So apparently I have a little cousin that I didn’t even know I had. I met her at our family’s thanksgiving dinner. She has cystic fibrosis. I know a fair amount about the disease already, but she was wearing one of those surgical masks. Apparently she has a weakened immune system or something. I was just wondering if it was very common to wear masks like that, cause none of the people with cystic fibrosis that I have known ever did.

Working with different programs of treatment ought not to take the place of prescribed drug treatments and physiotherapy. There are many methods of treatment which a cystic fibrosis patient could take part in to help preserve their health. Please, prior to starting any kind of different therapy or anything supplemental to exactly what the physician prescribes drop by and see your general practitioner!

Among the greatest ways to remain healthy is by taking exercise. Physical exercise has lots of benefits to healthy individuals and even more benefits to those people suffering from cystic fibrosis. Exercise brings balance to your body. It lowers stress, assists in easing tension and gives your body essential oxygen. For those people who have cystic fibrosis, physical exercise could well help in keeping thick mucus loose and expand lung capacity.

Just what can a teenager do in order to help to increase their lung capacity and minimize stress? They might possibly wish to join in a team activity. Being a member of a team increases self-confidence and increases self-esteem. If you have always been active, continue to do just what you can by way of physical exercise. Jogging, going for walks and trampolining are just some activities which you might take part in. Combining physical activity with meditation can possibly build toward better health and a far more optimistic outlook on life. Physical and psychological activities will assist in balancing your body and lower stress and tension. You would probably opt for an activity which suits you and is within your physical boundaries.

Mixing physical activity with simple meditation may possibly help to improve your frame of mind and keep you healthier. Walking through you park, running or riding a bike around a nature path are all excellent examples of exercise that may well help a cystic fibrosis sufferer to remain healthy.

Meditation is very good for everybody. Prayer, meditation, Yoga and other styles of meditation as well as controlled movements are beneficial. Try Martial Arts, Chinese Yoga, aerobics or dancing. Swimming is a useful form of physical exercise that could possibly have a calming influence on your spirit and supply you with a really good workout. It is recommended that you steer clear of chlorinated waters. You ought to attempt to swim in waters rich in minerals like the sea.

Weight lifting, gymnastics and just about any type of exercise you can think of will assist with your treatments. Commencing an exercise is simple and easy. Take a short saunter around the block each day and build up by walking for two blocks or by taking your short walk twice a day. Any exercise is better than none at all and there are just three rules! Do not exhaust yourself, always exercise on a full stomach and be careful not to injure yourself. You might possibly go for a stroll once you have eaten.

Sweat therapy is another fantastic way to rid your body of toxins but be careful so that you do not allow yourself to get dehydrated. Sweating is a good way to clear toxins and to keep mucus loosened. There are numerous ways in which you can accomplish sweat therapy. Work out with quite a few clothes on, use a sauna and drink warm coffee or tea in a room that is already very warm. You may very well also try eating spicy food items. Hot chili powder and other zesty food items will cause you to sweat. It is well-known that several toxins and chemicals can simply be eliminated from the body by way of the sweat glands.

By: Donald Saunders

About the Author:

What is this condition?

A chronic heart condition, cor pulmonale is an enlargement of the right ventricle that results from various lung diseases, except those that primarily affect the left side of the heart, or congenital heart disease. Invariably, cor pulmonale follows some disorder of the lungs, pulmonary vessels, chest wall, or respiratory control center. For instance, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease produces pulmonary hypertension, which leads to right ventricular enlargement and failure. Because cor pulmonale generally occurs late during the course of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and other irreversible diseases, the prognosis is generally poor.

What causes it?

Approximately 85% of people with cor pulmonale have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. And 25% of people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease eventually develop cor pulmonale.

Other respiratory disorders that produce cor pulmonale include:

- obstructive lung diseases, such as bronchiectasis and cystic fibrosis

- restrictive lung diseases, such as black lung and scleroderma

- loss of lung tissue after extensive lung surgery

- diseases of the lungs’ blood vessels

- respiratory insufficiency without lung disease, as seen in muscular dystrophy and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

- obesity hypoventilation syndrome (pickwickian syndrome) and upper airway obstruction

- living at high altitudes (chronic mountain sickness).

To compensate for the extra work needed to force blood through the lungs, the right ventricle dilates and enlarges. Eventually, this leads to right ventricular failure. Cor pulmonale accounts for about 25% of all types of heart failure.

Cor pulmonale is most common in areas of the world where the incidence of cigarette smoking and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is high; it affects middle-aged to elderly men more often than women, but incidence in women is increasing. In children, cor pulmonale may be a complication of cystic fibrosis, upper airway obstruction, scleroderma, extensive bronchiectasis, or other disorders.

What are its symptoms?

At first, symptoms reflect the underlying disorder and occur mostly in the respiratory system. They include chronic cough, shortness of breath on exertion, wheezing respirations, fatigue, and weakness. As the disease progresses, symptoms include shortness of breath (even at rest) that worsens on exertion, rapid breathing, swelling, weakness, and discomfort in the right upper abdomen. A chest exam reveals findings characteristic of the underlying lung disease.

Drowsiness and alterations in consciousness may occur.

How is it diagnosed?

Pulmonary artery pressure measurements show increased right ventricular and pulmonary artery pressures as a result of increased pulmonary vascular resistance. Other useful diagnostic tests include echo cardiography (ultrasound of the heart) or angiography, a chest X-ray, arterial blood gas analysis, electrocardiography, pulmonary function tests, and hematocrit.

How is it treated?

Treatment of cor pulmonale is designed to reduce oxygen deficiency, increase the persons exercise tolerance, and, when possible, correct the underlying condition.In addition to bed rest, treatment may include administration of:

- digitalis glycosides (such as Lanoxin)

- antibiotics when respiratory infection is present

- potent pulmonary artery vasodilators (such as Hyperstat, Nipride, Aresoline, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, calcium channel blockers, or prostaglandins) in primary pulmonary hypertension

- oxygen by mask or, in acute cases, by a mechanical ventilator

- low-salt diet, restricted fluid intake, and diuretics, such as Lasix, to reduce swelling

- phlebotomy to reduce the red blood cell count

- anticoagulation with small doses of Calciparine to reduce the risk of thromboembolism.

By: Prahalad Singh

About the Author:

CNN story of Cystic Fibrosis patient Susan Burroughs. She received a double lung transplant to enable her to continue to live. She created the Cystic Fibrosis – Reaching Out Foundation to assist other families suffering from this fatal disease.

What does herpes look like? Identification of symptoms is an important part of early diagnosis and prevention of sexually transmitted diseases like herpes. Not all STD’s look alike, and some have no physical appearance at all, making it all the more difficult for infected persons to seek treatment, either medical or alternative, for their herpes infection.

Herpes is caused by the Simplex 1 and Simplex 2 virus, which more often than not are responsible for the oral and genital versions, respectively. The actual presence of the virus in the body exhibits no signs at all. During a flare-up of the virus, however, the skin is the predominantly affected area on the body, and the severity of the symptoms vary from case to case and can range from mild redness to clusters of painful blisters on the skin.

When answering what does herpes look like, it depends on what part of the body is exhibiting the symptoms. Let’s take a closer look:

What does genital herpes look like?

Other than the location of the sores, the symptoms of genital herpes are almost identical to those of oral herpes, and the sores look similar. With genital herpes, lesions appear in and around the genital area of the infected person. They can appear on and around the ***** and testicles in men, on the exterior and interior vaginal areas of women, and in the **** area and inside the urethra of both sexes. Particularly in the vagina, genital herpes lesions can be impossible to see, unlike oral sores that are more obvious.

What does oral herpes look like?

You might be surprised at how often you’ve actually seen the symptoms in those you have contact with on a regular basis. An oral herpes blister is what is commonly referred to as a cold sore. The outbreak of such a sore begins with a tingling and mild redness of the skin that then develops into a blister that can be quite large and painful. These blisters are usually located very near the lips of the infected person.

The blister contains clear fluid and will burst in time and dry up as the cycle of the infection comes to a close. It is important to note that this fluid is highly contagious, and when it is present in and around the sore, the infected person is most likely to pass the disease to another.

Because many people are not sure of what does herpes look like, and because symptoms can mimic other skin disorders and sexually transmitted diseases, it’s important to have unexplained sores checked by a professional. If oral or genital herpes is the cause, there are many treatment options available.

Medications, both prescription and over the counter, exist for the treatment of herpes symptoms, and alternative, natural remedies have also been found that are often as effective or more so than their conventional treatment counterparts. The key is for people who think they might be infected to get information first so that they can make informed decisions about their own health, coping with symptoms, and limiting the spread of this highly contagious disease.

By: Sheldon Miller

About the Author:

The ability of the pathogen Plasmodium to invade the human immune system is one reason developing a malaria vaccine is so difficult. Another reason is that less money is spent on malaria research than on diseases that affect fewer people, such as cystic fibrosis. What are the possible reasons for this imbalance in research effort?

My daughter has cystic fibrosis and she just told me her bowl movement had blood in it, is it serious, should i rush her to the emergency rm or just wait and make a doctor appt.?

Cystic fibrosis causes lung problems that claim its victims in the prime of life and there is no cure. But, as Sanjay Gupta reports, now there is new hope.

my sister has cystic fibrosis and i am contemplating having children of my own. my mate recalls having a cousin with the disease. What is the risk that one or more of my children will have cystic fibrosis, or is there any way to know for certain?

Would love to have an interactive video blog!!! If you have questions, write them to me and I will get them answered!!!