“Heart disease is often seen as a chronic, intractable condition — but the reality is more complex. While coronary artery disease (CAD), the most common form, is not yet curable, modern medicine has made it far more manageable than in the past. The key insight is that prevention is far more effective than cure — the best heart disease is the one you never develop.”
Cleveland Clinic (Can Heart Disease Be Cured?)
Your arteries can get stretched in high blood pressure and it puts the arteries at risk for an auto immune response which allows LDL particles to go in these stretched out areas causing build up of bad cholesterol in the arteries and imbeds fat causing the placque build up = narrowing of the arteries.
We need to reduce inflammation in the arteries. To prevent, reduce, and treat heart disease if already diagnosed with. Reduce all sugars, cut back on fatty foods, exercise daily, increase of your whole grains, fresh fruits, and vegetables.
We need to use all 4 food groups but eat the healthy ones in the right portions. Which I can provide to you later how to go about this.
Coronary artery disease can cause a heart attack. If you have a heart attack, you are more likely to survive if you know the signs and symptoms, call 9-1-1 immediately, and get to a hospital quickly. People who have had a heart attack can also reduce the risk of future heart attacks or strokes by making lifestyle changes and taking medication. Don’t put off the chest pain or discomfort in the chest or pain down the L arm for if your right you want to prevent the heart attack before it occurs and if you already had an attack the sooner treated the better. Reperfusion of blood to the heart is the KEY in treatment. Chest pain to the heart is lack of oxygen getting to the heart tissue=ischemia. This is due to lack of oxygenated blood to the heart that causes the ischemia. We alone can’t treat it but we can prevent it before CAD even sets in through good health practices daily, healthy dieting daily and balancing rest with exercise daily is the key to prevent Heart Disease.
Take the elements that are in our foods=Sugars or Carbohydrates or Fats. Simple CHO likes bread, rice, pasta along with fats and complex sugars all convert to simple sugars in the stomach and when it goes through digestion the simple sugar reaches the blood stream filling it up with sugar which first does get utilized to our tissues and cells but if still extra sugar in the blood stream (which is caused to excess in the size of your meal or too many eating moments in the day) that sugar has to go somewhere which is by filling up the liver with it. In the liver the glucose gets converted from active sugar=glucose to glycogen=inactive sugar that stores in this organ. This is so if and when the body needs extra sugar for energy in our body and we don’t eat the inactive glucose glycogen will get released back into the blood stream and change to glucose and be used. Since we eat so much in America it usually isn’t the case. Obesity is so large in our country and this is why. When it reaches full and can’t store anymore glucose extra glucose in the blood stream has to go somewhere. So now the glucose gets stored in our fatty tissue=weight gain. This is what you see with eating through on a regular basis day in & day out too much food compared to the activity or exercise you do for the day. If no daily exercise then your fat storage build up is high=weight gain.How do we go about preventing CAD and getting healther. Well see if this makes sense to you, it did to me. First, genetic abnormalities contribute to the risk for certain types of heart disease, which in turn may lead to heart failure. However, in most instances, a specific genetic link to heart failure has not been identified. SO THE KEY IS TO PREVENTION for Heart Disease.
Cornary artery disease (CAD) IS TO LIVE AS HEALTHY AS POSSIBLE IN YOUR ROUTINE HABITS, YOUR DIETING OF THE 4 FOOD GROUPS, MAINTAINING YOUR WEIGHT IN A THEREPEUTIC RANGE (look as calculating BMI online for free to find out what your weight range is for your height), and BALANCING REST WITH EXERCISE TO HELP DECREASE THE CHANCE OF GETTING HEART FAILURE.
Just like a car the better you take care of it the longer it lasts same principle for heart diseases unless genetically inherited. So prevention is the key!
“Acromegaly (called gigantism in children) is a rare condition in which the whole body or parts of the body, particularly the hands and feet, grow larger than normal. More than 95 percent of all cases of acromegaly are the result of a growth hormone–secreting pituitary adenoma.
Growth hormone–secreting pituitary adenomas begin in the somatotropic cells of the pituitary gland. Also called GH, the growth hormone secreted by these tumors triggers the liver to produce insulin-like growth factor 1, or IGF-1. IGF-1 is involved in bone and tissue growth, metabolism, and other processes of the body. When the body produces too much IGF-1, it leads to a range of symptoms known as acromegaly.”
Memorial Sloan Kettering Center (Acromegaly (Growth Hormone–Secreting Pituitary Adenomas) | Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center)
Gigantism is described as accelerated growth during childhood from the production of excess growth hormone. By definition, gigantism must occur during childhood before the growth plates in the long bones of the body (for example, the femur or humerus) have closed. In adults, the condition is called acromegaly.
Gigantism is most often caused by a benign tumor on the pituitary gland called a pituitary adenoma. However, it can also be caused by the following disorders:
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is used to determine the size and location of your child’s tumor if it is suspected that the disease is caused by a pituitary adenoma.
Furthermore, several blood tests can provide a diagnosis. High levels of prolactin or increased amounts of insulin growth factor-1 (IGF-1) can suggest acromegaly, as can high levels of growth hormone in the blood after oral administration of a large dose of glucose. Low levels of cortisol, thyroid hormone, testosterone (in boys), and estradiol (in girls) can also suggest involvement of the pituitary gland.
Surgery is the best form of treatment and cures 80 percent of the cases of gigantism. Your child’s surgeon will gain access to your child’s pituitary gland using the transsphenoidal approach—so named because the route crosses, or transects, the sphenoid bone. This bone is located behind your child’s nose, mostly within their skull.
Using precise surgical instruments, the surgeon will make an incision through your child’s nasal cavity to create an opening in the sphenoid bone. Once the surgeon gains access to your child’s sphenoid sinus (the air-filled area behind the sphenoid bone), further incisions will be made until a hole is created in the sella turcica—the bone that cradles and protects the pituitary gland.
After your child’s pituitary gland is in the operative field, removal of the tumor can proceed. Your child’s surgeon will use high magnification to readily distinguish normal pituitary tissue from the tumor.
Once the tumor has been removed, your child’s surgeon will clean the tumor cavity and seal it.
At Barrow Neurological Institute at Dignity Health St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center, our surgeons specialize in two types of surgery for adenomas:
Most patients are able to return home the day after their surgery for removal of a pituitary adenoma, and nasal packing is seldom required.
Treatment with a prescription medication is possible if surgery does not cure your child’s gigantism or if surgery is not recommended. Medicines are also sometimes prescribed before surgery to improve the likelihood of a good outcome.
Gamma Knife radiosurgery is a highly advanced form of radiotherapy that is used to achieve similar results to the traditional surgical techniques described above. However, with Gamma Knife it can take several years for growth hormone and levels to return to normal, rather than days or weeks as with traditional surgery. It is typically a treatment of last resort in patients with gigantism.
The ‘knife’ in this surgery is actually made up of many small beams of radiation focused on a single point. Each individual beam too weak enough to damage healthy tissue, but at the point where the beams converge they deliver a dose of radiation that is lethal to the tumor.
Gamma Knife is an outpatient procedure, does not involve any incisions, and requires only brief sedation under general anesthetic.
However, there are additional considerations for pediatric Gamma Knife surgery. These are best discussed with your child’s neurosurgeon.
“Approximately 220,000 children and adolescents had arthritis during 2017–2021, representing 305 per 100,000. Prevalence increased with age and was highest among those aged 12–17 years, non-Hispanic Black or African American children and adolescents, children and adolescents with anxiety or depression, those who were physically inactive, had overweight or a heart condition, or lived in a food-insecure or smoking household.
Self-management interventions, physical activity or weight control, screening and linking to mental health services, and equitable access to therapies might improve arthritis outcomes in children and adolescents.”
Center for Disease Prevention and Control (Arthritis Among Children and Adolescents Aged 18 Years — United States, 2017–2021 | MMWR)
Diagnosis of juvenile idiopathic arthritis can be difficult because joint pain can be caused by many different types of problems. No single test can confirm a diagnosis, but tests can help rule out some other conditions that produce similar signs and symptoms.
Some of the most common blood tests for suspected cases include:
X-rays or magnetic resonance imaging may be taken to exclude other conditions, such as fractures, tumors, infection or congenital defects.
Imaging may also be used from time to time after the diagnosis to monitor bone development and to detect joint damage.
Treatment for juvenile idiopathic arthritis focuses on helping your child maintain a normal level of physical and social activity. To accomplish this, doctors may use a combination of strategies to relieve pain and swelling, maintain full movement and strength, and prevent complications.
The medications used to help children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis are chosen to decrease pain, improve function and minimize potential joint damage.
Typical medications include:
Your doctor may recommend that your child work with a physical therapist to help keep joints flexible and maintain range of motion and muscle tone.
A physical therapist or an occupational therapist may make additional recommendations regarding the best exercise and protective equipment for your child.
A physical or occupational therapist may also recommend that your child make use of joint supports or splints to help protect joints and keep them in a good functional position.
In very severe cases, surgery may be needed to improve joint function.
“Juvenile arthritis (JA), also known as pediatric rheumatic disease, isn’t a specific disease.
JA is an umbrella term for various inflammatory and rheumatic diseases affecting children under 16, with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) being the most common type. These conditions affect hundreds of thousands of kids and teens in the United States.
Most kinds of JA are autoimmune or autoinflammatory diseases. That means the immune system, which is supposed to fight against foreign invaders like viruses and germs, instead releases inflammatory chemicals that attack healthy cells and tissue. In most JA cases this causes joint inflammation, swelling, pain and tenderness, but some types of JA have few or no joint symptoms or only affect the skin and internal organs.
The exact causes of JA are unknown, but researchers believe that certain genes may cause JA when activated by a virus, bacteria or other external factors. There is no evidence that foods, toxins, allergies or lack of vitamins cause the disease.”
Arthritis Foundation (Juvenile Arthritis: Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Treatment | Arthritis Foundation)
Like adults, children can develop arthritis. The most common type of chronic, or long-lasting, arthritis that affects children is called juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). JIA broadly refers to several different chronic disorders involving inflammation of joints (arthritis), which can cause joint pain, swelling, warmth, stiffness, and loss of motion. The various forms of JIA have different features, such as the pattern of joints involved and inflammation of other parts of the body besides the joints. JIA may last a limited time, such as a few months or years, but in some cases it is a lifelong disease that requires treatment into adulthood.
JIA is “idiopathic,” meaning that its origins are not understood. While the exact causes of JIA are unknown, it begins when the immune system becomes overactive and creates inflammation.
With treatment, most children achieve periods of wellness (remission), and sometimes the disease goes away permanently with no further need for medications. It is important to see a doctor early if your child has swollen or stiff joints because delaying therapy can lead to joint damage, a lesser response to treatment, and other problems.
By definition, JIA begins in children and adolescents before the 16th birthday. Most types of the disease are more frequent in girls, but enthesitis-related JIA, a form of the disease that involves inflammation of the places where ligaments and tendons (flexible bands of tissue) attach to bones, is more common in boys. Systemic JIA, a rare type of JIA that features fever and rash, affects boys and girls equally. Children of all races and ethnic backgrounds can get the disease.
It is very rare for more than one member of a family to have JIA, but children with a family member with chronic arthritis, including JIA, are at a slightly increased risk of developing it. Having a family member with psoriasis is a risk factor for a form of JIA called psoriatic JIA.
Generally, they all share arthritic symptoms of joint pain, swelling, warmth, and stiffness that last at least 6 weeks.
If left untreated, uveitis can lead to eye problems such as cataracts, glaucoma, and vision loss, so it is important for children with JIA to have frequent eye exams.
Tune in tomorrow on the causes, how its diagnosed and treated!
“The causes of fibromyalgia are not known. But certain things can increase someone’s risk of developing it.
Risk factors or triggers may include:
These include:
Center for Disease Control – CDC (facts about fibromyalgia – Search)
There is no cure for fibromyalgia. However, symptoms can be treated with both non-drug and medication based treatments. Many times the best outcomes are achieved by using multiple types of treatments.
Non-Drug Therapies: People with fibromyalgia should use non-drug treatments as well as any medicines their doctors suggest. Research shows that the most effective treatment for fibromyalgia is physical exercise. Physical exercise should be used in addition to any drug treatment. Patients benefit most from regular aerobic exercises. Other body-based therapies, including Tai Chi and yoga, can ease fibromyalgia symptoms. Although you may be in pain, low impact physical exercise will not be harmful.
Cognitive behavioral therapy is a type of therapy focused on understanding how thoughts and behaviors affect pain and other symptoms. CBT and related treatments, such as mindfulness, can help patients learn symptom reduction skills that lessen pain. Mindfulness is a non-spiritual meditation practice that cultivates present moment awareness. Mindfulness based stress reduction has been shown to significantly improve symptoms of fibromyalgia.
You can also try other complementary therapies such as:
Other complementary and alternative therapies (sometimes called CAM or integrative medicine), such as acupuncture, chiropractic and massage therapy, can be useful to manage fibromyalgia symptoms. Many of these treatments, though, have not been well tested in patients with fibromyalgia.
It is important to address risk factors and triggers for fibromyalgia including sleep disorders, such as sleep apnea, and mood problems such as stress, anxiety, panic disorder, and depression. This may require involvement of other specialists such as a Sleep Medicine doctor, Psychiatrist, and therapist.
Medications: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved three drugs for the treatment of fibromyalgia. They include two drugs that change some of the brain chemicals (serotonin and norepinephrine) that help control pain levels: duloxetine (Cymbalta) and milnacipran (Savella). Older drugs that affect these same brain chemicals also may be used to treat fibromyalgia. These include amitriptyline (Elavil) and cyclobenzaprine (Flexeril). Other antidepressant drugs can be helpful in some patients. Side effects vary by the drug. Ask your doctor about the risks and benefits of your medicine.
The other drug approved for fibromyalgia is pregabalin (Lyrica). Pregabalin and another drug, gabapentin (Neurontin), work by blocking the over activity of nerve cells involved in pain transmission. These medicines may cause dizziness, sleepiness, swelling and weight gain.
It is strongly recommended to avoid opioid narcotic medications for treating fibromyalgia. The reason for this is that research evidence shows these drugs are not of helpful to most people with fibromyalgia, and will cause greater pain sensitivity or make pain persist. Tramadol (Ultram) may be used to treat fibromyalgia pain if short-term use of an opioid narcotic is needed. Over-the-counter medicines such as acetaminophen (Tylenol) or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (commonly called NSAIDs) like ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) or naproxen (Aleve, Anaprox) are not effective for fibromyalgia pain. Yet, these drugs may be useful to treat the pain triggers of fibromyalgia. Thus, they are most useful in people who have other causes for pain such as arthritis in addition to fibromyalgia.
For sleep problems, some of the medicines that treat pain also improve sleep. These include cyclobenzaprine (Flexeril), amitriptyline (Elavil), gabapentin (Neurontin) or pregabalin (Lyrica). It is not recommended that patients with fibromyalgia take sleeping medicines like zolpidem (Ambien) or benzodiazepine medications.
Always confirm with your doctor which RX is best and not contraindicated for you, for your safety!