

![]() |
A headache is pain or discomfort in the head, scalp, or neck. Serious causes of headaches are extremely rare.
|
|
|
A headache is a pain in the head and neck region that may be either a disorder in its own right or a symptom.
|
|
Detailed information on headaches, including the different types of headaches and statistics relating to headaches
|
|
This report helps you identify the cause of your headache and learn what to do about it. Includes the latest treatments, such as new medications and mind/body techniques.
|
|
About 90 percent of all headaches are harmless episodes that can be treated with over-the-counter painkillers, either alone or together with rest, ice packs or relaxation techniques.
|
|
Most headaches in kids are caused by tension, not disease. Your pediatrician can determine what kind of headache your child has.
|
|
Youngsters' most common head pain is a tension headache—a dull ache that feels like pressure around the head.
|
|
When seeking treatment for headaches, start with your primary care provider. Most people who suffer from headaches tell their doctors about their pain only as an afterthought. And 31 percent have never seen a health care provider for their condition, according to the National Headache Foundation (NHF). The result is a lot of needless suffering.
|
|
Detailed information on headaches, including types, symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment
|
|
Can dehydration cause headaches?
Howard LeWine, M.D., is chief editor of Internet Publishing at Harvard Health Publications. He is recognized as an outstanding clinician and teacher and is a recipient of the Internal Medicine Teacher of the Year award at Brigham and Women's Hospital. Dr. LeWine continues to practice Internal Medicine; most recently he became a hospitalist after practicing primary care for over 20 years.
|
|
An old theory about the connection between headache and high blood pressure makes a comeback.
|
|
Pain is a universal human experience. The International Association for the Study of Pain(IASP) defines pain as"an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage or described in terms of such damage."
|
|
Expert-reviewed information summary about pain as a complication of cancer or its treatment. Approaches to the management and treatment of cancer-associated pain are discussed.
|
|
Pain, medically termed"nociception," is a response to noxious stimuli that is conveyed to the brain by sensory neurons. The discomfort signals actual or impending injury to the body.
|
|
American Pain Foundation 888-615-7246 www.painfoundation.org American Chronic Pain Association
|
|
Pain is an unpleasant feeling that is conveyed to the brain by sensory neurons. The discomfort signals actual or potential injury to the body.
|
|
A pain scale helps you rate pain intensity. In the scale, 0 means no pain, and 10 is the worst pain possible. (Scales may go up to 5 or up to 10.) Rate the pain every few hours. You may feel some pain even with medications. But tell your healthcare provider if medications don't reduce the pain. Be sure to mention if the pain suddenly increases or changes.
|
|
Pain is an unpleasant feeling that is conveyed to the brain by nerves in the body.Pain arises from any number of situations. Injury is a major cause, but pain may also arise from an illness.
|
|
Pain is an unpleasant feeling that is conveyed to the brain by sensory neurons. The discomfort signals actual or potential injury to the body.
|
|
This comprehensive report describes the many causes of pain, the latest treatments, and the best preventive strategies.
|
|
I have recurring sores in my mouth, most generally on the sides of my tongue, and the tip of my tongue gets very tender and sore. Do I have a vitamin deficiency? What else could be the cause of this?
|
|
Examines the role of forgiveness in personal health and happiness, ranging from reduced stress to improved relationships.
|
|
Children who experience verbal abuse are at as much risk for developing anxiety or depression as those who are abused physically or sexually. This may be due to the fact that verbal abuse is likely to persist over a lengthy period of time.
|
![]() |
Nausea is the sensation of having an urge to vomit. Vomiting is forcing the contents of the stomach up through the esophagus and out of the mouth.Your body has a few main ways to respond to an ever-changing, wide variety of invaders and irritants.
|
|
"Gingerbread. Ginger cookies. Ginger ale. Who knew they could lessen nausea so much? My mom makes me ginger cookies every time I have chemo. My neighbor brings over gingerbread. I haven't eaten these foods since I was growing up, but they sure hit the spot now." - Anne R.
|
|
Nausea is the sensation of having a queasy stomach or being about to vomit. Vomiting, or emesis, is the expelling of undigested food through the mouth.Nausea is a reaction to a number of causes that include overeating, infection, or irritation of ...
|
|
Will excess fluid in the ear cause dizziness and nausea?
David Vernick, M.D. is assistant clinical professor of otology and laryngology at Harvard Medical School and interim chief of the Division of Otology and Laryngology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.
|
|
These problems may be due to an improper prescription for glasses or a muscle imbalance.Pain in the eye, although not a common complaint, can be an important symptom that should be evaluated and treated if pain does not improve. It is important to...
|
|
Eye pain with new blurry or diminished vision should be evaluated promptly, even if the eye appears normal and is not red.
|
|
Visual impairment or low vision is a severe reduction in vision that can''t be corrected with standard glasses or contact lenses and reduces a person''s ability to function at certain or all tasks. Legal blindness(which is actually a severe visual i...
|
|
When you have low vision, you need more than glasses or contact lenses to see well enough to get around and do day-to-day tasks. Your central or side vision, or both, may be reduced.
|
|
Detailed information on problems with vision in children Eye disorders that affect vision can be divided into two groups, including the following:
|
|
Detailed information on problems with vision in children There are many problems that can affect your child's vision that require clinical care by a physician or other healthcare professional. Listed in the directory below are some, for which we have provided a brief overview.
|
|
If you have low-vision symptoms, talk to your eye-care professional, who can help you find resources and visual devices to make the most of your remaining vision.
|
|
Using vision aids can help you do the things you need and want to do. There are many kinds of vision aids. Low-vision centers and some doctors sell these aids. They also train you to use your aids. And they will talk with you about proper lighting.
|
|
The number of people losing their vision is growing, yet experts say much of this vision loss could be prevented.
|
|
Detailed information on correcting or improving vision problems With today's advanced technology, there are many different approaches now available to help correct or improve a variety of vision problems. Listed below are some, for which we have provided a brief overview.
|
|
Have you noticed the sudden onset of any of these symptoms: vision loss, seeing double, the feeling of a shade over the eye, lights are surrounded by halos, or light sensitivity?
|
|
Reports of a rare eye condition developing in men after use of Viagra are a reminder that erectile dysfunction medications should be used with the same caution given to other prescription drugs.
|
|
A headache involves pain in the head which can arise from many disorders or may be a disorder in and of itself.There are three types of primary headaches: tension-type(muscular contraction headache), migraine(vascular headaches), and cluster. Virt...
|
|
|
Headache is a pain in the head and neck region that may be either a disorder in its own right or a symptom of an underlying medical condition or disease. The medical term for headache is cephalalgia.
|
|
A headache involves pain in the head that can arise from many disorders or may be a disorder in and of itself.Headaches can be categorized as primary or secondary. Primary headaches occur independently and are not the result of another medical pro...
|
|
Detailed information on headaches, including the different types of headaches and statistics relating to headaches
|
|
|
Migraine is a type of headache marked by severe head pain lasting several hours or more.A migraine is an intense, often debilitating type of headache. Migraines affect as many as 24 million people in the United States, and are responsible for appr...
|
|
Paroxysmal hemicrania(PH) is a rare form of headache. Paroxysmal hemicrania usually begins in adulthood, and affected persons experience severe throbbing, claw-like, or boring pain.
|
|
Migraine is a type of headache marked by severe head pain lasting several hours or more.Migraine is an intense and often debilitating type of headache. The term migraine is derived from the Greek word hemikrania, meaning"half the head," because th...
|
![]() |
For many people, photophobia is not due to any underlying disease. Severe photophobia may be associated with eye problems and cause severe eye pain even in relatively low light.The discomfort of light sensitivity can be reduced by avoiding sunligh...
|
|
Vomiting is the forceful discharge of stomach contents through the mouth.Vomiting, also called emesis, is a symptomatic response to any number of harmful triggers. Vomiting is a forceful expulsion, and is different from regurgitation—the eff...
|
|
Vomiting can deplete you of fluids and electrolytes, so repeated vomiting requires medical treatment if it results in a lasting lightheaded feeling or weakness.
|
|
Although nausea and vomiting can make you feel miserable, it's important to remember that these are not diseases, but rather symptoms of many illnesses.
|
|
Nausea with or without vomiting is common in children. Most of the time, the cause is not serious. The symptoms usually go away in a day or two and can be managed at home. However, there are times when you should alert your child's doctor immediately.
|
|
Vomiting is very common in babies. Sometimes it can be entirely normal, like when babies spit up mouthfuls of breastmilk or formula after eating. Sometimes it can be a sign of illness or a blockage somewhere in the intestines. Less commonly, it can even be a sign of accidental poisoning or be caused by a bad bump to the head.
|
|
When should parents be concerned about their child vomiting? If the child, age 5 and a bit overweight, has what the parents think is a stomach bug that causes vomiting, and this happens for a couple days at least every two months or sometimes shorter periods in between, should they have tests done or should they just assume its a virus?
|
|
Fatigue is a feeling of weariness, tiredness, or lack of energy.Fatigue is different from drowsiness. In general, drowsiness is feeling the need to sleep, while fatigue is a lack of energy and motivation.
|
|
Fatigue is physical and/or mental exhaustion that can be triggered by stress, medication, overwork, or mental and physical illness or disease.Everyone experiences fatigue occasionally. It is the body''s way of signaling its need for rest and sleep.
|
|
Boosting Your Energy provides information on the causes and treatments of persistent fatigue. Includes information on aging and energy, eating for energy, and boosting your energy.
|
|
Fatigue may be defined as a subjective state in which one feels tired or exhausted, and in which the capacity for normal work or activity is reduced. There is, however, no commonly accepted definition of fatigue when it is considered in the contex...
|
|
If the fatigue is related to a decrease in hemoglobin, or oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood, then replacing the red blood cells by transfusion or taking erythropoietin can help reduce fatigue. If the fatigue is not related to this, then it is important that the person with cancer learn ways to conserve energy. Energy is like money, and people only have a limited amount of it. Think carefully about how to spend it. What activities are most important? What activities help restore energy? These are the activities that people with cancer should spend their energy on. They need to ask for help to do the rest of the activities.
|
|
If you regularly feel weary after waking from a good night's sleep or for no apparent reason, it's time to find out why.
|
|
Fatigue is physical and/or mental exhaustion that can be triggered by stress, medication, overwork, or mental and physical illness or disease.Everyone experiences fatigue occasionally. It is the body''s way of signaling its need for rest and sleep.
|
|
Fatigue may be defined as a subjective state in which one feels tired or exhausted, and in which the capacity for normal work or activity is reduced. There is, however, no commonly accepted definition of fatigue when it is considered in the contex...
|
|
Fatigue is a feeling of exhaustion or loss of strength. The duration of fatigue for a patient with cancer has been found to last from one to two times the length of time between diagnosis and completion of treatment, so it is common for fatigue to...
|
|
If the person on chemotherapy has decreased hemoglobin, or oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood, and it seems like the low hemoglobin level will last for a while, then a medicine called PROCRIT® (Epoetin alfa) may be prescribed. This medicine is given as an injection to keep the hemoglobin at a higher level. This can sometimes manage fatigue. PROCRIT is for anemic chemotherapy patients with most types of cancer.
|
|
We currently understand some of the causes of fatigue but not all of them. Fatigue may be related to physical changes caused by cancer or its treatment (chemotherapy, biotherapy, radiotherapy, or surgery). It is reported that the fatigue people get when receiving cancer treatment is more severe than the fatigue healthy people get. In addition, this fatigue lasts longer and is not relieved by sleep. Studies have shown that low hemoglobin is also related to fatigue. Hemoglobin carries oxygen in the blood, so if it is low, the body cells do not get as much oxygen as they need. Also, people who are not well nourished, who don't drink enough fluid and are dehydrated, or who are not able to move around much tend to have fatigue more easily. Finally, the way a person handles stress, thinks, or behaves can influence fatigue.
|
|
Fatigue is a vague feeling of being tired, weak, or exhausted. It is often a symptom of cancer, when cancer is first diagnosed, or when cancer progresses (Ferrell et al, 1996). It is also the most common side effect of cancer treatment. Some people with cancer have described fatigue as being "tired to the bones” or "hitting a wall.” Others say it is the most distressing side effect of cancer treatment. Fatigue is different for everyone, so it is important that the person who is experiencing it describe how he or she feels. Fatigue may cause decreased ability to work or do physical activity. If the person with cancer is easily distracted and unable to concentrate on mental work or activity, then he or she may have attentional fatigue (Winningham and Barton-Burke, 2000). Depending upon its cause, fatigue can come and go or stay constant for a while. Fatigue from chemotherapy tends to occur a few days after the treatment, peaks, and then gets better before the next treatment. Fatigue from radiation doesn't happen right away. It develops over the first two to three weeks of treatment and then increases as the treatment continues. It may last three months or more after the treatment is finished. Attentional fatigue can last up until two or three years after treatment is completed.
|
|
Many people experience late-in-the-day energy lags, but you can take steps to prevent them.
|
|
Fatigue is a common side effect of chemotherapy and radiation therapy. It can be caused by worry, lack of sleep, and poor appetite. Fatigue can also be a sign of anemia (a shortage of red blood cells). This could require medical treatment. The tips below can help you feel better.
|
|
Being tired is the familiar aftermath of physical exertion, prolonged labor or lack of sleep. When does being tired become a symptom of a condition? Fatigue, malaise, lassitude, exhaustion are all subtle variations of the same subjective feelings of not having enough energy to meet the demands of one's life.
|
|
Weakness is a reduction in the strength of one or more muscles.Weakness may be generalized(total body weakness) or localized to only one area, side of the body, limb, or muscle. Weakness is more notable when it is localized.
|
|
Hallucinations involve sensing things that aren''t there while a person is awake and conscious.Feeling a crawling sensation on the skin Hearing voices when no one has spoken Seeing patterns, lights, beings, or objects that aren''t there.Many recreat...
|
|
A hallucination is a false perception occurring without any identifiable external stimulus and indicates an abnormality in perception. The false perceptions can occur in any of the five sensory modalities.
|
|
Hallucinations are false or distorted sensory experiences that appear to be real perceptions. These sensory impressions are generated by the mind rather than by any external stimuli, and may be seen, heard, felt, and even smelled or tasted.A hallu...
|
|
Chills refers to feeling cold after an exposure to a cold environment. The word can also refer to an episode of shivering, accompanied by paleness and feeling cold."
|
|
Chills is the common name for a feeling of coldness accompanied by shivering and possibly fever.
|
![]() |
The term"irritability" is used for infants and young children who, when ill, are especially fussy, whiny, and fretful, despite attempts at comforting and soothing them.Parents are usually very aware of their child''s normal behavior and may pick up...
|
|
Children can become cranky, fussy or irritable for many reasons. Often it's because they're hungry or just tired. But sometimes irritability can be a sign of illness in children.
|
|
One of the best ways to respond to other people's emotions is to "reflect" their mood back to them.
|
|
Visual disturbances are abnormalities of sight. Visual disturbances associated with neurological disorders often include double vision(diplopia), moving or blurred vision due to nystagmus(involuntary rapid movements of the eyes), reduced visual ac...
|
|
Anorexia is characterized by a loss of appetite or lack of desire to eat.Anorexia is common in cancer patients with reported incidence between 15% and 40%. Primary anorexia is especially prevalent in patients with advanced malignancy, and is frequ...
|
|
Detailed information on anorexia, including causes, characteristics, types, diagnosis, treatment, complications, and prevention
|
|
Loss of appetite is a loss of the desire to eat. Not eating can lead to weight loss. Weight loss can cause weakness and fatigue, which affect your ability to perform normal activities. Proper nutrition also helps your body prevent and fight infection. Weight loss or lack of appetite may be due to the cancer or sometimes to treatments for the cancer.
|
|
Your loss of appetite may be because of anxiety or depression, aging, medications or a health concern.
|
|
A harvard Medical school physician answers your question about the prevalence of anorexia in men, and discusses the biological and environmental factors that influence the disorder in both sexes.
|
|
Women suffering from anorexia nervosa may benefit more from general support than in-depth therapy, according to a recent study.
|
![]() |
Frequent urination means needing to urinate more often than usual. Urgent urination is a sudden, compelling urge to urinate, along with discomfort in your bladder.A frequent need to urinate at night is called nocturia.
|
|
Urinary tract infections, kidney stones and prostate problems can all produce these symptoms. Frequent urination without pain also can be a side effect of certain medications, or a symptom of diabetes.
|
|
Is frequent urination a sign of kidney dysfunction?
Diana Post, M.D., is an assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and a member of the Department of Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital.
|
![]() |
Facial swelling is the build-up of fluid in the tissues of the face. Swelling may also affect the neck and upper arms.Puffy face; Swelling of the face; Moon face; Facial edema.If the facial swelling is mild, it may be hard to detect.
|
|
Hazy vision, cloudy vision, blurred vision are all problems with seeing clearly. Any change in your normal vision is cause for concern and is a good reason to call a doctor for an examination.
|
|
Hemianopsia is a term that describes a loss of vision that affects half of the visual field of one eye or both eyes.Hemianopsia prevents an individual from seeing objects in half of the visual field of a particular eye. As a result, an individual ...
|