Body mass index (BMI) is a value derived from the mass (weight) and height of a person. The BMI is defined as the body mass divided by the square of the body height, and is expressed in units of kg/m2, resulting from mass in kilograms (kg) and height in metres (m).
Obesity is a medical condition, sometimes considered a disease, in which excess body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it can potentially have negative effects on health. People are classified as obese when their body mass index (BMI)—a person's weight divided by the square of the person's height—is over 30 kg/m2; the range 25–30 kg/m2 is defined as overweight. Some East Asian countries use lower values to calculate obesity. Obesity is a major cause of disability and is correlated with various diseases and conditions, particularly cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, obstructive sleep apnea, certain types of cancer, and osteoarthritis.
Tetraplegia, also known as quadriplegia, is defined as the dysfunction or loss of motor and/or sensory function in the cervical area of the spinal cord. A loss of motor function can present as either weakness or paralysis leading to partial or total loss of function in the arms, legs, trunk, and pelvis; paraplegia is similar but affects the thoracic, lumbar, and sacral segments of the spinal cord and arm function is retained. The paralysis may be flaccid or spastic. A loss of sensory function can present as an impairment or complete inability to sense light touch, pressure, heat, pinprick/pain, and proprioception. In these types of spinal cord injury, it is common to have a loss of both sensation and motor control.
Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a blockage of an artery in the lungs by a substance that has moved from elsewhere in the body through the bloodstream (embolism). Symptoms of a PE may include shortness of breath, chest pain particularly upon breathing in, and coughing up blood. Symptoms of a blood clot in the leg may also be present, such as a red, warm, swollen, and painful leg. Signs of a PE include low blood oxygen levels, rapid breathing, rapid heart rate, and sometimes a mild fever. Severe cases can lead to passing out, abnormally low blood pressure, obstructive shock, and sudden death.
A burn is an injury to skin, or other tissues, caused by heat, cold, electricity, chemicals, friction, or ultraviolet radiation. Most burns are due to heat from hot liquids, solids, or fire. Burns occur mainly in the home or the workplace. In the home, risks are associated with domestic kitchens, including stoves, flames, and hot liquids. In the workplace, risks are associated with fire and chemical and electric burns. Alcoholism and smoking are other risk factors. Burns can also occur as a result of self-harm or violence between people (assault).
In physiology and medicine, the body surface area (BSA) is the measured or calculated surface area of a human body. For many clinical purposes, BSA is a better indicator of metabolic mass than body weight because it is less affected by abnormal adipose mass. Nevertheless, there have been several important critiques of the use of BSA in determining the dosage of medications with a narrow therapeutic index, such as chemotherapy.
Cellulitis is usually a bacterial infection involving the inner layers of the skin. It specifically affects the dermis and subcutaneous fat. Signs and symptoms include an area of redness which increases in size over a few days. The borders of the area of redness are generally not sharp and the skin may be swollen. While the redness often turns white when pressure is applied, this is not always the case. The area of infection is usually painful. Lymphatic vessels may occasionally be involved, and the person may have a fever and feel tired.
Major trauma is any injury that has the potential to cause prolonged disability or death. There are many causes of major trauma, blunt and penetrating, including falls, motor vehicle collisions, stabbing wounds, and gunshot wounds. Depending on the severity of injury, quickness of management, and transportation to an appropriate medical facility may be necessary to prevent loss of life or limb. The initial assessment is critical, and involves a physical evaluation and also may include the use of imaging tools to determine the types of injuries accurately and to formulate a course of treatment.
Weight gain is an increase in body weight. This can involve an increase in muscle mass, fat deposits, excess fluids such as water or other factors. Weight gain can be a symptom of a serious medical condition.
Lipedema is a medical condition that is almost exclusively found in women and results in enlargement of both legs due to deposits of fat under the skin. Women of any weight may develop lipedema and the fat associated with lipedema is resistant to traditional weight-loss methods. There is no cure and typically it gets worse over time, pain may be present, and patients bruise easily. Over time mobility may be reduced, and due to reduced quality of life, patients often experience depression. In severe cases the trunk and upper body may be involved. Lipedema is commonly misdiagnosed.
Total body surface area (TBSA) is an assessment of injury to or disease of the skin, such as burns or psoriasis.
The Parkland formula, also known as Baxter formula, is a burn formula developed by Charles R. Baxter, used to estimate the amount of replacement fluid required for the first 24 hours in a burn patient so as to ensure the patient is hemodynamically stable. The milliliter amount of fluid required for the first 24 hours – usually Lactated Ringer's – is four times the product of the body weight and the burn percentage. The first half of the fluid is given within 8 hours from the burn incident, and the remaining over the next 16 hours. Only area covered by second-degree burns or greater is taken into consideration, as first-degree burns do not cause hemodynamically significant fluid shift to warrant fluid replacement.
Bangour General Hospital was a hospital just west of the village of Dechmont, West Lothian, Scotland. It had its origins during the Second World War when hospital bed numbers in Scotland were greatly expanded to deal with the anticipated increase in civilian and military war casualties. The Emergency Hospital Service (Scotland) scheme resulted in seven new hospitals being built, while at Bangour Village Hospital in West Lothian an annexe of five ward blocks was built and this developed into Bangour General Hospital after the war. This hospital served the population of West Lothian as a general hospital and also included a maxillo-facial unit serving the Lothian region and a burns and plastic surgery unit serving much of east Scotland, the Borders and the Highland region. The hospital services were transferred to the newly built St John's Hospital at Livingston during 1989–90, and Bangour General Hospital closed in 1990 and was subsequently demolished.
Obesity is a risk factor for many chronic physical and mental illnesses.
Trauma in children, also known as pediatric trauma, refers to a traumatic injury that happens to an infant, child or adolescent. Because of anatomical and physiological differences between children and adults the care and management of this population differs.
The Baux score is a system used to predict the chance of mortality due to burns. The score is an index which takes into account the correlative and causal relationship between mortality and factors including advancing age, burn size, the presence of inhalational injury. Studies have shown that the Baux score is highly correlative with length of stay in hospital due to burns and final outcome.
Alexander Burns Wallace (1906–1974) was a Scottish plastic surgeon. He was a founding member and president (1951) of the British Association of Plastic Surgeons, and the first editor of the British Journal of Plastic Surgery. In authorship he appears as A. B. Wallace.
Diabetes mellitus, often known simply as diabetes, is a group of common endocrine diseases characterized by sustained high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is due to either the pancreas not producing enough insulin, or the cells of the body becoming unresponsive to the hormone's effects. Classic symptoms include thirst, polyuria, weight loss, and blurred vision. If left untreated, the disease can lead to various health complications, including disorders of the cardiovascular system, eye, kidney, and nerves. Untreated or poorly treated diabetes accounts for approximately 1.5 million deaths every year.
The Lund and Browder chart is a tool useful in the management of burns for estimating the total body surface area affected. It was created by Dr. Charles Lund, Senior Surgeon at Boston City Hospital, and Dr. Newton Browder, based on their experiences in treating over 300 burn victims injured at the Cocoanut Grove fire in Boston in 1942.
A pediatric burn is an injury to the skin or underlying tissue in person under the age of 18, and is globally the most common type of pediatric injury. Burns can be caused my heat, cold, chemical or irritation. Most burns do not require hospital admission but a small percentage are serious and need to be transferred to specialist burn centers, where a multidisciplinary team of specially trained doctors, including surgeons and anesthesiologists can care for the child. Mortality rates at centers like this at are recorded at 3%.
