The human heart is susceptible to several health complications, including atrial fibrillation (AFib). The condition is the most common type of treated heart arrhythmia, which is a term describing when the heart beats unusually slowly, fast, or irregularly. AFib is estimated to affect between 2.7 million to 6.1 million individuals in the country. An individual with the complication experiences irregular beating in the heart’s upper chambers, affecting blood flow, leading to health complications. Causes Irregularities in the structure of the heart are the most common cause of atrial fibrillation. Sometimes people may develop the condition without any known heart damage or problems. Risk factors like age may also contribute to the development of atrial fibrillation. Other potential causes of the phenomenon include a heart attack, sick sinus syndrome – issues with the heart’s natural pacemaker, coronary artery disease, congenital heart defect – A heart defect that an individual might be born with, high blood pressure, lung diseases, heart valve problems, use of stimulants, including certain prescriptions and caffeine, physical stress caused due to pneumonia, other illnesses, and also surgery, sleep apnea, overactive thyroid (hyperthyroidism), metabolic imbalances, viral infections, and complications due to earlier heart surgery. Symptoms A person who develops atrial fibrillation may not notice symptoms, and the condition is detected only after a physical examination.

If you have been facing difficulty while breathing or feel that your sense of smell or taste has decreased, chances are that you may have nasal polyps. Though it is a common health condition, knowing more about it is necessary, not just because it causes discomfort; one-sided nasal polyps growth may indicate a cancerous tumor. Read further to learn more about nasal polyps, symptoms, causes, diagnosis, and lines of treatment. Nasal polyps They are soft, benign, and painless growths on the lining of sinuses or nasal passages. They are sac-like in appearance and vary in size and shape. Sinuses are located inside the facial bones and are air-filled spaces. They are connected to your nasal cavity and help you breathe. Nasal polyps, especially when they grow in size, act as obstructions, cause trouble breathing, and usually affect both sides of your nasal passages. According to the research, 4% of people worldwide suffer from this condition . Causes Although the exact cause of nasal polyps is unknown until now, it is attributed to long-term or recurrent inflammation of the mucus membranes of the sinuses or the nasal passages. It is often caused due to conditions such as asthma, long-term sinus infections, cystic fibrosis, sensitivity to aspirin, allergic fungal sinusitis (caused due to fungi in the air), vitamin D deficiency, abnormal inflammation of the blood vessels caused due to Churg-Strauss Syndrome, or a family history of nasal polyps.

Old age can lead to the development of various kinds of diseases, and age-related macular degeneration is one among them. This eye disease can occur in people above 50 years, leading to vision issues, especially the ability to look straight. There are multiple misconceptions associated with the problem that it causes complete blindness; however, the fact is only central vision is lost. Let’s have a look at the other myths associated with the condition. Macular degeneration is not very common Age-related macular degeneration is not a disease that is very rare and affects only a percentage of people. The disease is the most common reason that leads to loss of vision and is known to affect even people who are as young as 20 years old. There are specifically two types of AMD which are dry and wet. Dry macular degeneration causes the cells present in the macula, the central part of the retina, to die, leading to blurry central vision. In the case of wet macular degeneration, the fluid present in the blood vessel exudes into the macula and leads to blind spots. The majority of cases are those of dry AMD, while wet AMD is taken as a more advanced form of the disease since it leads to swift and chronic damage to vision.