And you thought you had problems paying attention in class...

Attention Deficit Disorder
ADD is a term used to describe people who are diagnosed with impulsivity, hyperactivity, or inattention by the DSM IV. This is not a disease, it is strictly psychological and subjective. Many professionals have done studies and seen that ADD can be caused by brain defects, but most recent studies have uncovered perfectly healthy people who have the same symptoms of ADD. The signs of inattention are: not giving close attention to detail, makes mistakes on homework, seems to not listen, unorganized, not following instructions or finishing work, losing things, easily distracted, and forgetting daily activities. Attention Deficit Disorder can be treated by prescribed pills.

Lou Gehrig's Disease

Lou Gehrig’s Disease is also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS. The meaning is broken down in the word:
“'a' – without"
“'myo' – muscle"
“'trophic' – nourishment"
“'lateral' – side of the spinal cord"
“'sclerosis' – hardening/scarring"

Amyotrophic means that the muscles have lost their nourishment and they become smaller and weaker. Lateral means that the disease affects the sides of the spinal cord, which is where the nerves that nourish the muscles are located. Sclerosis means that the diseased part of the spinal cord develops scarred tissue where the healthy nerves would have been.

ALS is called Lou Gehrig’s disease because Lou Gehrig was a hall of fame baseball player who played for the New York Yankees and was diagnosed with ALS in the ‘30s.

"Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS)"
http://kidshealth.org/kid/grownup/conditions/als.html

The Common Cold

The common cold is one of the most overlooked medical conditions. Children and young adults do not take the simple actions to stay healthy and prevent the common cold. Many solutions are as easy as washing your hands before you eat, not sharing drinks with other people, or just keeping a far distance from someone who is already sick. The symptoms of the common cold can consist of runny nose, nasal congestion, sore throat, fever, sneezing, coughing, or headache. It is caused by bacteria and can be caught by someone who is already sick with a cold. Some treatments are lots of fluids, rest, over-the-counter remedies, and chicken soup.

"Common Cold"
http://medicinenet.com/common_cold/article.htm

Thyroid Disease

The thyroid is a gland that is located below the muscles at the front of the neck. Its job is to create the hormones that control metabolism and growth. It requires iodine from food and water to work. The body contains 50 milligrams of iodine and 1/5 of that is stored in the thyroid. The thyroid helps with bone growth, puberty and many other body functions. They also affect the organs directly, so if the thyroid is not working properly there can be many problems with other body parts.

            Thyroid disease occurs when the thyroid does not supply the sufficient amount of hormones to the body. Hyperthyroidism is an overactive thyroid in which the thyroid produces too many hormones. Hypothyroidism is when the thyroid does not produce enough hormones. 

            Hyperthyroidism seems to speed up the body. It causes nervousness, irritability, increased perspiration, intolerance to heat, fatigue, difficulty sleeping, a fast heartbeat, irregular menstrual periods in girls, and muscle weakness. If a person has the symptoms of hyperthyroidism, they take anti-thyroid medication to stop the production of hormones in the thyroid. It usually goes back to normal in one to two months.

            Hypothyroidism slows down the body. A person may become depressed or sluggish, gain weight; they may have slow growth in height, irregular menstrual periods in girls, muscle weakness, dry skin, hair loss, poor memory, and difficulty concentrating. The treatment is pretty simple with pills and medication. 

 




"Teens Health"
http://kidshealth.org/teen/diseases_conditions/growth/thyroid.html

Osteomyelitis

Osteomyelitis is a bone infection that is caused by bacteria called Staphylococcus aureus, or staph infection. This infection often effects teens and young adults because they are not always careful when it comes to cuts and scrapes. If the cut is not cleaned properly, that sometimes leads to a more serious infection of the bone. The most common osteomyelitis is hematogenous osteomyelitis which is when the bacteria enters the bloodstream through an infected laceration which then makes its way to the bone. Another way bacteria gets into the bone is directly, when the bacteria travels through body tissue to the bone. Symptoms of osteomyelitis to look for are serious pains in the infected bone, fever, chills, nausea, and tiredness. The skin over the infected bone may be red, sore and swollen. If you have any of these symptoms it would be wise to see a doctor as soon as possible to get it checked out. The doctor can do a number of things to figure out if there is an infection of the bone like a physical examination, x-ray, MRI, bone scan, or blood test. The blood test will tell if the white blood cell count is up which means there is an infection. If osteomyelitis is detected the doctor will use a needle to take a sample of the bacteria from the bone. This will allow the doctor to choose the correct antibiotic. Some cases of osteomyelitis are more severe and will cause hospitalization for a short period of time. The best way to prevent this infection of the bone is by keeping cuts and wounds cleaned and covered.

"Teens Health"
http://kidshealth.org/teen/diseases_conditions/bones/osteomyelitis.html

Most common but also most preventable

STDs, or sexually transmitted diseases, are pretty self-explanatory. They are transferred from one person to another through sexual activity. There are 25 different types of STDs, the most common are: Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, Syphilis, Trichomoniasis, Herpes Simple Virus, HPV, Hepatitis B, and HIVV/AIDS. Each year, 19 million Americans are infected with an STD. In year 2001, 9.1 million young people, ages 15-24, were infected. Men and women are equally susceptible, but the effects are more severe in women. Serious health problems can harm the baby of a pregnant woman with an STD. For the bacterial or parasitic STDs, medications are able to treat them. But if the STD is a virus, there are no cures. Condoms can be used to help prevent sexually transmitted diseases, but the most efficient prevention that is 100% effective is not having sex at all.

Teen statistics in America:

1.     More than half of teens are virgins until the age of 17.

2.     At age 15, 25% of females and less than 30% of males have engaged in sexual intercourse.

3.     66% of 18 year old females and 68% of 18 year of males have had sex.

4.     Close to one million women under the age of 20 become pregnant each year. That is about 2800 girls getting pregnant every day.

5.     About 4 in 10 woman get pregnant at least once before they turn 20.

6.     1 in 4 teens who are sexually active are infected by an STD every year.

"Statistics on Teens"
http://www.soundvision.com/info/teens/stat.asp

First hand experience: Kidney stones

As a young adult, I never imagined anything would go wrong with my health. I am active, I eat fairly healthy, and I'm still young. Unfortunately, I was proven wrong one night when I awoke at 3am with sharp pains in my side and lower back. My mom took me took the hospital, which I have never been before, and I was taken back to get tests done. The doctor came in, after what seemed like hours, to explain to me that I had kidney stones. I was shocked because I thought that only happened to old people. Since I was leaving for college in less than a month, the doctor thought it would be a good idea for me to get my stones removed. So 2 weeks after I found out I had the stones, I got an operation called ureteroscopy and had the stones removed. Now I know this blog is meant to inform people about medical conditions and not about my personal life, but I wanted to let young people know that they are at risk for illnesses, diseases, and medical conditions even at a young age. I also want to let people who have had kidney stones know that I can empathize and relate.

Kidney stones are a hard material, like a stone, made up of crystals from urine. Most kidney stones are due to an excess in calcium. Kidney stones are normally found in the kidney (obviously) but sometimes they can be found in the urinary tract. They are caused by dehydration, which usually occurs when the body is not replenished with liquids after strenuous exercise, from holding your pee for too long, or from an infection in the urinary tract. Often, kidney stones can be hereditary and white males are the most susceptible. A few symptoms that are caused by kidney stones are pain in the lower back or side (often compared to child labor), blood in urine, fever, vomiting, or burning when urinating. The most common way to get rid of kidney stones are to pass them, or pee them out. There are also surgical ways like shock waves, tunnel surgery, or using a ureteroscope. Kidney stones can help be prevented by drinking LOTS of water and limiting your amount of caffeine intake.

"Kidney Stones in Adults"
http://kidney.niddk.nih.gov/kudiseases/pubs/stonesadults/