Rheumatoid arthritis and pmbs

Rheumatoid arthritis is a progressive, chronic disease that damages the joints. It is an auto-immune disease which means that your body’s tissue is mistakenly attacked by your own immune system. By design the immune system is there to destroy invading agents, including infections. The damage to the joints is caused by inflammation of the tissue lining the joints. Rheumatoid arthritis is systemic in that it can affect other organs in the body as well.

Parkinsons Disease and PMBs

Parkinson’s disease occurs when the nerve cells (neurons) in an area of the brain that controls movement gradually become impaired and/or die. These neurons produce an important brain chemical messenger called dopamine. When the neurons die or become impaired, they produce less dopamine and causes abnormal brain activity which leads to the movement problems of Parkinson’s disease.

Osteoarthritis and PMBs

Osteoarthritis is the most common joint disease. The condition is however not included in the PMB regulations. Osteoarthritis occurs when the protective cartilage on the ends of your bones wears down over time. Other risk factors of the condition include older age, gender, obesity, joint injuries and trauma, work related repetitive stress on the joint, genetics / inherited tendency, bone deformities and other conditions such as gout or diabetes mellitus.

MS and pmbs

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is one of the world’s most common neurological diseases. What is MS? Nerve cells communicate with each other by sending messages through nerve fibres. MS is a disease where the myelin sheath (electrically insulating material) around the nerve fibres of the brain and spinal cord is damaged. The immune system attacks and damages the myelin, affecting the ability of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord to communicate with each other. MS is the leading cause of chronic eurological disability in young adults worldwide.

MS and PMBs 1

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is one of the world’s most common neurological diseases. Nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord are surrounded by a layer of protein called myelin. This layer protects the nerve and helps electrical signals from the brain to travel to the rest of the body. In MS, the myelin becomes damaged and the nerve signals are disrupted.

Hyperlipidaemia Cholestrol and PMBs

Hyperlipidaemia is when you have too much bad cholesterol in your body. There is good cholesterol and
bad cholesterol. The technical term for good cholesterol is High Density Lipoprotein, or HDL. Good cholesterol helps clear excess bad cholesterol from the blood as it travels back to the liver. Bad cholesterol is also called Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL). It is found in the fatty deposits in the arteries and can contribute to heart disease. The higher the ratio between the HDL and LDL levels, the lower the risk for heart disease.

Gaucher disease and pmbs

Gaucher disease (GD) is a rare genetic disorder (1 in 75,000 births World-wide), an inborn error of metabolism due to a deficiency of the lysosomal enzyme acid β-glucosidase (glucocerebrosidase). Gaucher’s Disease is a Prescribed Minimum Benefit condition under Diagnostic Treatment Pair (DTP) code 901K.

Diabetis & PMBs

Diabetes is a serious, but entirely manageable, condition. Regular testing, appropriate medication and a healthy lifestyle will go a long way to keep it under control. But what if your scheme refuses to pay for your medication? Brush up on your PMBs knowledge and take the fight to them, that’s what!

Diabetes ans PMBs

When we eat, the food is broken down into materials that our bodies need to function properly. One of the substances into which food is broken down is the simple sugar glucose. Sugar is absorbed into the bloodstream and stimulates the pancreas to produce insulin. Insulin allows sugar to move from the blood into the cells where it is converted into energy. Diabetes is a chronic disease where your blood sugar levels (blood glucose) are too high because the normal control mechanisms of your body fail.

Diabetes Mellitus and PMBs

Diabetes Mellitus is caused by defects in insulin secretion, insulin action or both. The condition is regarded as one of the increasing health problems in the world, including South Africa. It is estimated that in 2011, a total of 366 million people worldwide had diabetes, and as many as 4.6 million deaths were attributable to the disease. In South Africa, eight out of a hundred people are living with the disease. There are mainly 2 types of Diabetes Mellitus, namely, Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus. The focus of this article will be on Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus. It is estimated that 76 000 children aged between 0 and 14 years are developing this condition worldwide, each year.