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 441–450 (page 45 of 50).

S

Stevens-Johnson syndrome

Also called SJS, Toxic epidermal necrolysis, TEN

A rare, severe reaction in which the skin blisters and peels. Almost always caused by a medicine, and stopping it early is what saves people.

Stillbirth

A baby who dies before or during birth after 24 weeks. Around eight families a day in the UK, and reduced movements is the sign to act on.

Stoma care

Also called Colostomy, Ileostomy, Urostomy

Around 200,000 people in the UK live with a stoma. Managed well it is invisible; managed badly it takes over a life.

Stomach cancer

Also called Gastric cancer

Symptoms that look exactly like indigestion, which is why it is usually found late. Persistent indigestion over 55 is a referral, not a prescription.

Stroke

Also called Cerebrovascular accident, CVA, Brain attack

Blood supply to part of the brain cut off. Around 1.9 million neurones die every minute. Time is the treatment.

Subarachnoid haemorrhage

Also called Brain aneurysm, Bleed on the brain

The worst headache of a life, arriving in seconds. Thunderclap headache is a 999 call, not a wait and see.

Subdural haematoma

Also called Subdural haemorrhage, Bleed on the brain

A slow bleed that can appear weeks after a knock nobody remembers. In an older person it looks exactly like dementia, and it is reversible.

Substance dependence

Also called Drug addiction, Opioid dependence, Drug misuse

A treatable health condition, not a character defect. Overdose deaths in the UK are at record levels, and naloxone reverses them.

Suicidal thoughts

Also called Suicidal ideation

Common, survivable, and treatable. Asking about them directly is protective, not dangerous.

Supraventricular tachycardia

Also called SVT, Palpitations, Fast heart rate

A heart suddenly racing at 150 to 250 beats a minute, then stopping just as abruptly. Frightening, usually harmless, and curable by a single procedure.

Ready when you are

Have a look round the demo, start a free trial with your own service in it, or ask us the awkward question first. Whichever you pick, the people who answer are the people who built it.