Hot flushes are probably the most common symptom resulting in medical consultation in relation to the menopause. The association between the two is so strong that the connection is often invoked even when hot flushes occur in a regularly menstruating woman. Oestrogen significantly reduces hot flushes but is not used ...

Chronic medical conditions drastically affect the lives of those afflicted, leading to pain, disability, and disruption. Comorbid depression can exacerbate the effects of medical illness and may be an independent source of suffering and disability. Data from the Epidemiological Follow-Up Study (NHEFS) of the first National Health and Nutrition Examination ...

The purpose of the pilot study was to examine the psychological and physical symptoms reported by video display terminal (VDT) and non-VDT users in relation to intensity and duration of VDT exposure, ergonomic characteristics of the work station, workers' perceptions of the working environments, medical conditions, job satisfaction, and mood ...

Symptoms of IBS are very prevalent. One quarter of symptomatic individuals present for medical care because of symptom severity and psychologic factors. The pathogenesis of IBS is multifactorial, involving abnormalities in the gut, immune system, enteric sensory and motor nerves, and the CNS. IBS is diagnosed by symptomatology according to ...

Both of the outcome objectives for WJD were met. Removal of phosphates was significantly better, and his blood pressure was controlled and maintained below 140/90 without antihypertensive medications. In addition, WJD was enthusiastic about the improvement of his pre-existing symptoms such as pruritus, cramps, and lack of energy. Nocturnal dialysis ...

Although sedation for symptom relief in terminally ill patients has been the focus of recent medical studies, the interpretation of research findings is difficult due to the confusing terminology. To clarify the agreements and inconsistencies in the definitions of sedation, a systematic review was performed. We searched the literature through ...

An epidemiological health study compared the health status of residents of a town exposed to an accidental Catacarb chemical release from an adjacent oil refinery, with the health status of demographically similar residents of an unexposed town in the region. Few studies of Catacarb's effects on humans exist; however, animal ...

The authors surveyed a random sample of college seniors at a university in Boston to determine the prevalence of allergy symptoms and the students' use of medications to relieve symptoms. Of the 400 individuals queries, 58.2% reported some symptoms during the previous year, and 63.0% of that group said their ...

Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) sometimes known as myalgic encephalomyelitis or encephalopathy (ME) has long been a controversial topic. This year has seen the publication of a report from an independent working party set up by the UK Chief Medical Officer (CMO) to make recommendations for the management of the condition. ...

OBJECTIVE: Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are among the most commonly used medications. Although much is known about prescription NSAIDs and risk of GI side effects, little is known about over-the-counter (OTC) NSAIDs and their risk of GI side effects. The aim of this study was to estimate use of OTC ...

OBJECTIVES: Irritable bowel syndrome is a functional gastro intestinal disorder, with various symptomatology and difficult to treat using several medications. Spasmocanulase, which has an anti-spasmodic and anti-flatulence effect and contains several ingredients, was tried in patients with irritable bowel syndrome, who had been on other medications previously without improvement. METHODS: ...

Medical history has shown that clinical disease entities or syndromes are composed of many subgroups--each with its own cause and pathogenesis. Although we cannot be sure, we expect the same outcome for chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), a medically unexplained condition characterized by disabling fatigue accompanied by infectious, rheumatological, and neuropsychiatric ...

Clusters of medically unexplained physical symptoms have been referred to in the literature by many different labels, including somatization, symptom-based conditions, and functional somatic syndromes, among many others. The traditional medical perspective has been to classify and study these symptoms and functional syndromes separately. In psychiatry, current taxonomies (Diagnostic and ...

The authors report the case of a 78-year-old woman who had recurrent, unexplained falls. No witness account of these episodes was available. During head-up tilt testing, the patient had vasodepressor vasovagal syncope. Afterwards, she had amnesia from loss of consciousness. Her symptoms (falls) responded to the withdrawal of culprit medications.

BACKGROUND: Surgical management for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)-induced reactive airway disease in children has been shown to be superior to medical therapy. Laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication is a safe and effective procedure in children. METHODS: The authors performed a retrospective review of 24 patients who underwent a laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication for ...

PURPOSE: (a) To report the medical complexity of cancer and noncancer patients receiving palliative medicine (PM) consultation at a tertiary medical center and (b) to describe the consult recommendations madefor this group. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Prospective data collection was performed on all consultations (cancer, n = 175; noncancer, n = ...

BACKGROUND: Medical conditions and symptoms have been shown to predict level of functioning in older adults, but medical conditions and symptoms have rarely been investigated together in a comprehensive model that included both medical conditions and symptoms as predictors of functioning in older adults. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study ...

As part of a plan to promote semi-automatic knowledge acquisition for the medical consultant system CADIAG-II/RHEUMA, this study sought to explore and cope with the variability of results that may be anticipated when performing knowledge acquisition with patient data from different patient settings. Patient data were drawn both from a ...

Rumination is a syndrome characterized by the effortless regurgitation of recently ingested food. It has been linked to severe medical and psychosocial conditions including malnutrition, aspiration pneumonia, and complete social withdrawal. Psychotherapy, the current treatment modality for rumination, may improve symptoms but requires significant motivation and is rarely curative. We ...

BACKGROUND: Several examinations have detected a relation between depressive symptoms and medical utilization. However, selection biases have been involved in most previous examinations. We sought to test the association between depressive symptoms and prospective, increased medical care utilization, in a population-based Canadian sample, while controlling for utilization due to medical ...

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the frequency of neurologic events during commercial airline flights and to assess whether onboard emergency medical kits are adequate for in-flight neurologic emergencies. METHODS: Collaboration of the Mayo Clinic's Departments of Emergency Medicine and Medical Transportation Service and the Division of Aerospace Medicine to provide real-time in-flight ...

The results of a questionnaire survey suggested four problems that might prolong the administration of benzodiazepine hypnotics without suspending the medication. First, psychiatrists did not actively consider the necessity of suspension of medication with hypnotics. Second, the period between improvement of insomnia and initiation of dose reduction was long, whereas ...

BACKGROUND: There are few data on how patients on maintenance treatment of reflux oesophagitis take their medication. This study was designed to investigate the dosing patterns of patients on on-demand treatment and to compare lansoprazole with omeprazole in this regard. METHODS: Patients with reflux oesophagitis, initially treated until absence of ...

Successful management of complete and removable partial dentures is complicated by a reduction in saliva. Dental practitioners should be aware of the signs and symptoms of xerostomia, available diagnostic procedures, likely etiologies, expected sequelae, and appropriate therapeutic regimens. Effective evaluation and appropriate treatment will promote acceptable levels of comfort and ...

OBJECTIVES: Negative diagnostic tests are usually evaluated by their ability to advance a diagnostic search, or they are considered redundant expenditures in establishing a definitive diagnosis. It has remained difficult to assess their benefit in terms of their own merit and the reassurance that they provide to a patient. The ...

In this study, we sought to establish whether there was an association between adult attachment style and number of medically unexplained physical symptoms in patients with hepatitis C. Thirty-two patients with hepatitis C were assessed with regard to attachment style classification, number of lifetime medically unexplained symptoms, lifetime psychiatric diagnoses, ...

Veterans of the Persian Gulf War have increased rates of medically unexplained physical symptoms (MUPS). This article describes a model for the clinical management of MUPS in Gulf War veterans. Predisposing, precipitating, and perpetuating factors contribute to the emergence and clinical course of MUPS. Predisposing factors include biologically and psychosocially ...

Gastroesophageal reflux disease affects more than 40% of Americans, causing heartburn and reflux of gastric contents into the esophagus when bending or lying down. Lifestyle modification, such as weight loss and a diet rich in protein and low in fat and glucose, should increase the patient's resting lower esophageal sphincter ...

Research over the past decade and a half has established the efficacy of pharmacotherapy as an important adjunctive treatment for trauma in conjunction with either cognitive behavior therapy or psychoanalytic psychotherapy. Medication is often effective in reducing post-traumatic stress symptoms as well as treating a number of commonly comorbid conditions ...

This study examined the roles of ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic status (SES) in predicting fatigue severity, symptoms, medical utilization, and attributions among a sample of individuals with chronic fatigue. Using path analysis, a model was tested and revised. In the new model, gender predicted fatigue, ethnicity predicted attributions, fatigue predicted ...

BACKGROUND: Patients presenting in primary care frequently exhibit physical symptoms that may be unrelated to organic pathology. Such symptoms are commonly regarded as products of psychological or emotional problems, and their legitimacy as 'medical' matters is often called into question. OBJECTIVES: Our aim was to explore GPs' attitudes to the ...

Up to 75% of women report some premenstrual symptoms, but less than 10% have symptoms severe enough to qualify for a diagnosis of PMDD. A key to diagnosis is establishing a pattern of typical PMDD symptoms that recur during the late luteal phase of the menstrual cycle and remit after ...

BACKGROUND: Frequent attenders in medical settings account for a disproportionate amount of health-care resources. Little is known about service use and costs of secondary care in those frequent attenders presenting with medically unexplained symptoms. AIMS: To compare health-care use and costs of patients with medically unexplained symptoms with other frequent ...

BACKGROUND: Gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD) is a frequently occurring disease that may be considered a public health issue, particularly in developed countries. The specificity of heartburn for the diagnosis of GORD is good. Our aim was to define the prevalence of heartburn in Belgium, characterizing both its impact on everyday ...

Vocal tremor has been a challenging problem for patients and their physicians. In some cases, it has been possible to lesson the symptom's tremor through medications and/or voice therapy. However, in most cases no good treatment has been available. Chronic stimulation of the thalamus has been successful in controlling tremors ...

A medical history serves to record the patient's complaints and translate them into clear-cut, medically defined symptoms. A poorly defined symptom loses most of its discriminative power as a diagnostic test for a medical work-up. If physicians are uncertain about the exact meaning of a symptom, they have to account ...

OBJECTIVE: To replicate previously reported associations between major depressive episodes (MDEs) and long-term medical conditions in a Canadian community sample. METHODS: A sample of 2542 household residents was selected using random digit dialing (RDD). Data were collected by telephone interview. The Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI)-Short Form for major depression ...

To discover whether post-combat syndromes have existed after modern wars and what relation they bear to each other. Review of medical and military records of servicemen and cluster analysis of symptoms. Data sources: Records for 1856 veterans randomly selected from war pension files awarded from 1872 and from the Medical ...

Patients taking active medications frequently experience adverse, nonspecific side effects that are not a direct result of the specific pharmacological action of the drug. Although this phenomenon is common, distressing, and costly, it is rarely studied and poorly understood. The nocebo phenomenon, in which placebos produce adverse side effects, offers ...

BACKGROUND: Allergic rhinoconjunctivitis is a common disorder, affecting >20% of people of all socioeconomic strata. Despite this high prevalence, relatively few sufferers seek professional medical help, presumably because of a widespread reliance on complementary remedies. OBJECTIVE: We investigated the widely held belief among allergy-sufferers that regular ingestion of honey ameliorates ...

In recent years, considerable discussion has occurred about stigma surrounding the name given to an illness currently known as chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). Although patients and medical personnel have expressed varying opinions on this issue, no studies have evaluated how beliefs about the illness change based upon the type of ...

BACKGROUND: Early reperfusion treatment in acute myocardial infarction (AMI) preserves ventricular function and saves lives. After onset of AMI symptoms, patients often delay for hours until the decision to seek medical help. AIM: Of the MI-heart (Myocardial Infarction--HElp seeking And ReacTions) study was to identify factors determining patient decision delay. ...

Levetiracetam is a novel antiepileptic drug with an unknown mechanism of action. To-date levetiracetam is not known to be associated with any clinically significant pharmacokinetic interaction. Similarly, levetiracetam has not been associated with any pharmacodynamic interactions. We present four patients with severe refractory epilepsy in whom introduction of levetiracetam led ...

Two cases, mother and her son, suffering from acute poisoning with Tricholoma equestre were described. They had eaten 100-300 grams of this wild mushroom during nine consecutive meals. About 48 hours after the last meal containing the mushroom they developed fatigue, muscle weakness and myalgia, loss of appetite, mild nausea, ...

Diving conditions, dive profiles, and symptoms of decompression sickness (DCS) in a group of Miskito Indian underwater seafood harvesters are described. Dive profiles for 5 divers were recorded with dive computers, and DCS symptoms were assessed by neurological examination and interview. Divers averaged 10 dives a day over a 7-day ...

Despite widespread use of tobacco by alcohol and drug abusers, the medical effects of smoking remain understudied among such individuals. We investigated the relationship between tobacco smoking and medical symptoms among 87 cocaine-, 98 opiate- and 81 alcohol-dependent individuals receiving outpatient treatment. Smoking status was assessed and medical symptoms were ...

In allergic rhinoconjunctivitis, histamine is known to contribute predominantly to nasal itch, sneeze, rhinorrhea, conjunctival itch, and lacrimation and these symptoms benefit most from H1-antihistamine therapy. The discovery in the early 1980s of nonsedating H1-receptor antagonists contributed dramatically to the more widespread acceptance of this mode of therapy. This also ...

A true comparison of long-term medical and surgical treatment in gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD) is impossible as few studies have been carried out with adequate randomisation of the patients and long-term evaluation of quality of life. In general the control of the reflux symptoms is roughly equal with medical and ...

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this paper is to alert the medical community to the potential risk of clinical depression following the use of antiglaucoma medication. METHOD: The available literature concerning systemic side-effects of topical antiglaucoma medication and the association of these agents with clinical depression were reviewed. In addition, two ...

Narcolepsy is a syndrome of unknown aetiology characterised by excessive daytime sleepiness (often severe) usually in association with cataplexy (brief episodes of partial or complete muscle paralysis) and often with other uncommon symptoms. Due to limited disease-specific knowledge, medication treatment for this condition has focussed on specific symptom amelioration rather ...