General Family Health

There appears to be some disagreement on whether cortisone should be used if you have a fungal infection. The American Osteopathic College of Dermatology (AOCD) says that cortisone cream should...

Staphylococcus aureus, also known as staph, is a bacteria that can cause a skin infection. According to the Centers for Disease Control, nearly 30 percent of Americans have staph bacteria in their...

When an obstruction occurs in the lymphatic system, swelling results in the extremities, which is called lymphedema. The swelling from lymphedema may occur in just one arm or leg, or both arms or...

Ringworm is a common contagious fungal infection that affects skin, scalp and nails. It goes by other names such as athlete's foot and jock itch. Symptoms include itchy, irritated patches...

Swine flu, known as H1N1, is spread person to person by sneezing, coughing, or an exchange of fluids, such as kissing or sharing food or drinks with a person who has the flu. It is possible to...

Legionnaire's disease is a lung infection caused by the legionella bacteria. Legionella is a naturally occurring bacteria that thrives in warm water environments. People develop Legionnaire's...

Pink eye is an infection of the eyes that makes them watery and a pinkish color. The viral and bacterial forms are contagious, and many schools will not allow children that have pink eye, for fear...

Now that fall has come, so have the seasonal colds. Most famous of all is a sinus infection. The one type of infection most irritating of all or is it? It would be so nice if you could knock it...

A urinary tract infection (UTI) can be very uncomfortable and can lead to serious health problems when left untreated. Luckily, treatment is very simple once a doctor confirms you have a UTI. If...

Meningitis occurs when there is an infection of the meninges, the thin lining that covers the brain and the spinal cord. There are two types of meningitis, bacterial and viral. As the name might...

The feeling of chills and shivering that you get when you are first coming down with a cold or the flu is your body's response to feeling cold.

Bacterial vaginosis, which is also known as gardnerella vaginitis, is a common cause of vaginal odor and discharge, according to the Harvard School of Medicine. This infection occurs when there's...

The air passages to your lungs are called bronchi. An infection of these tubes is called acute bronchitis. Acute bronchitis has symptoms similar to those of a common cold, but they include coughing.

According to the Mayo Clinic, brain damage can cause cerebral palsy in a number of ways, but it is most often due to injury to the brain or infection of a baby's brain during early pregnancy...

In 2008, salmonella caused more than 160 infections across the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were no reported deaths due to this outbreak.

Syphilis is a bacterial infection that is typically spread by sexual contact. The number of syphilis cases has been rising steadily since 2000, according to the Mayo Clinic. In the early stages of...

Ankle pain has a variety of causes and a variety of treatments. Little pains, such as bumping your ankle during a jog or dropping something on it, can be treated at home. Significant swelling or...

Ear infection (otitis) symptoms may include nausea and vomiting. Pressure in the middle ear can cause balance issues, which lead to dizziness and nausea. Dizziness may include vertigo (a feeling ...

Ear infections are common among people of all ages and can cause pain, fever and sometimes yellowish pus draining from the ear canals. These infections are caused by swelling of the tube that...

According to MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, ringworm is a fungal infection of the skin that can occur on your feet (athlete's foot), body, groin (jock itch) or scalp. Although ringworm is a...

A face mask, commonly worn by surgeons in the operating room, becomes a popular accessory during pandemic season. When worn by an infected person, a face mask can help prevent illness from...

Although their names sound familiar, ringworm and roundworm are two completely different health problems that commonly affect human beings throughout the world. Understanding the distinctions...

Walking is a natural part of life. If you are not confined to a bed or a wheelchair, it is something you do every day. When you have knee pain, however, you quickly learn to not take pain-free...

Many wounds can be treated at home with simple first-aid kits. However, there are times when even the simplest of cuts or scrapes can require the help of professionals. Infection is one such case....

Cholecystitis is the medical term for gallbladder inflammation. One cause of choecystitis is an infection of the gallbladder. Eventually, infected gallbladders may need to be removed surgically.

Ascaris suum is a parasitic roundworm infection of pigs. It is common in these animals, but so rare in humans that cases often are reviewed in medical literature. Ascaris suum in humans can be...

Earwax is a common irritant for many because they dislike the sight and feel of having it in their ears. However, earwax plays an important role in the health of your body.

Swine Flu (H1N1) virus targets young, healthy people and older, fragile people, but along with regular winter or fall flu, can be avoided. If you are concerned about your health or if you have...

HIV is a virus that attacks our immune cells; As it progresses, it weakens the immune system. The weaker the system becomes, the more likely infection will set in. Before the immune system is...

The symptoms of spleen pain are often confused with other ailments and spleen pain is often a side effect from other disorders, such as cystic fibrosis, cirrhosis or bacterial infections.

Venipuncture is the removal of blood from a vein in the arm, hand, wrist or ankle with a syringe, Vacutainer tube or winged infusion set. Infection at the injection site is rare, but you should...

Throat infections can leave your throat feeling sore and scratchy. Whether the pain is from a viral or bacterial infection, the discomfort is hard to ignore. Throat infections may cause...

According to the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse (NDDIC), a service of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), appendicitis is the cause of more emergency abdominal...

A fungus is any one of a number of eukaryotic organisms that lack vascular tissues. Fungi can range in size and form from a single cell to a large body mass of branched, filamentous hyphae with...

Septic shock is an extremely serious condition. It occurs when an bacterial infection becomes so severe that it leads to life-threatening low blood pressure. Septic shock can affect anyone, but...

Folliculitis, also known as barber's itch, is defined as an infection of the hair follicles. The result of this infection is the growth of small pimples over the infected hair follicles. In most...

Mastoid ear infections, if left untreated, can cause high fever or even hearing loss. If you think you or your child might have a mastoid infection, set up an appointment with your doctor as soon...

Rotavirus, the most frequent cause of severe diarrhea in children, results in the death of over 600,000 babies and children each year throughout the world, according to the Centers for Disease...

Gallbladder surgery is needed when the gallbladder is inflamed or infected from disease or gallstones. Just like any other surgery, gallbladder surgery comes with risks such as infection, which...

When one hears the word boil, it is easy to conjure up images of Biblical proportions, such as the famous story in which one of the ten plagues placed on the Egyptians included a plague of boils....

According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), tapeworms are gastroinsteinal parasites that have a head and neck. A tapeworm can reach up to 20 inches in length, and lives in a dog's...

A few things you may not know about the bladder is that as you age, it diminishes in capacity, retains urine and becomes overactive. You also might not have known that the sixth most common kind...

Boils are very painful skin infections. They are caused by bacteria entering and infecting an oil gland or hair follicle. Boils can occur anywhere on the body. They are more often found on...

The symptoms that accompany eye infections such as conjunctivitis and stye can become painful if they are not treated properly. To diagnose the condition and relieve the symptoms a doctor may take...

Tapeworms are a type of parasitic worm that can infest the digestive system of humans if eggs or larvae are accidentally consumed. Tapeworm infection can become a serious condition if worms are...

By producing white blood cells, the spleen plays an important part in fighting germs and destroying cells that are damaged and old. Located above the stomach on the left, the spleen serves to...

When white blood cells are examined, they are evaluated based on the total number of WBCs in one cubic millimeter of venous blood and by the percentage of each type of cell (called leukocyte). An...

It may not seem like a pleasant or aromatic way to go about treating your sinus infection, but the word is that garlic can be very effective in curing what ails you when it comes to your sinuses....

Flying with an ear infection is generally not recommended by most doctors. Although you might not feel any pain at the onset of the flight, once the flight begins to land, you might notice severe...

Ingrown toenails can be hideously painful and treacherous. They need to be treated appropriately and in a timely fashion. If left untreated, an ingrown toenail can lead to a serious bone...