http://discovermagazine.com Science, Technology, and The Future http://discovermagazine.com/2009/oct/02-vital-signs-confusing-cues http://discovermagazine.com/2009/oct/02-vital-signs-confusing-cues A spreading rash signals something far more dangerous than a skin condition. Stewart Massad http://discovermagazine.com/2009/oct/02-vital-signs-confusing-cues/key_image Mon, 02 Nov 2009 12:35:00 -0600 Mon, 02 Nov 2009 12:35:00 -0600 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2009/sep/27-vital-signs-sneaky-pain-fooled-6-experts http://discovermagazine.com/2009/sep/27-vital-signs-sneaky-pain-fooled-6-experts A sore hip launches a patient on an odyssey through the world of medical care before giving way to a surprisingly simple conclusion. Anna Reisman http://discovermagazine.com/2009/sep/27-vital-signs-sneaky-pain-fooled-6-experts/key_image Thu, 27 Aug 2009 11:20:00 -0500 Thu, 27 Aug 2009 11:20:00 -0500 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2009/jul-aug/15-vital-signs-where.s-that-infection http://discovermagazine.com/2009/jul-aug/15-vital-signs-where.s-that-infection What seems like an ordinary urinary tract infection can sometimes be much worse. Tony Dajer http://discovermagazine.com/2009/jul-aug/15-vital-signs-where.s-that-infection/key_image Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:45:00 -0500 Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:45:00 -0500 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2009/jun/07-vital-signs http://discovermagazine.com/2009/jun/07-vital-signs A dying patient faces a dropping blood count—and a faith that forbids transfusions. H. Lee Kagan http://discovermagazine.com/2009/jun/07-vital-signs/key_image Thu, 28 May 2009 11:30:00 -0500 Thu, 28 May 2009 11:30:00 -0500 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2009/may/28-vital-signs-fishy-food http://discovermagazine.com/2009/may/28-vital-signs-fishy-food A tropical vacation goes south when a tourist catches something horrible from the catch of the day. But what exactly is it? Claire Panosian Dunavan http://discovermagazine.com/2009/may/28-vital-signs-fishy-food/key_image Tue, 28 Apr 2009 10:35:00 -0500 Tue, 28 Apr 2009 10:35:00 -0500 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2009/apr/29-a-gland-failure http://discovermagazine.com/2009/apr/29-a-gland-failure When adrenal functions go out of whack, the mind and body respond in startling ways. Robert Norman http://discovermagazine.com/2009/apr/29-a-gland-failure/key_image Sun, 29 Mar 2009 20:00:00 -0500 Sun, 29 Mar 2009 20:00:00 -0500 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2009/mar/01-stubbornness-physician-can-sometimes-prove-fatal http://discovermagazine.com/2009/mar/01-stubbornness-physician-can-sometimes-prove-fatal Ever wonder if doctors make mistakes on diagnoses based on their ideas about how a patient looks or acts? Well, here's your answer. Tony Dajer http://discovermagazine.com/2009/mar/01-stubbornness-physician-can-sometimes-prove-fatal/key_image Sun, 01 Mar 2009 11:20:00 -0600 Sun, 01 Mar 2009 11:20:00 -0600 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2009/feb/14-when-modern-medicine-battles-genetics-loses http://discovermagazine.com/2009/feb/14-when-modern-medicine-battles-genetics-loses A young man is genetically predisposed to a certain dust-borne illness—and despite receiving excellent care, nothing in the stable of modern medicine can save him. Claire Panosian Dunavan http://discovermagazine.com/2009/feb/14-when-modern-medicine-battles-genetics-loses/key_image Wed, 14 Jan 2009 08:05:00 -0600 Wed, 14 Jan 2009 08:05:00 -0600 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2008/dec/27-vital-signs http://discovermagazine.com/2008/dec/27-vital-signs When a mild-mannered husband reveals he's been hitting his wife in his sleep, a doctor must get to the root of a strange sleep disorder before it gets out of control. H. Lee Kagan http://discovermagazine.com/2008/dec/27-vital-signs/key_image Sat, 29 Nov 2008 15:30:00 -0600 Sat, 29 Nov 2008 15:30:00 -0600 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2008/nov/23-twenty-nine-male-and-dangerously-ill http://discovermagazine.com/2008/nov/23-twenty-nine-male-and-dangerously-ill What leaves a twenty-nine-year-old man with high fevers, photophobia, groin pain, and an inability to walk a straight line? When an E.R. is confronted with just such a question, the race is on to determine the cause of all the symptoms—and how to treat them. Tony Dajer http://discovermagazine.com/2008/nov/23-twenty-nine-male-and-dangerously-ill/key_image Thu, 23 Oct 2008 09:30:00 -0500 Thu, 23 Oct 2008 09:30:00 -0500 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2008/oct/10-one-cure-for-vertigo-playing-pinball-inside-your-head http://discovermagazine.com/2008/oct/10-one-cure-for-vertigo-playing-pinball-inside-your-head When a patient comes in with chronic dizziness, his doctor must first determine the cause of the mysterious problem, and then come up with an unorthodox way to solve it. Anna Reisman http://discovermagazine.com/2008/oct/10-one-cure-for-vertigo-playing-pinball-inside-your-head/key_image Wed, 10 Sep 2008 11:15:00 +0000 Wed, 10 Sep 2008 11:15:00 +0000 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2008/sep/22-battling-the-worms-inside-you http://discovermagazine.com/2008/sep/22-battling-the-worms-inside-you When a patient is diagnosed with two separate types of internal parasites, an infectious disease specialist must determine whether the worms in fact exist—and what to do about them. Claire Panosian Dunavan http://discovermagazine.com/2008/sep/22-battling-the-worms-inside-you/key_image Fri, 22 Aug 2008 11:05:00 +0000 Fri, 22 Aug 2008 11:05:00 +0000 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2008/aug/09-treating-disease-in-the-big-easy http://discovermagazine.com/2008/aug/09-treating-disease-in-the-big-easy When a patient arrives at a New Orleans ER with mysterious abdominal pain, his treating physician must solve the puzzle quick enough to avoid a deadly mistake. By H. Lee Kagan http://discovermagazine.com/2008/aug/09-treating-disease-in-the-big-easy/key_image Wed, 09 Jul 2008 09:05:00 +0000 Wed, 09 Jul 2008 09:05:00 +0000 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2008/jul/12-the-race-to-treat-a-seizing-child http://discovermagazine.com/2008/jul/12-the-race-to-treat-a-seizing-child When a young child suffers a seizure, her doctor must start a clinical guessing game to determine its cause—and whether it will happen again. Mark Cohen http://discovermagazine.com/2008/jul/12-the-race-to-treat-a-seizing-child/key_image Thu, 12 Jun 2008 09:45:00 +0000 Thu, 12 Jun 2008 09:45:00 +0000 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2008/jun/22-the-white-urine-that-held-the-key http://discovermagazine.com/2008/jun/22-the-white-urine-that-held-the-key When a middle-aged woman produces a urine sample that's a strange milky-white, her doctor is left speculating about rare tropical diseases, and eventually learns the truth from her patient's past. Claire Panosian Dunavan http://discovermagazine.com/2008/jun/22-the-white-urine-that-held-the-key/key_image Thu, 22 May 2008 10:50:00 +0000 Thu, 22 May 2008 10:50:00 +0000 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2008/may/01-what-happens-when-an-ovary-dies http://discovermagazine.com/2008/may/01-what-happens-when-an-ovary-dies When a 49-year-old woman arrives in the ER in debilitating pain, a gynecologic surgeon must make rapid decisions to determine her treatment. Stewart Massad http://discovermagazine.com/2008/may/01-what-happens-when-an-ovary-dies/key_image Thu, 01 May 2008 07:40:00 +0000 Thu, 01 May 2008 07:40:00 +0000 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2008/apr/16-the-blood-pressure-mystery http://discovermagazine.com/2008/apr/16-the-blood-pressure-mystery A former gastric bypass patient with abnormally low blood pressure checks into the hospital with nausea and weakness. After initially writing the symptoms off as aftereffects of the bypass, his doctor realizes that the blood pressure drop is a signal of major internal bleeding, and he needs to act quickly to save the patient's life. Tony Dajer http://discovermagazine.com/2008/apr/16-the-blood-pressure-mystery/key_image Wed, 16 Apr 2008 09:05:00 +0000 Wed, 16 Apr 2008 09:05:00 +0000 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2008/mar/31-eating-paper-in-search-of-missing-nutrients http://discovermagazine.com/2008/mar/31-eating-paper-in-search-of-missing-nutrients You don't actually get any iron from eating paper. But that doesn't stop some people with the strange syndrome called pica. H. Lee Kagan http://discovermagazine.com/2008/mar/31-eating-paper-in-search-of-missing-nutrients/key_image Mon, 31 Mar 2008 10:05:00 +0000 Mon, 31 Mar 2008 10:05:00 +0000 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2008/feb/the-cancer-that-itches http://discovermagazine.com/2008/feb/the-cancer-that-itches “I just can’t stop scratching! Sometimes the itch is in other areas, but mostly it’s down there.” She pointed to a place on her lower back. That place turned out to be a cervical cancer. Robert Norman http://discovermagazine.com/2008/feb/the-cancer-that-itches/key_image Fri, 15 Feb 2008 11:00:00 +0000 Fri, 15 Feb 2008 11:00:00 +0000 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2008/jan/date-rape-drug-to-the-rescue http://discovermagazine.com/2008/jan/date-rape-drug-to-the-rescue For years, Harry Miles was crippled by cataplexy and narcolepsy, falling into overwhelming fatigue at unpredictable times. That was until his doctor prescribed him GHB, one of the most infamous drugs around—and also a miracle cure. Anna Reisman http://discovermagazine.com/2008/jan/date-rape-drug-to-the-rescue/key_image Thu, 03 Jan 2008 07:35:00 +0000 Thu, 03 Jan 2008 07:35:00 +0000 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2007/dec/12_19_the-perfect-storm-of-health-risk http://discovermagazine.com/2007/dec/12_19_the-perfect-storm-of-health-risk In some situations, rare illnesses become downright probable. Tony Dajer http://discovermagazine.com/2007/dec/12_19_the-perfect-storm-of-health-risk/key_image Wed, 19 Dec 2007 11:00:00 +0000 Wed, 19 Dec 2007 11:00:00 +0000 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2007/nov/vital-signs http://discovermagazine.com/2007/nov/vital-signs Time to inject some mind vitamins. Frank Vertosick http://discovermagazine.com/2007/nov/vital-signs/key_image Wed, 28 Nov 2007 15:25:00 +0000 Wed, 28 Nov 2007 15:25:00 +0000 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2007/sep/vital-signs-misdiagnosing-adhd http://discovermagazine.com/2007/sep/vital-signs-misdiagnosing-adhd Just because it's in vogue doesn't mean it's accurate. Mark Cohen http://discovermagazine.com/2007/sep/vital-signs-misdiagnosing-adhd/key_image Wed, 22 Aug 2007 11:00:00 +0000 Wed, 22 Aug 2007 11:00:00 +0000 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2007/aug/vital-signs-great-outdoors-bites-back http://discovermagazine.com/2007/aug/vital-signs-great-outdoors-bites-back Go breathe in the fresh air, but be selective about it. Claire Panosian Dunavan http://discovermagazine.com/2007/aug/vital-signs-great-outdoors-bites-back/key_image Tue, 07 Aug 2007 21:00:00 +0000 Tue, 07 Aug 2007 21:00:00 +0000 Print Article http://discovermagazine.com/2007/jul/vital-signs http://discovermagazine.com/2007/jul/vital-signs I recalled a baby I’d seen during a stint in the neonatal intensive care unit during my pediatric residency. What had appeared to be a small infection of the umbilicus proved to be a serious infection known as omphalitis. That baby had died. Mark Cohen http://discovermagazine.com/2007/jul/vital-signs/key_image Tue, 26 Jun 2007 09:14:38 +0000 Tue, 26 Jun 2007 09:14:38 +0000 Print Article