Dr. Eric G. Spann MD

Pleurisy: What Is It?Pleurisy or pleuritis is the inflammation of the membranes that line your lungs and the inside of your chest wall. The pleura are made of two layers – the visceral pleura and the parietal pleura. The visceral pleura line your lungs, and the parietal pleura line the inside of...

OverviewTylenol (acetaminophen) and codeine are used for the treatment of mild to moderate pain. Aside from pain, acetaminophen is also used to reduce fever. Tylenol is not a habit-forming drug. However, when this drug is taken in large dosages, serious liver damage including other negative side...

What is a vaccine?Vaccines are products that enable a person to develop immunity against certain diseases. A vaccine can be given through needle injections, by aerosol, or by mouth. The polio vaccine is given in the form of mouth drops that contain live but weakened organisms. The vaccine gets into...

In the early 19th to the 20th century, parents would have been surprised to know that future generations would be free from childhood diseases. Diphtheria was then one of the most common diseases that took the lives of thousands of children, while polio left thousands of children crippled. Measles...

Mumps is a highly contagious viral infection, which is common in young children. It’s often recognizable by extremely painful swellings occurring at the side of the face, giving the individual a distinctive hamster face appearance. Other mumps-related symptoms include high body temperature,...

The liver primarily produces cholesterol. Each day, it makes 1,000 mg of cholesterol. The cells lining the small intestine can also produce cholesterol. If the level of cholesterol in the body is low, it may mean that the body is producing low amounts of cholesterol and is going to shut down. In...