Blog posts of '2023' 'March'

Worm infestations happen when worms affect the intestines and other parts of the body. Examples of the different worms are roundworms, whipworms, hookworms, tapeworms and flukes.

Head lice can live up to 30 days while their eggs can live more than two eeks on humans. Lice can pass from one person to the other through head-to-head contact. It can sometimes spread through sharing of personal objects such as combs, towels, bed sheets and clothing with an infected person, although this is less common.

A headache refers to pain at any part of the head. It may be on one or both sides of the head and may be a sharp, pounding pain or a dull ache. Headaches may last for less than an hour to a few days. The most common headaches are tension-type headache and cluster headache.

Hair growth happens in a cycle. Each strand of hair grows for 2 to 6 years, rests, and then falls out. New hair then starts to grow in its place. It is normal to lose 50 to 100 strands of hair a day. These are replaced by new hairs which grow back in the same follicles (part of the skin where hair grows from). Hair loss becomes a problem when new hair does not grow back or too much hair is lost. It usually starts slowly and may be patchy or affect the whole scalp. Hair loss can affect anyone - men, women or children.

Insect bites/stings are usually harmless if the person is not allergic to them. Bites/stings from bees, wasps, hornets and fire ants cause pain, while bites from mosquitoes, fleas and mites cause itch. Some insect bites may also spread diseases.

Fungal infection can happen on the skin, mouth, vagina or nails. Depending on the area infected, the symptoms and time taken to treat the infection will be different.

Dandruff is a common scalp condition related to the shedding of the skin on your scalp. Dandruff does not spread from person to person and is seldom serious. However, some people might find dandruff embarrassing.

Cuts and bruises are common injuries that usually can be treated at home without needing to see a doctor. Cuts are caused by sharp objects piercing the skin and are normally accompanied by bleeding, depending on how deep the cut is. Bruises result from hard contact with an object or a person. The force causes an injury to the tissue below the skin, leading to bleeding under the skin and it appears as a bruise. Bruises change in color from red, to blue or purple after a few hours, then turn yellow before they finally fade off.