LYCOS RETRIEVER
Mononucleosis: People
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Mononucleosis usually isn't very serious, although the virus remains in your body for life. Most people have been exposed to the Epstein-Barr virus by the time they're 35 years old and have built up antibodies. They're immune and won't get mononucleosis again. Treatment mostly involves bed rest and getting adequate fluids.
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No treatment other than rest is needed for most people with mononucleosis. Acetaminophen can be taken for fever and aches. The sore throat is worse during the first 5-7 days of illness and subsides over the next 7-10 days. The swollen, tender glands generally subside by the third week. The spleen, an organ found in the upper left abdomen underneath the ribcage, becomes enlarged or swollen in about 50% of people with mono. If you think you have mono:
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This course focuses on mononucleosis caused by EBV. EBV is a common virus that scientists estimate has infected 80 percent of people aged 40 or older sometime during their lives. These infections can occur with no symptoms of disease. Like all herpes viruses, EBV remains in the body for life after infection, usually kept under control by a healthy immune system. Almost anyone at any age can get mononucleosis. Seventy to 80 percent of all documented cases... involve persons between the ages of 15 and 30. Both men and women are affected, but studies suggest that the disease occurs slightly more often in men than in women. Doctors estimate that each year 50 out of every 100,000 Americans have mononucleosis symptoms.
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The spleen (which is an organ that is actually like a big lymph node) ruptures in about 0.5% of people with mononucleosis. Approximately 90% of these cases occur in males. Rupture usually occurs during the second or third week of the illness. The person is feeling better and resumes strenuous activities... endangering himself or herself. If the spleen ruptures, doctors may need to surgically remove it.
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There is no treatment for mononucleosis other than bed rest. Isolation of the patient is considered unnecessary because mononucleosis is not that easily spread and because so many people have been exposed to the virus. The patient usually feels tired, weak, and lacking in energy for several weeks or even months afterward.
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Most people with mononucleosis have mild liver inflammation (hepatitis). A yellowing of your skin and the whites of your eyes (jaundice) occurs occasionally, usually in people older than 35. About half the people with mononucleosis have a low count of platelets, which are blood cells involved in clotting.
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