Hypothyroidism is a prevalent condition and may be the result of underlying conditions, like Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. In order to diagnose an underactive thyroid and isolate the possible cause, a thyroid profile blood test may be requested by your doctor. Apart from confirming diagnosis and providing valuable information as to the possible cause, the thyroid test will also identify the level of low thyroid activity and assist with assessing the efficacy of thyroid drugs.

continue reading Low Thyroid Test Levels

Treatment for an enlarged prostate depends upon the severity of the symptoms, and if the symptoms are mild or absent (asymptomatic), active treatment may not be necessary. Prostate treatment may include

1. Medication or drug therapy
2. Non-surgical therapies
3. Surgical procedures

continue reading Prostate Enlargement Treatment – Drugs, Surgery for BPH

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) or an enlarged prostate gland is a very common condition in older men with estimates indicating that up to one in every two men suffers with this condition. The prostate gland, which is normally about the size of a walnut, starts to enlarge quite often after the age of forty, but may produce symptoms of enlargement much later. Most symptoms are caused due to compression of the urethra by the enlarged prostate gland, such as difficulty in passing urine, weak flow and incomplete emptying of the bladder. Benign prostatic hypertrophy is a non-cancerous condition and does not increase the risk of developing prostate cancer.

continue reading Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) – Enlarged Prostate Gland

What Is a Bowel or Fecal Urgency?

Bowel or fecal urgency is a sudden, irresistible need to have a bowel movement. Urge fecal incontinence is inability to hold stool during bowel urgency. Bowel incontinence is complete inability to control bowel movements. Tenesmus (Greek tens = strain) is a repeating painful urge to defecate without excreting any stool.  

Causes of Bowel Urgency

1. Occasional Bowel Urgency in Healthy People

Large Meal

A large, especially fibre-rich fruit or vegetable meal, can produce a lot of stool, which can be, for some people, difficult to hold in. A quick change from mixed to vegetarian diet can also irritate the bowel.

continue reading Urgency to Have a Bowel Movement, Urge Fecal Incontinence

Pressure on the nerve roots as they leave the spine produce symptoms of nerve compression, and the nerve roots in the lumbar region of the spine are most liable to be pinched or compressed as a result of maximum movement of the vertebrae in this region. Lumbar nerve compression is commonly known as sciatica, which is the most frequent of all the pinched nerve conditions.

continue reading Pinched Nerve Lower Back – Lumbar Nerve Compression

What Is Peritoneum?

The peritoneum (Greek peritonaion = stretched across) is an abdominal membrane consisting of two sheets: the parietal peritoneum (Latin parietalis = belonging to walls) that covers the inner side of the abdominal wall and the visceral peritoneum (Latin viscera = internal organs) that covers certain abdominal organs.

Picture of peritoneal cavity, parietal and visceral peritoneum

Peritoneal Cavity, Intraperitoneal and Retroperitoneal Organs

Abdominal organs that are totally surrounded by visceral peritoneum are called intraperitoneal organs and include: the liver, spleen, stomach, gallbladder, a part of the duodenum, small intestine, transverse and sigmoid colon, uterus, Fallopian tubes and ovaries.

continue reading Peritoneal Cavity, Diseases of Parietal and Visceral Peritoneum, Video

Nerve compression at the level of the thoracic vertebrae, or thoracic radiculopathy, is less common than in the cervical radiculopathy or lumbar nerve compression because of the lower amount of pressure and movement that the thoracic vertebrae are subjected to. However a pinched nerve at the thoracic level may cause symptoms that just as severe, usually presenting as pain, tingling, and numbness in the arms, chest, abdomen or pelvis.

continue reading Pinched Thoracic Nerve – Radiculopathy, Compression

What is Hashimoto’s Thyroid Disease?

Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is an autoimmune thyroid disease, which is one of the leading causes of hypothyroidism or underactive thyroid functioning. Hashimoto’s thyroiditis causes primary hypothyroidism, where the underactivity is due directly to poor thyroid functioning, rather than an interference with thyroid-pituitary regulating mechanism. Since Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is one of the  organ specific types of autoimmune disease, the dysfunction results from the body’s immune system ‘attacking’ the thyroid gland, when lymphocytes penetrate the thyroid gland and cause significant inflammation. This autoimmune thyroid disease affects more women than men and there is strong evidence to suggest a genetic link to  this form of thyroiditis, although the presence of other organ specific autoimmune diseases, like type I diabetes, may also be a consideration when assessing family history.

continue reading Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis – Autoimmune Thyroid Disease

What Are Adhesions?

This article describes abdominal adhesions, bowel (intestinal) adhesions and pelvic adhesions.

Adhesions (Latin adhere= to stick, to hold tight) are abnormal bands of scar tissue that form between internal organs and glue them together. Normally, scar tissue is formed only within an injured area, as part of a healing process, but in case of adhesions, it also appears on adjacent surfaces and can connect them.

Abdominal adhesions mostly appear after abdominal surgery or inflammation, and pelvic adhesions after gynecological operations or pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), mostly resulting from sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).

Abdominal or pelvic adhesions may develop inside the intestine and uterus, or between surfaces of organs and abdominal membrane (peritoneum), thus pulling organs from their original positions, obstructing passage of food and blood supply, causing abdominal or pelvic pain, bloating, constipation, urinary retention, irregular menstrual bleeding or infertility.

Pictures of abdominal adhesions

continue reading Adhesions: Abdominal, Bowel, Pelvic – Symptoms, Treatment, Pictures

A cervical pinched nerve or nerve compression occurs as it leaves the spine in the neck and produces a condition known as cervical radiculopathy. The nerve may be compressed or irritated due to a herniated intervertebral disc, bone spurs, spinal stenosis or degenerative disc disease, and may produce symptoms such as pain, numbness or tingling in the arms, hands or shoulders.

continue reading Pinched Neck Nerve – Cervical Radiculopathy, Compression