Health A to Z

Most health pages tell you what a condition is. Very few tell you what it is like to sit beside somebody who has one. This library does both. Search by name, or by the name you know it under.

Important: This page is general information, not medical advice, and it is not a diagnosis. If you are worried about your health or someone else's, speak to a GP, pharmacist, or call 111. In an emergency, call 999.

500 conditions, showing 31–40 (page 4 of 50).

A

Aortic aneurysm

Also called AAA, Abdominal aortic aneurysm

A bulge in the body's main artery. Silent until it ruptures, and there is a free scan that finds it.

Aphasia

Language is damaged. Intelligence is not. Confusing the two is the injury people notice most.

Appendicitis

Inflammation of the appendix. Common, and the presentation in children, older people and pregnancy is what catches people out.

ARFID

Also called Avoidant restrictive food intake disorder, Extreme fussy eating

Restricted eating driven by sensory aversion or fear, not by body image. Strongly linked with autism, and routinely missed.

Asthma

Airways that narrow and inflame. Very treatable, and it still kills around three people a day in the UK.

Ataxia

Loss of co-ordination from damage to the cerebellum. Frequently mistaken, in public, for drunkenness.

Atrial fibrillation

Also called AF, Irregular heartbeat

An irregular heart rhythm that causes around one in five strokes. Anticoagulation prevents most of them.

Attachment difficulties

Also called Attachment disorder, Developmental trauma

What happens to a child whose early care was frightening or unpredictable. Behaviour that makes sense once you know the history.

Auditory processing disorder

Also called APD, Central auditory processing disorder

Normal hearing test, real difficulty understanding speech. Often mistaken for inattention, and it responds well to changing the room rather than the person.

Autism

Also called Autism spectrum condition, ASC, Asperger syndrome

A different way of processing the world, socially and sensorily. A difference, not a fault.