Medical Conditions Page 2

Topics about Medical Conditions

ADRENAL GLAND CANCER
Adrenal gland cancers are rare cancers occurring in the endocrine tissue of the adrenals. They are characterized by overproduction of adrenal gland hormones.

ADRENAL VIRILISM
Adrenal virilism is the development or premature development of male secondary sexual characteristics caused by male sex hormones (androgens) excessively produced by the adrenal gland. This disorder can occur before birth and can lead to sexual abnormalities in newborns. It can also occur in girls and women later in life.

ADRENOLEUKODYSTROPHY
Adrenoleukodystrophy is a rare genetic disease characterized by a loss of myelin surrounding nerve cells in the brain and progressive adrenal gland dysfunction.

ADULT RESPIRATORY DISTRESS SYNDROME
Adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), also called acute respiratory distress syndrome, is a type of lung (pulmonary) failure that may result from any disease that causes large amounts of fluid to collect in the lungs. ARDS is not itself a specific disease, but a syndrome, a group of symptoms and signs that make up one of the most important forms of lung or respiratory failure. It can develop quite suddenly in persons whose lungs have been perfectly normal. Very often ARDS is a true medical emergency. The basic fault is a breakdown of the barrier, or membrane that normally keeps fluid from leaking out of the small blood vessels of the lung into the breathing sacs (the alveoli).

AGROPHOBIA
The word agoraphobia is derived from Greek words literally meaning "fear of the marketplace." The term is used to describe an irrational and often disabling fear of being out in public.

AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) is an infectious disease caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). It was first recognized in the United States in 1981. AIDS is the advanced form of infection with the HIV virus, which may not cause recognizable disease for a long period after the initial exposure (latency). No vaccine is currently available to prevent HIV infection. At present, all forms of AIDS therapy are focused on improving the quality and length of life for AIDS patients by slowing or halting the replication of the virus and treating or preventing infections and cancers that take advantage of a person's weakened immune system.

ALBINISM
Albinism is an inherited condition present at birth, characterized by a lack of pigment that normally gives color to the skin, hair, and eyes. Many types of albinism exist, all of which involve lack of pigment in varying degrees. The condition, which is found in all races, may be accompanied by eye problems and may lead to skin cancer later in life.

ALCOHOL-RELATED NEUROLOGIC DISEASE
Alcohol, or ethanol, is a poison with direct toxic effects on nerve and muscle cells. Depending on which nerve and muscle pathways are involved, alcohol can have far-reaching effects on different parts of the brain, peripheral nerves, and muscles, with symptoms of memory loss, incoordination, seizures, weakness, and sensory deficits. These different effects can be grouped in three main categories: (1) intoxication due to the acute effects of ethanol, (2) withdrawal syndrome from suddenly stopping drinking, and (3) disorders related to long-term or chronic alcohol abuse. Alcohol-related neurologic disease includes Wernicke-Korsakoff disease, alcoholic cerebellar degeneration, alcoholic myopathy, and alcoholic neuropathy, alcohol withdrawal syndrome with seizures and delirium tremens, and fetal alcohol syndrome.

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