HB Mag Health Research Team
A dementia diagnosis and legal incapacity are not the same thing. A diagnosis is a medical finding. Incapacity is a legal determination made by a court or, in some situations, by a physician’s written statement under state law. One can exist without the other. Many people with dementia still have the mental capacity to make … Read more
An MRI is a medical imaging test that uses a strong magnetic field and radio waves to create detailed pictures of the inside of your body. It does not use X-rays. Instead, it maps the behavior of hydrogen atoms — mostly in the water that makes up your tissues — to build cross-sectional images a … Read more
Psychology belongs to the health care and scientific research industries. It is classified as a social science that studies the mind and behavior, and as a health profession when practitioners hold a clinical license and treat patients. The same field also sits inside education, business, and public health, which is why the question of “what … Read more
Seeing a flash of light in a dark room when nothing is there can be startling. Most of the time, these flashes come from inside your own visual system, not from anything in the room. The retina at the back of your eye can send a false light signal to your brain when it is … Read more
A PICC line is a long, thin, flexible tube placed into a vein in the upper arm and threaded so its tip sits in a large vein near the heart. PICC stands for peripherally inserted central catheter. It is used when a patient needs intravenous therapy for weeks or months, when the medicine itself is … Read more
Hemorrhoids are swollen veins in the lower rectum and anus, and they “come out” when internal cushions of tissue stretch, slide downward, and push through the anal opening. This is called prolapse, and it happens because of sustained pressure inside the abdomen combined with weakening of the connective tissue that holds those cushions in place. … Read more
Diarrhea does not cause chest pain through any direct mechanism in the digestive tract itself. The two symptoms are connected in a few specific ways: shared nerve pathways, dehydration and electrolyte loss, physical strain from vomiting or coughing, and — in some cases — a serious condition affecting the heart or lungs that also triggers … Read more
A rabies titer test is a blood test that measures the level of rabies virus-neutralizing antibodies in your blood. It does not tell you whether you are protected from rabies in any absolute sense. Instead, it gives a number that public health guidelines use to decide whether a vaccinated person still has adequate antibody protection … Read more
Waking up to a pounding headache is a strange and unsettling way to start the day. The pain was not there when you fell asleep. Now it is throbbing behind your eyes or at the back of your head, and you have no idea why. Pounding headaches during sleep usually come from one of a … Read more
If you have gastritis, the safest amount of alcohol to drink is none. Alcohol is a known irritant to the stomach lining, and no type of alcohol is proven safe for someone with an inflamed stomach. If you choose to drink anyway, lower-alcohol options and small amounts are less likely to cause symptoms than spirits … Read more