mom sectionmom sectionDespite the misleading name, the Egyptian sandfish is not a fish, although it does originally hail from the deserts of Egypt. The sandfish is type of lizard, named for its ability to burrow through the sand as though it were swimming. It is a medium-sized skink that can grow to a total length of 7 or 8 inches and can live over 10 years. As a general rule, desert reptiles are not recommended for beginning herp collectors because they need their native habitat recreated as closely as possible, which requires research, time and money.
Mammals belong to the mammalia order of the animal kingdom. These animals share similar characteristics with other orders such as endothermic bodies and live birth. However, some traits are uniquely mammalian, including possessing true hairs and nursing capabilities. Also, people are members of the mammalia order. Due to their thick protection and body temperature regulation, mammals are able to live in most of the world's habitats.
In 1908, Lawrence Joseph Henderson wrote a mathematical equation outlining the function of carbonic acid as a buffer solution while analyzing metabolic acidosis. Karl Albert Hasselbalch converted the formula in 1916 to logarithmic terms, thus producing the Henderson-Hasselbalch Equation, which is still in use today.
Getting blood drawn can be terrifying for kids and stressful for their parents. Needles look scary and the fear of pain can be paralyzing. It may be tempting to pretend you're headed to the grocery store or the park, but taking a straightforward, honest approach to scheduled blood work can help your child feel prepared and in control of the situation.
4D-MSPECT creates images of blood flowing in tissues and organs. Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT) captures images at varying depths focusing on structures at one depth while blurring structures on another depth to bring structures into focus. A radioactive tracer injected into the body is followed through metabolic processes. Emission tomography receives less radiation from damaged tissues due to reduced tissue function. 4D-MSPECT integrates both tomography and the radioactive tracer.
The term phlebotomy has had different meanings over the years. It can be traced back to before Hippocrates in the 5th century B.C., when phlebotomy was a common practice to treat diseased patients.
The literal definition of perfusion is flowing over or through. As it relates to the body, perfusion is the flow of blood through the organs. This flow is critical for sustaining life because when operating properly, this is the system that transports oxygen throughout the body and removes wastes, preventing them from accumulating in the body. However, when this system is not operating properly due to illness or injury, the body becomes distressed because it is not receiving enough oxygen. It then shunts the blood to the core of the body where the vital organs are located. Many of the…
Buffer solutions are solutions in water that mark the combination of acids and bases. They help in neutralization reaction to a certain extent. Acidic buffer solutions are those that have strong acids and weak bases as their components. They are used for neutralizing alkaline solutions. Alkaline or basic buffer solutions are those that have strong alkalis and weak acids in the mixture. They are used for neutralizing acidic aqueous solutions.
A pulse oximetry meter is one of the most popular and noninvasive machines used in critical care. It helps give an idea of how much oxygen is in the blood as well as the heart rate. While there many human variables that can alter the reading, it is a relatively easy machine to use and understand. The machine has light probes to measure O2 stats and clips that can attach anywhere there is an arterial pulse. The most common places are fingers, toes, nose and earlobes.
Monkeypox is a rare, infectious viral disease that was until recently limited to rain forests in central and West African countries. The disease made its way to the United States in 2003 when residents became infected after contact with sick pet prairie dogs. As a result, the federal government enacted measures restricting importation of prairie dogs and other animals that can carry the viral disease.
Everyone knows we need oxygen to live, but not many people know just everything it can do. Oxygen can kill viruses, the common cold, and did you know cancer cannot live where there is too much Oxygen? It's true! Read on to learn how to get more of this precious element into your body and your blood.
Ligaments are bands of tissue that connect body parts. The function of suspensory ligaments is to provide support by suspending one body part from another.
The ciliary suspensory ligament, more properly called the suspensory ligament of the lens of the eye, suspends the lens from a ring of tissue called the ciliary body.
To this day, a red and white (and sometimes blue) striped pole is the barber shop's emblem. The use of this symbol dates back to medieval times, when barbers performed bloodletting and functioned as surgeons.
Of the three main types of muscle in the human body, cardiac muscle is perhaps the least understood. This muscle, unlike the smooth or striated muscles found in the arms and legs, never seems to get tired. This is because the cardiac muscle is designed to keep going, every minute of every day, nonstop for decades. How? Keep reading.
Infections are caused primarily by external pathogens like bacteria, viruses and fungi. These pathogens enter the body through improperly cooked food, cuts, wounds and respiration. Once in the body, they begin to multiply, causing signs and symptoms typical of infection. Recognizing these signs is vital to both prevention and effective treatment.
The human heart has four separate chambers. Atria are the upper chambers of the heart and ventricles are the lower chambers. There is one atrium and one ventricle on the right side of the heart and one of each on the left side. The atria have much thinner walls than the ventricles. Both atria and ventricles have valves that assist is the pumping of blood. Each of the four chambers of the heart has a specific function, and together they keep the heart pumping and the body functioning.
The urinary bladder is one of the most underrated organs in the body. As a part of the urinary system, the bladder allows us to efficiently remove waste from our bloodstream and excrete it from our body. Although it is essentially a storage receptacle we would be forced to continuously urinate without it.
All human beings know what blood is. We have all seen blood before, because most of us have been cut at one time or another in our life, or at least have seen others cut. However, most of us don't know as much about this vital part of our existence as we should. There are some basic facts about blood that we all must know.
Many people often confuse anemia for hypovolemia, but the former is a decrease in the number of red blood cells or overall hemoglobin, while the latter is an emergency state that requires immediate attention and, in some cases, hospitalization. Hypovolemia most commonly occurs when a person has been injured and is losing blood, although it can also ensue from other illnesses. Doctors employ various methods to increase the amount of blood in a patient who is rapidly losing blood due to hypovolemia, and to increase red blood cells or hemoglobin count for anemic patients.
Basic life support is a type of medical care used on someone with a life-threatening injury or condition until full medical care can be given. An emergency responder or someone trained in BLS can provide this critical care. BLS can be provided without medical equipment, usually in a non-hospital setting.
Several parts of blood, including red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets, are made inside bone marrow. Find out where blood plasma comes from with information from a science teacher in this free video on physiology and the human body.
If the blood in the body is never clean , then that body is going to be a mess. Learn about the blood as a body filter from a professional speaker and educator in this free health video.
The heart is a pump for all of the blood in the body, with arteries carrying blood away from the heart and veins carrying blood back. Find out about the atria and ventricles of the heart with information from a cardiologist in this free video on cardiology and the heart.
One of the most important roles of blood is to move materials through the body. Blood transports a variety of materials, including oxygen, nutrients, waste, hormones and ions, to and from body tissues. Oxygen is taken in by the lungs and moves into the blood where it attaches to a protein in red blood cells called hemoglobin. This oxygen is then delivered to cells; carbon dioxide is picked up, returned to the lungs and expelled during breathing. The red blood cells that transport oxygen account for 45% of the total blood volume. The remaining 55% of blood is composed of…
Blood is a mixture of substances in the body mainly comprised of four parts. It has red and white cells, plasma and platelets. Platelets are tiny pieces of cells that enable us not to bleed to death when we are injured. When we get cut, platelets race to the wound and stick there. Plasma is the fluid part of blood which is just a mixture of sugars, proteins, fats and other parts like potassium and magnesium. Red cells have hemoglobin, which is extremely important. Hemoglobin is responsible for carrying oxygen to the cells--without oxygen, the cells will die. White cells…
The heart is a cardiac muscle composed of four chambers. The chambers are responsible for pumping blood throughout the body. The circulating blood delivers important nutrients and oxygen to tissues while bringing back toxins and wastes for filtering. The heart is fired by electrical impulses.
Estimating blood loss is a practical skill to have in an emergency situation. The body needs several pints to function but can afford to lose several before it becomes dangerous. Knowing how to quickly estimate how much blood a person has lost can end up saving a life.
