Operative Gynecology

Goldenseal: A Traditional Native American Herb with Many Uses

Goldenseal, Latin name Hydrastis canadensis, is one of the most popular herbs used in herbal remedies today. Goldenseal has traditionally operated as a traditional healing herb of Native Americans, but it has entered the European herbal cabinet with of late.

Traditionally, the Cherokee used goldenseal as an herbal treatment for indigestion, local inflammations, and to improve appetite. The Iroquois used Goldenseal to treat heart problems, liver disorders, whooping cough and to treat fevers.

Goldenseal reached European shores by 1760. During the nineteenth century, Goldenseal had become a popular favorite with practitioners of the Eclectic and Thomsonian schools of medicine. In 1926, Goldenseal was included in the list of United States medicinal ingredients in the Pharmacopoeia.

The character of Goldenseal has alternately been described as bitter, dry, astringent, and cold. The plants constituents are described as resins, volatile oils, and alkaloids. Herbalists traditionally describe the actions of Goldenseal as astringent, a digestive and bile stimulant, a tonic, and a laxative. Goldenseal has also been used to reduce phlegm, to heal gastric mucous membranes, and to raise blood pressure.

The part of the Goldenseal plant that is most commonly used is the rhizome. The rhizome is traditionally harvested in the fall, and it is the main ingredient in many herbal remedies. Many traditional herbalists recommend the rhizome of the Goldenseal plant as an excellent drying and mucus-reducing remedy that works well for the gastric, upper respiratory tract. It is also used for the vaginal mucous membranes. The rhizome of the Goldenseal plant is also used to treat conditions involving the spastic colon (mucous colitis), nasal inflammations, and ear infections.

In essence, Goldenseal is very much an herbal remedy for ear, nose and throat problems. But it has many other applications as well. The Goldenseal plant is often used as an herbal remedy to treat gynecological problems. It can help reduce the severity of menopausal symptoms, and it has been known to ease the pain associated with premenstrual symptoms, especially symptoms linked to stagnation. The rhizome of the Goldenseal plant can often be found in commercial herbal remedies as a tonic.

Even though Goldenseal has proven itself to be a very effective healing herb, there are some cautions you use take when ingesting herbal remedies that feature Goldenseal as one of its main ingredients. For instance, Goldenseal is well known as a powerful uterine stimulant, so its use should be avoided women who are pregnant. Goldenseal is also well known as a hypertensive, so it should be avoided in known cases of high blood pressure.

Also, you should not use herbal remedies containing Goldenseal for an ear infection if you know that there is a risk that an eardrum is perforated. Another caveat: avoid ingesting fresh Goldenseal plant. Eating fresh Golden seal plant has been known to cause ulceration of the mucous membranes. It is a very potent plant. Also, if you suffer from digestive complaints, many herbalists recommend that you take barberry for these types of complaints because Goldenseal has recently become endangered in the wild.

Finding Best Health Insurance Coverage

Finding health coverage can be a difficult challenge. When employed by a business you just go with whatever insurance is offered if you can afford it at the time. When you go into business for yourself it opens up the world of insurance. You have to be the one to search through the different coverages available and see if any of the offered insurances is right for you. How do you decide what you need or want? Here is some information on health coverage that may make you more knowledgeable and better capable of choosing your insurance provider.

Health care coverage is separated into two forms of private health care coverage in the United States. First offered is health insurance policies. Second are managed care plans, which predominate over health insurance policies. The federal and state government heavily regulates each. Many can view health insurance Policies as a negative choice since they will often only cover what is medically necessary. Illness, injury and other medical conditions are considered to be medically necessary.

If you are to be hospitalized for evaluation or observation this is not covered. There are also a lot of clauses and limitations. Examples of this would be pre existing condition provisions. Federal law states that a pre existing condition is only valid if it relates to a condition that was formerly recommended by insured care within the last six months before enrollment. Issues like this can really make it difficult for people to choose health Insurance policies.

Managed care programs include HMO, PPO and POS. HMO stands for Health maintenance organization. An HMO often owns and operates its own hospitals and medical facilities. They hire their own doctors, nurses and medical staff. Independent practices are models of HMO that contract out independent physicians in private practices. A PPO is a preferred provider organization and a hybrid of the HMO and PPO is POS that stands for Point of service plans. Managed care plans often have a fixed monthly fee.

The purpose of this organization to transfer the financial risk of health care from the patient to the care organization. If the cost of illness care is over the portion paid by the patient the care organization covers the fee. The PPO usually offers two or more tiers of coverage with varying benefit levels and co pay options. Some issues arise, such as females being forced to seek out a general practice physician for gynecological care. Some care plans are willing to work with female patients if their family doctor can refer them.

No matter the health insurance option you choose you will face ups and downs with both forms. Your best bet is to do thorough research to find which provider best suits your personal needs so that you will be better satisfied with your health coverage.

Are Breast Enlargers Effective?

Many slimming and beauty salons claim they can increase the size of a woman’s breasts through various exercise programs and mechanical devices. All these have one thing in common: they don’t work. None of these advertised treatments can actually increase breast size.

The size of the breasts is genetically determined and no machine or massage can increase the amount of fatty tissue in them. So don’t waste your money on these questionable methods.

The most these exercises can do is to firm up the pectoral muscles which support the breasts. A good posture, with the back straight and the shoulders back and down, will also make the breasts look better. But if you’re Twiggy aspiring to be Dolly Parton, forget it! You don’t need all those fraudulent devices but the help of a surgeon.

Not all women, however, will benefit from plastic surgery. Many women tend to be overly concerned about the appearance of their breasts because of the male fetish of large breasts. While men usually like big breasts, these do not guarantee success in life. What’s important in the long run is your character and personality – qualities that make up the total person.

True, big breasts may make you physically more attractive but they won’t make you a genius or improve the way you deal with people. Contrary to popular belief, the size of the breasts has no bearing whatsoever on erotic sensitivity or pleasure. So before you visit a surgeon, take a look at yourself in a more positive light and see whether you really have to undergo corrective breast surgery.

“One should never undergo breast surgery for a minor defect. An equally important consideration is the emotional stability of the woman. It has been found that insecure, mal-adjusted and unstable women are usually poor candidates for corrective breast surgery. Such women tend to expect the operation to cure emotional ills unrelated to the shape or size of their breasts. It should be pointed out that no plastic surgeon, no matter how good he is, can change your life. Only you can do that,” said Dr. Niels Lauersen, a diplomate of the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

If minor sagging is a problem, don’t spend your money on so-called breast development programs that don’t work. A little exercise will probably help. Another alternative is the Clevastin Natural Breast Enlargement System. This product is rich in breast-enhancing compounds that will help develop your breasts without the need for expensive and invasive surgery. Check out http://www.clevastin.com for details.

“It would be much more reasonable for a woman to do some isometric exercises especially geared to developing the pectoral muscles and strengthening the back muscles for good posture. Push-ups are another way of strengthening muscles in the back, chest wall, and upper arms. Swimming is also an excellent all purpose exercise which improves the tone of the muscles that support the breasts,” Lauersen concluded.

Complete Information on Asherman’s Syndrome With Treatment and Prevention

The syndrome of Asherman is stipulated by the presence of intrauterine permanent adherence, which erases or entirely the uterus cavity partially. Most commonly, intrauterine adhesions occur after a dilatation and curettage that was performed because of a miscarriage or because of retained placenta with or without hemorrhage after a delivery. Although curettage can cause this condition, it is more likely after uterine surgery, such as myomectomy. In these cases the endometrium, or at least its basal layer, has been removed or destroyed. In rare cases, other infections or radium insertion into the uterus for the treatment of gynecologic cancers can lead to Asherman’s Syndrome. Asherman’s can result in all of the above circumstances. It affects women of all races and ages as there is no underlying predisposition or genetic basis to its development.

Most of the patients with Asherman have scarce or absentee periods but what has normal periods. The adherence sometimes also occurs in other situations, like after election failure, after cesarean section, after uterus surgery, or as a result of basin tuberculosis. Some patients have no periods but feel pain at the time each month that their period would normally arrive. This pain may indicate that menstruation is occuring but the blood cannot exit the uterus because the cervix is blocked by adhesions. These infections are rare in the United States, and uterine complications such as Asherman syndrome related to these infections are even less common. Depending on the degree of severity, Asherman’s syndrome may result in infertility, repeated miscarriages, pain from trapped blood, and high risk pregnancies. There is evidence that left untreated, the obstruction of menstrual flow resulting from scarring can lead to endometriosis.

The adhesions may cause amenorrhea (lack of menstrual periods), repeated miscarriages, and infertility. Reduced or absent menstrual flow,especially after a pregnancy and delivery, a miscarriage or termination of pregnancy or nown elvic infection is the most common ymptom. There is a variant of Asherman’s Syndrome that is more difficult to treat. This condition is called a haematometra and is like a large bruise inside the uterus. Recurrent miscarriage and infertility could also be considered as symptoms. Complications of hysteroscopic surgery are uncommon and include bleeding, perforation of the uterus, and pelvic infection. In some cases, treatment of Asherman syndrome will not cure infertility. An artificial form of Asherman’s syndrome can be surgically induced by endometrial ablation in women with excessive uterine bleeding, in lieu of hysterectomy.

Asherman was considered in under is diagnosed because it usually is the survey arrives by the direct diagnosis process for example ultrasonic wave scan. Most cases of Asherman syndrome cannot be predicted or prevented. Treatment involves surgery to cut and remove the adhesions or scar tissue. This can usually be done with hysteroscopy, which uses small instruments and a camera placed into the uterus through the cervix. In more severe cases, laparoscopy is used in addition to hysteroscopy as a protective measure against uterine perforation. Microscissors are usually used to cut adhesions. Many surgeons prescribe estrogen supplementation to stimulate uterine healing respectively the growth of endometrium and place a splint or balloon to prevent apposition of the walls during the immediate post-operative healing phase. Electrocauterization is not recommended. Antibiotic treatment may be necessary if there is an infection.

Green Building: Intelligent Ways of Construction

Global warming refers to “the warming of the earth’s surface around the world, based on documented information on the temperature that has been maintained by humans since 1880″ (Nodvin, S. 2008).

There has been an increase in the news referring to Global Warming, March 27, 2008 the world woke up with a shocking event: the detachment of an ice sheet measuring 41 km by 2.5 km in Antarctica. Scientists argue that climate change is responsible for the rapid collapse of the ice cap that was detaching since the month of February, but global warming affects not only the polar icecaps, but also the fauna of tropical ecosystems, as this type of species “live to the limit of their maximum temperature, a slight increase in temperature is lethal” (Tewksbury, quoted by J. Tristan, R. 2008). Facts like these remind us that global warming is no longer an unknown subject and has become a problem that is part of our everyday life.

Despite the constant bombardment of the media with news regarding this issue, we are not fully informed about the factors of global warming, in fact, it is believed that cars are the largest producers of the negative impact to the environment; however, there is an even more damaging one: Buildings. These static works of construction are part of our daily lives, most of our work is mainly done within them, we spend 90% of our life in confined spaces and the concentration of population is much greater in these spaces than out of them (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2003. Quoted by Kats, G. 2003). However, we are unaware that they “produce nearly half (48%) of all emission of greenhouse gases which is much higher than what emitted by vehicles (27%) and by the industrial sector (25%) “(The American Institute of Architects. 2006).

To explain how the greenhouse effect occurs inside the buildings, lets imagine them as giant glass cubes in which the sun’s rays penetrate throughout the day on the surface, which implies that the objects found within them will warm , an in so doing they “give back the heat in the form of radiation. As the temperature at which they heat up is relatively low, the radiation emitted has a long wavelength; this means they emit an infrared radiation, not visible. Over the years,  they will eventually give an equal amount of energy in the form of infrared absorbed in the form of sunlight, so their temperature  will tend to remain constant (although, of course, they will be warmer than if they were not exposed to direct action of the Sun) “. (Greenhouse effect, 2007). Thus the same thing happens in a greenhouse, where you can cultivate flowers and plants even though the outside temperature reaches lower degrees in temperature.

According to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) the decade of 1998-2007 was the hottest of which has ever been documented. The global surface temperature for 2007 was estimated at 0.41 ° C/0.74 ° F over the annual average of 1961-1990: 14.00 ° C/57.20 ° F. (WMO. 2008. Quoted by Nodvin, S. 2008).

To counter this, a novel form of construction has been created, masterminded by a new generation of architects, designers and builders, who have expressed interest in creating a kind of architecture that is “friendly” with nature and sustainable over time, allowing the reduction of damage that conventional construction has done to the planet. This new form of construction is known as Green Building and is to “create healthier and more efficient, in terms of resource consumption, models of construction, renovation, operation, maintenance and demolition. The elements of green construction are: the sources of energetic efficiency and renewable energy, water management, waste reduction, specifications and construction materials preferably organic”. (Taken from http://espanol.orangecountyfl.net/orangecty/enes/24/_www_orangecountyfl_net/cms/DEPT/growth/building/greenbldg.htm)

There is a perception that the construction of Green Buildings is much more expensive than conventional construction, and indeed this is true, however the long-term cost is significantly lower. Studies show that the amount of the construction of Green Buildings is substantially lower (2%) of what is expected and price increases are related to the costs of architectural and engineering that this type of construction requires. The sooner this type of practice of Green Building is included in construction; the increase of its costs will be less.  (The United States Green Building Council, 2002. Cited by Kats, G. 2003).

However, despite short term cost increases, Green Buildings provide long-term benefits that conventional ones do not offer, for example: lower utility costs in electricity and water, environmentally effective use of building materials, enhancing the health and productivity, long term economic return, reducing environmental impact, among others. (Environmental Services, 2008)

Colombia has within its Green Building the Chamber of Commerce’s green building in Bogota, built in Salitre City. This magnificent building has 28 thousand square meters distributed in two basements, three floors of public attention, five levels for staff and 500 parking spaces. It has electronic accessories that allow the entry of people arriving in wheelchairs or who have some type of disability that prevents them from entering by stairs. On the second floor is the convention hall, which has a capacity for a thousand people, and has the possibility of being sub-divided into eight rooms, each for one hundred users.

Another example of Green Building in Colombia is the Family Compensation Fund Compensate, located in northern Bogota: Stands out the use of glass on the facade and inside there is a mixture of aluminum and wood. The building has 16,579 square meters and one of its most important features is an “evaporative cooling system that allows natural air collection, and after an interior process the air reaches the top and leaves the building, so that the installation maintains a pleasant temperature that can range between 18 and 21 degrees Celsius (Metrocuadrado.com, 2006), and within the building the services offered are: “multiple stadium, gymnasium, aerobics room, spinning, gourmet salon, spa area, pool, Turkish bath, sauna, Jacuzzi, game rooms, library, computer room (Internet) , VIP lounge, cafeteria and auditorium of 150 square meters, designed as a space for Film Society, with projection equipment, and a retractable tier; and – Medical care: 50 doctors, vaccination, laboratory, dental, radiology, psychology, rehabilitation, nutrition, gynecology, diagnosis, prevention, surgery and medicine in general “(Metrocuadrado.com, 2006).

In Latin America Argentina presents a very interesting Green Building: the building Malecon Buenos Aires. This is an office building of 125,000 feet ² which was built on an abandoned industrial area (his garage was built on the foundations of a warehouse dating from the nineteenth century) in Puerto Madero, an area of redevelopment in Buenos Aires. The construction was made as a long strait block in order to minimize solar gain in the structure and terminations of east and west sides of whom are united. The broad north facade, the first to be exposed to the sun, is shaped to follow the path of the sun and has many deep screens with umbrellas that virtually eliminate sunlight during peak cooling months. The south facade, which reflects the geometry of the northern facade, is equipped with the same system of high-performance curtain of the other facades, minimizing the solar gain; open floor plants and high floors provide flexibility for multiple office tenants or future uses. (From http://www.aia.org/aiarchitect/thisweek02/tw0419/0419tw1cote.htm, May 2008)

In the U.S. this type of buildings have great technical and financial support from the public administrations; in Europe there are funding programs such as PAE (Fed-IDE), SAVE 3, Thermi &, among others, which in addition to providing aid, certify buildings that meet the exact standards so they are differentiated as Green Buildings, giving them green or eco-labels (LEEDS-Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, ISO 14001, EEA, among others).

Finally what is intended with this type of construction, grants and certifications is to reduce energy consumption and exploit natural resources, so as to achieve the prolongation of the service life of the planet and the reversal of the ecological phenomena as the greenhouse effect, among others.

Causes ,effects symptoms and treatments of gastrointestinal cancer

Gastrointestinal cancer: Gastrointestinal cancer starts in the inner lining walls of the gastrointestinal tract. Gastrointestinal tract is comprised of gallbladder, liver, esophagus, small intestine, pancreas, stomach, large intestine (colon) and rectum. Gastrointestinal cancer refers to the cancer of entire digestive system.

Cells plays major role in defining cancer. All the organs and tissues in the body are made up by tiny body cells. These cells have a constant process of dying and replacing new cells. This is the general process carried by them, if there is any malfunction in their life cycle then there is a chance for the occurrence of cancer. Tumor occurs due to the formation of excess cells in the body. There are two types of Tumors one is benign tumor and the other is malignant tumor .Benign tumor is not cancerous but can cause damage to the adjacent organs if it grows continuously at a single site. Malignant tumor is cancerous because it spreads through out the body and damages the entire body organs.

Here is the list of gastrointestinal cancer:
• Gallbladder
• Liver
• Esophagus
• Small intestine
• Pancreas
• Stomach
• large intestine (colon)
• Rectum

Risk factors of gastrointestinal cancer:
• Age
• Gender
• Smoking
• Alcohols
• Family pedigree
• External beam radiation
• Infection of parasites
• Urinary stones
• Inflammation of bladder
• High saturated fat foods
• Diet and food intake

Symptoms of gastrointestinal cancer:
• Blood in the urination
• Urination pain
• Regular feel of urination
• Infections
• Bladder stones
These are the symptoms and signs for the bladder cancer.

Treatments for gastrointestinal cancer:
There are total four types of treatment available for gastrointestinal cancer, they are:

Surgery: surgery is the common of type of treatment available for removing the tumor. The kind of treatment is decided well by the doctor. They are total three types of surgeries which can be carried by identifying the severity of the cancer.

Transurethral resection: This kind of treatment is carried by inserting a cystoscope into the urethra and from there the tumor is removed by using some tools. After that the affected area is burned to kill the remaining cancer cells by using electric current, this process is called as fulguration. Radical cystectomy: This surgery is carried for treating invasive bladder cancer. In this treatment the entire bladder is removed along with the adjacent effected organs for stopping spreading of the disease. Segmental cystectomy: This treatment process is useful in removing the only effected part in the colon. This operation is carried to clear the entire effected part of the bladder.

Chemotherapy: Chemotherapy is one of the treatment methods useful in killing cancer causing cells by the usage of drugs. This treatment process is carried by either pills or through intravascular injections. The anti-cancer drug enters into the bloodstream and travels towards the damaged tissues and destroys the cancer cells. Chemotherapeutic drugs attacks the gastrointestinal cancer cells by stopping their unusual growth. The nature of the cancer cells were brought to the normal condition by controlling the divisibility of the cells. These drugs are carried in the bloodstream to kill destroy all the cancer cells within short period of time.

Radiotherapy: Radiotherapy is a useful process of removing gastrointestinal cancer cells by using high intensity x-rays. These high energy x-rays are aimed at the cancer affected part of the body to destroy the cancer cells. This process also causes damage to the normal cells for its side effects. There are two types of radiotherapy treatments they are.

External radiations: Radiations are given from the external side of the body. The radiations are aimed at the effected area from outside the body. Internal radiations: Radiations are passed into the body by making some small incisions in the abdomen area. This treatment gives better results than the external radiation therapy.

Biotherapy: Due to weak immune system in the body, there are chances for the development of cancer. So this Biotherapy treatment process is useful in rebuilding strong immune system in the body. Biotherapy is also called as immunotherapy or biological response modifier therapy. This treatment process is really useful in repairing, enhancing and stimulating the weak immune system of the body. This process can be carried along with surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

Gastrointestinal cancer is treated as a serious problem due to its effects. All kinds of digestive cancers are together called as gastrointestinal cancer. This cancer affects nearly 30,000 people in a year. Gastrointestinal cancer cells are cancerous because they spread to other parts in the body. The treatment for gallbladder, liver, esophagus, small intestine, pancreas, stomach, large intestine (colon) and rectum cancer is same.This cancer alaso causes gynecologic cancer due to metastatic cancer cells.

What Causes Bacterial Vaginosis

Bacterial Vaginosis is sometimes referred to as Vaginitis. It is an inflammation of the vagina and can include several different strains of germs that are commonly associated with trichomoniasis or vaginosis yeast infections. bacterial Vaginosis is the most common vaginal infection with estimates ranging from 10% to over 50% of women being effected by it at any given time. Bacterial Vaginosis is most common in women who are considered to be in their reproductive years, though it is not exclusive to this age group and can infect any woman. The infection can spread from the vagina to affect the bladder and urethra, along with the genital skin.

When left untreated it can lead to a number of more serious conditions, including endometriosis, cervicitis and Pelvic Inflammatory Disease. It can also cause complications in woman who are pregnant and in spreading post operative infections.

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What are the Causes of Bacterial Vaginosis?

The technical reason that is attributed to bacterial vaginosis is an imbalance between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ bacteria in the vagina. In a normal situation the vagina includes small amounts of anaerobic bacteria and the Gardnerella Organism. These ‘bad bacteria’ are balanced in a healthy vagina by ‘good bacteria’ – most notably Lactobacilli. Bacterial Vaginosis occurs where this balance is upset and the Gardnerella becomes dominant in the Vagina.

There are a number of factors which may lead to this imbalance. One known cause is the spread of E. Coli, a bacteria which normally inhabits the rectum, into the vaginal area. The infection is also more likely to start when you are in poor health, practice poor hygiene habits, use a vaginal douche or use an intrauterine device to practice birth control. The risk increases where the bodies defenses are already lowered, such as the case of high stress levels, or lowered immunity during or following illness. Woman who suffer from diabetes or have entered menopause are also more at risk. African American woman have a greater chance of infection, and women who have multiple sexual partners are also considered a higher risk.

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So What are the Symptoms of Bacterial Vaginosis?

It is possible to suffer from an infection of Bacterial Vaginosis and initially experience no visible symptoms. An itching or burning is common, though sometimes this is only mild and not seen by the sufferer as anything worth getting checked out. The most common symptom associated with acterial Vaginosis is an unpleasant odor, often described as being ‘fishy’.

In many cases the infection is picked up in a routine gynecological visit. It is diagnosed initially by a physical inspection and confirmed with lab testing.

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