A stroke is a blockage in blood flow to a part of the brain. A stroke is also called a "cerebrovascular accident" or a "brain attack". Symptoms of stroke can include weakness or paralysis, loss of feeling, disturbance of vision, blindness in one eye, problems with speaking, problems with swallowing, loss of balance, severe headache, or fainting. Because a stroke can lead to the loss of use of the part of the brain that is affected, it should be treated with the same urgency as a heart attack and the person experiencing the symptoms should obtain medical help immediately.

Read more: Stroke Fact Sheet

Overview

Spinal Cord Injuries (SCI) occur when an injury or illness damages the cells within the spinal cord or severs the nerve tracts that send signals up and down the spinal cord. Spinal cord injuries occur in approximately 12,000 to 15,000 people per year in the U.S. About 10,000 of these people are permanently paralyzed, and many of the rest die as a result of their injuries. Most spinal cord trauma caused by injury occurs to young, healthy individuals. Males between 15 and 35 years old are most commonly affected.

Read more: Spinal Cord Injuries

What is Brain Injury?

The brain is the most important part of the body.  It controls every part of daily living.  Some of the functions it controls are breathing, walking, balance, movement, seeing, hearing, feeling, and speaking.  It also controls concentration, judgment, personality, behavior, and memory.

Read more: Brain Injury Fact Sheet

Arthritis affects one in every seven Americans.  The word Arthritis means "joint inflammation" and is used to describe many different diseases that affect the joints.  Joints that are damaged by disease with inflammation can undergo permanent changes.

There are over 100 different types of Arthritis.  The most common forms of arthritis are osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythmatosis and gout.

Read more: Arthritis Fact Sheet

Diabetes is a disease in which the body does not produce or properly use insulin. Insulin is a hormone that is needed to convert sugar, starches and other food into energy needed for daily life. The cause of diabetes continues to be a mystery, although both genetics and environmental factors such as obesity and lack of exercise appear to play roles.

Read more: All About Diabetes

Aphasia is a language disorder that results from damage to portions of the brain that are responsible for language. For most people, these are parts of the left side (hemisphere) of the brain. Aphasia usually occurs suddenly, often as the result of a stroke or head injury, but it may also develop slowly, as in the case of a brain tumor. The disorder impairs both the expression and understanding of language as well as reading and writing. Aphasia may co-occur with speech disorders such as dysarthria or apraxia of speech, which also result from brain damage.

Read more: Aphasia Fact Sheet

It is estimated that there are 350,000 amputees living in the United States, with approximately 135,000 new amputations occurring each year. The number of amputees worldwide is not currently tracked by any organization. Here in the United states the most common causes of amputation of the lower extremity are disease (70%), trauma (22%) congenital or birth defects (4%) and tumors (4%). Upper extremity amputation is usually due to trauma or birth defect with disease not as great of a contributing factor. The causes of amputation vary greatly from country to country. In countries with a recent history of warfare and civil unrest, the amputation due to trauma and landmine accidents is much greater.

Read more: Amputation Fact Sheet

Cardinal Hill Adult Wellness Program:

• Improve strength
• Improve flexibility
• Improve endurance

The adult wellness program at Cardinal Hill has something for everyone. No matter your level of fitness, ability or experience our Exercise Specialist can give you tips, pointers and supervision in our gym.

Read more: Outpatient Adult Wellness Program

Healthy Mouth Healthy Body

The Mouth Body Association

Brushing your teeth may be more important than you think. Gingivitis, an early phase of gum disease, is inflammation of the gums caused by the accumulation of plaque and bacteria above the gumline. If left untreated gingivitis can progress to periodontitis, a more serious and damaging stage of infection and resulting gum inflammation. Recent studies have demonstrated there is an association between periodontitis and certain systemic diseases, such as stroke, diabetes, and heart disease, which remains a leading cause of death in both men and women. More research is needed and is underway to better understand the exact nature of this association and the potential impact serious gum disease may be having on these systemic conditions.

Read more: Dental Care Information

While the eyes may be the window to the soul, your mouth is a window to your body's health. The state of your oral health can offer lots of clues about your overall health.

Oral health and overall health are more connected than you might realize.Your oral health is connected to many other health conditions beyond your mouth. Sometimes the first sign of a disease shows up in your mouth. In other cases, infections in your mouth, such as gum disease, can cause problems in other areas of your body. Learn more about this intimate connection between oral health and overall health.

Read more: Oral health: A window to your overall health

What's wrong with sugary snacks, anyway? Sugary snacks taste so good — but they aren't so good for your teeth or your body. The candies, cakes, cookies and other sugary foods that kids love to eat between meals can cause tooth decay. Some surgary foods have a lot of fat in them, too. Kids who consume sugary snacks eat many different kinds of sugar every day, including table sugar (sucrose) and corn sweeteners (fructose). Starchy snacks can also break down into sugars once they're in your mouth.

Read more: Smart Snacks for Healthy Teeth

Basic Information

Smoking harms nearly every organ of the body, causing many diseases and affecting the health of smokers in general. Quitting smoking has immediate as well as long-term benefits for you and your loved ones.

Learn more about the harmful effects of smoking, smokeless tobacco, and secondhand smoke from the resources below and find out about resources that address prevention.  Make this the year you or someone close to you quits smoking.

Read more: Smoking and Its Effects

There are approximately 75,000 deaths attributable to excessive alcohol use each year in the United States (1). This makes excessive alcohol use the 3rd leading lifestyle-related cause of death for the nation (2). In the single year 2003, there were over 2 million hospitalizations (3) and over 4 million emergency room visits (4) for alcohol-related conditions.

Read more: Alcohol Use and Health

“If you can find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn't lead anywhere." —
Anonymous

Given the health benefits of regular physical activity, we might have to ask why two out of three (60%) Americans are not active at recommended levels. There are barriers that keep Americans from being, or becoming, regularly physically active. Understanding common barriers to physical activity and creating strategies to overcome them may help you make physical activity part of your daily life.

Read more: Overcoming Barriers to Physical Activity

January
Cervical Cancer Screening Month
For more information visit the National Cervical Cancer Coalition.

National Blood Donor Month
For more information visit the American Association of Blood Banks.

Glaucoma Awareness Month
For more information visit Prevent Blindness America.

Birth Defects Prevention Month
For more information visit the March of Dimes.

Thyroid Awareness Month
For more information visit the American Thyroid Association.

Read more: Health Awareness Monthly Calendar