Why Lichen Planus Treatments Cost A Lot

Many people who happen to get afflicted with lichen planus often end up, in the long run, spending considerably huge fortunes on the condition’s treatment. Thus, you could expect treatment for lichen planus to be rather costly. It is a natural reaction for some people to wonder why these treatments cost a lot. Now, it becomes more a question of what makes the treatments so pricey that patients have no other alternative but to shell out that much amount of cash and resources. That is the question we will now attempting to get answered.

Now the first factor that tends to make treatment for lichen planus to be rather expensive is something to do with the fact that the condition can, in some cases, be quite hard to diagnose. Thus, many people may have to go to several physicians, before one of the physicians, in a flash of genius, figures out that the condition in question is actually lichen planus. Keep in mind that every single consultation made with every medical professional means you’re bound to pay something. In some other conditions, treatment is cheaper for the simple reason that patients have been able to make the correct diagnosis themselves. For lichen planus, however, that is easier said than done.

The second factor that tends to make treatment for lichen planus to be rather expensive is something to do with the fact that many people don’t believe the initial diagnosis. You can credit that to man’s natural response to be pessimistic. Thus, when people with lichen planus are told by their doctors that they are ‘just’ suffering from lichen planus,’ they tend to disbelieve that diagnosis. They convince themselves that they must be ‘suffering from something worse.’ Thus they go to other doctors, seeking a second, even third, opinions. Naturally, the more doctors they visit, the more costs they will incur in terms of consultation fees.

Of course, lichen planus is a tricky condition. It is hard to pinpoint an effective regime for its treatment at once. That is another reason why the costs tend to run up. Often, the trial and error approach has to be conducted by a doctor and the patient before they find a treatment that they both deem fully acceptable and very effective. In the meantime, the patient has to keep on spending money buying the drugs. By the time they have identified a treatment regimen that works and they could stick to, the expenses would have already run high. Thankfully, as the body of knowledge about this condition keeps on growing, the need for such trial therapies is going down.

Relief from the symptoms of lichen planus is something that can be found, and the patients can have a lot of assistance on that front. But if you want to rely entirely on conventional medicine to find a permanent cure for it, you may find yourself having a hard time. Patients who dare venture into the non-conventional (alternative) sphere of medicine may get lasting cures: so the situation is not so hopeless. In a nutshell, treatment for lichen planus may cost a lot of money, but it usually works – at least in terms of giving the patient relief for a considerable period of time.…

Rheumatic Heart Disease Causes, Symptoms And Treatments

Rheumatic Fever

Rheumatic fever is uncommon in the US, except in children who have had strep infections that were untreated or inadequately treated. Children ages 5 to 15, particularly if they experience frequent strep throat infections, are most at risk for developing rheumatic fever. The infection often causes heart damage, particularly scarring of the heart valves, forcing the heart to work harder to pump blood. The damage may resolve on its own, or it may be permanent, eventually causing congestive heart failure (a condition in which the heart cannot pump out all of the blood that enters it, which leads to an accumulation of blood in the vessels leading to the heart and fluid in the body tissues).

Rheumatic Heart Disease Symptoms

The symptoms of rheumatic fever usually start about one to five weeks after your child has been infected with Streptococcus bacteria. The following are the most common symptoms of rheumatic fever. However, each child may experience symptoms differently. Symptoms may include:

– Joint inflammation – including swelling, tenderness, and redness over multiple joints. The joints affected are usually the larger joints in the knees or ankles. The inflammation “moves” from one joint to another over several days.- Small nodules or hard, round bumps under the skin.- A change in your child’s neuromuscular movements (this is usually noted by a change in your child’s handwriting and may also include jerky movements).- Rash (a pink rash with odd edges that is usually seen on the trunk of the body or arms and legs).- Fever.- Weight loss.- Fatigue.- Stomach pains.

The symptoms of rheumatic fever may resemble other conditions or medical problems. Always consult your child’s physician for a diagnosis.

Treatment for rheumatic heart disease:

Specific treatment for rheumatic heart disease will be determined by your child’s physician based on:

Your child’s overall health and medical history.

– Extent of the disease.- Your child’s tolerance for specific medications, procedures, or therapies.- Expectations for the course of the disease.- Your opinion or preference.

The best treatment for rheumatic heart disease is prevention. Antibiotics can usually treat strep throat (a Streptococcus bacterial infection) and stop acute rheumatic fever from developing. Antibiotic therapy has sharply reduced the incidence and mortality rate of rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease.

Children who have previously contracted rheumatic fever are often given continuous (daily or monthly) antibiotic treatments to prevent future attacks of rheumatic fever and lower the risk of heart damage.

If inflammation of the heart has developed, children may be placed on bed rest. Medications are given to reduce the inflammation, as well as antibiotics to treat the Streptococcus infection. Other medications may be necessary to handle congestive heart failure. If heart valve damage occurs, surgical repair or replacement of the valve may be considered.…