Body & Health Conditions Medical Answers

A loss of ability to taste some or all tastes (sweet, bitter, sour, and salty) often occurs with normal aging. It affects at least a quarter of people who are older than 50 years old, and about 60% of those who are older than 80 years old. Although it is common, it is often under reported, because

Pain in the jaws on eating and drinking can occur for a number of different reasons. The problem may be with your temporomandibular joint (the one that you use for opening and closing your mouth), it may be a nerve-related disorder, it may be referred pain from a decayed tooth, or it may be an

A number of conditions can cause a bitter taste in the mouth. These include periodontal disease, decayed teeth, digestive system imbalances, allergic reactions and even certain medication like anti-hypertensives. Most of these causes, apart from an allergic reaction, will result in a bitter taste

Gum graft surgery is done in cases of periodontitis. Periodontitis, which is a disease that affects the supporting structures of the teeth, causes destruction of the supporting bone as well as the periodontal ligament and the overlying gums. Depending upon the effects of periodontitis, different

Body piercings are initially minor (though deliberate) injuries, and the body treats them as such. The piercing needs time to heal, and the healing process may look disturbing or even like an infection at times. The piercing site will be especially inflamed and swollen during the first few days

The rotator cuff is composed of four muscles and their tendons that are located in the shoulder, and which enable the upper arm to rotate. It also stabilizes the shoulder joint by keeping the ball of the arm bone attached to the socket of the shoulder blade. When one of the tendons is torn or

The tonsils are soft tissues found on each side at the back of the throat, while the adenoids are found high in the throat, at the roof of the mouth behind the nose. These tissues may become inflamed and enlarged due to an acute viral or bacterial infection, but they may also be chronically

Heart palpitations represent a subjective feeling of an irregular heartbeat. This is a very common complaint which can be caused by many benign as well as severe conditions. Anxiety, stress, and heart-related problems are the most common causes of palpitations, but in some cases patients claim that

A persistent itching sensation in the gums is one of the symptoms associated with a pocket in the gums. A pocket is basically a downward extension of the normal gingival sulcus by a couple of millimeters. This may not be evident to the patient, though they are likely to notice a tendency to bleed

Muscle cramps are defined as involuntary, painful contractions of particular muscles. A wider term which includes any painful or painless involuntary muscle contraction is muscle spasm. Fasciculations are contractions of particular motor units within some muscle. Cramps can affect every muscle in