MEDICINE & HEALTH - ACOUSTIC NEUROMA

An acoustic neuroma is a tumour in the hearing (auditory) nerve. Although rare, it accounts for five per cent of all tumours that develop within the skull.

The early symptoms, dizziness and tinnitus, do not in themselves suggest serious disease, but seek medical advice if deafness occurs, especially if it confined to one ear. Diagnosis is by hearing tests and a magnectic resonance imaging (MRI) scan.

MEDICINE & HEALTH - ACNE VULGARIS

Acne Vulgaris

Acne vulgaris is an inflammatory skin disease. It affects the sebaceous (oil) glands within the hairfollicles on the face, outer ear canal, back chest and groin. In severel cases, acne may spread as far as the legs. The conditon usuallystarts at puberty and peaks at 17-21.

Four out of fiveteenagers suffer from acne, which can be an embarrassing condition. One per cent of men and five percent of women in the UK have problems after the age of 40.

SYMPTOM

• Greasy skin.
• Spots and pimples on the face, shoulders, back or chest.
• In severe cases, inflamed cysts occur deep in the skin.

CAUSES

Acne is caused by increased activity of the skin's sebaceous glands under the influence of the sex hormones called androgens. Blockage of the duct leading from the sebaceous gland to the skin traps secretions inside to form blackheads. Increased numbers of bacteria on the skin also occur, and can become trapped inside the blocked ducts. Bacteria enzymes breakdown skin oil to trigger inflammation. Boys are more prone to acne than girls because they have higher androgen levels, but many girls also suffer, usually in the week before their menstrual period starts.

TREATMENT

Seek help early. Mild acne often responds well to over-the-counter preparation; more severe acne needs prescription drugs. With continuous treatment, nine out of ten people show a 50 per cent improvement within three months and an 80 per cent improvement within six months.

Complementary

Tea tree oil products are often effective.

COMPLICATION

Severe acne can leave scars; plastic surgery and other cosmetic treatments may helps.

MEDICINE & HEALTH - ACNE ROSACEA

Acne rosacea is an inflammatory skin condition that effects around one per cent of the UK population.The majoriti of sufferers are fair-skinned women aged 35-50.
The causes of acne rosacea are unknown but they are thought to include abnormal sensivity of blood capillaries and infection of sebaceous (oil) glands with a skin mite, Demodex folliculorum.
Rosacea tends to recur over a five-to-ten years period, after which it may clear up completely.

SYMPTOMS

There are several ways in which acne resacea is evident.

• Flushing especially after drinking alcohol, eating spicy food, consuming hot drinks or entering a warm room.
• Small pimples.
• Fine, dilated skin capillaries (telangiectasia).
• Left untreated, the skin remains permenantly red with small, pus-filled blisters called pustules.

TREATMENT

Seek medical advise, your doctor may prescribe oral antibiotics or metronidazole gel, or refer you to dermatologist.Avoid stress, hot liquids, spicy foods, alcohol, vigorous exercise and exposure to sunlight.Avoiding tea, chocolate, cheese, yeast extract, eggs, citrus fruits and wheat may help.

Complementary therapies

• Resacea may respond to vitamin B complex.
• Natural antiparasitic agents such as tea tree oil applied to skin may be effective.
• Aleo vera gel helps to reduce inflammation.

MEDICINE & HEALTH - ACIDOSIS

Acidosis is a condition in which too much acid accumulates in the blood and body fluids. There are various kinds. One of these is ketoacidosis, caused by the body's breaking down muscle and fat and producing ketones. It results from uncontrolled diabetes, alcoholism or extreme diets such as high-protein diets.

MEDICINE & HEALTH - ABSCESS

ABSCESS
An abscess is a collection of pus produced when white blood cells flood into an area of the body,
usually to destroy invanding bacteria.Abscesses may occur internally - for example, in the teeth, liver, gut, lungs, brain or breast - and may result from conditions such as appendicitis or peritonitis.A boil is a small abscess that forms around a hair follicle in the skin.


SYMPTOMS

• A red, hot, ;paintful swelling.
• Raised temperature and sweating.
• General feeling of illness and loss of appetite.
• Internal abscesses may produce pain or symptoms such diarrhoea or a cough.

CAUSES

• Usually bacteria infection, but may be due to irritants entering the tissues.
• Infection is more likely to result if the body defences are weak, as in people with diabetes or poor nutrition, or who are suffering from stress.
• Sometimes an abscess is caused by spread of infection, as in brain abscesses that result from lung, middle ear or sinus infections.

TREATMENT

Small abscesses, such as boils, may be left untreated but larger ones will need treatment to drain the pus.

What you can do..

For a small, localized abscess such as a boil:

• apply heat or magnesium sulphate poultice to encourage the boil to come to a head;
• take paracetamol for pain;
• rest and eat healthily;
• keep flannels separate from those of other household members, and wash carefully before preparing food, to avoid spreading infection.

When to consult a doctor.

See your doctor if:

• you develop a fever or cellulitis, or begin to feel unwell;
• an external abscess becomes larger than a simple boil, is painful or does not improve;
• the redness spreads to the surrounding skin without the boil coming to a head;
• the boils are recurrent or persistent, or the discharge is continual.

What a doctor may do.

Depending on how advanced the abscess is, the doctor may;

• prescribe antibiotics;
• lance the abscess with sterile needle to allow the pus to drain;
• arrange for you to be admitted to hospital for surgical drainage.Any cavity formed by the abscess will then need to be packed with dressing, to allow it to continue draining and healing.If the cavity is allowed to closed up, the abscess may re-form.Swabs will identify any bacteria behind the infection, and you will be screened for undiagnosed diabetes.

Complementary therapies

These are generally no substitutes for the orthodox medical treatment of large abscesses, but complementary treatments may help first aid or prevention.

• Homeopathy: try Hepar sulph (Hep.) and Silicea (Sil.) to speed drainage; and Belladonna (Bell.) to cope with throbbing pain.
• Naturopathy: a wholefood diet may help to prevent recurrent boils.

COMPLICATIONS

• If an untreated abscess bersts, pus will leak onto the nearest surface. The drained pus from an internal abscess may then collect in a new cavity and form another abscess.
• infection may spread from an abscess to cause septicaemia or may lead to a more extensive infection such as asteomyelitis, meningitis, encephalitis or peritonitis.
• A brain abscess may be fatal unless it is drained rapidly, or it may leave the person with epilepsy.