Multimedia

Hot flashes are caused by special chemical messengers in the brain that send signals to blood vessels to flush the skin, causing sweating. About 10% of women will have more than seven hot flashes per day during menopause.

As of 2021,  29.5 million people aged 12 and older had an alcohol use disorder in the past year.

Atrial fibrillation, also known as AFib or AF, affects more than 2 million adults in the United States and is one of the most common types of arrhythmias (irregular heart rhythms). The risk of developing AFib increases with age, so as the average age in the United States increases, more people will be affected by this condition.

Rett syndrome is named after Andreas Rett, an Austrian physician who published the first description of the condition in 1966.

Dr. Koob coined the word hyperkatifeia to describe the negative emotional state associated with drug withdrawal. This state may be caused by changes in the brain's reward and stress systems and is thought to drive alcohol misuse via negative reinforcement (drinking to feel relief from the symptoms of hyperkatifeia).

Pain is the most common medical complaint of older Americans. Causes of pain in older adults include joint pain, postsurgical pain, chronic disease, and conditions associated with aging.

In 2018-2019, among adolescents in the United States ages 12 to 17, 15.1% had a major depressive episode.

Autoimmune diseases affect more than 23.5 million Americans. Certain groups of people are at greater risk for some conditions. For example, lupus is more severe for African American and Hispanic people, while type 1 diabetes is more common in White people.

One of the first known prosthetics was a wooden and leather toe found on an Egyptian mummy that dates to 950-710 B.C.