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Cystic Fibrosis

An inherited disease affecting exocrine glands and resulting in chronic infections in the respiratory system and faulty pancreatic function.

454 Questions

What are the symptoms of Cystic Fibrosis?

  • Cystic FibrosisThe symptoms of cystic fibrosis depend on the age of an individual, the extent the disease affects specific organs, prior therapy, and the types of infections experienced. Cystic fibrosis affects the entire body and impacts growth, breathing, digestion, and reproduction. The newborn period may be marked by poor weight gain and intestinal blockage caused by thick feces. Other symptoms of CF appear during the remainder of childhood and early adulthood. These include continued problems with growth, the onset of lung disease, and increasing difficulties with poor absorption of vitamins and nutrients by the gastrointestinal tract. In addition, difficulties with fertility may become apparent when reproduction is attempted.Difficulty breathing and insufficient enzyme production in the pancreas are the most common symptoms. Thick mucous production as well as a low immune system results in frequent lung infections, which are treated, though not always cured, by oral and intravenous antibiotics and other medications. A multitude of other symptoms, including sinus infections, poor growth, diarrhea, and potential infertility (mostly in males, due to the condition Congenital bilateral absence of the vas Deferens) result from the effects of CF on other parts of the body. Often, symptoms of CF appear in infancy and childhood; these include meconium ileus, failure to thrive, and recurrent lung infections.
  • cor pulmonale (enlargement of right side of heart)
  • abdominal pain
  • gas in the intestines
  • rectal prolapse
  • liver disease
  • diabetes
  • pancreatitis
  • gallstones
  • sterility in males


People with CF can have a variety of symptoms, including:

  • very salty-tasting skin;
  • persistent coughing, at times with phlegm;
  • frequent lung infections;
  • wheezing or shortness of breath;
  • poor growth/weight gain in spite of a good appetite; and
  • frequent greasy, bulky stools or difficulty in bowel movements.

Source: Cystic Fibrosis Foundation

What is myocardial fibrosis?

Myocardial fibrosis is the abnormal thickening of the heart valves. This thickening is caused by the muscles in the hearts cells becoming impaired.

How does cystic fibrosis affect the immune system?

Cystic fibrosis affects primarily lungs and pancreas, not immune system. But a patient affected is debilitated and it would decrease the fuction of various systems, like the immune A CF patient that has had a lung transplant would have an impaired immune system because of the medication given for rejection. The medication would suppress the immune system so that the patients' body would be more likely to accept the new organ(s), but also making the patient more susceptible to other illnesses.

How do you know if your baby has cystic fibrosis?

Cystic fibrosis can be detected days after birth in several ways: Babies can present with symptoms particular to CF or they can be screened for CF as part of a state/provincial health policy. The 'sweat' test is often used as a determinant of CF.

What is the history of cystic fibrosis?

Cystic fibrosis has had reported incidents since the early 17th century. The poem Woe Is the Child gives a description of a child at this time period who had CF. The first clear description and medical entry for CF was made in 1938.

Cystic fibrosis has had reported incidents since the early 17th century. The poem Woe Is the Child gives a description of a child at this time period who had CF. The first clear description and medical entry for CF was made in 1938.

What is the worst case scenario for people with cystic fibrosis?

If it is not diagnosed in the earlier stages things like lungs could be infected and a transplant would be needed of both lungs. if both lungs are not transplanted there could be a chance that the effected lung could contain bacteria and infect the new lung. worst case scenario is that it doesn't get diagnosed and a major infection could kill the patient

What cause pelvic pains?

That depends, man or woman? Each sex has their own answers, however some are simular. A lot of the time it has to do with digestive pain, or Back pain.

What is breathing therapy?

When you have Cystic fibrosis you have to have respritory theropy which is the correct term for breathing theropy. It is where u have a theropist thump on your back and chest to break up the built up mucus so that infection does not build up. It also make breathing easier. This is one of the many types of respritory theropy.

Is cystic fibrosis a chronic disease of the immune system?

Cystic fibrosis is a chronic genetic disease. It is not an autoimmune disease. However, recent research indicates that an overactive immune response contributes to inflammation and damage in the lungs.

Why can Cystic fibrosis be inherited even if neither parent has the disease?

Cystic Fibrosis is an example of a disease inherited as an autosomal recessive genetic disorder. Both parents of a baby who has Cystic Fibrosis have one abnormal recessive gene and one normal dominant gene and are therefore, Cystic Fibrosis carriers. Carriers are said to be heterozygous because they contain one normal copy of the gene and one abnormal copy. A baby who inherits cystic fibrosis has inherited the abnormal gene from both parents and is therefore said to be homozygous recessive.

What is the type of inheritance of cystic fibrosis?

Cystic fibrosis is an autosomal recessive disorder caused by mutations in the CFTR (cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator) gene. Heterozygous carriers (those who have inherited only one copy of the altered gene) are asymptomatic (do not experience symptoms). Two of these altered genes must be present for CF to appear. This means that if both parents are CF carriers, their offspring will express CF symptoms only if the child inherits one defective copy of the CFTR gene from each parent.

How does sugar cause an increase in mucus in your throat that makes a person cough?

Answer...

It pretty much relates to "osmolality"... The chemical concentration of a liquid will shift fluid through a semipermiable membrane to "balance" the chemical concentration on either side of that membrane... As the complex chemical sugar begins to disolve in the mouth & throat, the (high) concentration of the organic chemicals begins to pull fluid from the (mucus) tissue in order to "balance" the concentration of that fluid (osmolality) on either side of the tissue wall ( "pulls" the mucus ('fluid'] from the tissue) ... That, plus the drying effect of the sugar is probably is what causes the coughing. That's my story & I'm sticking to it...!!

Gordon

AnswerI don't know any reason why sugar would cause an increase in mucus, however dairy products can. AnswerSugar wouldn't cause the mucus and, in fact, if you have the hiccups and take a teaspoon of sugar it gets rid of those hiccups for me. I use this as a last resort. As the other poster said dairy products such as milk, ice cream, cottage cheese, yogurt can cause mucus in the throat. It sounds like you could have some type of infection, or possibly on a medication where one of the side effects is "dry mouth" and once you introduce a liquid you can get a build-up of mucus. Most people never realize that usually the inside of the ear canals are often the culprit for many sore throats. If you smoke (even Marijuana) you can get mucus. I'd see your doctor to find out if your body is fighting anything off and if not, then your body is probably dehydrated and you need to drink those 8 8 ounce glasses of water every day!

Either eating pineapple or drinking pineapple juice (any acidic juice) will cut the mucus.

ANSWER

The following is in plainer English. Sorry, Gordon.

A website I found helpful was www.health-science-spirit.com/diseasesummary2.html. Here they explain that the sugar is good because it works to draw out the mucus. So, I guess it doesn't cause mucus!

Nina

ANSWER

The lactose in milk is the reason we get sick from too much dairy product. Lactose, like all other sugar types ups the production of mucus, sending it to your throat, nasal cavaties and ears. I always thought that this was common knowledge, but I guess not.

ANSWER

Mucus is caused by the body, as it uses alkaline materials to get rid of any acidic waste that it needs to, at that stage in time... if we don't want the mucus, we need to avoid making our bodies react in this way.

If you would like to understand your body and why it reacts the way it does, google acid alkaline and/or pH Miracle...

Gordon you are fantastic. Finally someone gets it. It's so simple to. I suffered for years due to this. Low carbohydrate eating has set me free.

Charmaine

Why is it that Michigan does not test for cystic fibrosis in newborn screenings?

All states including Michigan now do test for CF in new born screenings. The CF Foundation has two chapter offices in Michigan. Both national and chapters have facebook pages and twitter accounts if you would like to follow.

What is the value of a Baby Browning 25caliber pistol Belgium serial 361605?

It depends on whether it's a Renaissance, a nickel plated, or a hot blued version of the Baby Browning. The blued Baby Browning would be worth approximately $300 in very good condition. The nickel plated version with the pearl handles are worth approximately $500, and the Renaissance is up-wards to $2000.00 if in excellent shape. In all about 500,000 units were produced, including the hand chiseled engraved "Renaissance" and the "Lightweight" version which utilized a 6061 T6 aluminum receiver and chrome plated (over electro-less nickel) slide and external detail parts. Exports to the USA only took place between 1953 until 1968 and it's manufacture was discontinued in 1969.

What is the survival rate for a fetus born at 20 weeks?

ANSWER:

This is a million dollar question. From doing extensive research I have found the most accurate list of estimated survival rates:

Prematurity

Advances in medical care have made it possible for many infants born prematurely to survive and develop normally. The earlier the gestational age, the greater the chance of death or significant medical problems. Whether or not a premature infant will survive is intimately tied to his or her gestational age:

21 weeks or less: 0 percent survival rate

22 weeks: 0-10 percent survival rate

23 weeks: 10-35 percent survival rate

24 weeks: 40-70 percent survival rate

25 weeks: 50-80 percent survival rate

26 weeks: 80-90 percent survival rate

27 weeks: greater than 90 percent survival rate

But these are just statistics, with the right equipment and the proper care, anything is possible.

ANSWER

Chances can be ok. My niece delivered a baby at 18 weeks. He is now 6 months old and doing GREAT. It takes patience and good doctoring and a lot of time in ICU. You of course want the baby to stay in the womb as long as possible. We beat the odds, anyone can now a days. Little Jake weighted when born 11 0z. so it can be done and he now weights a whopping 14 pounds.

God bless you and keep the faith- do what ever the doctors tell you to do.

ANSWER

Zero, there is no physical way (as far as technology takes us at this stage). And there is no way that an 18 week old fetus would survive, this would be the story of the century around the world.

Are there any treatment centers where sociopaths can get help?

== == In most cases, a sociopath is NOT treatable. They think they are just fine, it is the REST of the world that is out of step with THEM. The best that can be dome with them is to warehouse them, in locked wards to protect society from their violence. Drugs will help to control their acts but only if they TAKE them. Except for one thing: the mere fact that some scientists know as much as they now do about the brain of a sociopath means that solving the problem is no longer an impossible and obscure wish -- it's moving within the realm of concrete possibility.

As soon as fairly large numbers of sociopaths begin to be treated in a way that actually helps them, that corrects as much as possible the chaos of misdirected signals in their confused and disorganized brains, and then a form of therapy that in addition to that, by necessity, teaches them to cope with the resulting maelstrom of emotion and impression that was formerly impossible, so that they can put it in order and start to develop the heretofore dormant and silent segments of their brains and better use those formerly mixed-up areas where no recognizable order ruled, THEN THE OTHERS MAY BEGIN TO NOTICE WHAT IS GOING ON...and they will know at least this much: instead of "the kiss of death," a diagnosis of ASPD (the DSM-IV way of saying sociopathy or psychopathy) will lead someplace; that there will be things done that actually make a difference.

Crippled as they are neurologically, sociopaths are yet shrewd, and they're always looking out for themselves in a way similar to that of a loner predator. Seeing others like them actually benefiting from treatment will have to start persuading them that there's something to gain in going for help after all. Not being rejected or met with "We can't help you; you're evil incarnate," or the equivalent thinly disguised in euphemistic psychology jargon; NOT being met with a situation where they'd have to substitute symptoms of an "acceptable" illness in place of those they bear in secret -- that would almost certainly, if gradually, have an effect: if a sociopath can clearly see a benefit coming from admitting his or her real situation, there's nothing to stop him or her from doing just that.

It's already started to happen, if in a tiny, barely perceptible trickle.

Right now, all science has at the ready for them is to use various types of preexisting medication given in attempts to counteract the chaotic way the brain of a sociopath functions. That and types of talk therapy carefully altered to avoid the pitfalls that have in the past caused regular therapies to make sociopaths worse instead of better. But the more that scientists such as Robert Hare and his colleagues delve into and experiment with the new types of brain scans and learning what makes sociopaths tick like human bombs, the more likely that it becomes with each passing year that a means will soon be isolated to defuse those bombs.

The primary source of a sociopath's infamous rage is frustration, of a sort so alien and so extreme that almost no one else can understand what it means. Once they start getting taken seriously, that frustration, and the wild rage it provokes, will lessen, and since it is a primary source of the constant distrust that makes regular therapy fail sociopaths, the defusing of that rage and its maddening causes will be a huge step in the right direction.