Health A to Z

Anal fissure

Also called Tear in the anus

A small tear that causes pain out of all proportion to its size. Treating the constipation is what heals it, not creams alone.

Anal fistula and pilonidal sinus

Also called Fistula-in-ano, Pilonidal abscess, Perianal abscess

Tunnels and pits that discharge and will not heal. Embarrassment delays presentation, and both are far more treatable than people fear.

Angelman syndrome

A genetic condition with severe learning disability, epilepsy, no speech, and a genuinely happy disposition.

Angina

Chest pain from a heart not getting enough blood. A warning that arrives before the heart attack, if it is heeded.

Animal and human bites

Also called Dog bite, Cat bite, Clenched fist injury

Cat bites and punches to the mouth infect far more often than they look like they should. Rabies is the question after any bite abroad.

Ankylosing spondylitis

Also called Axial spondyloarthritis, AxSpA, AS

Inflammatory arthritis of the spine. The average delay to diagnosis is eight and a half years, mostly spent being treated for back pain.

Annual health check

Also called Learning disability health check, LD health check

Everybody aged 14 or over on the learning disability register is entitled to one every year. Around a third never get one, and people die of things it would have found.

Anorexia nervosa

Restriction driven by a distorted sense of one's own body. The mental illness with the highest death rate.

Antiphospholipid syndrome

Also called APS, Hughes syndrome, Sticky blood

An immune condition that makes blood clot too readily. A treatable cause of recurrent miscarriage and of stroke in young people.

Anxiety disorders

Also called Generalised anxiety disorder, GAD, Chronic anxiety

Worry that has stopped being useful and started running the day.