2. Infectious - chicken
pox
Chicken pox is a highly contagious
disease that causes
red, itchy, blistering bumps on the
skin.
It is classified as a viral disease.
3. Cause and
transmission
Chicken pox is caused by the virus varicella zoster. It
is carried in saliva and mucus droplets in the air and
can therefore be spread when an infected person
coughs or sneezes. The virus is able to be passed on
before the infected person has shown any
symptoms, and the blisters remain infective until all
contained fluid is gone.
4. symptoms
The most apparent symptom is
a rash that starts off on the
body and scalp and continues
to spread to the face, arms and
legs. The case may also have a
fever, have a cold, feel tired and
feel generally ill.
When the virus has entered the
body but the rash has not yet
broken out, cases can feel
ill, have a slight fever and lose
their appetite.
5. treatment
Due to chicken pox being caused by a virus, it cannot
be treated with medicine as it is up to the immune
system to rid of it. However, a physician can prescribe
lotions and creams to help reduce the itchiness of the
rash and dry out the blisters. Antihistamines, which are
drugs used to stimulate the bodies reaction to
allergies, are also used to relieve the skin. Pain
relieving medicine can be used if blisters form within or
near openings of the body, such as the mouth and
eyes.
6. prevention
Good personal health habits such as covering the nose
and mouth when sneezing and coughing help prevent
transmission. There is also a vaccine available to help
prevent the contraction of chicken pox. Young children
require a single dose when they receive their other
immunisations, and when children who have not had the
disease reach the age of 12 a single dose is also
recommended. Adults who have not had chicken pox
should get two doses of the vaccine, four to eight weeks
apart. This vaccine protects more than 70% of people from
contracting chicken pox.
7. Incidence
Chicken pox is one of the most common viral infections
of children. As it is highly contagious, approximately 90%
of those exposed to it become infected. It is highly
prominent in the United States, with 150,000 to 200,000
cases being reported each year. The largest number of
cases occur during winter and early spring, and most
children are infected between the ages of six and ten.
Australia, 1991 - 2000:
8. Non-Infectious anorexia nervosa
People who habitually starve
themselves even though they are
marginally underweight are classified
as having anorexia nervosa. People
who suffer from anorexia nervosa are
called anorectics.
It is classified as a psychological
disease.
9. Cause
Although a specific cause has
not been identified, the disease
can stem from
cultural, biological and
psychological factors.
10. Cultural cause
Our society's emphasis on dieting and being thin
causes anorectics to be overly focused on their
weight. The media's portrayal of impossibly thin
models, which only look this way because of digital
altering, triggers these cases to believe they are
overweight even if they are in fact severely
emaciated. This distorted sense of self image and
society's false expectations lead to anorectics
becoming terrified of being fat no matter how thin
they are.
11. Biological cause
By refusing to eat, an anorectic may be attempting to
keep her preadolescent shape and withhold her body
from sexually maturing. The case may be scared to
develop in this way due to an early or uncomfortable
sexual experience.
Another example stems from an anorectic's family
situation. If their domestic life is overly
protected, controlled and rigid, anorexia nervosa may
be an extreme form of rebellion against authority.
12. Psychological
cause
Underlying psychological problems are associated
with most cases of anorexia nervosa. Cases can
suffer from diseases such as obsessive-compulsive
disorder and therefore need acute control over
what, when and how much they eat.
13. Noticeable symptoms
Anorectics tend to eat less than the average person and
continue to eat smaller amounts as time progresses.
They are likely to act unusually energetic about food and
be obsessive over it. Cases can be keen to prepare food
for others but always make excuses as to why they aren't
eating themselves. Physically they look thin, sickly and
waxy. In severe cases other medical problems and an
aura of depression can be evident. Other symptoms
include losing weight, excessively exercising, wearing
bulky clothes to hide thinness, continually directing
conversation to food, hyperactivity and social isolation.
14. Symptoms observable by a
physician
Anorectics carry physical symptoms alike those present
in patients suffering from chronic starvation. These
include a slower heartbeat, lower blood pressure, below
normal body temperature, constipation, decrease of
menstruation, and the emergence of fine, silky body hair.
Cases also show psychological symptoms such as a
distorted perception of their bodies, obsessivecompulsive behaviour, hysteria and depression.
16. Treatment Hospitalisation
Hospitalisation offers the best hope of a successful
recovery as all aspects of the patients life are able to
be closely managed. Doctors and dieticians propose
a healthy eating plan to help the case put back on lost
weight in a safe matter. Individual and group therapy
sessions help mend underlying personal problems
that may have contributed to the onset of the disease.
17. Treatment - monitored
recovery
Once anorectics have shown a definite start to
recovery and progressed in dealing with both their
physical and mental problems they are usually
dismissed. However, physical and psychiatric check
ups continue on a regular basis for a substantial
period of time to ensure the patients stay in their
recovered state. Approximately 40% of cases return
to their previous state within six years of being
diagnosed.
18. prevention
As mentioned before, there is no one exact cause of
anorexia nervosa, and therefore a certain method of
preventing it had not been found. However there are
several strategies already in place. Parents should take
care to make sure that their children have a healthy
attitude towards themselves, their bodies and their
eating habits. By looking for early signs of the
disease, cases can be steered in the right direction
before physiological and physical symptoms become
advanced.
19. Incidence Statistics
90 to 95% of anorectic cases are young females from
middle or upper class families. The disorder usually
begins when cases are in their teens. It is estimated that
1 in every 250 women between the ages of 12 and 18 is
an anorectic. However, females as young as 11 or as old
as 60 may have the disease.
Approximately 5 to 10% of anorectics are men.
Conversely, their families are likely to be less affluent
and many cases are often extremely overweight before
developing the disease.
20. Incidence history
Anorexia nervosa was previously very rare, but since
it gained media attention during the 1970's cases
have more than doubled. Therefore, experts believe
that the disease is related to our modern culture. This
is supported by the fact that it only occurs in the
United States, Canada, Japan, Great Britain, and other
highly industrialized societies.
