Dr. Curtis McElroy

Author: docmac

  • Multiple Sclerosis

    Multiple Sclerosis (MS)

    MS occurs when the immune system attacks the central nervous system, affecting the brain and spinal cord. The medical profession find MS an astounding disease because of the severity, and variety of ways that it affects people.

    People with MS commonly experience an unpredictable fluctuation of relapses and remissions. Attacks can last a few weeks and then disappear. However relapses can get progressively worse, more unpredictable and come with different symptoms.

    MS is in itself not fatal, but some people with the disease are more susceptible to contracting other illnesses. Severe cases may involve paralysis or vision loss.

    Multiple Sclerosis is a chronic autoimmune disease that affects more than 2 million worldwide. Three times as many women as men suffer from the disease. The onset of the disease usually occurs between the ages of 20 and 40.

    Causes Of Multiple Sclerosis

    Autoimmune disease means that for unknown reasons our immune system mistakenly attacks our own healthy cells. The nerve fibers that comprise the central nervous system are encased in a protective case known as myelin sheath.

    When immune cells attack the myelin sheath in the central nervous system, parts of the sheath surrounding the brain and spinal cord become inflamed, and eventually degenerate. The damage results in the disruption of nerve signals. This causes the onset of MS disease.

    Although researchers are aware that the myelin sheath has been directly affected, they do not know what triggers the immune system to attack.

    It is believed that genetics play a role, if one parent has MS there is a 2 to 5% of risk of their children getting the disease. Scientists believe that MS victims are born with a susceptibility to adversely react to certain unknown environmental triggers.

    There has been a noticeable pattern of increased cases of MS sufferers in countries farthest from the equator, who as a consequence are exposed to less sunlight. Epidemiologists theorize that there may be a correlation between a lack of Vitamin D and proper function of the immune system.

    Viruses are known to cause inflammation, and to break down myelin. Researchers therefore consider it is possible that a virus could trigger MS. Investigations have begun into several bacteria and viruses to discover if they have any involvement in the development of MS. The focus is on the measles virus, human herpes virus-6 and Epstein-Barr virus(EBV).

    Symptoms Of MS

    Nerve fibers carry messages to and from the brain. The damaged parts of the myelin sheath leave scar tissue, or sclerosis. It depends on where sclerosis occur within the nervous system as to how and where the symptoms will manifest in the body.

    Chronic fatigue is one of the most debilitating symptoms of this disease. MS related fatigue occurs daily, worsens as day goes on and is more severe than normal fatigue. It may be the most conspicuous symptom in a person who otherwise has minimal symptoms.

    Lack of co-ordination of muscle movement (ataxia), balance and functioning of the arms and legs are affected. Chronic back and muscle pain can result from simply walking. Sudden involuntary movements in all parts of the body is also common.

    Cognitive dysfunction is more common among long term sufferers of MS. However, around half of the people with this disease display a decreased ability to concentrate, process information and remember things.

    Major depression is also an understandable condition of the disease. The stress of MS can also cause irritability, mood swings and sometimes bouts of uncontrollable crying and laughing.

    Altered sensory sensations to the skin like numbness, pins and needles, tingling and tightness, and sharp stabbing pain are also present in some cases of MS.

    Eyes are sometimes affected by the disease. When the optic nerve has become inflamed there is a potential for blurred vision, double vision and uncontrolled eye movement. Blindness has also been known to occur in progressive cases of MS.

    Continence problems, involving bladder incontinence, diarrhea and constipation, are an embarrassing issue associated with this condition.

     

  • Celiac Disease

    Celiac Disease

    Celiac disease is the result of the immune system reacting abnormally to a protein contained in wheat, oats and other grains, called gluten. When gluten is eaten by susceptible people it triggers an immune response that causes inflammation, and damage to the lining of the small intestine.

    The overreaction to this protein by the body causes damage to the small finger-like projections found along the wall of the small bowel. When these projections are flattened and inflamed, it prevents the absorption of nutrients from food by the small intestine.

    Symptoms Of Celiac Disease

    Damage to the intestines often causes diarrhea, fatigue, weight loss, bloating nausea, and vomiting.

    Most people with celiac disease are never aware that they have it. Researchers believe that as few as 20% of sufferers ever get a correct diagnosis. The damage to the intestines is very slow, and symptoms are often quite varied, so it can be years before a diagnosis is made.

    Incremental, long-term intestinal damage can lead to more serious symptoms. It is believed that more than half of the people with this condition have other indications that are expressed beyond the digestive system.

    These symptoms include anemia (resulting from iron deficiency), loss of bone density (osteoporosis), itching , blistering skin rash (herpetiformis dermatitis), and damage to dental enamel.

    Effect Of Celiac Disease On Children

    Typical signs of Celiac disease for children under 2 year of age are vomiting, chronic diarrhea, swollen belly, failure to thrive, and poor appetite. Symptoms for older children can include diarrhea, constipation, weight loss, irritability, short stature, and delayed puberty.

    Other serious neurological symptoms for children with untreated gluten intolerance can include attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), learning difficulties, headache and lack of muscle coordination.

    Complication Relating To Celiac Disease

    Over time, the inflammation and damage to the small intestine means the body is unable to absorb enough nutrients to keep the body healthy and may result in malnutrition.

    When the body is deprived of adequate calcium and vitamin D it can lead to loss of bone density, or osteoporosis in adults, and softening of the bones in children, termed rickets. As calcium and vitamin D also contribute to the reproductive tissues, infertility and miscarriage can also result.

    Sometimes people with celiac disease experience abdominal pain and diarrhea after eating dairy products, even though these products do not contain gluten. It has been found that when the small intestine is damaged it can lead to a lactose intolerance in some people.

    This is often reversed when the small bowel heals, however others continue to experience lactose intolerance despite successful management of their celiac disease.

    The intestinal gluten intolerance condition called dermatitis herpetiformis is an itchy, blistery rash that usually appears on the elbows, knees, scalp and buttocks. This condition is often associated with changes to the lining of the small intestine that are identical to celiac disease.

    However it does not always produce other noticeable digestive symptoms. Doctors recommend a gluten free diet for this condition.

    Risk Factors Of Celiac Disease

    All ages, men, women and children can develop celiac disease.
    Researchers have found that some gene variations seem to increase the risk of developing celiac disease. Those with a close relative who has celiac disease have a higher risk of developing this condition.

    It is believe that additional factors such as gastric infections, and gut bacteria, may are also involved.

    Treatment Of Celiac Disease

    A strict lifelong gluten free diet is currently the only recognized medical treatment. When the cause is removed it allows the linings of the small bowel to heal, helping return proper digestive function.

  • Metabolic Disorders

    Metabolic Disorders 

    Metabolic disorders come in several types. There are inherited metabolic disorders by the hundreds, which involve an individual lacking an enzyme that metabolizes a certain amino acid or other chemical substrate, resulting in a buildup of toxic chemicals in the system. These are relatively rare disorders affecting one out of every 1000 babies born. Some metabolic disorders are screened for in early infancy at the time the child is born. This is done so that treatment can begin early in life and complications do not develop.

    Common Inherited Metabolic Disorders:

    Inherited metabolic disorders are not that common but, because the treatment can be as simple as giving a child a certain enzyme or avoiding certain foods, they are screened for at the time of neonatal screening to give the child the best chance of survival without complications.

    Some of these metabolic disorders include:

    • Tay-Sachs disease
    • Galactosemia
    • Phenylketonuria
    • Wilson’s disease
    • Hurler syndrome
    • Niemann-Pick disease

    These metabolic disorders affect an individual from the time they are born. If treated early and for the rest of the person’s life, complications can be spared and the person can live a normal life.

    Acquired Metabolic Disorders

    Much more common are acquired metabolic disorders. Common metabolic disorders include diabetes mellitus type 2, hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism, and metabolic syndrome. These usually affect adults and are either autoimmune diseases or diseases brought on by unhealthy lifestyles.

    Let’s look at these more common diseases:

    • Grave’s Disease. This is a disorder of elevated thyroid hormone production. It is an autoimmune disease in which an individual makes antibodies, which attack the thyroid gland, turning on thyroid function and resulting in the production of too much thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3) hormones. People with Grave’s disease have an overactive metabolism and suffer from symptoms like rapid heart rate, elevated temperature, agitation, nervousness, weight loss, and tremor. A typical feature of Grave’s disease is exophthalmos, in which the eyeballs appear to bulge from the eye sockets. The treatment of this particular disorder is to give radioactive iodine to destroy the cells of the thyroid gland, creating a low thyroid condition, which is treated by giving back the right amount of thyroid hormone in pill form. If not treated, Grave’s disease can lead to a potentially life-threatening condition known as thyrotoxicosis in which there is a dangerously elevated metabolism.

    • Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. This is a low thyroid condition in which autoantibodies attack the cells responsible for making thyroid hormones. The thyroid hormones T4 and T3 are responsible for the maximization of cellular metabolism. When the cells cannot metabolize well, they become sluggish and do not function well. Typical symptoms of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis include sluggish mood, depression, weight gain, constipation, dry skin, and dry hair. The cells cannot metabolize food well so that nutrients go to make fat while the cells themselves are starved of nutrition.

    • Type 2 diabetes. This is an extremely common metabolic disorder caused by genetic factors as well as lifestyle factors. The exact role of each of these factors varies from person to person. Certainly, if you have a first degree relative who has diabetes (such as a sibling or parent); you have an elevated risk of developing this disorder. Eating too much, gaining weight, and exercising too little, also contribute to getting type 2 diabetes.

    The main problem in type 2 diabetes is insulin resistance. For whatever reason, the cells do not respond to the amount of insulin in the system. In spite of elevated levels of insulin, the glucose does not enter the cells to be used as fuel for cellular metabolism. Elevated levels of glucose further raise the insulin, which is forced to put away the extra glucose levels as fat. Type 2 diabetics tend to be overweight, with an elevated fat to total body ratio. This means that all cellular processes tend to be less than adequate because the cells have to work harder to get all the fuel they need and, instead of providing the adequate nutrition for the cells, the glucose turns to fat.

    There are often no real symptoms of type 2 diabetes unless it becomes severe. Things like the immune system are affected so that healing is poor, circulation can become compromised, and the type 2 diabetic is prone to typical diabetic complications, including diabetic neuropathy (damaged peripheral nerves), diabetic retinopathy (blindness secondary to vascular disease in the eyes), cardiovascular disease, and kidney failure. This is why screening for diabetes is so important. By the time symptoms are present, there is often end-organ damage, which cannot be reversed.

    • Metabolic syndrome. This is a relatively common, yet serious metabolic disorder affecting men and women alike, and according to the American Heart Association, 47 million Americans have it and many don’t know they do. People with metabolic syndrome are suffering from insulin resistance so that most of them have elevated blood sugars and diabetes. They also tend to have truncal obesity with relatively thinner arms and legs and with most of the fat around the abdomen. The triglycerides can be dangerously high so the individual is at risk for pancreatitis secondary to hypertriglyceridemia. HDL cholesterol levels tend to be low, which means there is an increased risk of cardiovascular complications. High blood pressure is also a common feature of metabolic syndrome.

    The increased risk of cardiovascular complications is what makes metabolic syndrome so dangerous. These people go on to develop a stroke, heart attack, or peripheral vascular disease. The diabetic component of the disease affects the nerves, eyes, and kidneys. The best treatment is to lose weight and to reduce the blood sugar, triglycerides, and blood pressure. Not much is yet known about metabolic syndrome in terms of why some people get it and others do not. Doctors are left with treating symptoms and lab values when the real problem of obesity is not easily addressed.

    For those who are diagnosed with metabolic syndrome, reduction in weight through a low calorie diet and exercise is the best way to prevent the complications of the disorder. This takes a long-term commitment to better health and a healthier lifestyle. Metabolic disease may have a genetic component but most doctors feel that the bulk of the disorder is triggered by poor lifestyle choices, which is something that most people have some control over.

Copyright @ 2017 DrCurtisMcElroy