Famous People with Chronic Illness

"The fatigue is hard to explain unless you have it,"

Hypertension and Blood Pressure Control

Priority on Controlled Pressure

Blood Pressure Control is Priority
What You Must Do


Controlling blood pressure has to be a priority.

Why is blood pressure control so important to health?

When your blood pressure is high:

You are 4 times more likely to die from a stroke
You are 3 times more likely to die from heart disease
Even blood pressure that is slightly high can put you at greater risk.

Most people with uncontrolled high blood pressure:

Know they have high blood pressure
See your doctor for control monitor
Take prescribed medicine
Each of these is important, but there is much more to do. What’s needed now is for doctors, nurses and their patients to pay regular and frequent attention to controlling blood pressure.

Archives of Health Care History

Remembering the Flu Epidemic of 1918

1918 Pandemic (H1N1 virus)


We Heard the Bells: The Influenza of 1918

The 1918 H1N1 influenza pandemic was the most severe pandemic in recent history. The origin of the virus causing this pandemic is unknown. It spread simultaneously through North America, Europe, and Asia in three waves during 1918-1919. In the United States, it was first identified in military personnel in spring 1918. It is estimated that about 500 million people or one-third of the world’s population became infected with this virus. The number of deaths was estimated to be 50-100 million worldwide and 675,000 in the United States. Mortality was high in people younger than 5 years old, 20-40 years old, and 65 years and older. The high mortality in healthy people, including those in the 20-40 year age group, was a unique feature of this pandemic. While the 1918 H1N1 virus has been synthesized and evaluated, the properties that made it so devastating are not well understood. With no antibiotics to treat secondary bacterial infections that can be associated with influenza infections or vaccine to protect against influenza infection, control efforts worldwide were limited to non-pharmaceutical interventions such as isolation, quarantine, good personal hygiene, use of disinfectants, and limitations of public gatherings.

Archives of Health Care History

Remembering the Flu Epidemic of 1918

1918 Pandemic (H1N1 virus)


We Heard the Bells: The Influenza of 1918

The 1918 H1N1 influenza pandemic was the most severe pandemic in recent history. The origin of the virus causing this pandemic is unknown. It spread simultaneously through North America, Europe, and Asia in three waves during 1918-1919. In the United States, it was first identified in military personnel in spring 1918. It is estimated that about 500 million people or one-third of the world’s population became infected with this virus. The number of deaths was estimated to be 50-100 million worldwide and 675,000 in the United States. Mortality was high in people younger than 5 years old, 20-40 years old, and 65 years and older. The high mortality in healthy people, including those in the 20-40 year age group, was a unique feature of this pandemic. While the 1918 H1N1 virus has been synthesized and evaluated, the properties that made it so devastating are not well understood. With no antibiotics to treat secondary bacterial infections that can be associated with influenza infections or vaccine to protect against influenza infection, control efforts worldwide were limited to non-pharmaceutical interventions such as isolation, quarantine, good personal hygiene, use of disinfectants, and limitations of public gatherings.

4 Main Areas of your Body

Mostly Affected by Diabetes

Diabetes Mellitus is a metabolic disorder in which inadequate production of the hormone insulin or a resistance to its actions in the body can lead to high blood sugar levels. Insulin is needed to get sugar into cells of the body, where it is used for energy. When sugar cannot get into cells, it remains in the blood at high levels. Complications of diabetes arise from long-term exposure to high blood sugar. The cardiovascular, nervous, visual and urinary systems are most commonly affected by chronically high blood sugars.

1. Heart and Blood Vessels

The cardiovascular system includes the heart and blood vessels. High blood sugar and increased blood fat levels commonly found in people with diabetes contribute to fatty deposits called plaques on the inner walls of blood vessels, causing inflammation. This leads to decreased blood flow and hardening of the blood vessels called atherosclerosis. High blood sugar also results in glycation, where sugars attach to proteins, making them sticky. This occurs on proteins found in blood vessels, also resulting in inflammation. When this occurs in the heart, it can lead to cardiovascular disease. According to a 2016 report from the American Heart Association, 68 percent of people with diabetes older than 65 die of heart disease.
Nervous System

2. Brain and Nerve damage:

Popularly called diabetic neuropathy, this damage is common in people with diabetes. Symptoms typically appear after several years but may be present when diabetes is diagnosed, as the disease may have gone undetected for many years. Diabetic nerve damage known as peripheral neuropathy is most common in the legs and feet. According to a 2005 statement by the American Diabetes Association, up to 50 percent of people with diabetes have peripheral neuropathy. This typically starts as numbness or tingling that progresses to loss of pain and heat and cold perception in feet or hands, making it difficult to sense an injury. Another type of nerve damage called diabetic autonomic neuropathy affects nerves regulating the heart, blood vessels, and digestive and other systems. This condition can lead to problems with blood pressure, heart rhythm and digestion, among others.

3. Eye

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that in 2005 to 2008, 28.5 percent of adults with diabetes 40 years or older had diabetic retinopathy. This eye disease is caused by high blood sugar levels leading to blood vessel damage and fluid leakage in the vision-sensing part of the eye called the retina. Diabetic macular edema is a complication of diabetic retinopathy wherein the center of the retina, which is responsible for detailed vision, is affected. These conditions can eventually lead to blindness. High blood sugar can also lead to an increased risk of cataracts and glaucoma. These eye disorders occur earlier and more often in people with diabetes, compared to those without the disease.


4. Kidney and the Urinary System

In 2011, CDC reported that diabetes was the primary cause of kidney failure in 44 percent of people newly diagnosed with the condition. High levels of blood sugar can damage the kidneys. The result is an illness known as diabetic nephropathy that can eventually lead to kidney failure. High blood sugar levels initially damage the blood vessels in the kidneys. As diabetic nephropathy progresses, there is thickening of kidney tissue and scarring. When the kidneys are damaged, they cannot filter the blood properly. This results in waste and fluid buildup in the blood, and leakage of important blood proteins into the urine.

7 Top States For Registered Nurses Salary

Get The Facts

1. California
Median RN Salary: $100,460

Median Hourly: $48.30

Number of RNs in California: 274,650

Nursing Jobs: View 2,484 of the best paying nursing job opportunities in California now.


2. Hawaii
Median RN Salary: $91,020

Median Hourly: $43.76

Number of RNs in Hawaii: 11,300



3. Oregon
Median RN Salary: $88,010

Median Hourly: $42.32

Number of RNs in Oregon: 35,220

Nursing Jobs: Advance your career in Oregon. See 357 open nursing positions now.



4. Alaska
Median RN Salary: $85,300

Median Hourly: $40.01

Number of RNs in Alaska: 5,570

Nursing Jobs: Advance your career in Alaska. See 215 open nursing positions now.

5. Massachusetts
Median RN Salary: $84,410

Median Hourly: $40.58

Number of RNs in Massachusetts: 20,250

Nursing Jobs: Massachusetts needs nurses like you. Apply now to 779 open nursing jobs.



6. Nevada
Median RN Salary: $83,940

Median Hourly: $40.36

Number of RNs in Nevada: 20,250

Nursing Jobs: There are 179 open nursing jobs in Nevada. Apply now.



7. New York
Median RN Salary: $80,380

Median Hourly: $38.65

Number of RNs in New York: 180,730

Nursing Jobs: View 650 of the best paying nursing job opportunities in New York now.