2008 December | Life With Problems

How To Recognize Someone With Bipolar Disorder

By admin on Tuesday, December 30th, 2008 | No Comments

Recognizing someone who is a probable candidate for bipolar disorder can easily be resolved if the person is already exhibiting symptoms. Although, if the symptoms aren’t that prominent and the person is subject to coming back to his normal status, it wouldn’t be likely to be diagnosed because of
the apparent signs.

To mentally suspect someone having a bipolar disorder within the family or the community is hard especially when you have no idea where to start. It’s best to leave it to the experts.

It’s easier to recognize something that is shown than something that is not. When you see someone with bleeding hands, you know that you have to fix medications and clean the wound of the affected part. When it comes to recognizing a person with such a psychological disorder, it wouldn’t be easy as
telling that he has broken ears or swollen fingers.

Tests must be made to diagnose if the person is really undergoing a stage of the disease. Upon testing a person, he goes into numerous psychological and medical examinations which can help assume or rule out any kind of problem. These tests can also help check if there are any related complications
that have occurred to support the problem.

The tests to help diagnose a problem generally consist of:

• Laboratory tests. Testing via laboratory usually includes CBC or complete blood count, other blood tests, and thyroid tests. Urinalysis may also be provided.

• Physical tests. This is all about the outer physique of a person that includes the measuring of weight and height, taking of vital signs such as the person’s temperature, respiratory and pulse rate and blood pressure, auscultation of the lungs and heart and examining the abdomen as a whole.

• Psychological exam. Considered as one of the most important part of the test. Here, the physician will initiate conversation and trigger some of the patient’s inner thoughts and feelings. Psychological exams can help distinguish the behavioral pattern that might have caused the disorder.

The patient may also be asked to fill out certain questionnaires that can help in psychological assessments. With proper permission from the patient, the doctor can also question close relatives and friends that can further provide information of episodes of depression or mania.

Criteria for diagnosis

In order to be diagnosed with the disorder, a person must meet certain criteria that are stated by the manual published by the association which is responsible for American psychiatric society indicated as the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. This manual can be the basis for
health providers to diagnose conditions regarding mental health.

Upon diagnosing a person, the criteria must be based specifically on the type of bipolar disorder as well as the types of episodes and history. To be able to learn more on the situation, you have to talk intently to your doctor and ask the long term treatments to the condition. Researchers say that
bipolar disorder can be regarded as a series of disorders with varying symptom and degrees.

Early diagnosis for a person with bipolar disorder is very important. In the event that people are misdiagnosed or undiagnosed, the person affected will not get sufficient cure because the treatment may be severe or inappropriate. Thus, it is better to consult skilled medical professionals whose
training and experience can provide the proper care in the most appropriate manner.

Bone Cancer

By admin on Tuesday, December 30th, 2008 | No Comments

Cancer of the bone or bone cancer is a general term used when cancer cells are seen in the bone. Cancer that begins in the bone is called primary bone cancer. It is found most often in the arms and legs but it can occur in any bone in the body. Children and young people are more likely than adults to have bone cancers.

Primary bone cancers are called sarcomas. There are several different types of sarcoma and each type begins in a different kind of bone tissue. The most common sarcomas are osteosarcoma, Ewing’s sarcoma, and chondrosarcoma.

In young people, the most common type of bone cancer is osteosarcoma, usually occurring between the ages of ten and twenty-five. More often, males are affected than females. Osteosarcoma frequently starts in the ends of the bones; where new bone tissue forms as a young person grows, usually affecting the long bones of the arms and legs. Ewing’s sarcoma usually affects teenagers, and is mostly found in people between ten and twenty-five years old. This cancer forms in the middle part (shaft) of large bones and most often affects the hip bones and long bones in the thigh and upper arm, but can also occur in the ribs. Chondrosarcoma is a type of tumor that forms in the cartilage (rubbery tissue around the joints) and are found mainly in adults. Other types of bone cancer include fibrosarcoma (malignant giant cell tumor) and chordoma. These are rare cancers and most often affects people over thirty.

The most common symptom of bone cancer is pain. However, symptoms may vary depending on the location and size of the cancer. Sometimes firm, slightly tender lump on the bone can be felt through the skin. Sometimes bone cancer interferes with normal movements and can also weaken or cause bones to break. Tumors that occur in or near joints may cause swelling and tenderness in the affected area. Other symptoms may include fatigue, fever, weight loss, and anemia. It is important to check with a doctor when you experience these symptoms, but these symptoms can also be caused by other less serious conditions.

Treatment for some bone tumors may involve surgery, such as limb amputation. Chemotherapy and radiotherapy are effective in some tumors (such as Ewing’s sarcoma) but less so in others (such as chondrosarcoma). After treatment has been done for bone cancer, it is very important that regular follow-up or check-ups are done with your doctor, to be sure that cancer has not come back and treat it promptly if it does. Check-ups may be physical exam, x-rays, scans, blood tests, and other laboratory tests.

People who have been diagnosed of bone cancer may have many physical, emotional, practical worries. They may worry that removal of a limb or other surgery will affect not only how they look but how other people would feel about them. Patients can be helped to overcome all these through special support groups for youngsters with cancer and their families. The American Cancer Society, for example, is a nonprofit organization that has many services for patients and their familes.

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