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ABOUT OUR WEBSITE
The topic
chosen by us is, diseases. We have chosen about 50 common diseases
that have relevance today. The information in this site is easy to read and
valuable to students and adults alike, and is supplemented by pictures for better
understanding. This site also has a section Symptosearch, in which
one can choose from the symptoms displayed to narrow down possible
infectious diseases that exhibit those symptoms.
SYMPTO SEARCH
Have you ever had fever or
were uncomfortable but were afraid to tell anyone?
Have you ever had cough and
somebody told you it could be tuberculosis? Or have you had abdominal pains
and feared that you had amoebiasis? In this site, we attempt to provide the
answers to these questions. Of course, this Symptosearch does not
claim to diagnose disease –only a qualified Physician can do
that. Also, we have tried to cover only the commoner infectious diseases,
rather than the huge spectrum of over 5000 diseases and conditions
worldwide.
WHAT IS A DISEASE?
A disease is any abnormal
condition of the body or mind that causes discomfort, dysfunction, or
distress to the person affected or those in contact with the person.
Sometimes the term is used broadly to include injuries, disabilities,
syndromes, symptoms and deviant behaviors. Pathology is the study of
diseases. The broader body of knowledge about diseases and their treatments
is Medicine.
SYNDROMES, ILLNESS AND DISEASE
Medical usage sometimes
distinguishes a disease, which has a known specific cause or
etiology, from a syndrome, which is a collection of signs or
symptoms that occur together. Illness, although often used to mean
disease, can also refer to a person's perception of their
health, regardless of whether they in fact have a disease. A person without
any disease may feel unhealthy and believe he has an illness. Another
person may feel healthy and believe he does not have an illness even though
he may have dangerously high blood pressure, which may lead to a fatal
heart attack or stroke.
IDENTIFYING A CONDITION AS A DISEASE
Identifying a condition as a
disease, rather than simply a variation of human structure or function,
could have significant social or economic implications (such as
compensation for the victims). A condition may be considered to be a
disease in some cultures or eras but not in others. To consider a syndrome
to be a disease is a social value judgement. Even obesity is
considered to be a disease in North America today, but not some decades ago,
and not in some other countries.
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