February was designated as Heart Month to increase awareness of heart disease. Recently, the American Heart Association's (AHA) Go Red campaign has focused on women and heart disease -- and for good reason. More women die of heart disease than all other causes of death combined. More women than men die from cardiovascular disease which is why women need to be aware of their risk factors, says this week's edition of The Medical Minute, a service of the Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center.
Science has sought the "cause" of cancer for decades, and in the case of cervical cancer, the cause has been found. The cervix is the opening to the womb that is situated at the upper end of the vagina. Until recently the best approach to cervical cancer was to detect it early with a Pap test performed during a gynecologic examination. While the occurrence of advanced cervical cancer has dropped through widespread use of the Pap test, there are many women in the United States and millions worldwide who do not get or have access to Pap tests. This year in the United States, about 12,000 women will be diagnosed with cervical cancer. Almost 4,000 will die of the disease which is easily detectable and easily cured, if found early.
Crohn's disease is a chronic inflammatory disease of the gastrointestinal tract that belongs to a group of illnesses called inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). According to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, about one in 500 people suffers from IBD. Crohn's can present at any age and affects both genders and all races. It is a chronic disease for which there is no cure, but for which health care providers and researchers are improving their ability to decrease its activity.
It may be uncomfortable to think about after the holidays, but currently two-thirds of Americans are overweight and about five percent are actually clinically severely obese. New Year's resolutions are great, but they probably won't do much to solve this growing epidemic. Very few people are able to lose significant weight through diet and exercise, and even fewer are able to keep the weight off long term.
We are entering that wonderful time of year when we can experience some of the many benefits of living in a climate with four seasons. Those who enjoy skiing and snowboarding are anxiously looking at hilltops in the expectation of seeing some beautiful white powder. However, to fully enjoy our participation, we should remain mindful of injury prevention, advises the latest edition of The Medical Minute, a service of the Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center.
Halloween is supposed to be a spooky night, but parents don't have to be scared about their kids' safety if they follow some simple safety tips from Safe Kids Dauphin County, led by the Penn State Hershey Children's Hospital, Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. It's essential for parents to prepare their children properly to stay safe while trick-or-treating.
Cataracts are one of the most well-known ailments that affect the eye. Approximately 20.5 million Americans carry this diagnosis, and an estimated 2.5 million surgeries per year are performed to correct this condition. Worldwide, this condition afflicts 48 percent, or approximately 18 million people of the world's blind, making it the leading cause of preventable blindness, explains this week's edition of The Medical Minute, a service of the Penn State Hershey Medical Center.
Over the past year, the look and feel of Penn State Live has undergone some subtle changes. Now, the site has experienced its first major facelift since it was launched in April 2003. The first major difference in the site is a large, horizontal image at the top of the page. There will be a variety of images in this space, and visitors to the site can click through to see everything that's there. Clicking on these images will link the user to additional content -- photos, stories or videos about the topic in the original image. A key new feature to the site is the ability for readers to easily access additional stories related to the one they just read. Please take our site survey by clicking on http://www.questionpro.com/akira/TakeSurvey?id=1016512 online.