Archive for March, 2008

The use of chemotherapeutic drugs for cancer treatment is Cancer chemotherapy.

These drugs work by killing or impeding the growth of cancer cells that grow and divide rapidly.

The cancer chemotherapy cures cancer permanently, control the cancer cells growth or ease the cancer symptoms, depending upon the type and stage of cancer.

Cancer chemotherapy can be administered in a variety of ways: Orally- through mouth, Injections - Intravenously (into the vein), intramuscularly (into muscle), Intra-arterial (into the artery), subcutaneously (under the skin), Intralesionally (into the cancerous area), or topically – application of medications onto the skin.

Cancer Chemotherapy Side Effects

Cancer Chemotherapy drugs are designed to target fast-growing cancer cells. As they travel all through the entire body, they also target healthy normal cells that divide quickly. Damage to these healthy cells can lead to various side effects, which can last for short term or long term.

Hair loss, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, fatigue, loss of appetite, esophagitis, bleeding, infection, mouth sores, dry mouth, liver damage, heart damage, nerve damage, and/or lung damage are some of the short term side effects. These chemotherapy side effects usually subside soon after you stop cancer chemotherapy.

Sexual function is your physical response to a cascade of hormones.

Usually, sexual drive is maintained by an energetic mind in a strong body.

Here are the essentials tips that spice up your sexual health:

Good nutrition for a better sexual health:

Healthy hormone levels, an unblocked blood flow for the pelvic region and better nerve function are the essentials for your sexual performance.

In order to maintain the working of these systems in an order, you should follow a diet that include whole grain products, legumes, complex carbohydrates, various fruits and vegetables, moderate protein levels, and foods containing plenty of minerals and vitamins [Benefits Of Minerals].

Citrus fruits are particularly important as they provide Vitamin C. Vitamin C is essential to strengthen the walls of the blood vessels.

Whole grains, low fat dairy products, green vegetables, enriched cereals provide riboflavin as it helps to sustain the mucous membranes that helps to line the female reproductive organs.

Minimize the consumption of saturated fats for good sexual health:

High intake of saturated fats raises your blood cholesterol levels and increases the atherosclerotic fatty plaques on your blood vessels surrounding the heart. These fats mainly affect the sexual health of men.

The treatment of bladder infection can be considered into two separate categories: antibiotic and naturopathic.

The type of the treatment for bladder infection depends on the medical history and the urine test.

Bladder Infection - Antibacterial Treatment

The use of antibiotics is the basis for bladder infection treatment. The antibacterial treatment involves a wide range of antibiotics, but the selection depends on the severity (complicated or uncomplicated) and the type (primary or recurrent) of the infection.

Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole: It is also known as TMP-SMX (Bactrim, Cotrim, Septra). It is a combination drug that effectively kills the causal bacteria of bladder infection, as the powerful chemicals of these drugs targets the urinary tract and attacks the bacteria in the bladder itself. TMP/SMX is a three-day course drug with 80-85 % success rate.

As the cells of the bacteria usually produce folic acid (an essential chemical) to increase its growth, the drug ‘Sulfamethoxazole’ obstructs the folic acid production and kills the bacteria [Benefits Of Folic Acid].

Trimethoprim: This single drug is usually preferred to those who are sensitive to the drug sulfonamides. The drug ‘trimethoprim’ with its powerful chemicals kills the bacteria in the bladder.

Heavy bleeding during menstrual periods is always a concern for any women.

Bleeding heavily during regular periods is always a cause for frustration and discomfort in you.

It can also make your body weak. The solution to stop or reduce this heavy bleeding is endometrial ablation.

Endometrial ablation is a surgical procedure which is used to remove a thin tissue of lining of the uterus to stop or reduce the excessive or abnormal menstrual bleeding in women.

This thin tissue is the main cause for heavy or excessive bleeding in pre-menopausal stage. Endometrial ablation is usually preferred for the women whom childbearing is completed.

This procedure offers a helpful alternative to hysterectomy in treating prolonged or heavy menstrual bleeding. This surgery is often preferred for you when other treatments like hysterectomy are failed or when you are not satisfied or undesired with those medical treatments.

What are the techniques used in endometrial ablation?

There are several techniques involved in performing endometrial ablation surgery. Some of these simple techniques are listed below.

The menopause stage in most of the women goes away over time without any treatment.

But, for some, menopause treatment is necessary for symptomatic relief.

Evaluating the risk associated with menopause by health care professional is essential for the best possible menopause treatment.

Menopause Treatment - Hormone Replacement Therapy

For the reason that there are several types of hormone therapies for menopause treatment, the doctor can suggest the best therapy for you depending on the severity of the condition.

As menopause can put the patient at risk of developing breast cancer, heart disease or osteoporosis, evaluating the menopause condition decides whether treatment is required. If no risk is present, taking estrogen for a limited time is enough to manage the manifestations at once.

Estrogen is a hormone that regulates menstrual cycle. It plays a vital role in developing and functioning of sex characteristics and reproductive system. That’s the reason the hormone is known as sex hormone.

By using effective doses of estrogen medications or estrogen therapy as menopause treatment, the condition can be suppressed successfully.

Estrogen Therapy:

Estrogen therapy or estrogen replacement therapy (ERT), the most effective menopause treatment, helps replenish the low levels of estrogen levels. The therapy involves the intake of hormones on a regular basis.

Some women experience blood in urine even though they don’t have their period or any symptoms of urinary tract infection.

If you experience blood in urine, immediately you should make an appointment with your doctor for checkup. Some of the causes that can lead to blood in urine are given here. They include:

• Kidney or bladder infection
• Urinary tract infection
• Kidney stones in the passage way
• Side effects from other medications
• Trauma
• Complications from diseases like diabetes or any other kidney problems
• Endometriosis of the bladder
• Any injury to the nongynecological tract
• Interstitial cystitis
• Kidney or bladder cancer
• Sickle cell anemia
• Strenuous exercises

The problems associated with blood in urine include:

• Your urine will be in pink, red or cola colored
• Slight fever
• Weight loss
• Decreased appetite
• Nausea and vomiting
• Pain or burning while urinating
• Pain in the back, lower abdomen, groin or flank
• Frequent urination

When you consult your doctor regarding your condition, you are asked about your medical history and whether you experience blood in urine ever before. A laboratory test will be conducted for the initial examination.

Aplastic Anemia (AA) treatment depends on the severity of the bone marrow failure.

Aplastic Anemia is the medical term for the failure of the bone marrow, a red spongy tissue in the center of the bone that produces sufficient blood cells–red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets–for the blood circulation.

As the blood cells die off naturally, new blood cells formed in the bone marrow replace them.

In aplastic anemia, the bone marrow cell production fails leaving the body vulnerable to organ damage, heart failure, bleeding, and infection. Acquired and hereditary are two types of Aplastic anemia that can strike organs and tissues of the body.

Aplastic Anemia treatment Options

The treatment options for aplastic anemia are different depending on the age and severity and other health conditions. The severity of AA is classified as Moderate AA, Severe AA, and Very Severe AA.

Bone Marrow Transplants (BMT):

For severe or very severe aplastic anemia, Bone Marrow Transplant is the preferred standard treatment option. This is known as an allogeneic sibling transplant.

The transplant replaces the damaged stem cells in the bone marrow with healthy bone marrow stem cells. For a successful bone marrow transplant, a donor’s bone marrow is needed and it must match the receiver’s tissue type as closely as possible.

According to the US National Cancer Institute, about 12000 women are with cervical cancer.

In the United States, cervical cancer is the 8th most common gynecologic cancers.

Pap smear test - the only screening test for cervical cancer - is recommended for all women to detect any abnormal changes to the cells of the cervix, the lower part of the uterus.

Pap smear test, also known as Pap test or cervical test, is a medical screening test to detect the early stages of cancer of the cervix.

It is only a screening tool and not a diagnosing procedure. In other words, the test cannot diagnose cervical cancer completely. The test is best and efficient to prevent cervical cancer.

How Pap test is conducted?

The Pap smear test is quick and simple process in which speculum, a small instrument, is inserted into the vagina to spread the vaginal walls so as to make the cervix more visible.

Using a small brush, the cells of the cervix are collected and spread onto a glass slide. The cell sample glass slide will be sent to the laboratory for examination under a microscope.