Malaria is a disease that can be potentially fatal, and is caused by a parasite called plasmodium. It spreads via a bite from a female mosquito that has been infected. Once infected, an individual could suffer flu-like symptoms, fevers, diarrhea, fatigue or many other symptoms. If a person has any of these symptoms within a year of returning from an infected area (normally tropical or sub-tropical regions), then they should get tested immediately; if anything, just to rule out malaria.

As mentioned, malaria can have the tendency to be fatal, but if diagnosed and treated early enough, most individuals make a full recovery. The disease is usually treated by using anti-malarial medications, the type and length of any treatment depending on a variety of factors, including where the infection occurred, the type of malaria contracted, age of the patient, whether pregnant or not and the severity of the symptoms.

Five types of drug are usually used to treat the disease and depending on what type of malaria is present, the doctor may prescribe a certain one, or combination of these drugs. These five drugs are atovaquone plus proguanil, chloroquine, doxycycline, mefloquine and proguanil.

Mild cases of malaria can be treated at home once prescribed the medication, whereas more severe cases will require hospital treatment. Sometimes these drugs can be administered intravenously. All malaria treatments can make you feel tired and weak for several weeks.

Malaria

Diarrhea can simply be defined as loose, watery stools. People are classed as having diarrhea if they pass such stools more than three times a day. If somebody has acute diarrhea, the problem usually persists for a couple of days only and then clears up of its own accord. On the other hand, if an individual suffers from prolonged diarrhea, meaning more than a couple of days, it could be symptomatic of a more serious problem, as well as posing a risk of dehydration. Dehydration is especially dangerous in young children and the elderly and as such should be treated immediately to help avoid any future potential health issues.

Diarrhea

Individuals of any age can get diarrhea and you may be surprised to find out that the average in developed countries will have a bout of acute diarrhea approximately four times per year. Acute diarrhea is normally associated with a parasitic, a viral or a bacterial infection whereas a chronic diarrhea is typically related to some sort of functional disorder like irritable bowel disorder.

Some other causes of the condition include food intolerances, a reaction to certain medicines, and intestinal diseases such as Crohn’s and celiac disease. Diarrhea can be accompanied by abdominal pains, cramps, nausea, bloating and an urgent overwhelming need to use the toilet.

More often than not, the only treatment required for diarrhea is the replacement of lost fluids. There are some medicines available that can stop the condition, but these aren’t recommended for individuals who have diarrhea caused by a parasitic or bacterial infection. This is because if you stop the diarrhea before the bacteria or parasite is removed from the intestines they will be trapped there prolonging the problem.

People who have been diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder have constant thoughts, obsessions or compulsions that they cannot stop thinking about.  These obsessions or compulsions can cause great stress or anxiety and the symptoms of OCD can contrast between relatively mild to extremely severe.  Obsessive thoughts can cause tension and stress to the sufferer and they make act out certain compulsions in order to stop these traumatic thoughts or obsessions.

There are many forms of obsessions such as feeling that items are dirty or tainted, fear of making mistakes, arranging items in a specific way, fear of touching people who may be ill, or fear of causing an accident through leaving appliances turned on etc.  Similarly there are many types of compulsions which can disrupt a person’s daily life such as, routines like washing hands, cleaning work surfaces, arranging items in cupboards etc.

Compulsions are usually directly linked to the type of obsession a person has.  Many people with obsessive compulsive disorder feel that bad things will happen if they don’t fulfill their compulsions and doing so usually makes the sufferer feel better for a short while before the obsession returns.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (Copyright ADAM)

OCD can appear as a result of a major event in a person’s life and it has also been shown to run in families.  There are treatments for OCD such as medicines and psychological help.  Relaxation therapies have also been shown to help symptoms.