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June 2014 | Read this issue and more at www.healthandwellnessmagazine.net |
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as example – can cause abdominal
discomfort. Pain in the lower right
area of the abdomen may mean an
inflamed appendix. Upper right
abdominal pain could be related to
your gall bladder. Upper abdominal
pain along with upper back pain can
be a sign of pancreatitis, an inflammation of the pancreas. Abdominal
pain can also be a result of intestinal
blockage. If intestinal blockages are
not treated immediately, it can result
in the death of intestinal tissue and
other problems. Lastly, a swollen liver
due to hepatitis can cause abdominal
pain.
Pain You
Shouldn’t
Ignore
Sore Calves
By Angela S. Hoover,
Staff Writer
Aches and pain happen from time
to time. However, there are some
pains that require immediate attention, whether they are sharp and sudden or chronic.
Severe Head Pain
The worst headache imaginable
could be a migraine. However, if
there are no accompanying migraine
symptoms, like a visual aura, a sudden and severe headache could be a
brain aneurysm. An aneurysm is an
arterial bulge that happens to about
5 percent of people. Fortunately,
they are seldom noticed and have
little effect. The potential danger is
when a weak spot leaks or tears. The
escaping blood can flood surrounding
tissue and cause a violent headache
as oxygen is cut off. If this happens,
brain damage can occur within minutes. Emergency surgery to repair
the blood vessel is usually required.
A family history of aneurysms and
smoking increase the risk.
Throbbing Tooth or
Aching Jaw
If, when your teeth touch anything
frosty, you feel a dull throb or sharp
twinge it usually means there is nerve
damage inside the tooth or teeth. It
is very easy for bacteria to infect the
tooth at this time. Once the nerve of
a tooth is infected, the bacteria can
spread throughout your body. A filling or a root canal, and possibly antibiotics for an infection, will resolve
the pain and health risks. An aching
jaw or constantly clenching your teeth
can be a sign of heart trouble.
Sharp Pain in Your
Side
When you feel a sharp pain that
is more intense than a runner’s side
stitch and it intensifies over a few
hours or day, it could be appendicitis. This is especially so if the pain is
accompanied with nausea and a fever.
Appendicitis occurs when something,
like a stray piece of feces, migrates
into the space where the appendix
empties into the colon, blocking it.
Eventually, the appendix becomes
dangerously inflamed. If your appendix bursts, it can cause dangerous
swelling of the tissues surrounding
your organs. Another reason for this
sharp, stabbing side pain is an ovarian
cyst. These are fluid-filled sacs that
are harmless and can disappear on
their own. However, if one twists or
ruptures, it can cause terrible pain. A
twisted cyst also needs to be removed
immediately as it can block blood
flow to your ovary within hours. If
that happens, the doctor will need to
cut out the entire ovary along with
the cyst.
Passing Chest Pain
If you experience a tight, squeezing sensation in your chest and what
seems like a bad case of heartburn,
there could be underlying heart
problems that should not be ignored.
Consider what you’ve eaten. If you’ve
not had spicy food but your chest
feels constricted after a hard workout
that is not normal. Seek medical treatment and an EKG immediately to
check if you’re having a heart attack
or your heart has been damaged.
Lower Back Pain
Lower back pain afflicts so many
people that it is the number one
cause of work disability in the United
States. Americans spend about $50
billion trying to address lower back
pain. Sometimes, lower back pain is a
symptom of kidney trouble. It could
be a kidney stone, which usually passes painfully on its own. If your kidney
is infected, it will swell and cause
lower back pain. Likewise, a kidney
tumor can cause lower back pain.
Abdominal Pain
We all get “tummy aches” from
time to time. Sometimes it’s digestion-related, worry-related or food
poisoning. When abdominal pain is
recurrent, especially in certain areas
of the abdomen, then it’s important to get yourself checked out
by a doctor. Problems with nearby
organs – kidneys, lungs or the uterus
Sore calves after an intense run or
workout is usual but if you experience
calf soreness not related to exercise
or injury then have a doctor check
it out. Our legs have a network of
arteries and veins that move blood
to and from the muscles and the
heart. Through our skin we can see
the superficial veins that move blood
deeper into the muscles toward the
deep veins. Little valves inside the
veins prevent blood from flowing the
wrong way. However, clots may form
from a rupture in the vein, damage
to a valve or as a result of a leg injury.
When this happens, it’s called deep
vein thrombosis (DVT). The pain is
caused by the clot’s presence causing
a blood flow blockage that results
in swelling. If a clot breaks loose, an
event called an embolism, it can travel
through your body, block an artery
in the lung or brain, and damage
your lu