This post is a continuation of 'PATIENTS and their MALADIES, part #1', and 'PATIENTS and their MALADIES, part #2', as posted on this blog February 2020, and February 2022 respectively.
CURRENT CONTENTS:
HemorrhoidsHoarding disorder
Hypertension
Knee effusion
Male infertility
Myocardial ischemia
-OMAs, (subdural hematoma, atheroma)
Torsade de pointes
Vitamin A deficiency
Vitreous detachment
Authors' Note:
pro tem: frequently used short form for the Latin 'pro tempore' -- for the time being, in the short term.
Readers might also enjoy a verse on the same part of the anatomy presented in September 2021 in the collection "The Bottom Line of Medical Humor". Click HERE.
Authors' Note: Although folks with this engrained problem may be categorized as having depression, schizophrenia or obsessive-compulsive disorder, hoarding disorder may be a psychiatric malady in its own right.
Authors' Note: High blood pressure, or hypertension, a chronic condition generally of unknown cause, is one of the major cardiovascular risk factors playing a role in the development of adult heart disease. It is also of particular importance in the causation of stroke, accounting for up to 50% of the risk for that condition.
Authors' Note: This verse resulted from the author’s personal experience (as patient).
Following trauma, standard X-rays taken in the Emergency Department show most fractures where the bone fragments are displaced. They can not, however, diagnose many undisplaced fractures, particularly in elderly patients with reduced bone density.
Nonspecific swelling with evidence of leaking of fluid into the adjacent joint space (joint effusion) is particularly common in injuries about the knee, and is easily discerned on visual inspection and X-rays. Follow up radiographs after another 3 weeks sometimes display an initially missed healing fracture. In cases where instability, ongoing pain, or persistent effusion are prominent, injury to ligaments may be suspected.
With advancing age, life becomes a minefield of unexpected diseases; for several of these, the suffix -oma, implying growth or swelling, is used although an underlying neoplastic process is not present.
In the elderly, subdural hematomas or intracranial bleeds (within the envelope of membranes surrounding the brain) may occur with minimal trauma or even spontaneously, particularly if anticoagulants have been used.
The patchy process of atherosclerosis may involves the left main coronary artery or its major division, the left anterior descending artery. In such cases, sudden clotting with blockage of the artery may occur at the site of atheroma, and cause a severe heart attack with cardiac arrest, a major cause of sudden death in the middle-aged and elderly population.
This verse is a companion piece to others by the author dealing with malignant tumors and benign tumors; these are found in the collection of 'Oncologic Verses'.
Authors' Note: Avitaminosis, an absence of vitamins, causes specific deficiency diseases, as discussed for some other vitamins by (Dr.) SheilaB, a prolific contributor to OEDILF. 
Authors' Note: The near-spherical posterior chamber of the eye ('the vitreous') is filled with a translucent gel that shrinks with age, and becomes 'stringy'. Fibrous strands in this space leads to the appearance of floaters, a common symptom.
Authors' Note:
Torsade de pointes (tor-sad duh PWAnT), is an Anglo-French medical term for twisting of the peaks, named in 1966 by its French cardiologist discoverer. It is a pattern seen on the ECG (electrocardiogram), with 'twisting' or cycling of the height of the ventricular 'QRS' complexes, and is often associated with factors, inherited or acquired, that widen the 'Q-T' interval on the tracing. This pattern is associated with nasty ventricular arrhythmias and sudden death. If you are lucky, you have survived the initial episode and have correctable factors (e.g. electrolyte disorders, certain pharmaceuticals, etc.)
Flying straight is a casual metaphor associated with performing expected or routine function.
Flying straight is a casual metaphor associated with performing expected or routine function.
Authors' Note: Avitaminosis, an absence of vitamins, causes specific deficiency diseases, as discussed for some other vitamins by (Dr.) SheilaB, a prolific contributor to OEDILF.
Avitaminosis A, i.e. absence of vitamin A, is the most common cause of childhood blindness in parts of Africa and South Asia, resulting in specific eye damage including corneal ulceration and retinal damage. Early symptoms include xerophthalmia (severely 'dry eyes') and loss of night vision, although, it is noted that in appropriately nourished populations (developed countries), these symptoms are due to other causes.
Progressive shrinkage may result in more sudden vitreous detachment with a marked increase in floaters, but generally no harm to vision, and symptoms regress spontaneously over several months. Occasionally, the initial event is accompanied by detachment (tearing –TAIR) of a portion of the light-detecting retina, so careful initial assessment and follow-up are warranted.
AND, HERE'S A LIST OF LINKS to collections of intriguing verses on other medical/dental topics that can now be found on various posts including:
Patients and their Maladies (parts #1, #2 and #3)
Funny Bones (parts #1 and #2)
Doctors and their Practices (parts #1 and #2)
Doctors and their Practices (parts #1 and #2)
and in 'brief sagas' including:
DIRECTION FOR WEB-TRAVELLERS:
To resume daily titillations on our related blog 'Daily Illustrated Nonsense', click HERE. Once you arrive, you can select your time frame of interest from the calendar-based listings in the righthand margin, and check the daily offerings for any month in the years 2020 to the present. (As of September 2023, there are over 1200 unique entries available on the Daily blog, and most of these are also presented here on 'Edifying Nonsense' in topic-based collections.) The 'Daily' format also has the advantage of including some videos and other material that are not shown here on this topic-based blog.
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