The pancreas is a small organ shaped like a thin boomerang next to the stomach and small intestine. According to Nancy Kay, DVM, the pancreas releases enzymes necessary to help digest food. Pancreatitis, however, is when the pancreas becomes inflamed and produces too much enzymes. Just why a dog’s pancreas should do this is unknown, ...
You’ve heard so much about the need to maintain a normal cholesterol level, particularly LDL (the bad cholesterol) and HDL (the good cholesterol). But there’s another number that’s also important in terms of heart health – your triglyceride level. If this number is too high, it’s important to bring it down into the normal range ...
Last year when my daughter was three weeks old, she went in the hospital. It was during this time that I had my first gallstone attack. Only, when I went to the hospital complaining of stomach and chest pain, I was told I was having an anxiety attack. As time went on, my daughter was ...
When suffering from inflammation of the pancreas, known as pancreatitis, there are many health issues of concern. While most patients would believe that pancreatitis, in acute form, is not life altering, this is simply not the case. With over 200,000 people admitted to the hospital each year wit acute pancreatitis, it is obviously a medical ...
I still remember quite well how a friend of mine came to me one day to express indignation over her husband’s excessive alcohol consumption, concerned that her husband might develop heart disease. She was right to be indignant all right, but it was another condition that her husband developed from too much alcohol drinking – ...
Pancreatitis is a reasonably common condition in dogs and is basically an inability of the pancreas to process fat efficiently. The pancreas goes into “panic” mode and begins to shut down. Dogs generally manifest acute pancreatitis by vomiting excessively, behaving lethargically, running a fever, and walking in a hunched over posture. Pancreatitis can occur in ...
Acute pancreatitis is an extremely painful condition that has the potential to be life-threatening if left untreated. Fortunately, several of the signs and symptoms of pancreatitis are specific enough to quickly lead a physician to the correct diagnosis. The diagnosis of acute pancreatitis can be confirmed by elevated levels of the enzymes amylase and lipase, ...
