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I have known people with COPD and to be honest, I never really knew exactly what it was. I just knew that they had it because they smoke. (The people who I knew) This link provides a look into what this disease does to someone emotionally, as well as physically. How sad to have to grieve just as if you have lost a loved one. This disease can cause you to have anxiety, depression, sleep problems, and problems with sex and intimacy. Sex is an ADL! So much more to this disease than I every knew.

This is a MUST read!! This is an incredible story of a woman who can smell Parkinson's disease. After making this assertion, some scientists came up with an experiment to test her claim. Her smell could be a breakthrough for finding an early diagnosis of Parkinson's disease.

How interesting! I wonder what it is that creates the particular odor? Sounds like additional research is called for here.

Parkinson's disease is a condition in which part of the brain becomes progressively more damaged over many years (a progressive neurological condition).

This is a video about the importance of oral care in relation to our overall health.

CDC's public health activities to prevent and control disease include a substantial focus on chronic disease management. Advance care planning can be a gift you give yourself and your family. It is about doing what you can to ensure that your wishes and preferences are consistent with the health care treatment you might receive if you were unable to speak for yourself or make your own decisions.

This is an interesting story about stigma -- a local Knoxville man is diagnosed with both HIV AND Parkinson's disease. He discusses how people react differently to him depending on which disease he talks about.

This story talks about obesity and rising malnutrition (lots of junk food, beer and wine) leading to more cases of gout in the United Kingdom. Gout was known as a disease of the kings and now it is returning.

Here we discussed Dementia stages & symptoms. Dementia is a wider category of brain diseases. Long term memory loss causes Alzheimer's

This was written for college students with disabilities as a resource for instructors. It can be used for any age classroom. It covers the areas that are difficult to students with mobility issues or other disabilities and how to interact. A number of devices are listed that can be helpful. I really thought the list of injuries or diseases and their characteristics that will be of importance was great to include. A nice resource for the classroom.

This article was an eye opener for me regarding the hazards of sitting too long and not using proper sitting techniques. I now know now why I have mushy abs and limp glutes! I sit for hours at my computer without taking a break, resting or stretching. I also do not sit in an ergonomic position while at my desk. From this article I gained a great deal of information about how sitting too long can contribute to heart disease, over-productive pancreas, colon cancer, poor circulation in legs, foggy brain, bad back, strained neck, disk damage, mushy abs and limp glutes, just to name a few. It was really surprising to learn how just from sitting too long can create havoc on your organs, muscles and your whole body. Gives you something to think about!

I should put my laptop on the bar and use it standing up once in awhile!

In the war against aging, Alzheimer's disease is one of our biggest foes. But while we seem to be losing the battle, we may finally have found some chinks in its armor. The most common form of dementia already affects an estimated 5.2 million Americans and 45 million others worldwide, and these numbers are projected to triple by the year 2050 as the baby boomer generation reaches retirement.

Even though Alzheimer's disease fell into our psycho-social class, it still is a huge component of the ageing process for many people, and a condition that we will most likely be dealing with.

Tips for pursed lip breathing and pulmonary rehabilitation. When you have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, shortness of breath may be a daily and unwelcome fact of life. Perhaps your doctor is urging you to enter a pulmonary rehabilitation program to help you manage your disease better.

This is very good website about Rheumatoid arthritis (RA). It is very easy to follow the description about the disease, symptoms and treatments. From the website I found out that cigarettes participants in more risk to develop RA. The website provides knowledge about alternative methods of treating RA such as (hot packs/cold packs, etc). Different types of exercise like swimming, biking, walking, yoga, tai chi can improving mobility. Author of the website writes about natural supplements such as Fish oil that may slow down deformities associated with disease.

This is a fact sheet provided by AOTA that describes the role of occupational therapy in palliative care. It describes how "depending on the stage of the disease process or terminal illness, clients may receive palliative care for months or even years". The information provided also lists OT interventions related to palliative care in the areas of ADLs, IADLs, rest and sleep, play, leisure and social participation, and interpersonal.

This is a tip sheet I discovered on the AOTA website.  It provides very useful tips for helping your older parent remain at home and age in place safely, as well as ways to approach the topic with them.  I really loved the idea of presenting home modifications as gifts. This tip sheet is of particular interest to me as my mother slowly descends into the world of Alzheimer's disease.

This site talks about burns in a pediatric setting. How to prevent, how to treat, and it discusses physical and emotional recovery.

Okay, I know this isn't related to this semester, but it was so interesting and so intense I thought I'd post it here anyway. It's about what they discovered in Robin Williams' autopsy, which is a type of dementia that I had not heard of but we all should be aware of.

This video shows a novel technique for addressing deficits in clients with Parkinson's disease. Although not OT specific, utilizing dance and movement in therapy is of course something that we can be doing in therapy, especially if dancing is an occupation that the client finds important. Groups like the one in this video are not only good for increasing endurance, strength, and concentration, but being connected with other individuals with Parkinson's is beneficial as well.

Wow, I love this program and its philosophy! I wish there was one like that in the Knoxville area. Have you seen my post about dance and occupational therapy?

Extensive list of articles covering many types of disabilities

Rheumatoid arthritis, one of the most common types of arthritis, is an inflammatory condition that primarily involves the tissue that covers the joints. This disease progresses over time, and eventually other organs are affected as well. Rheumatoid arthritis is three times more common in females versus males and is prevalent in approximately 1% of the U.S.