Welcome.

The two main reasons for blacking out are insufficient blood flow to the brain and abnormal electrical activity within the brain (a seizure).

While both of these sound scary, in reality most episodes of blacking out are not related to life threatening health problems.

This guide is designed to provide insight into why you passed out. It is not a diagnostic tool or a substitute for evaluation by a health professional.

The questions are ones your doctor is likely to ask you. Your answers provide a path to better understanding of the common reasons for losing consciousness.

Let's begin.

Certain situations demand emergency medical care.

Do any of the following apply to you?

- Chest pain or shortness of breath before or after you passed out

- Bloody or black stools

- Severe headache

- Recent blow to the head

- A heart condition

Yes, one of those applies to me.

No, none of those apply to me.

Bleeding or spotting between periods is a common problem. Changes in the balance of female hormones or physical changes in a woman's reproductive organs are the most common causes. This decision guide will ask you questions about your symptoms and help to explain what your symptoms could mean.

This guide is informational and not intended to replace the evaluation and advice of a health care professional.

Information in this guide is for women who have regularly spaced menstrual periods but also notice bleeding episodes in between these regularly spaced periods. If your bleeding pattern doesn't include regularly spaced periods, you will probably find more pertinent information in either the Irregular or Skipped Menstrual Periods Guide or Bleeding After Menopause Guide.

Click here to begin the Bleeding Between Menstrual Periods Guide.

Are you close to the usual age for menopause (late 40s or early 50s)?

Yes, I am close to the usual age for menopause.

No, I am too young to expect menopause.

Welcome to our Guide for men who have noticed blood in their urine.

The medical term for blood in the urine is hematuria. Urine that contains blood can appear pink, red, maroon, or even have a dark smoky color that looks like cola. You may or may not see blood clots, which can look like coffee grounds. Rarely, red urine may be caused by certain foods or medicine. Your doctor will want to test a sample of your urine to confirm that its red color is caused by blood.

Urinary tract infections, kidney stones and prostate problems are common reasons for this symptom. Less commonly, blood in the urine can indicate a more serious condition.

All men who experience blood in the urine as a new problem should see their doctor. Even if you've had blood in the urine in the past, contact your doctor again.

This guide is intended to provide helpful information while you are awaiting further evaluation, or add to what you may have already learned after your visit with a doctor. Please keep in mind that this information cannot replace a face-to-face evaluation with your own health care provider.

Let's get started

Blood in the urine can be quite alarming, but keep in mind that it's unusual for men to bleed large amounts through the urine. Even a small drop of blood can turn an entire toilet bowl of water bright red.

However, large blood clots can be dangerous because they can block the flow of urine. They can also cause a fair amount of discomfort as they pass out of the bladder. In general, any blood clot that's bigger than the tip of your little finger would be considered to be large.

Have you passed one or more large clots in the urine?

Yes, I've passed one or more large clots.

No, I'm passing only small clots or my urine is just red.

Seeing blood in your urine can be a scary thing. This guide will walk you through several questions about your symptoms. Based on your answers, you will learn about the causes of the blood in your urine and what actions you should take.

This guide is informational and not intended to replace the evaluation and advice of a health care professional.

Sometimes blood from the vagina or rectum can be in the urine. This guide addresses blood in your urine that is not coming from another source.

Click here to begin.

First of all, there are some medications and drugs that can change the color of your urine. Some examples of medications that can make your urine red or orange are rifampin, pyridium, phenolphthalein, some laxatives, and vitamins B and C. Foods such as beets, rhubarb and blackberries can turn urine red.

Severe dehydration can also make your urine darker than normal, but it should not cause your urine to be red or brown.

Do you think that a food or medication may be the reason for the color change of your urine?

Yes, I think this is likely.

No, I don't think it is related to food or medication.

Any time you discover a new breast lump, you should always make an appointment with a health professional.

While waiting for your appointment, proceed with our Health Decision Guide. You will be asked a short series of questions and your answers will direct you to information most pertinent to you.

Breast lumps commonly occur in women, especially during their reproductive years, the years between puberty and menopause. When there are multiple small lumps, they are almost always benign.

While a single lump is a little more concerning, most lumps discovered no matter what your age are still more likely to be benign than malignant.

Click here to begin the guide.

Some changes in the breast are associated with a greater risk that the lump may be more serious.

Have you noticed any of the following changes in one or both of your breasts

• indentations in the shape or skin of your breast

• dimpling of the skin of your breast

• nipple retraction (your nipple looks like it is being pulled into the breast itself)?

Yes, I have noticed one or more of these changes.

No, I have not noticed any of these changes.

Welcome to our Health Decision Guide for women who experience breast pain or discomfort.

By answering a short series of questions, you will learn about reasons for breast pain most relevant to you.

There are times that you can expect increased sensitivity, soreness, or tenderness in one or both breasts. Many women experience this just before or during menstrual periods. These symptoms can also occur with a normal pregnancy and breast-feeding.

Breast discomfort and sensitivity are often part of the pre-menstrual syndrome. Sometimes these pre-menstrual symptoms can be more bothersome around the time of menopause.

Painful breasts are most worrisome when accompanied by a breast lump or nipple discharge. The presence of a breast lump or nipple discharge is always a reason to contact your doctor, even if you don't have any pain.

To get the most from this guide, we recommend that you do a self-breast exam first. It will make it easier to answer some of the questions.

Click here to begin.

Have you found a lump or lumps in one or both breasts during your breast self-exam?

Yes, I found a lump in one or both breasts.

No, I do not have any breast lumps.

The usual cause of one or both eyes turning pink or red is conjunctivitis. Conjunctivitis, also known as "pink eye," is inflammation (redness and swelling) of the conjunctiva, the tissue covering the "whites" of the eyes and the inside of the eyelids.

The most common cause is an infection from germs (bacteria or viruses) that are passed from person to person. However, conjunctivitis also can be caused by an allergic reaction to something (for example, tree pollen), by contact with something irritating (for example, smoke in the air or chlorine in a pool), or rarely, by problems of the eye.

Click here to begin.

Did something splash in your child's eye?

Yes, something splashed in my child's eye.

No, nothing splashed in my child's eye.

The guide's purpose is to provide understanding and advice to individuals with constipation symptoms. The Constipation Guide should be used as a complement to your formal evaluation by a doctor, not as a substitute for office-based care. The Constipation Guide will provide recommendations relating to both evaluation and treatment based on the answers you give to a series of questions.

The number of questions you are asked will be determined by your symptoms. You will be asked a minimum of 12 questions, with additional questions relevant to your age, gender, or symptoms.

Time to complete this decision guide: ten to 20 minutes.

Click here to begin.

"Progress reports" with advice about evaluation and treatment will be highlighted as you progress through the questions. These progress reports will be personalized for you based upon your answers.

Some progress reports contain detailed advice that you may wish to keep for your future reference; you are welcome to print individual progress reports as you proceed. You will need to print pages using your browser, under the "file" menu.

Click here to continue.

Lots of children suffer from constipation -- bowel movements that are hard or painful. Your child may become constipated because of toilet-training troubles or anxiety related to using the toilet. Or, he may not be getting enough fiber or liquids in his diet or may not be getting enough exercise.

This health decision guide will help you understand what causes constipation, how you can ease your child's discomfort, and when it is necessary to contact your pediatrician. Proceed through the questions -- unless you are instructed to seek medical help.

For questions about constipation in infants, please visit our Constipation in Infants Guide.

Click here to begin.

Bowel habits vary from child to child. Some children have a bowel movement every day, others go every few days. Two to three days between bowel movements generally are not cause for concern, as long as your child is not having pain or vomiting.

Do any of these statements describe your child?

• He has not had a bowel movement for more than three days.

• He has hard, painful stools.

• He does not have stools very often and when he does, they are very large, sometimes clogging the toilet.

Yes, one or more of these statements describe my child.

No, this does not describe my child.

Many parents worry that their baby is constipated, which can happen for many reasons. Sometimes, however, babies are not really constipated, but just have their own way of pooping.

Answering the following questions will help you understand more about constipation in infants, its causes and some ways to prevent and treat it.

For questions about constipation in children, please visit our Constipation in Children Guide.

Click here to begin.

Constipation sometimes can be a sign of a more serious problem.

Along with having infrequent stools, does your baby have any of these symptoms?

• extremely fussy

• seems to be in pain (a baby may show this by pulling up its legs or arching its back)

• vomiting, especially any green vomit

• blood in the stool

• a belly that seems much larger than usual.

Yes, my baby has one or more of these symptoms.

No, my baby does not have any of these symptoms.