Sjogren's Syndrome

Sjogren's syndrome is an autoimmune disease that produces extra antibodies in the blood that are directed against various tissues of the body. This illness causes inflammation in certain glands of the body.

The cause of Sjogren's syndrome is unknown. It is found more commonly in families that have members with other autoimmune illnesses. 90% patients with Sjogren's syndrome are female.

Symptoms of Sjogren's syndrome can involve the glands, but it also can involve other organs of the body. Some symptoms include:
- inflammation of the tear gland resulting in eye dryness
- inflammation of the salivary glands resulting in mouth dryness, swallowing difficulties,
dental decay and mouth sores

The diagnosis of Sjogren's syndrome involves detecting the features of dryness of the eyes and mouth.

The treatment of patient's with Sjogren's syndrome is directed toward the particular areas of the body that are involved. There is no cure for Sjogren's syndrome.

Arteriovenous Malformation

Arteriovenous Malformation or AVM can reduce the amount of oxygen received by brain tissues. Most People are born with Arteriovenous Malformation, however, symptoms usually don't occur until adulthood. The cause of Arteriovenous Malformation is unknown. Arteriovenous Malformation's vary in size and location within the brain.

The most common symptoms are as follows:
Headaches
Hemorrhage or bleeding into the brain
stroke
seizures
vision problems

There are different test that help to diagnose or identify the size, location and blood flow pattern of Arteriovenous Malformation. The two most common are CT and MRI.

There are different treatments for Arteriovenous Malformation. They are as follows:
surgery
emobilization
radiation therapy
radiosurgery-Gamma knife