September the RKI reported the first four cases of the year

But accidents can also happen in the household or at work.

How does a concussion develop?

Inside the skull, our brain is protected from impact injuries by a liquid. If the impact on the head is severe or abrupt, the liquid will not be able to absorb the impact. The brain strikes the bones of the skull – this can result in a concussion. This is also known as a traumatic brain injury and does not cause permanent damage.

Symptoms of a Concussion

Typical signs of a concussion are:

Gaps in memoryDizzinessConsciousnessNausea VomitingSensitivity to lightEye tremorsHeadache

Note: Occasionally, some symptoms are delayed – up to twelve hours after the concussion.

In some cases, symptoms persist for a long time. These include: dizziness, headaches and a lack of concentration. These complications are known as post-commotional syndrome and can last for several weeks until the last symptoms disappear.

Treatment for a concussion

If there is a mild concussion without serious injury, treatment is to relieve symptoms. Treat yourself to bed rest – possibly even for several days. Light pain relievers may be needed. Children in particular can easily have accidents and head injuries while playing. The recovery phase can be boring, especially for children, but the brain desperately needs the time to recover.

Usually a few days of rest and absolute bed rest are sufficient. Sleep changes can occur, but these should soon subside. However, if new symptoms set in or existing ones worsen, a doctor should be consulted to rule out the possibility of more serious brain injuries.

To be on the safe side, the doctor can admit a patient with a suspected concussion to the hospital for observation for 24 hours. Admission to hospital is advisable in the following cases:

Impaired consciousness Amnesia (memory loss) Neurological disorders Seizure Signs of a fractured skull

What are the risks?

A concussion usually subsides within a few days to weeks without any consequential damage. It is important that you take enough time to recover and that you do not become active again too early. Because a concussion that has not healed or has not been taken into account can trigger the post-commotional syndrome. This means headache, dizziness, irritability and nausea that lasts for three to six months. Treatment in this case is through the use of antidepressants, relaxation exercises, and physical therapy.

Traumatic brain injury: It is essential to consult a doctor

A slight commotio cerebri, as the Latin term for concussion is, regresses completely. Nevertheless, you should have the severity of the traumatic brain injury assessed by a doctor. The great danger of a concussion is cerebral haemorrhage, which can be life-threatening. You should therefore also take supposedly minor injuries seriously and consult a doctor.

In a mild case, neither the X-ray findings nor a CT examination will be abnormal. Investigations such as measuring brain waves are rarely necessary. The affected person is often monitored by a doctor for 24 hours to rule out more serious injuries. A normal concussion has no consequential damage, and the doctor can use the Glasgow Coma Scale to determine how severe the traumatic brain injury is. There are three categories in total:

Is the person affected able to open their eyes? Can the person communicate verbally? Is a motor reaction to external stimuli possible?

Depending on the reaction, the patient can achieve between three and 15 points:

3 to 8 points: severe traumatic brain injury (contusion of the brain) 9 to 12 points: moderate traumatic brain injury (brain contusion) 13 to 15 points: slight traumatic brain injury (concussion)

Behavior at first aid

If you suspect another person may have a concussion, there are several points to look out for.how to write a counterclaim in an argumentative essay As long as the injured person can be contacted, note the following:

Call an ambulance immediately. Try to position the person with the upper body slightly elevated. Place the injured person on their side. Under no circumstances give medication while the doctor is away. Talk to the person reassuringly Avoid panic. Head Injury Risks: Concussions: Are Helmets the Solution? Head Injuries: Concussion Is No Minor Study Surprises Researchers: Can Older People Really Develop New Brain Cells?

If the accident was so severe that the person is unconscious, call an ambulance immediately and do not leave the person alone until the ambulance arrives. Once the victim is conscious again, the injured person should be placed on their side in a stable position so that vomit does not get into the windpipe. If possible, you can also cool the neck and forehead.

Seven people were infected with the West Nile virus in Leipzig. It is still unclear where those affected were infected. Neither of them said they had traveled before.

The Robert Koch Institute announced on Thursday that the West Nile virus had been found in seven people in Leipzig. All of them had shown symptoms of brain disease. Among those affected, a 76-year-old has developed encephalitis, and two other patients have developed meningitis. The investigations into the exact location of the patient’s infection are still ongoing.

Further suspected cases in Berlin and Leipzig

On September 3, the RKI reported the first four cases of the year. The numbers now amount to eight diseases. In Meißen, the virus was found when testing blood and plasma donations. In 2019, there were five diagnosed human infections in eastern Germany for the first time, which were presumably due to a domestic transmission. 

For refugee admission: Thousands demonstrate in Leipzig for refugees Law forbids: Leipzig antibody test is not sold in pharmacies Regio-Nachrichten: All the latest news from all cities

The West Nile virus is a pathogen originating in Africa. Infected mosquitoes can infect birds, mammals and humans. So far there is no vaccine for humans. Infection often goes without symptoms. When illnesses occur, they are often associated with flu-like symptoms such as headache, chills, or vomiting.

Sources used: dpa news agency Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk: "Eight cases of West Nile virus in Saxony"Leipziger Volkszeitung: "Seven people in Leipzig infected with the West Nile virus"show more sources less sources

In Florida, a boy went swimming in the lake – a few days later he died in a hospital. The 13-year-old had caught a deadly worm that ate through his meninges.

In the US state of Florida, a 13-year-old man died of an infection after a parasite had eaten its way through his meninges. The boy apparently caught the worm while swimming in a lake – doctors initially made a wrong diagnosis.

After swimming in a Florida lake, the boy complained of headache, nausea, and vomiting. Since the parents could not explain the symptoms, they brought the 13-year-old to the "Putnam Community Medical Center" in Palatka. There the doctors made an initial diagnosis. The teenager had a harmless sore throat, it was said.

There is no cure

But his health did not improve. At a clinic in Gainsville, the doctors then discovered the real cause of the symptoms: They found a dangerous parasite in the teenagers’ brain – the unicellular amoeba Naegleria fowleri. This can trigger dangerous meningitis in humans.

"Sorry to tell you, but your son has a parasitic amoeba and there is no cure", the doctors at the hospital told the parents. This is reported by the US news channel Fox News.

Other cases of infection are known – but no warning signs

According to the RKI, Naegleria fowleri is mainly found in warm fresh waters of the tropics and subtropics. However, infections are also repeatedly known in the USA.

Also in 2018, a 29-year-old died after visiting a surfing and water skiing facility in Texas – also of meningitis caused by the parasite.

Since 1962 the health department in Tallahassee (Florida) counted 37 cases of infection with Naegleria fowleri. Signs warning of the amoeba were not put up.

More than 50 other children were in the lake

According to several US media reports, the mother of the sick boy said that more than 50 other children, her husband and their daughters had been in the water of the lake. However, only her 13-year-old son had contracted the deadly parasite. 

To South Korea and China: Swine fever: Japan also stops imports from Germany New case in Norway: dead reindeer with ‘zombie disease’ Swine fever detected: First case of swine fever in Germany confirmed Sources used: Express: "Bathed in the lake Boy (13) dies – doctors find something terrible in his brain"Foxnews: "Brain eating amoebia claims life of Florida boy, 13" (English) Tz: "Boy dies after bathing in the lake: killer parasite eats its way through the brain"show more sources less sources

Profuse sweating is not only a nuisance, it can even be a disease. Doctors use the term hyperhidrosis for this. Evidently, familial predisposition and psychological factors play a fundamental role in who is affected by hyperhidrosis.

What you can do about stress

Photo series with 8 pictures

When is it hyperhidrosis?

Sweating is one of the natural, self-sustaining functions of our body. Although sweating is generally healthy, there are individual differences in how people sweat. While some people hardly exude sweat even at high temperatures, for others, profuse sweating is part of everyday life. According to Dr. Felix Bross, Senior Physician at the University Dermatology Clinic in Freiburg, "Affected people feel very differently where the normal level is exceeded", as he explains in an information report on the university’s homepage.

If sweating becomes pathological and has nothing to do with the body’s heat regulation, doctors speak of hyperhidrosis, an overactive sweat gland. Depending on whether the whole body or only certain areas such as armpits, hands or feet are affected, it is a generalized or local hyperhidrosis.

Primary and secondary hyperhidrosis

In addition, medical professionals differentiate between a primary and secondary clinical picture. The symptoms of primary hyperhidrosis occur for no apparent cause. As the "pharmacy magazine" reported in an article on the topic, the complaints are usually expressed in childhood or adolescence.

Secondary hyperhidrosis, on the other hand, only develops after physical change or stress. For example, many women excrete significantly more fluid through the sweat glands during menopause than before. In addition to obesity and stress, it is above all certain diseases that trigger secondary hyperhidrosis. These include hormonal and metabolic diseases, infections, cancer, nervous and anxiety disorders as well as mental illnesses. Heavy sweating is also one of the side effects of certain drugs.

Hyperhidrosis treatment: remedies for excessive sweating Typical: Night sweats: Causes of sweating during sleep Hyperhidrosis: When sweating is pathological Hyperhidrosis: What helps against hyperhidrosis Help with lasers: Have sweat glands removed: Does it make sense?

The consequences of hyperhidrosis

For most of those affected, chronically profuse sweating means a significant reduction in quality of life. Because patients and their surroundings find both direct physical contact and physical closeness uncomfortable, social withdrawal is a common consequence of hyperhydrosis. This in turn can lead to depressive moods, fears and inactivity. In order to prevent such impairments, you should consult a doctor as soon as you notice that you are permanently stressed by profuse sweating. You should consult an expert, especially if, in addition to increased sweating, there are limbs, muscle, back or headaches or gastrointestinal problems, paleness, dizziness and tremors.

There are various options for hyperhidrosis treatment, depending on the severity of the clinical picture. You can find out here which therapy methods are available and how promising these remedies against sweating are.

What you can do about stress

Photo series with 8 pictures

Treatment of hyperhidrosis with botulinum toxin

Botulinum toxin therapy is one of the classic conservative hyperhidrosis treatments. A doctor injects extremely diluted nerve toxin in several layers under the skin of the affected body parts, which is intended to inhibit the release of the messenger substance acetylcholine. How long this remedy works against sweating is according to the health portal "onmeda.de" depending on the respective preparation. Information on this varies between four and seven months. The problem: The treatment costs several hundred euros and the sometimes painful injections have to be repeated after a few months. On the other hand, this anti-sweating remedy hardly has any side effects like that "world" highlights in a report on the subject.

Ionophoresis as a treatment for sweating

Ionophoresis is a very effective but time-consuming remedy for sweating on the hands and feet. The patient dips his hands or feet into a salt bath through which a weak direct current flows. This inhibits the nerve endings and can reduce sweat production – if repeated daily at the beginning and then weekly.