When it comes to your health, it’s important to have a little knowledge to help you stay as healthy as possible. You don’t have to have a medical degree or know all the answers, but understanding the symptoms of a condition and knowing when to seek immediate medical help from experts is crucial – it could save your life in the most serious situations. Read on to find out more about which illnesses should be seen to immediately, and it really could make all the difference to your life.
Heart Attack
A heart attack, otherwise known as a myocardial infarction, is what happens when the blood supply to the heart is blocked or doesn’t flow properly for some reason. The result is serious chest pain, shortness of breath, lightheadedness, and nausea. Many people also get a pain in their left arm or along their jawline, although this isn’t always the case.
If you experience any of these symptoms, don’t just hope they’ll go away on their own or think you can wait to get help – you’ll need to call an ambulance right away. The sooner you get medical help when you’re having a heart attack, the less damage will be done to the heart, so not only will you have a better chance of survival, but you’ll have a better quality of life too.
Leukemia
Leukemia is a type of blood cancer, and it happens when abnormal white cells grow in the bone marrow and interfere with the body’s ability to produce healthy blood cells. With leukemia, the earlier it’s caught, the better the chances are that treatment at a specialist facility like the Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, FL will have positive results.
Some of the signs to look out for when it comes to leukemia include:
- Fatigue
- Frequent infections
- Unexplained bleeding or bruising
- Joint and bone pain
- Swollen lymph nodes
If you or someone you know has any or all of these symptoms, the best thing to do is seek immediate medical help.
Appendicitis
Appendicitis might not sound like a dangerous condition or one that needs immediate medical attention, but that’s far from the case – it can actually be very serious indeed. Appendicitis is when the appendix is inflamed and infected, and it leads to severe stomach pain that can usually be felt on the right-hand side of the body (although it might start around the belly button). As well as this, you might experience nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite, and fever.
The issue is that, if left untreated, appendicitis can get much worse and in the end, the appendix itself might rupture. When this happens, your entire body can become infected, and that has some dire consequences.
Severe Allergic Reactions (Anaphylaxis)
If you’re exposed to something you’re allergic to, your body will try to protect itself, but that can lead to a severe allergic reaction, also known as anaphylaxis. There are many different symptoms, but some include swelling, difficulty breathing, a rise or drop in blood pressure, and a rapid heartbeat. All of these things can be dangerous, and even deadly, on their own, so if they’re all combined, you’ll be in serious trouble, and you’ll need a doctor right away.
If you know you have an allergy to something that you might come across in your daily life, it’s good to carry an epi-pen with you, but even if you use that and it reduces your symptoms, you should still see a doctor for a check-up as soon as possible.
