Faculty of Allied Health Sciences > Nutrition and Food Engineering

Diseases Named After Food

<< < (2/4) > >>

Shamim Ansary:
Strawberry Gallbladder


Better known as cholesterolosis of gallbladder, strawberry gallbladder is a surgical finding of excessive cholesterol deposits in the gallbladder wall. As we all know, the gallbladder stores and releases bile (which is made in the liver) which helps us emulsify and subsequently digest the fats in our diet. The stippled appearance of the gallbladder is due to the cholesterol deposits, which I guess would represent the seeds of the strawberry. Like a lot of medicine, the cause of strawberry gallbladder is unknown. Luckily for all gallbladders out there, having high cholesterol does not seem to have any harmful effects.

Shamim Ansary:
Cauliflower Ear


Mixed martial arts enthusiasts and angry drunks beware—cauliflower ear can be one’s worst enemy. This is a deformity that occurs after repeated trauma to the ear. With enough blows to the ears, the blood supply and underlying cartilage scaffolding gets damaged, to the point where the healing process runs amok, creating a cosmetically unappealing growth that looks a lot like albino broccoli, I mean cauliflower. This condition is not reversible, other than with an expensive visit to your plastic surgeon. Too bad medical ethics do not allow kickbacks for patient referrals.

Shamim Ansary:
Watermelon Stomach


Watermelon stomach is also known as gastric antral vascular ectasia (GAVE). Try saying that three times fast. It’s no wonder physicians would rather name it after one of our favorite summer fruits, instead. This is a very rare finding that involves dilated blood vessels in the last part of the stomach (antrum). GAVE is of unknown etiology (cause) and is a rare cause of gastrointestinal bleeding and iron deficiency anemia. Doctors call it watermelon stomach because of the characteristic red streaks of stomach lining that look like markings of a watermelon. Ok, well last time I checked watermelons don’t have red streaks, but what did rapper Dr. Dre say…”trust me, I’m a doctor.”

Shamim Ansary:
Nutmeg Liver


No, congestion is not just reserved for your sinuses in the medical field. Nutmeg liver is another name for chronic passive congestion of the liver. It’s also known as congestive heapatopathy. This is a result of congestive heart failure, which in laypersons’ terms is a sick heart that cannot pump blood as well as it used to. With a poorly functioning heart, blood essentially “backs up” in the venous system (the half of your circulatory system that is responsible for bringing deoxygenated blood back to the heart). The intricate network of veins found in the liver becomes engorged with blood, giving the liver the microscopic appearance of a grated nutmeg. Unfortunately you can’t grate a nutmeg liver into your favorite apple pie or nip of eggnog; if heart function is not restored, the liver can become permanently damaged, resulting in fibrosis, which is scarring of diseased tissue.

Shamim Ansary:
Blueberry Muffin Rash


Not to be mistaken with our favorite high calorie breakfast pastry, blueberry muffin rash is a cutaneous (skin) finding in infants who were exposed in the womb to the rubella virus. This rash is a form of purpura (red or purple skin discoloration that does not blanch with fingertip pressure due to bleeding under the skin). Although no longer solely associated with congenital rubella syndrome (CRS), it is best remembered as such. The classic triad (no, I am not referring to Asian organized crime here) of CRS is deafness, eye abnormalities and congenital heart disease.

Source: http://listverse.com/2011/06/25/top-10-diseases-named-after-food/

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page

[*] Previous page