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Common Illnesses (common + illness)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Medical Sciences	87%

Selected Abstracts

Illness and exposure to negative life experiences in adolescence: two sides of the same coin?

ACTA PAEDIATRICA, Issue 3 2004
A study of 15-year-olds in Oslo, Norway
Aim: To investigate associations between negative life experiences and common illnesses among adolescents. Methods: Cross-sectional questionnaire study carried out at all lower secondary schools (10 grade) in Oslo, Norway, during 2000 and 2001 (n= 8316 pupils). Different negative life experiences and illnesses were addressed. Results: The participation rate was 88%. Among reported negative life experiences last year were a pressure felt to succeed (62%), death of a close person (26%), exposure to physical violence (22%), bullying at school (15%) and sexual violation (4%). A large number of the pupils had some chronic illness: hay fever (38%), eczema (29%) and asthma (13%). Reported illnesses the previous 12 month were: headache (56%), painful neck or shoulders (35%), sore throat at least three times (15%), lower respiratory tract infection (9%) and mental problems for which help was sought (7%). During the week prior to the survey, 26% of all girls had symptoms of a depressive disorder, while this applied to 10% of all boys. Fifty-three percent of the boys (29% of the girls) who had depressive symptoms had been exposed to physical violence. Sexually violated boys had a high probability for seeking help for mental problems (OR = 4.9) and for frequent episodes of sore throat (OR = 2.5). Corresponding odds ratios for girls were 1.7 and 2.5, respectively. Conclusion: Common illnesses in adolescence are significantly associated with negative life experiences. In clinical encounters with adolescents not only should the presenting complaints be addressed, but also other common illnesses and relevant background factors such as negative life events. [source]

Societal Safety: Concept, Borders and Dilemmas

JOURNAL OF CONTINGENCIES AND CRISIS MANAGEMENT, Issue 2 2007
Odd Einar Olsen
In most industrialized countries, the end of the Cold War marked a change in focus from preparedness for war to an increasing focus on civil society's own vulnerability and safety. To meet new threats and changing risks, there is also a need for new analytical concepts. Societal safety is a concept developed in Norway during the last decade. It could be defined as: ,The society's ability to maintain critical social functions, to protect the life and health of the citizens and to meet the citizens' basic requirements in a variety of stress situations'. It aims to be a systematic approach for understanding, mitigating and responding to social problems such as extraordinary stresses and losses, interferences in complex and mutual dependent systems, or lack of trust in vital social institutions. Future threats to society are not limited to specific sectors or areas, but stem from complex interactions amongst economic, technological, social and cultural factors. Thus, the main challenges to improve societal safety will be the ability to coordinate, organize and assign clear roles to different actors at the international, national and local levels. Societal safety has interfaces with other safety-related areas such as national security, sustainable development, human security and incident management (handling of isolated accidents, common illness and ordinary criminal acts). Societal safety is, however, a sensitive political issue containing dilemmas and value choices that are hardly possible to perceive or solve as pure scientific problems. [source]

Can't stop dancing: Could it be St. Vitus' dance?

JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF NURSE PRACTITIONERS, Issue 7 2008
Corrie Rogness RN
Abstract Purpose: To inform providers of one of the rare but significant consequences that result from not diagnosing and treating streptococcal pharyngitis: Sydenham's chorea (St. Vitus' dance). Data sources: Current Internet sources including review articles, informational articles, online medical textbooks, and professional organization Web sites. Conclusion: It is vital that each case of streptococcal pharyngitis be treated with appropriate antibiotic therapy. Doing so will help prevent the sequelae associated with streptococcal infections, such as acute rheumatic fever (ARF) and Sydenham's chorea. Implications for practice: Streptococcal pharyngitis is a common illness that has the potential to cause very serious consequences. The consequences may be life altering, such as suffering permanent heart damage. With appropriate diagnosis and treatment with antibiotics, the sequelae of ARF and Sydenham's chorea can be prevented. [source]

Pharmacological Approaches to Managing Migraine and Associated Comorbidities,Clinical Considerations for Monotherapy Versus Polytherapy

HEADACHE, Issue 4 2007
Stephen D. Silberstein MD
Comorbidity is defined as an illness that occurs more frequently in association with a specific disorder than would be found as a coincidental association in the general population. Conditions that are frequently comorbid with migraine include depression, anxiety, stroke, epilepsy, sleep disorders, and other pain disorders. In addition, many common illnesses occur concomitantly (at the same time) with migraine and influence the treatment choice. Migraine management, and especially migraine prevention, can be challenging when patients have comorbid or concomitant illnesses. The objectives of this initiative are to review the literature on managing patients who have migraine and common comorbidities, present additional clinical approaches for care of these difficult patients, and evaluate the areas in which research is needed to establish evidence-based guidelines for the management of migraine with associated comorbid conditions. [source]

Efficacy and safety of over-the-counter analgesics in the treatment of common cold and flu

JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PHARMACY & THERAPEUTICS, Issue 4 2006
R. Eccles BSc PhD DSc
Summary Rationale:, Common cold and flu are the most common human illnesses, and over-the-counter (OTC) analgesics are widely used to treat the pain and fever symptoms. Despite the every day use of these analgesic there is little information available in the literature on the efficacy and safety of these medicines in treating colds and flu symptoms. The aim of this review was to determine the safety and efficacy of the analgesics, aspirin, paracetamol and aspirin for the treatment of colds and flu. Methods:, Electronic databases and a personal database were searched and the information retrieved together with information from relevant textbooks has been integrated in the review. Results:, The literature search established that there is relatively little information on the use of analgesics in treating colds and flu and that much of the safety and efficacy data must be related to other pain and fever models. The review establishes that aspirin, paracetamol and ibuprofen are safe in OTC doses and that there is no evidence for any difference between the medicines as regards efficacy and safety for treatment of colds and flu (except in certain cases such as the use of aspirin in feverish children). There is also no evidence that these medicines prolong the course of colds and flu by any effect on the immune system or by reducing fever. Conclusion:, Despite the lack of clinical data on the safety and efficacy of analgesics for the treatment of colds and flu symptoms a case can be made that these medicines are safe and effective for treatment of these common illnesses. [source]

Hospital system costs of artificial infant feeding: estimates for the Australian Capital Territory

AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH, Issue 6 2002
Julie P. Smith
Objective: To estimate the attributable ACT hospital system costs of treating selected infant and childhood illnesses having known associations with early weaning from human milk. Method: We identified relative risks of infant and childhood morbidity associated with exposure to artificial feeding in the early months of life vs breastfeeding from cohort studies cited by the American Academy of Pediatrics in 1997 as establishing the protective effect of breastfeeding. Data for ACT breastfeeding prevalence is assessed from a 1997 prospective population-based cohort study of 1,295 women. ACT Hospital Morbidity Data and DRG treatment costs were used to estimate the attributable fraction of costs of hospitalisation for gastrointestinal illness, respiratory illness and otitis media, eczema, and necrotising enterocolitis. Results: Although initiation rates were high (92%), less than one in 10 ACT infants are exclusively breastfed for the recommended six months, mainly due to supplementation or weaning on to formula within the first three months and the early introduction of solids by breastfeeding mothers. This study suggests the attributable hospitalisation costs of early weaning in the ACT are about $1 -2 million a year for the five illnesses. Conclusions and implications: Early weaning from breast milk is associated with significant hospital costs for treatment of gastrointestinal illness, respiratory illness and otitis media, eczema, and necrotising enterocolitis These costs are minimum estimates of the cost of early weaning as they exclude numerous other chronic or common illnesses and out-of-hospital health care costs. Higher rates of exclusive breastfeeding would reduce these costs. Interventions to protect and support breastfeeding are likely to be cost-effective for the public health system. [source]