Health A to Z

Fever in children

Also called High temperature in children, Febrile convulsion

A symptom, not an illness. The number matters far less than how the child looks.

Fibroids

Also called Uterine fibroids, Myoma, Leiomyoma

Non-cancerous growths in the womb, present in most women by 50. Only a minority cause problems, and heavy bleeding is the main one.

Fibromyalgia

Widespread pain, exhaustion and cognitive fog, with normal test results. Real, common, and endlessly doubted.

Flu

Also called Influenza, Seasonal flu

Not a bad cold. It kills thousands in the UK most winters, and the vaccine is the whole point of this entry.

Food intolerance

Also called Lactose intolerance, Food sensitivity, Non-allergic food hypersensitivity

Not an allergy, and the difference is life or death. Allergy involves the immune system and can kill; intolerance makes you feel unwell.

Food poisoning

Also called Gastroenteritis, Campylobacter, Salmonella, E. coli

Usually settles by itself. The danger is dehydration, and anti-diarrhoeal medicines are wrong in the cases that matter most.

Foot problems

Also called Bunions, Corns and calluses, Ingrown toenail, Morton's neuroma, Flat feet

Bunions, corns, ingrown nails and nerve pain. Mostly caused by footwear, and on a diabetic foot none of them are minor.

Foreskin problems

Also called Balanitis, Phimosis, Paraphimosis, Tight foreskin

Soreness, tightness and inflammation. A foreskin retracted and stuck behind the head of the penis is an emergency.

Fractures and sprains

Also called Broken bone, Sprain, Strain, Soft tissue injury

A broken bone in an older person is rarely just an accident. The fracture gets treated; the reason for it usually does not.

Fragile X syndrome

The commonest inherited cause of learning disability, and the commonest single-gene cause of autism.