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Medicine Facts

SARS: Mother Nature Strikes Again!

SARS, short for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, is big news this spring. By the middle of April 2003, over 2000 people had been diagnosed with it in China and Hong Kong, another few hundred in the ... Continue reading

Why Is Blood Pressure Two Numbers?

Blood pressure might better be called heart pressure, for the heart's pumping action creates it. To measure blood pressure, health workers determine how hard the blood is pushing at two different ... Continue reading

Blood pressure cuff measures systolic and diastolic pressure.

The Plague

Plague is an infectious disease caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis. The bacterium is found mainly in rodents, particularly rats, and in the fleas that feed on them. Other animals and humans ... Continue reading

Prairie dogs sometimes carry plague.

Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever

Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF) is caused by tiny bacteria called rickettsiae that live inside the cells of infected individuals. It has been reported throughout the United States, but is most ... Continue reading