

BREAST SELF-EXAMINATION: Inspection


BREAST SELF-EXAMINATION: Inspection


BREAST SELF-EXAMINATION: Inspection


BREAST SELF-EXAMINATION: Inspection


BREAST SELF-EXAMINATION: Palpation


BREAST SELF-EXAMINATION: Palpation


BREAST SELF-EXAMINATION: Palpation
breast self-examination
, BSE
A technique that enables a woman to detect changes in her breasts. The accompanying illustration explains the specific steps to be followed. The examination should be done each month soon after the menstrual period ends because normal physiological changes that may confuse results occur in the premenstrual period.
See: illustration; mammography
encephalopathy
(en-sef?a-lop'a-the) [ encephalo- + -pathy] Generalized brain dysfunction marked by varying degrees of impairment of speech, cognition, orientation, and arousal. In mild instances, brain dysfunction may be evident only during specialized neuropsychiatric testing. In severe instances, e.g., the last stages of hepatic encephalopathy, the patient may be unresponsive even to unpleasant stimuli.
acute lead encephalopathy
A syndrome seen mostly in children who have absorbed a large amount of lead. Initially there are clumsiness, vertigo, ataxia, headache, insomnia, restlessness, and irritability. As the syndrome progresses, vomiting, agitation, confusion, convulsions, and coma will occur. A sudden, marked increase in intracranial pressure accompanies these symptoms. Sequelae include permanent damage to the central nervous system, causing mental retardation, electroencephalogram abnormalities, cerebral palsy, and optic atrophy.
Treatment
Exposure to lead must be discontinued. Corticosteroids and intravenous mannitol (20% solution) will relieve increased intracranial pressure. Lead can be removed from the body by giving dimercaprol (BAL) and calcium disodium edetate in a carefully administered doses. Convulsions may be controlled with phenobarbital, hydantoin, or diazepam. Hydration should be maintained with intravenous administration of fluids; solutions containing sodium should be avoided. Oral fluids or food should not be given for at least 3 days.
bovine spongiform encephalopathy
Abbreviation: BSE
A progressive neurological disease of cattle, marked by spongelike changes in the brain and spinal cord and associated with rapid and fatal deterioration. Synonym:
mad cow disease See:
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease;
transmissible spongiform encephalopathyEtiology
BSE is found in cattle that have been fed offal. A prion is thought to be the cause.
Prevention
Because of the possible link between BSE and rapidly fatal neurological diseases in humans, many countries have banned the use of ruminant proteins in the preparation of cattle feed.
early infantile epileptic encephalopathy with suppression bursts
Abbreviation: EIEE
Ohtahara syndrome.hepatic encephalopathy
Portal-systemic encephalopathy.HIV encephalopathy
AIDS-dementia complex.hypertensive encephalopathy
The abrupt onset of headache and altered mental status that may occur with sudden and extreme elevations in blood pressure (usually diastolic pressures greater than 125 mm Hg). The altered mental states include irritability, confusion, convulsions, and/or coma. Nausea, vomiting, and visual disturbances are common. The symptoms resolve as the blood pressure is brought under control. Hypertensive encephalopathy is an emergency that requires immediate treatment, usually with intravenous medications.
Synonym: posthypoxia syndromehypoxic encephalopathy
Neurological damage due to deprivation of oxygen or blood or of both to the brain for several minutes. The damage may range from a transient loss of short-term memory to persistent vegetative coma. Many conditions can result in an oxygen deficiency in the brain, including carbon monoxide inhalation, cardiac arrest, hypotensive episodes of any kind, e.g., any form of shock, near-drowning, and suffocation. If patients are not rapidly revived and oxygenation restored, the hippocampus, and later the other cerebral structures, may be permanently injured and the patient may suffer irreversible brain damage. Synonym: hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy
hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy
Hypoxic encephalopathy.metabolic encephalopathy
An alteration of brain function or consciousness due to failure of other internal organs. In the hospital, metabolic encephalopathy is among the most common causes of altered mental status. Renal failure, liver injury, electrolyte or acid-base abnormalities, hypoxia, hypercarbia, and inadequate brain perfusion caused by a failing heart are but some of the medical conditions that may produce treatable encephalopathies.
Symptoms
Confusion, irritability, seizures, and coma are common findings.
perinatal asphyxial encephalopathy
Brain damage to newborn infants due to insufficient oxygenation and blood flow during delivery. Affected newborns have persistently low Apgar scores and need prolonged resuscitation; they are also affected by coma, lethargy, floppy musculature, seizures, acidosis, and/or absent reflexes. The long-term effects of asphyxia on the child can include impaired cognition, motor function, vision, and altered behavior.
portal-systemic encephalopathy
Abbreviation: PSE
Brain dysfunction in patients with chronic liver disease and portal hypertension, in which chemicals that the liver normally detoxifies are shunted past it and left to circulate in the blood. Some patients are asymptomatic; others have mild impairments in memory, calculation, speech, affect, or judgment. Severely affected patients may lapse into coma.
Synonym: hepatic encephalopathy See: asterixissubcortical arteriosclerotic encephalopathy
Binswanger disease.transmissible spongiform encephalopathy
Encephalopathy marked by rapidly developing dementia or the sudden onset of psychiatric illnesses, often with myoclonus, ataxia, and aphasia. Death may occur within months of onset. These illnesses are believed to be caused by prions. Examples include kuru, mad cow disease (bovine spongiform encephalopathy), and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
Wernicke encephalopathy
See: Wernicke, Carl
bovine spongiform encephalopathy
Abbreviation: BSE
A progressive neurological disease of cattle, marked by spongelike changes in the brain and spinal cord and associated with rapid and fatal deterioration. Synonym:
mad cow disease See:
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease;
transmissible spongiform encephalopathyEtiology
BSE is found in cattle that have been fed offal. A prion is thought to be the cause.
Prevention
Because of the possible link between BSE and rapidly fatal neurological diseases in humans, many countries have banned the use of ruminant proteins in the preparation of cattle feed.
Medical Dictionary, © 2009 Farlex and Partners