diarrhea is present. This is not true. Solid foods should only be avoided if or when there is vomiting to prevent vomited food entering the airways and causing conditions like aspiration pneumonia. For diarrhea, solid foods should be eaten although a >> Read More ...
Eyesight is one of the many senses that is taken for granted until we start to lose it either partially or completely. It is a complex sense and as such many disturbances in vision can arise through different ways. One aspect of vision that we do not often focus on is the brightness, contrast or intensity of the images >> Read More ...
What are stomach spasms? Spasm is the term for the involuntary contraction or twitching of a muscle. It is also used interchangeably with the word cramps which refers to a sudden very strong contraction of a muscle. The stomach is a muscular sac. Although the muscles in the stomach wall are not under voluntary control it >> Read More ...
Cancer can arise anywhere in the body where living tissue exists. It can also spread to any site away from where it originates. Some organs are more prone to cancers especially when there are certain risk factors present. The lungs, breasts, prostate, colon and rectum are the most commonly affect areas. Small bowel (small >> Read More ...
The rectum is the last portion of the large intestine which is about 12cm (approximately 5in) long. It leads to the short anal canal which measures about 3 to 5cm (1 to 2in) and then continues to the opening to the external environment known as the anus. Stool has to enter the rectum in order to eventually be passed out of >> Read More ...
The nerves are the communication lines of the body. It has to work efficiently to ensure that messages are transported throughout the body for the system to function. Sometimes nerves become diseased or damaged in various ways, or malfunctions despite the nerve structure being intact. When this happens, then the >> Read More ...
