Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Stomach Ache

A. Syndrome differentiation

(a) Differential diagnosis:

Stomach ache should be distinguished from angina pectoris, hypochondriac pain and abdominal pain. Although angina pectoris is a disorder of the heart meridians characterized by precordial pain, it occasionally manifests itself as an epigastric pain. In this case, it may be differentiated by the colicky character of its pain and its accompanying symptoms such as suffocative sensation, sweating, coldness of limbs, indistinct pulse, etc. Stomach ache caused by liver-qi attacking the stomach may manifest itself as a radiating pain to the hypochondria, but the epigastrium is the primary painful site. Abdominal pain may complicate with stomach ache, and the two disorders can be distinguished from each other by the analysis of their causes and the accompanying symptoms.

(b) Differentiation between asthenia and sthenia syndromes:

The asthenia-syndrome of stomache is characterized by a sudden onset, a prolonged course with intermittent relief and pain relievable by pressure and warmth. This type is mostly due to deficiency of spleen-yang and stomach-yang or insufficiency of stomach-yin and is difficult to cure. The sthenia-syndrome of stomach ache is marked by an insidious onset, a short course and pain associated with tenderness. This type usually results from retention of cold in the stomach, immoderate eating and drinking, an attack of liver-qi on the stomach or stagnation of blood in the stomach, and it responds well to medication. Moreover, cases with hemorrhage due to the involvement of collaterals by blood stasis commonly manifest themselves as a primary asthenia-syndrome and a secondary sthenia-syndrome.

B. Therapeutic principles

Regulating qi circulation and the stomach and arresting pain are the general therapeutic principles for stomach ache, which may be modified according to the cause and the presenting syndrome of the individual case.

Best Headache Medicine

Since headaches are the recurring feature in your life it is better for you to understand the root cause, the genesis of headache in you. It is very important to train yourself in handling them depending upon the nature and severity of the headache.

In fact headache medicine training appears to be the next logical step. The achievement affecting the secular life especially in the urban and metropolitan centers are stupendous and as such the reasons for the headaches have also increased manifold.

It is normal for you to treat migraine headache with over the counter medications. It is the accepted practice every where, though it may not the best practice. You know that such medication can not provide you with permanent cure. But the pain and confusion associated with the migraine headache is so severe that you are willing to swallow anything to get rid of that condition.

The instant relief that you get is all that matters. You very well know that your pain is suppressed not eliminated with these medicines. Such pain-killers do generally bring along with them their trusted side-effects which are not at all good for you in the long run. If you are one of those who get side effects more severely than the original disease, your suffering will be more.

Common Cold Medicine

Cold viruses are contained mainly through the nose and spread through nasal fluid which is why it is so important for people to wash their hands after they sneeze or cough. Using Kleenex for tissue can be very helpful in preventing the spread of a cold. Children should always be encouraged to use Kleenex and to keep anti-bacterial soap on hand at school.

Even when you are trying to prevent a cold or the spreading of a cold, inevitably your child will have several during their many years at school and this is something that you might as well plan for well in advance. It is smart to have a medicine cabinet well stocked and ready to go for the days when a cold will hit your young child or someone else in your family. Make sure you have a variety of cold medicines to serve everyone in the family when the cold and flu season arrives.

Vicks Vapor rub is always good to have on hand to put on your sick child’s neck and throat area when he or she isn’t feeling well. In addition to the Vicks treatment you need to choose some internal medicines which will quickly help contain the cold.

High fevers will need immediate attention by Children’s Tylenol, Children’s Motrin or another form of the above. For instance, Children’s Tylenol plus cold and cough can help your child battle the days of the cold. Be sure to read the directions and don’t mix medications with anything else without checking with your child’s pharmacist or doctor.

Dimetapp is a favorite cold and allergy liquid that many children don’t mind to take because of the grape-flavored medicine that has long since been a favorite. Elix Sure is another great cold medicine for children who are a little under the weather. And of course there are many more medications for children and adults alike.

Natural home remedies are still among the favorite cure for a common cold and many say that since the common cold is indeed a viral infection and can not be cured by any antibiotics or penicillin, home remedies will work just as well as anything else and that may very well be true.

Hot teas and teas with lemon and honey have long been regarded as a great tea for common cold and the common sore throat. Antioxidant teas and vitamin C have been said to effectively fight the wrath of the common cold. Gargling salt water with warm water and salt has always been a favorite among moms for children complaining of a sore throat.

Other things that have been said to cure the common cold include a zinc lozenge which can be taken at the onset of a cold. The lozenges are said to cut the time that someone has a cold almost in half. However, this is not proven as of yet and would be hard to prove because people fall ill with a common cold gradually and often times don’t realize they have the cold until their immune system wears down completely.

Another old remedy for the common cold is the remedy of good old fashioned alcohol! And that isn’t the rubbing alcohol that you buy in a pharmacy, it’s the drinkable alcohol! A hot toddy is said to cure the common cold if you drink enough of them. A hot toddy is made with one tablespoon of honey, 3 shots of brandy, lemon and tea. It is something that many believe does work if you sip on several per day during your common cold ailments.

Rock-n-rye is an old stout drink that many people can’t stomach but if you can drink it straight up in a couple of shot glasses, you’ll quickly see a difference. If not, you may at least have an alcohol buzz!

Cold remedies and cures for the common cold can certainly raise some eyebrows because many people have some really strange beliefs as to what cures the common colds. Still, other factors play into how quickly someone will recuperate from the cold. Bed rest can help speed up a recovery as well as getting a good night’s sleep with at least eight hours per night in rest.

Gatorade and other fluids will help you keep yourself well hydrated while you are ill. Keeping warm with mittens and scarves when you go outside will ensure that you don’t take a backset on any possible recuperation when you must go out into the cold weather. Be smart and bundle up in warm clothing if you must go outside when you are sick.

Kleenex and throat lozenges on hand is always a good idea and making sure you don’t forget the Vick’s vapor rub when you are going to be inside for the rest of the day is a good idea too. You don’t want to wear this outside of course, but you should keep your neck and chest saturated in it when you can because you will breathe easier which can often make you feel better instantly when you have a cold. Nasal passages are clear from the vapors that you smell when you use the Vick’s Vapor Rub.

Friday, February 20, 2009

Can common cold affect on sperm?

Think of sperm as something that is being made all the time but that takes 72 or so days to mature. So, in the testicle, there are sperm that are young and mature and every stage in between.

When a man gets a fever or illness, all of those sperm, both young and old can be affected. That means that the sperm can be abnormal for the next 72 days or so. However, they may NOT be affected. It depends on the illness.

Therefore, to have a sperm sample that has no chance of being affected by this fever, one has to wait about 2.5 months to retest.

Is it safe to take cold medications during pregnancy?

I work in a pharmacy and Robitussin is safe to take. It has to be the plain kind though. Stay away from anything that says DM , which adds ingredients for other symptoms. However, there has been no problems linked to the DM variety either. Whomever posted that Guaifensein is categorized as a class B drug is wrong. It is actually a class B drug, which means that there appears to be no genetic or pregnancy risk associated with its use. People, please make sure you are 100% correct before posting incorrect information which may frighten others who have taken this. A number of nonprescription cold and cough medicines are safe during pregnancy. These include Tylenol (the FDA puts this in Class B), antihistamines such as Claritin (Class B) and saline nasal sprays (Class A). To see current classifications make sure you are looking on an updated site. There are sites which list certain medications as being a class c, but over the years, these have been updated to a class b.