MEDICAL CHOICES: August 2012

Friday, August 17, 2012

Brain Tumor Signs, Symptoms, Cause, Diagnosis and Treatment

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A brain tumor is a growth in the brain that may be benign (non-cancerous) or malignant (cancerous). Both a benign and malignant tumor can cause symptoms because the tumors' growth takes up space and causes pressure and compression on vital nerve tissue. Review these symptoms to detect if you have any of the warning signs of a tumor and learn more about the cause, diagnosis and treatment.

Brain Tumor Signs And Symptoms

The most common symptom is a headache. 90% of those with a tumor in the brain will experience a headache during the course of the illness. The headache may be described as a an intermittent (off and on) deep ache, or pressure. It is not usually described as throbbing. The headache may be increased by coughing, straining, or changing positions (i.e. standing to lying down). Headaches caused by tumors are usually more intense in the morning at the early stages of tumor growth.

Other symptoms of brain tumor may include nausea and vomiting (some persons may vomit without any preceding nausea), sudden changes in vision (i.e. double vision), memory lapses, changes in personality, or seizures.

Tumor Cause, Diagnosis and Treatment

There is no known cause for primary brain tumors (tumors that originate in the brain) and most tumors of the brain have spread (metastasized) from cancer elsewhere in the body.

The aforementioned symptoms may be noted and should be evaluated by a physician so a proper diagnosis can be made. The evaluation may include a physical examination and specialized tests such as CT or MRI scans, or EEG (electroencephalogram instrument records brain activity).

Tumors of the brain are treated by surgically removal if possible (inoperable brain tumors can not be removed because they are too large or in an inaccessible area). Radiation treatments or chemotherapy may also be considered as treatment options.

The Boy with Incredible Brain

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Daniel Paul Tammet is a British high-functioning autistic savant gifted with a facility for mathematical calculations, sequence memory, and natural language learning. He was born with congenital childhood epilepsy. Experiencing numbers as colors or sensations is a well-documented form of synesthesia, but the detail and specificity of Tammet's mental imagery of numbers is unique. In his mind, he says, each number up to 10,000 has its own unique shape and feel, that he can "see" results of calculations as landscapes, and that he can "sense" whether a number is prime or composite. He has described his visual image of 289 as particularly ugly, 333 as particularly attractive, and pi as beautiful. Tammet not only verbally describes these visions, but also creates artwork, particularly watercolor paintings, such as his painting of Pi.

Tammet holds the European record for memorising and recounting pi to 22,514 digits in just over five hours. He also speaks a variety of lang uages including English, French, Finnish, German, Spanish, Lithuanian, Romanian, Estonian, Icelandic, Welsh and Esperanto. He particularly likes Estonian, because it
is rich in vowels. Tammet is creating a new language called Mänti. Tammet is capable of learning new languages very quickly. To prove this for the Channel Five documentary, Tammet was challenged to learn Icelandic in one week. Seven days later he appeared on Icelandic television conversing in Icelandic, with his Icelandic language instructor saying it was "not human."

Weird Medical Fact: Ice Pick Lobotomy - As the Cure for everything from Depression to Hyperactive Children

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The treatment of mental illness hadn't had much progress until the introduction of drugs in the '50s. A decade before then, Walter Freeman ushered in one of the darkest periods in psychiatry's history by touting the “ice pick” lobotomy – where a sharp instrument is inserted through the eye socket to destroy the frontal lobes – as the cure for everything from depression to hyperactive children. It became incredibly popular, over 50,000 were performed, with Freeman performing over 3,000 himself in his lobotomobile. Freeman believed in lobotomies even after being discredited. He spent his final years visiting his victims, trying to prove they had benefited from his work.

Red Light Therapy | Look Years Younger, Reduce Wrinkles, Ease Pain

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Red light therapy for anti aging purposes is a form of LED light therapy, also called photo rejuvenation. This procedure uses Light Emitting Diodes directly pointed to the skin to promote a younger and healthier skin. Red light therapy is completely natural and actually triggers a response from your body to get your skin improved from the inside.

This skin care treatment has been researched and developed by NASA, and was first used to evaluate the reaction of plants under LEDs. The process showed it accelerated growing, and later confirmed that it was effective on humans cells. Though plants and human cells are different, light at the ideal wavelength has been proven to improve skin condition, completely naturally.
Indeed, red is the color to heal, and it is used for a number of other conditions, such as pain management (back pain, tendinitis, tennis elbow...). Combined with infrared lights, the procedure is even more effective, since infrared penetrates deeper. As for skin care, what happens is that your skin absorbs the light, stimulating the production of elastin and collagen. These two proteins are of course extremely important for your skin firmness and elasticity.

Elastin and collagen production are decreasing while we age, plus the little veins that bring the nutrients in the blood to the surface of the skin become even smaller. Red light renew cells and will help those veins to carry more blood to your skin, more nutrients.

The effect of red light therapy is cumulative. So the more you use it the softer and smoother your skin will be. Generally, treatments for the whole face last about 15 to 30 minutes, but of course you can focus your efforts on certain areas of your face: crow's feet, corner of the lips, neck, etc. Wrinkles and fine lines will start to get filled with collagen again and you will be happy to get that great tone and radiance on your face back. Another form of LED light therapy uses blue light, and is dedicated to fight acne. Green light is for hyper pigmentation.

The beauty of it is it's no surgical intervention, and you don't need much creams and lotions after all. Though it was first only available from skin clinics, dermatologists and spas, red light therapy devices are now publicly on the market and you can thus get your treatment from your own home. The cost of such devices vary ($100 - $400) but is totally worth it considering the money saved on other skin care products, and much more affordable than sessions at professionals offices.

Engineering vs Medicine

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Students across the world find themselves at the crossroads after completing their high school. For toppers, the decision to opt between engineering and medicine is the most difficult task. Of course, the choice is never entirely yours and is influenced by several external factors. These include your parents, the success of your elder siblings in a particular academic area, your teachers and, for some, even friends. Not to say that you should ignore them but the best bet is to listen to your inner-self and do some search on both these fields before deciding on one. Following are some considerations you should take into account:
Ease of finding a job
How many doctors or nurses have you come across who said they were unemployed? The answer would be less than ten. Yes! If you are the one who wants to land up in a job immediately after completion of your course, medicine is the right specialty for you. There is little doubt that engineering profession has too many opportunities; however, finding a desired job can be a tad difficult.
Leisure time
Are you a kind of a person who prefers to work five days a week and wants to try lots of other things during the weekend? In that case, you may opt for engineering. There are several doctors and nurses who say they have little time for themselves and they have to be ready to work during any time of the day and week.
Income
Engineers can be found at many levels in the organization. You can see some of them running companies as CEOs and you may even see some engineers providing low paying technical support services. Hence, there is no certainty on income levels. On the other hand, people in medicine profession invariably earn decent income.
Sensitivity
Many medicine students leave this field after first three months of study. The probable rationale: I am allergic to smell in operation theater; I couldn't dissect the frog; the sight of dead bodies haunts me in my dreams. If you can set aside all these issues and look at the larger picture of treating the ill, you can take up medical profession.
Creativity
There is no limit to creativity in engineering profession. Some engineering specializations such as automobile and architecture are perfect example of these. Who knows you could be the next Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, and end up constructing the ninth wonder of the world! But medicine is a much strict discipline.
Social Purpose
There is no better way to save human lives than through medicine. There are hundreds of ailments that are yet to be overcome. If you empathize with living beings and want to make a change to lives then go for medicine.
Social status
The doctors are at the top of the social hierarchy in terms of respect and recognition. People treat them gently and always want to make friends with them. If you crave for such attention then becoming a doctor can fulfill your desires; however, there is a caveat to it: You can never take your personal conduct for granted.
The above mentioned considerations are general in nature and are highly debatable. You may find exceptions in both engineering and medicine. Nevertheless, these guidelines may serve you a great deal in knowing some of the basic characteristics in both these professions. The important thing is that you should not decide on a career just because you think it's cool. Your grades in high school, your priorities in life, your finances and several other things will dictate your decision. But doing basic research on both these specializations is utmost important before choosing. Once chosen, the next step will be to secure admission in a good academic institution that will add real value to your knowledge and career. Remember, getting a seat in a reputed college is half the work done. Other rewards will come due to your perseverance, hard work, and passion for the job.