Diseases & Conditions Archive

Psoriasis is among the most common skin diseases, and once it shows up, it never entirely goes away. While there is no cure for psoriasis, certain medications and other treatments can reduce flare-ups and help manage symptoms when they do occur. Treatments include topical medications, light therapy, oral and injected prescription  drugs, and lifestyle modifications like weight management, stress reduction, and following a healthier diet and regular exercise.

Hair loss is a common problem for many men and women, but what does it mean to have alopecia? Alopecia areata occurs when the body's immune system attacks hair follicles, resulting in hair loss. AA can affect the scalp, eyebrows, eyelashes, or anywhere hair grows on the body.

If you wind up in an emergency department due to an illness or accident what should you know and what can you expect? It’s frustrating to have to wait for care, and also frustrating to have to explain your situation multiple times to different people, but there are reasons why it all happens.

Many conditions of the gastrointestinal tract are easy to diagnose using standard testing. But some such diseases can impact the GI tract without a clear test finding. Disorders of gut-brain interaction are so called because they involve impaired communication between the gut and brain via the nervous system.

The vast majority of diseases do not have a single cause; rather, multiple factors combine to cause a disease. Growing evidence suggests that several viruses may be triggers of multiple sclerosis, and a long-term study found evidence that an infection with a common virus can be an important contributing factor in MS.

Rashes are a common side effect of many medications, and while they can be annoying, they typically run their course over a week or two. But not all drug rashes are mild — and some can even be deadly. How can you tell a serious rash from one that is just a nuisance?

When you have a cold, it’s normal to feel mucus sitting at the back of your throat, and to have the urge to clear it. Typically this sensation lasts just a few days, but what happens if it lingers for weeks or months?

Shingles is a painful condition caused by the varicella-zoster virus. People typically encounter this virus, which causes chickenpox, in childhood. The virus stays dormant in the body, sometimes for decades, and may re-emerge as shingles. The best way to prevent shingles is by getting vaccinated. People should get the vaccine even if they’ve had shingles in the past, because it is possible to get shingles more than once. Maintaining healthy habits, such as eating right, getting enough sleep, and managing stress, may also help to prevent shingles by keeping the immune system working well.

Varicose veins are a common, treatable condition. They occur when valves inside the veins weaken and allow blood to flow back toward the feet, instead of up to the heart. People may be more prone to develop them if there are others in their family who have them. Lifestyle changes, such as increasing exercise and wearing compression stockings, can help prevent them. While varicose veins used to be treated surgically, today they are commonly addressed using less invasive office procedures. Treating veins early can help to prevent complications, such as skin pigmentation changes, leg swelling, and skin ulcers.

A sudden urge to use the bathroom when arriving home, sometimes called latchkey incontinence, occurs when the brain associates coming home with the need to urinate, whether the bladder is full or not. Bladder training may help address this pattern.