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The New Fibromyalgia Remedy (Addicus Books)
The author of a new book says that viruses can be triggers.
Health Community
From the occasional headache to chronic fibromyalgia, pain disorders can be daunting and difficult to manage. Get support from others with experience handling pain.
Most cases of back pain resolve within a matter of weeks or months. But for some it becomes a constant problem, which, if ignored, can result in depression, disturbed sleep, impaired balance, and a withdrawal from the pleasurable activities of life.
Unlike arthritis, this condition does not affect the joints. Instead, it causes widespread pain and achiness in the body's muscles, ligaments, and tendons. Numbness, tingling, and the sensation of swelling of the hands are other common symptoms. The disorder cannot be cured, but symptoms can be managed.
It's the most common reason people skip work and school. Headache pain results when nerves of the blood vessels and head muscles are activated and send pain signals to the brain, though it's not clear why these signals are activated in the first place. Especially in the case of migraines, they tend to run in families.
When a stone is in the kidneys, many people are totally unaware of its presence. If shape and size permit, kidney stones sometimes pass without significant discomfort after they break loose. However, even a small stone can wreak havoc as it moves down the urinary tract.
By age 60, almost everybody has OA in at least one joint. All those years of bending and lifting and twisting and turning wears down the cartilage that caps the ends of bones, resulting in painful inflammation. Treatment focuses on easing the discomfort.
Most often the onset of this autoimmune disorder is marked by fatigue, weakness, low-grade fever, or loss of appetite and weight. Such symptoms may or may not be accompanied by mild joint stiffness or pain.
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The pain of shingles can be intense and feel unrelenting. It may be itching, stabbing, or shooting. Three to four days before the telltale blisters develop, you may feel sluggish or have a fever, chills, a headache, an upset stomach, diarrhea, or difficulties with urination.
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HealthiNation video
When shopping for a health plan, is an HMO or a PPO better for you and your family?"
HealthiNation video
Learn why chemotherapy often plays a large part in cancer treatment.
If you learn how to alleviate the symptoms, having herpes does not mean the end of a satisfying sex life.
Heart surgeon Charles Fraser with Rachel Parrish, 9, at Texas Children's Hospital. He operated on Rachel in 1997, 1998, and 2001 to treat her for hypoplastic left heart syndrome. (Kevin Horan/Aurora for USN&WR)
Out of 5,189 hospitals only 3 percent are ranked in one or more specialty. Johns Hopkins tops the Honor Roll.
New England is home to many of the best health plans in the country. U.S. News and NCQA review 684 plans.
American Hospital Association Symptom Finder
Discover possible causes of your symptoms.
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