Here you can look through thousands of and diseases, ailments, medical conditions and illnesses. You can find the symptoms. Read about any ailment's diagnosis and find medications that can be used and the correct treatments that are needed.
Diseases, Illnesses & Ailments Starting from Letter A
- Aganglionosis
Aganglionosis is a medical term used to describe absence of the ganglia or ganglion cells from the myenteric plexus. [read more] - Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum
Agenesis of the corpus callosum is a rare congenital defect characterized by the absence of the corpus callosum, the protective tissue of the brain resulting to disconnection of the brain hemispheres. [read more] - Ageusia
Ageusia is a medical state in which the tongue loses its ability to taste. In this condition the tongue can no longer differentiate sweetness from salt, sour, bitter and umami flavors. The taste buds may not appear to be swollen but the nerves of the tongue are no longer responsive to the stimuli. Ageusia is caused by neurological problems in the brain, lack of vitamin B3 in the endocrine system and side effects brought about by anti-rheumatic drugs. [read more] - Aggressive fibromatosis
Aggressive fibromatosis is an unusual type of tumor that is locally persistent but not malevolent or malignant. Patient's symptoms will depend on the precise location and size of the tumor and also whether it reduces adjacent structures. [read more] - Aging
Aging, also known as the cycle of life, is any form of change of an organism as time passes. There are many dimensions to aging such the physical, psychological, mental, and emotional aspects. For example, the time of reaction of a human being is lessened or slowed as he ages while his wisdom and knowledge of facts may improve. There should be a distinction between universal aging (where all people go through) and probabilistic aging (which is a type of aging that occurs only to some and not all individuals). An example of probabilistic aging is the manifestation of diabetes mellitus. Chronological aging refers to the actual age of an individual and it can clearly be distinguished from social aging (where the society expects people to behave in accordance to their age and status). The third type of aging is biological aging (which is the person's physical state as he ages). Age measurement is done through entire years or months in the case of infants. An individual's birthday is often a significant event. As to mental aging, it is a bit more challenging to categorize individuals under this type because an older person does not guarantee mental or emotional capacities that are greater than the younger generation. [read more] - Agnogenic Myeloid Metaplasia
Agnogenic myeloid metaplasia is characterized as a condition that typically occurs when the bone marrow is scarred, resulting to its failure to function properly. With the reduced production from the bone marrow, the liver and the spleen will produce the necessary blood cells, causing it to become enlarged. This condition gradually develops through the years and often found in individuals over 50 years old. [read more] - Agnosia
Agnosia or failure to know is a condition in which the person is unable to recognize objects, persons, sounds, shapes, or smells without any defective in a specific sense. There are different types of agnosia. The Autotopagnosia, the person is unable to identify the parts of the body. Visual agnosia the person cannot recognize a visual objects. Another type is Alexia, Inability to recognize text. We also have color agnosia, the patient has difficulty in distinguishing between color perception versus color recognition. Prosopagnosia also called as faceblindness or facial agnosia , the affected person is unable to recognize faniliar faces. Expressive agnosia is a type o g agnosia that the person cannot perceive different facial perception. Visual Verbal agnosia, the patient cannot understand spoken words. Auditory agnosia. The person can hear but unable to determine environmental and non-verbal auditory signs. Amusia, unable to identify music. Somatosensory agnosia or Astereognosia the patient is unable to identify object that is touch. Time Agnosia another type of agnosia that characterized with loss of comprehension of the time and duration of events. Apraxia or motor (body) agnosia it involves loss of ability to determine physical actions thus lead to repetitive of action. [read more] - Agoraphobia
Agoraphobia is usually referred to as "fear of open spaces" though this explanation is simple and confusing. Agoraphobia is like an irrational fear or anxiety related with unknown environment or events or situations though this explanation also oversimplifies a complicated topic.. Panic attacks from panic disorder, usually causes agoraphobia to arise in several situations and the fear of places or situations happen when these were the reasons of the panic attacks. Agoraphobia in other words is the ?fear of having another panic attack? or simply the fear of something or somewhere that may cause a panic attack. A violent sequence situates in where worry or fear of certain places or circumstances create a panic attack more possible to happen, which in turn elevates the level of anxiety. No matter what the explanation is, agoraphobia can not be only put pressure emotionally but it can really turn to be devastating which results to a life of self-imposed loneliness. [read more] - Agyria
Agyria which actually means smooth brain is an unusual brain formation disorder distinguished by the absence of normal folds in the brain. Malfunctioning neuronal movement is the cause of Agyria where in the nerve cells travel from their original place to their stable location. It is a kind of cephalic disorder. Convolutions or gyri refer to the folds in the brain and this forms the surface of the normal brain. Young patients who have Agyria has have a lack of or partially formed convolutions which makes the exterior of the brain smooth. [read more] - Agyria pachygyria polymicrogyria
Agyria pachygyria polymicrogyria is an abnormal development of the human brain distinguished by a huge amount of small folds or concolutions (gyri) on the exterior of the brain. The entire surface or other parts of the brain may be involved. [read more] - Aicardi syndrome
Aicardi syndrome is an unusual abnormality syndrome distinguished by the lack of a major structure in the brain referred to as corpus callosum, the existence of abnormalities in the retina adn seizures in the form of immature spasms. An X-linked dominant trait is inherited in Aicardi syndrome that is fatal in males. [read more] - Aichmophobia
Aichmophobia is the tremendous and unreasonable fear of being touched by a finger or any pointed materials or objects such as needles or injections. [read more] - AIDS
AIDS means Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome which means that the person may get infected by the disease and it will then cause a weakening of his system that resists or fights disease. The disease is caused by the Human Immunodeficiency Virus or HIV. When the person gets infected by the virus, and the body creates its own ?antibodies? to fight off the infection, it is when he is called HIV positive. Thus, the person is called HIV positive when he has these HIV antibodies. However, being HIV positive is different from having AIDS. It is common to find HIV positive person who have lived for many years without getting AIDS although AIDS is generally developed from HIV. A person may get infected with HIV through different ways, such as through blood infection and through semen or vaginal fluids. Thus, having sex with a person with HIV, receiving blood or using the same syringe with the person with HIV may result into getting infected. A child usually gets infected with HIV if the mother has the virus. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) it is estimated that there are around 1.2 million persons in the US are infected with HIV virus or have AIDS. Despite the number, the death rate due to AIDS has been reduced significantly since the time when it was the leading cause of death in the 90s. This is because of the new treatments available at present. HIV becomes AIDS when the immune system of the person infected with HIV is severely damaged. Thus, a person with no more than 200 CD 4 cells (less than 14% CD4 cells) in his body has AIDS. IF the person has AIDS he is more likely to get Pneumocystis pneumonia (PC), a certain lung infection; a Kaposi's sarcoma, a skin cancer; a Cytomegalovirus or infection affecting the eyes and Candida or a fungal infection in the mouth or infections in the throat or vagina. These infections are called opportunistic infections or infections which take advantage of the weak immune system. There is no known cure for AIDS however, at present there are available drugs which slows then development or progress of the HIV virus. At the same time these drugs slows down the effect or the damage done by the HIV to the immune system. There are also other drugs to help the patient treat or prevent the opportunistic infections. The latest drugs available are very effective in reducing the rate of the common opportunistic infections [read more] - AIDS Dementia Complex
AIDS Dementia Complex (ADC) is one of the most common complications of HIV-1 infection. It is severe and is greatly associated with high morbidity. Its pathogenesis is still a mystery although as compared with other opportunistic infections of HIV, it is believed to be caused directly by the HIV-1 virus. ADC was first seen alongside the AIDS epidemic. As with the term, there is the persistent cognitive deterioration which not only affects the intellect of the patient but including the motor complex and behavior. Also, myelopahty is an important aspect of the ADC. The moment the patient is diagnosed with the ADC, it is staged according to the ADC Staging System. The staging is composed of five steps which are based on the cognitive and motor incapacity of the patient. The earlier stage is when there are neurologic symptoms but without the functional impairment and the advanced stage is when there is severe dysfunction. Generally, ADC affects the patient's cognition, motor skills and behavior. Usually the cognitive and motor skills are the first ones affected and the diagnosis is usually made when the patient manifest impairment of these skills. In a study conducted on the ADC, it was found that ADC is commonly found for those with advanced HIV-1 infection although it is also commonly found in those with preserved helper lymphocyte. This means that immunosuppression has an effect on the development of the complex. According to the data by the Community Programs for Clinical Research on AIDS (CPCRA), ADC is strongly associated with the advanced stage of HIV. Moreover it also showed that there is strong relationship between survival rate and the development of stage 2 and over of ADC. Compared with the mortality rate of Pneumocystic carinii pneumonia, the 6-months cumulative mortality rate of ADC is three times greater. Compared with other neurologic diseases it is almost the same is the 85% rate if PML, 70% of CNS lymphoma and 51% of cerebral toxoplasmosis. The high rate may be attributed to ineffectiveness of antiviral treatment, the vulnerability of neurologic debility and the hopelessness attitude of the caregivers. According to the most recent studies the HIV-1 plays a significant role in the development of ADC particularly those with severe cognitive dysfunction. It was found that it is due to the production of the macrophages and microglia by the HIV-1, which affects the neuronal dysfunction. There is also the activation of the cytokine circuits and the neuropahtologic sequelae which causes neurotoxicity. By identifying these factors doctors may soon find effective treatment for ADC. [read more] - Ainhum
Ainhum is a disease characterized by painful constriction of the fifth toe. This generally leads to amputation after a few years. Ainhum is more common among black African descents. It is commonly found among the blacks in West Africa, India and South America. The first recorded incidence of the disease is in 1867 by J.F. da Silva Lima. He described the disease suffered by one of the tribes in Brazil, the Nagos, who gave the disease its name. It is very rare in Europe and only a few incidences have been reported. It is also more common among those in between 20 and 50 years of age, with the average in 38 years of age. The youngest patient in record to have Ainhum is seven years old. The cause of the disease is still being studied. At present though, scientists have found that it is not caused by fungi, virus, parasite, bacteria and injury. Although it linked with walking barefoot during childhood, the disease is also found among those who have not gone barefoot. Among all the predisposing factors, race has been found to be on top of the list and thus scientists believe that it has some genetic component. Scientists believe that the disease is caused by the abnormal blood supply on the foot. Angiography of the peripheral limb has shown that the tibial artery may have become attenuated at the ankle and that there is noticeable absence of the plantar arch and branches. There are four stages of ainhum: the Grade I, wherein there is the presence of the groove; Grade II, wherein the floor of the groove is ulcerated; Grade III, wherein the bone is involved; and Grade IV wherein autoamputation occurs. In about 78% of the cases there is the presence of pain. For those in the early stage the pain may be slight and may have been caused by the pressure on the nerves. For those in the advanced stage, the pain is quite severe which is caused by chronic sepsis or fracture of the phalanx. Ainhum is commonly confused with diabetic gangrene, scleroderma, leprosy, Vohwinkle syndrome and leprosy. The pain is the symptom of the ainhum and it is a progressive condition. For the treatment of the ainhum, for the Grade I and II excision of the groove and z-plasty has been proven to relieve pain and prevent autoamputation. For the Grade III disarticulating the metatarsophanlangeal joint has been proven to be as effective. [read more] - Airplane Ear
Airplane ear is the feeling of general discomfort usually experience by airplane passengers, mainly due to the rapid changes in the air pressure and altitude. People with cold, congested nose and some nasal allergy are more likely to experience airplane ears when traveling. [read more] - Akathisia
Akathisia also spelled as acathisia from the greek word means without or not. Akathisia is characterized by restlessness. The patient is unable stay still or motionless. [read more] - Akinetic Mutism
Akinetic mutism is the term used to describe persons who neither move nor speak. [read more] - Alagille Syndrome
Alagille syndrome is a disease that affects the heart, liver and other major organs of the body. [read more] - Alagille-Watson Syndrome
Alagille-Watson syndrome (AWS) is one of the genetic disorders which affect the different systems of the body including the heart and the liver. The symptoms of the AWS are usually manifested during early childhood or infancy. It is hereditary and its prevalence rate is 1 in every 70,000. The symptoms if AWS varies per family that in some cases it is so mild that the symptoms are unnoticeable while in some cases the symptoms may be as severe as to require transplantation of the heart. When the symptom is liver damage, the patient may have Alagille syndrome which includes yellowing of the skin and whites of the eyes, xanthomas, itching and bile duct paucity. The patient may also have congenital heart problem and kidney problems. In other less common cases, the central nervous system is affected. As for the physical manifestation, those with AWS have the same facial features which includes broad forehead, small and pointed chin and deep-set eyes. The Alagille-Watson Syndrome is caused by the mutation in the JAG1 gene. This gene plays an important role in the signaling of cells during the embryonic development. The mutation of the gene then disrupts the signaling and thus it causes developmental errors of the body's system, such as the heart, liver, spinal column and facial features. In those with liver problems caused by the AWS, the bile ducts are narrowed and malformed. This then results in bile build ups and scarring which prevents the proper elimination of wastes in the blood. Usually the child inherits the altered gene from one parent although there are cases wherein the patient develops mutations of the gene. At present, there is still no known cure for the AWS and the treatment given to patients are targeted to the improvement of the affected system of the body, such as improvement of heart or liver condition. At the same time, the treatments are aimed also at reducing the effects of the affected system. For those with liver problems caused by AWS, there are several medications which are effective in improving the bile flow and in reducing the itching and this include Actigall, Atarax, Rifampicin, Cholestyramine and Phenobarbitol. Of course the effectiveness of the medication varies per patient. Doctors also recommend the high dosage of multivitamins especially vitamins A, D, E and K, since with the damage to the bile ducts the body will have difficulty absorbing these important vitamins. For those with heart defects caused by AWC, corrective surgery is sometimes necessary. [read more]
Pages: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19