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General Illness Information Common Name: Costochondritis Medical Term: Tietze’s  Syndrome Description: Chest pain due to painful inflammation (swelling) of the cartilage of the ribs (attaching ribs to sternum). It may mimic cardiac pain. Commonly affects the 3rd or 4th ribs. Age of onset before 40. Both sexes are affected equally.   Causes: Cause of the inflammation is often unknown. May be associated with trauma and overuse. Prevention: Avoidance of activities…

General Illness Information Common Name: Crohn’s Disease Medical Term: Regional Ileitis, Granulomatous ileitis Description: Crohn’s disease is a chronic inflammation of the intestinal wall, usually affecting the full thickness of the intestinal wall. The disease typically affects the most distal part of the small intestine (ileum) and the large intestine.  One-third of the cases involve only the small bowel, most commonly the terminal ileum. About half of the cases involve…

General Illness Information Common Name: Corneal Ulcer, Corneal abrasion. Medical Term: Corneal ulcer, Corneal abrasion Description: Ulceration or sore in the thin transparent layer of the colored part of the eye (cornea). Causes: Dry eye, burns, abrasion, contact lenses, inappropriate use of topical anesthetics, antibiotics, or antiviral drops, immunosuppressant drugs, diabetes, immunodeficiency are the main predisposing factors. Infection by bacteria or viruses frequently follows. Prevention: Avoid corneal abrasion or injury…

General Illness Information Medical Term: CONSTIPATION Common Name: CONSTIPATION Description: Constipation is a condition in which a person has hard, dry stools causing difficult, uncomfortable or infrequent bowel movements. In most cases, constipation is harmless, but can indicate an underlying disorder. Acute constipation begins suddenly and noticeably. Chronic constipation begins insidiously and persists for months or years. Causes: Causes for constipation are listed below: Insufficient fiber in the diet. Fiber…

General Illness Information Common Name: Cirrhosis of the liver Medical Term: None Specified. Description: Pathological process characterized by liver fibrosis (scarring), and nodular liver cell regeneration.  Leads to loss of normal liver function. Third leading cause of death in individuals aged 45-60 years old. Regardless of cause, the basic process is the same: inflammation of liver, followed by destruction of liver cells, cell regeneration and scarring. Causes: Possible causes of…

General Illness Information Medical Term: HERPES SIMPLEX Common Name: Cold Sores, Fever Blister. Description: A common, contagious virus (herpes simplex or HSV-1) infection. Usually involves the lips; gums and mouth area; cornea (rare); occasionally genitals. Causes: It is a herpes virus , a DNA virus of two major types: HSV1 and HSV2; most often HSV1 is associated with oral lesions and HSV2 with genital lesions but reverse occurs also ,…

General Illness Information Medical Term: Colic in Infants Common Name: None Specified Description: Colic is a disorder in which an otherwise healthy infant has severe and paroxysmal crying spells (usually occurring in the late afternoon or evening). May occur 1-2 times per day, lasting 1-3 hours occurring more than 3 days per week. Onset under 4 weeks of age and may continue up to 5 months old. More common in…

General Illness Information Medical Term: Upper Respiratory Infection, URI Common name: Common Cold Description: A contagious viral infection of the upper-respiratory passages Causes: Any of at least 100 viruses. Virus particles spread through the air or from person-to-person contact, especially hand-shaking. Prevention: Wash hands frequently, especially after blowing your nose or handling food; To prevent spreading a cold to others, avoid unnecessary contact during the contagious phase (first 2 to 4…

General Illness Information Common Name: Cholecystitis and Cholangitis Medical Term: None Specified. Description: Infection or inflammation of the gallbladder, which collects and concentrates bile from the liver (Cholecystitis). Infection or inflammation of the ducts that drain bile from the liver to the gallbladder (cholangitis). More common in women and some ethnic groups (North American Indians). Incidence increases with age. Causes: Unknown. Postulated to be caused by inflammation or bacterial infection,…

General Illness Information Common Name: Cerebral Palsy (CP) Medical Term: None Specified Description: Cerebral palsy is a term used to describe a group of patients with a non-progressive impairment of movement and posture that is a result of a central nervous system abnormality that occurred prenatally, perinatally or during the first three years of life Cerebral palsy is not a disease and it is non progressive and non hereditary. Incidence…