Archive for April, 2008
Depression and Anxiety Across Cultures
While depression and anxiety are often considered to be “diseases” of the affluent, new studies find them to be just as common in poorer countries. Can a Western model of interpreting and treating mental distress be applied to other cultures?
An article in the New York Times, Psychotherapy for All, relates a project in Goa, India, in which laypeople are trained to identify and treat depression and anxiety. Almost 2,000 patients have been treated in community health clinics, and a randomised clinical trial is being carried out to see how well the strategy works.
Symptoms of Panic Attacks and Agoraphobia
The formal diagnosis of a panic attack rests on these symptoms, which can be evaluated by psychiatrists and other mental health professionals.
Symptoms of Panic Attacks and Agoraphobia
Because the lists of symptoms for panic attacks (sometimes called ‘anxiety attacks’ in popular parlance) and for agoraphopbia play roles in the diagnosis of panic disorder and other anxiety disorders, both are included here separately. The DSM-IV TR (where ‘IV TR’ indicates fourth edition, text revision) summarizes that "The essential feature of a Panic Attack is a discrete period of intense fear or discomfort in the absence of real danger that is accompanied by at least 4 of 13 somatic or cognitive symptoms" (p. 430). Note that when the other criteria for a panic attack are met, but fewer than 4 symptoms are experienced, the attack is called a limited-symptom attack. The following full diagnostic criteria for panic attacks are reproduced verbatim from page 432 of the DSM-IV TR.
Symptoms of Liver Disease
Liver disease may not show any symptoms at first, as symptoms can be vague. This includes weakness and loss of energy.
Other symptoms include jaundice that is a disease of the gall bladder. Jaundice is one of the main symptoms of liver disease. Jaundice can turn the skin color to yellow. Another symptom is related to digestion and appetite. Poor appetite is a very common symptom. It leads to loss of weight and anemia. Along with this vomiting, nausea or diarrhea can also manifest.
Another important symptom is light colored stool. Due to the lack of bile production, the stool will appear light and can be gray colored or pale.
Symptoms of Heart Disease
In our quest to find out what causes heart disease we need to identify symptoms heart disease which unfortunately are often overlooked until the patient suffers a heart attack. Symptoms heart disease can be many factors including dizziness, shortage of breath, tight chest pains and even sudden weight gain.
The problem with symptoms of heart disease is that many of the symptoms are often present in many other medical conditions and can be linked to stress at work, lack of exercise, smoking or obesity.
Sinus Headache Symptoms And Step to Prevention
The pain can be almost indescribable at times. Whenever a sinus headache appears, most people have nothing on their mind but making it go away. Sinus headaches can flare up for any number of reasons but once they appear they tend to stick around for awhile. If you suffer from sinus headaches than I’m sure that you can tell when one is about to appear, even well in advance. At times, however, it may be difficult to separate a sinus headache from a migraine headache without knowing the sinus headache symptoms. Here’s how you can tell the difference.
Health Symptoms You Should Not Ignore
A friend of mine began running a slight fever every evening. It didn’t go higher than 102 degrees Fahrenheit. In the morning she would wakeup without the fever and felt well enough to go to work and do her daily routine. After a few weeks of continued fever in the evening, she decided to see her doctor and check what might be wrong with her. Her medical record shows that she has a history of heart murmur. Upon learning that she underwent dental treatment without taking any prophylactic antibiotic, it then became clear that the persistent fever was probably caused by the dental work. During the dental procedure, bacteria were released from her mouth to her bloodstream. Later on, a blood test revealed Bacterial Endocarditis. Had she totally ignored the signs and the infection not been treated in time, it could have created damage that would have required an open-heart or valve-replacement surgery. The worst scenario could have been death.
Understanding the Symptoms
Symptoms are manifestations or causes of a disease or group of diseases. Symptoms are those complaints or problems that bring a patient to the doctor or other health care provider.
Understanding the significance of symptoms can be crucial. Headache and nausea can be manifestations of such diverse conditions as flu, depression, or migraine headache. They may also represent more ominous conditions, such as brain tumors, ruptured aneurysms or hydrocephalus. Abdominal pain can be triggered by such varied conditions as indigestion, gallstones or colon cancer.
Symptoms may be chronic or acute. They may occur suddenly or be progressive. Symptoms may also be recurrent.