Tag: lupus

Protect Yourself From The Flesh Eating Disease

I know that all the rage these days is talk about an impending zombie apocalypse and that is what you may first think of when you hear about flesh eating disease but since there really is no such thing as zombies let’s talk about how you can protect yourself from the flesh eating disease called Necrotizing Fasciitis.

The best way to protect yourself from the flesh eating disease is to keep your hands clean. Wash them in warm water and soap for at least 15-20 seconds when they are visibly soiled and use hand sanitizer to kill the germs you can’t see for other times.

If you cut yourself or get a burn while you are in the kitchen, no matter how small and insignificant it may seem at the time, always clean the area very well and keep it covered. Feel free to use a triple antibiotic ointment and change the bandage frequently or at least daily.

The bandage you use should also be kept dry so go buy yourself some vinyl or latex gloves at your local drug store to use to cover the affected area, if it is on your hands, that is.

Bacteria thrives in warm, moist places so if the bandage gets wet change it immediately.

If you are a relatively healthy individual you have a lower risk of acquiring this possibly deadly infection. Higher risk individuals are those with chronic conditions that deplete the immune system like diabetes, cancer, and lupus.

Alcoholics and drug abusers also have a higher risk of developing this type of infection.

These people should take special precautions from even getting injured because with an immune system that is not functioning like it should sores and burns will not heal quickly in the best of times.

If, a day or two after an injury, you start to notice any of the following symptoms, you should see your doctor as soon as possible.

If you notice:

1. Increased redness, swelling and the area of injury is hot to the touch

2. Green drainage from the would

3. Increased or new, severe pain to the area

4. An area near the center of the original injury has turned black. This indicates that tissue death has begun.

Diagnosis is made by your doctor ordering a number of tests such as:

1. Lab culture of the wound

2. CT scan or MRI

3. Blood tests

4. Biopsy of the surrounding skin

Immediate treatment is essential to limiting the damage the toxins released by the bacteria can cause. If left untreated for even just a little while, sometimes only a few hours, extensive damage can occur and complications such as amputation or organ death can quickly follow.

Statistics show that if you do not learn how to protect yourself from the flesh eating disease and you do acquire this deadly infection 1 in 4 will die from it.

All it takes is keeping your hands and any injury you get clean, covered and dry.

Hair Loss Due To Various Diseases Or Surgery

Most times, hair loss is explained in the context of genetics and a change in the hormonal balance of ones body. However, hair loss can also be a symptom of an underlying disease or a result from a surgery.

Skin diseases that affect the scalp form one disorder that can result in hair loss. The nutrients, minerals and supplements are lost rapidly in the hair and scalp. With any of these skin diseases, it will usually cause hair loss either because of the effects from the immune system or because of the lack of nutrients that are not available from the disease.

Cancer, lupus or diabetes are other conditions that can cause your hair to fall out. Because the nutrients are not balanced in the body from these diseases, it may cause side effects or problems with hair loss. This is known as a side effect of an underlying problem that is more severe.

When you are losing hair from a surgery, it is usually either a side effect of the disease, or from excess stress that occurs from the surgery. This is especially known to be a problem if the surgery is major. In other instances, the hair loss may be a result of part of the surgical procedure, such as chemotherapy, which will cause temporary hair loss.

Knowing how your disease or the aftermath of a surgery can result in hair loss is important as it can mean that your falling hair may just be a temporary situation as you recover from a weakened immune system and body.

Once your body hormones begin to balance again and your organs are working optimally, hair will begin to grow back at a normal rate. Dont worry excessively if your hair takes some time to grow. It takes time for the proteins and nutrients to take effect on your scalp and hair. In fact, a period of between four to six months is usually the case before you have a good amount of hair back on your head again.

If you are losing your hair because of a disease, then you can expect that the hair will grow back. In order to make sure that your hair grows back, you will need to take proper specific steps in order to remove toxins from your body and rebalance the hormones internally. In effect, your scalp and hair area will gain more nutrients and will have the ability to become healthy again. Over time, your hair loss will diminish and will grow back, despite the effects from any type of disease that has affected your body.