Moles That Itch Or Bleed
The body is a wonderland, made up of freckles, beauty marks, and moles. Most of these pose no threat. But if any start to itch or bleed, they need to be checked out: stat. That mole could be melanoma. The American Academy of Dermatology says to follow the ABCDE rules when it comes to moles: asymmetry, border, color, diameter, and evolving. Changes in any of those categories can be red flags. While melanoma accounts for only around 1 percent of all skin cancers, it is the most deadly. This year alone, an estimated 7,230 people in the United States will die from skin cancer, according to the American Cancer Society. Learn the 7 skin cancer symptoms you should check for now.
Sudden Confusion Or Change In Mental Status
Whenever someone has a change in mental status that is not caused by substance abuse, intoxication, or withdrawal of medications, they should immediately see a doctor, says Dr. Rajput. In addition, if the confusion occurs while the person has a fever, they are at a higher risk of infection of the brain, such as meningitis and encephalitis. Sudden confusion can also be the result of a head injury, a reaction to a new medication, dangerously low blood sugar, or a neurological problem, such as a stroke. Whatever the root cause, immediate medical attention is necessary. Check out these 15 stroke symptoms that women should never ignore.
When Should You Worry About Fatigue
Q.I have been quite fatigued over the past two weeks. How long should I wait before seeing a doctor?
A. We all go through periods of low energy. Even a week of feeling more tired than usual is not uncommon.
Yet most people can tell when their fatigue feels like something more serious. If thats the case, or your fatigue gets worse or lasts longer than a week or two, its time to see your doctor. Your fatigue might be related to an underlying illness or infection, especially if its accompanied by symptoms, such as a low-grade fever, shortness of breath, or loss of appetite.
Other reasons to see your doctor about fatigue are if you often wake up exhausted despite sleeping well, do not feel motivated to begin the day, or struggle to do activities that are ordinarily easy. These could be symptoms of a sleep disorder or depression.
During your exam, your doctor will try to rule out issues like medication side effects. He or she also may order blood tests to determine if the fatigue is related to a specific problem, such as anemia, an underactive thyroid , or liver inflammation . However, dont be surprised if your doctor does not find a cause. I have found that in most cases people bounce back from fatigue after some rest and a good nights sleep.
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Common Symptoms Women Should Never Ignore
Certain symptoms women commonly experience after age 40 may be nothing to worry about, particularly if theyre part of your norm. But when you have a sudden change like headache, nausea, fatigue, unexpected vaginal bleeding, heart palpitations that last more than 15 minutes, or a rash on your breast that doesnt go away within a couple of days, its wise to see your doctor.
The reality is that a lot of times these symptoms are normal, says Courtney Baechler, MD, a cardiologist and vice president of the Penny George Institute for Health and Healing at Abbott Hospital in Minneapolis. To put things in perspective, she reminds her patients that these are all things they’ve probably experienced in one form or another in just the past week but they can also indicate a more serious health condition.
Take extreme fatigue in women, for example. Fibromyalgia syndrome, a disorder that causes chronic, deep muscle pain, may cause debilitating fatigue, even headache. Fibromyalgia is a syndrome that occurs more often in women than men and has no known cure. Medication, getting sound sleep, being active, and eating a healthy diet may help the extreme fatigue of fibromyalgia.
Severe fatigue may also be caused by much more serious conditions that need a doctors attention, including, for example:
- Some types of inflammatory arthritis
What Is The Outlook For People With Dehydration Headaches
Most dehydration headaches get better after drinking water and taking it easy for a while. If headaches keep happening, you may have chronic dehydration. Chronic dehydration can lead to serious medical problems, including kidney stones and urinary tract infections . People who arent hydrated have a higher risk of heat exhaustion and other heat illness.
Dehydration can trigger a migraine headache. If you get migraines, its essential to drink plenty of water. Staying hydrated may help you prevent a migraine attack.
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Excessively Long Or Heavy Menstrual Cycles
While normal is different for every woman, you should be concerned if your period lasts much more than seven days or youre having two periods a month. According to the Mayo Clinic, that could be a sign of cervical cancer. If this happens more than two months in a row, you should talk to a doctor. Other possible diagnoses: PCOS, uterine polyps, or uterine cancer. Now check out these other period problems you shouldnt ignore.
Unexpected Irregular Vaginal Bleeding
Irregular bleeding, especially if its accompanied by pain during sex, could signal a serious condition like cervical cancer or uterine cancer. If your menstrual period becomes unusually heavy or irregular, occurs more often than every three weeks, or you have spotting between periods, get these symptoms checked out.
Discuss any post-menopausal spotting with your doctor. Even a little bit of bleeding after menopause is abnormal, according to the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Some of the common causes are polyps and either atrophy or thickening of the endometrium the lining of your uterus.
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Sudden Vision Changes May Be Signs Of A Stroke
As you age, its normal for your vision to progressively worsen. But dont ever ignore visual changes that affect only one eye, the sudden onset of double vision, or the inability to see the center of what youre looking at.
Vision changes that occur suddenly can be signs of a stroke. Theyre particularly alarming if they come with other warning symptoms of stroke, such as numbness on one side of the body, or difficulty speaking or finding the right words. More subtle variations on these symptoms could indicate a transient ischemic attack, commonly called a mini-stroke. Getting them checked out could prevent a larger stroke later, Baechler says.
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Dimples On Your Breast
Dimples in your smile are cute on your breast, they could be a symptom of breast cancer. What youre seeing might be the result of a tumor growing in the breast tissue and pulling the skin toward it, or of tumor cells blocking the breasts lymphatic channels. Early detection is important, reminds Dr. Alexander. Women most commonly come in because they felt something versus catching it on a routine screening.
Leg Pain That Occurs Only On One Side
The likely culprit is a pulled muscle. If the area is also swollen and warm, however, and symptoms get worse even after you elevate your leg, it could be a life-threatening condition called deep vein thrombosis . Its a blood clot that forms in an interior vein, usually in the lower leg or thigh. The good news? Its treatable. The bad? If not caught in time, DVT can be fatal if the clot breaks off and travels to the lungs. Risk factors include not moving around on a long plane ride, recent surgery or illness that caused you to be sedentary, and taking birth control pills or hormone replacement therapy.
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How Do You Treat Fatigue And Loss Of Appetite
Your doctor will prescribe treatments and therapies depending on your underlying condition. Pain relief may help ease the symptoms. If medication is the cause of your fatigue and loss of appetite, your doctor may adjust your dosage or swap the medication.
Treating fatigue may include learning how to increase energy in your daily life. This can mean:
- getting more exercise
- creating a schedule for activity and rest
- learning about self-care
Treating loss of appetite may include formulating a flexible meal schedule and incorporating favorite foods into meals. Studies also show that enhancing the taste and smell of foods can increase appetite in older adults. They found that adding sauces and seasonings resulted in a 10 percent increase in calorie consumption.
Other methods used to treat fatigue or loss of appetite include:
- appetite stimulants like Marinol
- low-dose corticosteroids to increase appetite
- sleeping pills to help you sleep better at night
- physical therapy to slowly increase exercise
- antidepressants or antianxiety medications, for depression or anxiety
- anti-nausea medications like Zofran for nausea caused by medical treatments
Counseling or participating in a support group may also help reduce depression and anxiety-related causes of fatigue and loss of appetite.
What Is The Treatment For Covid
There is no specific treatment for COVID-19, and supportive care is aimed at relieving symptoms in mild cases.
Patients with mild illness are usually advised to remain home and self-isolate for 14 days to avoid spreading the virus. Treatments for mild COVID-19 symptoms include:
- Antithrombotic therapy – anticoagulants and antiplatelet therapy
- High-flow nasal cannula oxygen
Ivermectin, an antiparasitic drug, is being studied as a potential treatment for COVID-19. Currently, the available clinical data on the use of ivermectin to treat COVID-19 are limited and the Centers for Disease Control recommends against the use of ivermectin for the treatment of COVID-19, except in a clinical trial.
Colchicine, an anti-gout medication, is also being studied in a clinical trial to determine if short-term treatment with colchicine will reduce lung complications and the rate of death in COVID-19 patients. It is not currently approved for use to treat patients for COVID-19.
Current guidelines neither recommend nor advise against the use of vitamin C, vitamin D, or zinc. Zinc should not be taken in doses above the recommended daily allowance due to the risk of toxicity.
Hydroxychloroquine was touted as a possible treatment in the past, but studies to date have shown it to be ineffective with a high risk of fatal heart arrhythmias, and it is not recommended.
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Moles That Bleed Or Change Are Red Flags
Having moles isnt inherently a problem, but moles that bleed or change form are red flags, says Daniel Aires, MD, JD, dermatologist with the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City. The rule of thumb is to follow the ABCDE of your mole:
- Asymmetric appearance
- Diameter larger than a pencil eraser
- Evolving size, color, and shape
The American Academy of Dermatology says these are warning signs of possible melanoma.
If there’s a history of skin cancer in your family, watch your moles even more closely. Routine evaluations can help find potential problems. If you have a concern about a mole, it may be wise to take a photo of it every six months to make it easier to notice changes over time.
Feeling Full Quickly Despite Not Eating A Lot
This might sound like a blessing, but if youre a woman it could signal a deadly problem. According to the American Cancer Society, around 22,000 women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer every yearand about 85 percent of cases are found late, when survival odds dip. A feeling of fullness after eating little food or a general loss of appetite can be early signs of this cancer so are increased abdominal size, bloating, pelvic pain or pressure, and urinary problems.
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How Is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Treated
Theres no known cure for chronic fatigue syndrome. But experts say that these lifestyle changes can help:
- Include regular, carefully planned exercise in your daily routine. Exercise can increase energy and make a person feel better. People with CFS should pace themselves while doing any physical activity that requires exertion. Talk with a doctor whats right for you you dont want to overdo it and get discouraged. Studies show that graded exercise is very helpful in CFS recovery.
- Follow stress-management and stress-reduction techniques. A doctor or therapist can teach these theyre great ways to take control of some aspects of the illness.
- Ensure good sleep habits to overcome CFS-related sleep problems.
- Work on ways to keep track of important things, such as keeping lists and making notes, you have problems with concentration or memory.
Meeting regularly with a therapist or counselor can help in CFS treatment. The main goals of therapy are to help people cope with the illness and to change negative or unrealistic thoughts or feelings into positive, realistic ones.
Having a positive feeling that you can get better is very helpful. Therapy and support groups can also help teens with CFS and their parents deal with the academic or social challenges brought on by the illness, such as missed school, falling grades, or withdrawal from friends and social situations.
Doctors may suggest over-the-counter or prescription medicines for some of these symptoms.
Can Stress Cause Decreased Appetite
Save it to Pinterest. When a person is worried and apprehensive, they often lose their appetite. When someone becomes stressed or apprehensive, their body releases stress hormones. These hormones stimulate the sympathetic nervous system and initiate the fight-or-flight response in the body. This response can lead to symptoms such as dry mouth, irritability, headaches, insomnia, anxiety, and depression. Eating less as a result of these symptoms is normal. However, if stress eating becomes a habit, it may lead to obesity.
Stress also causes us to want something sweet after dinner. Because of this, some people might be more likely to eat sweets when they’re feeling overwhelmed or anxious. However, stress can also help you understand when you should be concerned about another issue within your body. If you feel bad after you have eaten too much, read on! Stress can also help you recognize when it’s time to see a doctor.
About Article Author
William Placido
Dr. Placido’s goal is to be able to provide the best possible service that he can give people with his knowledge of medicine, as well as providing them with all the information they need about their condition or illness so they are fully aware of what is happening to them and can make informed decisions about their treatment plan if necessary.
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During Pregnancy You Feel Decreased Movement From The Baby
Moms-to-be are notoriously nervous, but this is one time that you should definitely err on the side of caution, especially if youre in your third trimester. First, see if you can get your baby moving by drinking some juice and lying on your left side. If you still dont feel any movement, head straight to the hospital, advises Carolyn Alexander, MD, an ob-gyn at Southern California Reproductive Center. Time is of the essence because the umbilical cord supplies blood to the baby, she says, and if it is compromised, the baby may need to be delivered immediately.
Make Sleep A Priority
Getting enough sleep helps boost a persons energy levels throughout the day. Sleep requirements vary from person to person, but most adults need 79 hours per night. People may be able to improve the quality of their sleep by:
- sticking to a regular sleep schedule
- developing and maintaining a relaxing bedtime routine, which may involve reading or having a hot bath
- ensuring a relaxing sleep environment that is dark, quiet, and cool
- avoiding caffeine and other stimulants close to bedtime
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Tingling That Radiates Down Your Arm
We always see people clutching their chest when theyre having a heart attack on TV. While severe chest pain or pressure is a classic sign, a strange, numb feeling that starts in your chest and moves down your arm is another common symptom. If this feeling persists for more than 30 minutes and you also start experiencing dizziness or nausea, you need emergency medical attention. If, however, the tingling subsides when you change position, it could be a pinched nerve. Other possibilities include angina, bursitis, a herniated disc, a torn rotator cuff, and vascular thoracic outlet syndrome.
