Your Symptoms and Signs Guide
A symptom is anything out of the ordinary in regards to normal functions of the body or feelings noticed by the patient. Symptoms are subjective, and hard to measure as they are observed only by the person involved. Sometimes symptoms can be a clear indication of a specific disease or malady, and other times a symptom can be indicative of several different illnesses. For example, if the symptom is that the patient has experienced the loss of hearing in one ear, that particular symptom has a fairly narrow range of illnesses to which it is specific. On the other hand, a symptom such as nausea has a much wider range of disease processes makes for a more difficult diagnosis.
Signs and symptoms are words which are often used interchangeably, although they have substantially different meanings. Simply put, a symptom is any feature that a patient observes, whereas a sign is noticed by another person. The nature of the symptom or sign is not necessarily the defining characteristic, but by whom it is observed. Different features of diseases can be narrowed down to either a sign or symptom as categorized by the observer. Illnesses can have several features that fall under sign or symptom; pain, no matter how severe, can only be a symptom because it can not be observed by an outsider, a white blood cell count can only be a sign as it is measurable by a laboratory and a rash appearing on the skin could be noticed by a patient as a symptom or a medical professional as a sign.
Understanding what symptoms are and how diseases can manifest themselves in different ways in the body is an integral part of the diagnostic process. An early and correct diagnoses of any ailment is the optimal result, and most healthcare professionals agree that an early diagnosis is the best way to prevent, treat or cure disease.
Other helpful symptoms websites:
Glyconutrients There are a lot of sites on nutrients and supplements, but only a handful of good, organic, down-to-earth sites.
Diagram of the Human Body (Picture of Organs)
