Lyme is a growing threat as we move into warmer weather in the US. Researchers have said this year could be one of the worst for this tick-borne disease, as a skyrocketing mouse population and warmer temperatures increase the risk.
Prion diseases are a group of infectious brain diseases that causes extensive tissue damage, resulting in sponge-like spaces in brain tissue. Prions include Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans, bovine spongiform encephalopathy (often called mad cow disease), and chronic wasting disease in hoofed ruminant mammals.
While Lyme disease can be disabling, the wrong treatment for the infection can be fatal.
Primarily caused by the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi, Lyme disease is the most common tickborne disease in the US. By all predictions, 2017 is expected to be a banner tick year in several regions. If you have children, it is important to know what to expect.
Legionnaires' disease is named after 1976 outbreak in Philadelphia that sickened 221 people and killed 34. More often striking adults over the age of 50, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently reported two cases where newborns contracted the often fatal disease — at their moment of birth.
You may not have heard of visceral leishmaniasis, onchocerciasis, or lymphatic filariasis, and there is a reason for that. These diseases, part of a group of infections called neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), impact more than a billion people on the planet in countries other than ours. Despite the consolation that these often grotesque illnesses are "out of sight, out of mind," some of these infections are quietly taking their toll in some southern communities of the US.
For regions that experienced a boom in mouse populations last year, scientists say 2017 could see a surge in cases of Lyme disease.
In the US, ticks can spread several pathogens in one bite. A new test offers physicians the ability to identify what infections ticks are carrying and can detect if one of the pathogens could be the spreading Powassan virus.
Specialized cells in the lining of the gut may provide a key to preventing an infectious brain disease caused by misfolded proteins.
Citrus greening disease — caused by a bacteria spread by psyllid insects — is threatening to wipe out Florida's citrus crop. Researchers have identified a small protein found in a second bacteria living in the insects that helps bacteria causing citrus greening disease survive and spread. They believe the discovery could result in a spray that could potentially help save the trees from the bacterial invasion.
When you think ticks, one of the first things to come to mind is Lyme disease. However, as terrible as Lyme disease is, there's another threat from ticks rising in rank in Connecticut and the Northeast — one that is spreading and that hospitals are not prepared for — the Powassan virus.
The ability of one microbe to adapt is giving it a whole new career as a sexually transmitted disease. Usually content with the back of the throat and nose of those who carry it, the dangerous pathogen Neisseria meningitidis has adapted to cause an illness that looks a lot like gonorrhea.
A dangerous bacterial disease is infecting dogs in northern New Jersey, forcing owners to keep their pets inside.
A bacterium which triggers respiratory disease has been detected in the water systems of two Pennsylvania nursing facilities.
Every year, 100-200 people in the US contract leptospirosis, but usually 50% of the cases occur in Hawaii where outdoor adventurers are exposed to Leptospira bacteria found in freshwater ponds, waterfalls, streams, and mud. That's why it's so alarming that two people in the Bronx have been diagnosed with the disease and a 30-year-old man has died from it.
With a predicated increase in the number of Lyme disease cases in the coming spring season, new research endorses the use of bait boxes to control ticks on the rodents that serve as their hosts.
In the summer of 1976, 4,000 American Legionnaires descended upon the Bellevue-Stratford Hotel in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for a four-day convention. Several days later, many of the attendees experienced symptoms of severe pneumonia. By the beginning of August, 22 people had died. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate that about 180 people were sickened and 29 people died before this mysterious outbreak burnt out.
Kuru is called the shaking disease, its name derived from the Fore word for "to shake." Caused by an organism that infects the part of the brain that controls coordination, people afflicted with kuru shake uncontrollably.
A sometimes serious disease spread by fleas is making inroads in Texas, quietly doubling case numbers since 2008, and beginning to encroach on larger metropolitan areas.
Have you ever wondered what makes a healthy vagina? Bacteria play an important role in vaginal health. If you've ever had your vaginal microbiome—the bacterial community that lives in your vagina—wiped out by taking antibiotics, you probably are well aware of that.
Ecosystem changes caused by agricultural choices in Brazil are creating a dangerous microbe mix in exploding populations of vampire bats and feral pigs.
As many as 700 species of bacteria live on our teeth and in our mouth, and just like the microbiomes inhabiting other parts of our bodies, they change in response to diseases and other health conditions.
When you have an infection, a doctor prescribes antibiotics to make the bacteria that causes it disappear. Sounds like a good idea, but the disappearance of microorganisms that have inhabited humans for millennia could be driving rising numbers of serious illness and debilitating conditions.
It's an unspoken rule that diseases are not things that you want to purposely consume. So if anyone ever offers to cook you something made out of a disease, just kindly say no... unless it's huitlacoche.
The beauty of southern Europe won't protect it from invasions of disease-carrying ticks and mosquitoes—in fact, the Mediterranean climate and landscape may be part of the reason the bloodsuckers are expanding there, bringing unique and terrifying diseases in their wake.
It's not the bacteria itself that takes lives and limbs during invasive flesh-eating bacteria infections. It's the toxins secreted by the group A Streptococcus bacteria invading the body that causes the most damage.
Around 1000 cases of vulval cancer are diagnosed every year in the UK, mainly in women who have been through the menopause. However, there are also a range of other vulval conditions that affect all women – highlighting how important it is to self-check your vulva. Although it may seem daunting if you haven’t self-checked before, Dr Dawn Harper’s guide will show you exactly how to conduct the check – so grab that mirror! Watch this video tutorial and learn how to perform a vulval self-examina...
Fear someone you love might be showing signs of Parkinson's disease? Parkinson's disease is a chronic condition caused by a lack of dopamine in the brain. Diagnosis can sometimes take years; knowing symptoms can speed up the process.
Celiac disease is a digestive disease in which the affected person cannot tolerate gluten. Gluten is a protein that is found in foods like wheat, rye and barley. In this health-minded how-to, you'll learn how to diagnose and treat the various symptoms of Celiac disease. For more information, and to learn about treatment options, take a look.
Ticks. They're everywhere, and they're a pet owner's worst nightmare. Ticks can spread deadly diseases to your dogs and cats, even to people, so it's important to know all the tick prevention tips. Learn how to care for your pet with help from VetVid, and see how to prevent ticks from spreading disease in dogs and cats with this video tutorial.
Determining whether your dog is sick is and how is seldom easy, even for vets. Canine kidney disease is a very serious problem for dogs, and recognizing it early is vital to successful treatment. Watch this video to learn how to diagnose the symptoms and get your dog the care they need.
Check out this instructional science video that demonstrates how to detect disease using Nanotechnology. From the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, this is a demonstration about a new technology that lets us detect diseases earlier and faster than we could before. Science has invented this new technology that can test for several diseases at the same time.
If you want to make a movie with zombies, or the apocalypse, or the apocalypse and zombies, then you are going to have to learn how to create a really haggard-looking, disease-ridden face out of makeup. This video will show you how to do it using Rice Krispies, among other things. The end result is terrifying, and sure to scare your audiences or trick-or-treating targets into doing what you want (buying theater tickets or giving your candy, respectively).
Separate restroom hygiene fact from fiction – here's how. You Will Need
In this clip, Dr. Savant gives you information and tips on how to prevent or recognize heart disease in females. It is important to remember that heart disease affects women, too, and should not be overlooked. Check out this clip and be prepared.
Heart disease affects more than 20 million Americans. Let's explore the various forms that heart disease can take.
In this video tutorial by Dr Suzann Wang you will learn how to prevent gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). It is a hyper or low acidity problem in the stomach. The ph factor measures the acidic or alkaline nature of anything and it has a range of 0 to 14; 14 being highly alkaline and 0 being highly acidic. The stomach acidity tends to be 2. 0 which is pretty acidic. The acidity should be 2. 40. If the acidity is lower, it affects the rest of the digestive system. You can rectify this by t...
Every year, 250,000 Americans are diagnosed with a form of skin cancer called squamous cell carcinoma. What exactly is SCC?
If you decide to grow apples, you should be prepared to combat the insects and diseases that can prey on or otherwise afflict apple trees. Join Bill Tietjen as he describes some common apple diseases and insect problems in this horticultural how-to. Grow healthy, disease and insect-free apple trees.
Dr. David Marshall, Medical Director of Sports Medicine at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta discuss the warning signs, prevention, and treatment of Osgood Schlatter Disease.
