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| Brassiere |
Brassiere
A brassière or bra is a foundation garment for women which covers and supports the breasts.
Need for brassières
The female breasts have very little internal support, being composed largely of adipose tissue. It is believed that the primary anatomical support for the breast is provided by the Cooper's ligaments, with the skin covering the breasts offering some additional support. However, this anatomical support is usually insufficient to hold the breasts up (especially in older women), and to prevent movement of the breasts, which can cause pain and discomfort. The primary reason for wearing a brassiere or similar foundation garment is thus to provide external support for the breasts, both to increase comfort and to provide a sexually alluring figure.
Bras are believed by some to help preserve the youthful shape of breasts, (which naturally sag as women grow older), an opinion which is unsurprisngly promoted by bra manufacturers. However, there is some doubt over this amongst the medical community, and while a woman may choose to wear a bra for comfort or for social reasons, there is no proven evidence to support the notion that a woman's breasts will sag lower over her lifetime if she doesn't wear a bra.
Some medical professionals believe that wearing a bra can actually increase breast sagging later in life because the chest muscles that support breasts are used less and atrophy from lack of use. Health benefits of breast motion and sagging have also been suggested but not substantiated - for example, some researchers claim that breast movement, (which is restricted by a brassiere), stimulates the lymphatic system and helps remove toxins from the body .
History
The concept of covering or restraining the breasts dates back to 6,500 years ago in Greece. Minoan women on the island of Crete 4,500 years ago wore brassieres that revealed their bare breasts. A binding known as an apodesmos, or mastodeton was worn by Greek women for exercise in those city-states that supported women's sports, e.g. Sparta. It is said that these early restraints were invented by men so that women's breasts would be smaller, and thus more like a man's.
Sparta
A bra-like device to give a symmetrical rotundity to the breasts was patented (nr 24,033) in 1859 by Henry S. Lesher of Brooklyn, New York; although it is recognisably a bra, the design looks uncomfortable by current standards. In 1889 Herminie Cadolle of France invented the first modern bra, a two-piece undergarment called le bien-être (the well-being). The lower part was a corset for the waist, the upper supporting the breasts by means of shoulder straps. By 1905 the upper half was being sold separately as a soutien-gorge ("breast-supporter", using a euphemism for breast that usually means "throat"), the name by which bras are still known in France. Cadolle's [http://www.cadolle.com business] is still going strong.
In America, Mary Phelps Jacob was granted the first U.S. patent for the brassiere (nr 1,115,674), in 1913. She was aided in this work by her French maid, Marie. Her invention is most widely recognized as the predecessor to the modern bra. She sold the patent to the Warner Brothers Corset Company in Bridgeport, Connecticut, for $1,500 (or over $25,600 in today's money). Warner eventually made an estimated $15 million off Caresse's patent.
In 1922, Ida Rosenthal, a seamstress at the small New York City dress shop, Enid Frocks, along with shop owner Enid Bissett and husband William Rosenthal, changed the look of women's fashion. The "boyish figure" then in style downplayed women's natural curves through the use of a bandeaux brassiere. Their innovation, designed to make their dresses look better on the wearer, consisted of modifying the bandeaux bra to enhance and support women's breasts. Hence, the name "Maidenform". A later innovation is the development of sized brassieres. The company they founded became the Maidenform [http://www.maidenform.com/ manufacturing company].
In 1943, Howard Hughes designed a cantilivered brassiere for Jane Russell for her appearance in the movie "The Outlaws". The "lifts and separates" design went on to influence later commercial brassieres.
In 1960s, many women publicly discarded their bras as a symbol of female liberation as a form of protest; however, "burning the bra" was not a widespread practice. [http://www.snopes.com/history/american/burnbra.htm]
Bra sizes
A bra size consists of two measurements: the "band size", given by a number, which is the circumference around the body excluding the breasts, and "cup size", given by a letter, which is related to the volume of the breasts themselves. The size of women's breasts is often expressed in terms of bra size.
Bras are commonly available in cup sizes A-DD, and one generally has to go to a specialist lingerie store to find larger cup size bras. The sizing of larger cup sizes can be confusing, since some manufacturers use multiple letters (such as AAA or FF) instead of proceeding in the logical alphabetical order. A common cup size system amongst European manufacturers, in order of increasing size, is AAA-AA-A-B-C-D-DD-E-F-FF-G-GG-H-J. It is important to note that actual size of bra cups vary with band size, and it is standard practice amongst manufacturers for the same actual size of cup to be used for a range of bra sizes - for example a 32C bra actually has the same size of cups as a 34B (and 30D).
Any system for bust size measurement is not without its problems, and the only real way to determine one's bra size is by trial and error. However, there are several methods which may be used to provide an approximate size by measuring alone. Bra sizing systems differ widely between countries, aside from the complication that most other countries use the metric measurement system, rather than the Imperial system used in the UK and US.
Band size is usually determined by measuring body circumference under the breasts and then adding a specified amount to account for the fact that the ribcage is generally wider at the height of the breasts than at the height one measures at. An alternative method to determine band size involves measuring under the arms and across the top of the breasts. In the United States, various manufacturers and boutiques recommend adding different numbers to the measured circumference to determine band size, generally from 4 to 6 inches. A further complication is that some manufacturers say that when the under the bust measurement is 35 in (89 cm) or more, only 3 in (76 mm) should be added to determine the band size.
The cup size is dependent on the difference between the band size and a measurement of the chest circumference over the fullest part of the breasts. A common, though not universal, method suggested by many manufacturers is that a difference of 1 inch (25 mm) requires an A cup size; 2 inches (50 mm), a B cup and so on.
Construction and Fit
A bra consists of shoulder straps at either side, cups for the breasts, a center panel, and a band running around the body under the bust. They are typically made of a fabric such as cotton or lace, with the cups for the breasts given shape by underwires or plastic reinforcements. The bra is usually fastened a hook fastener on the band, typically at the back, but in some bras the fastener is situated at the front, in between the cups. Some bras contain padding, designed to improve comfort and provide a more flattering shape - this is sometimes in the form of silicone gel packs. Push up bras, designed to enhance cleavage, are usually contain padding.
It is important that a woman's bra fits correctly, both to ensure a flattering shape and to avoid discomfort. Back pain is particularly common amongst large breasted women who wear bras which offer insufficient support. In extreme cases, such discomfort can lead to a woman seeking breast reduction surgery. It is estimated from the result of surveys that up to 70% of women in the United Kingdom wear incorrectly fitting bras, which is perhaps due to a lack of understanding about the fitting of bras, as well as the difficulty in obtaining larger bras.
It is a common misconception that the shoulder straps should bear the weight of the breasts, in fact the strap around the body should provide most of the support, it should be firm but comfortable.
- When viewed from the side, the strap that runs around the body should be horizontal and should not ride up at the back at all.
- The underwires at the front should lie flat against the rib cage and should not dig in, rub or poke out at the front.
- The breasts should be enclosed by the cups and there should be a smooth line where the fabric at the top of the cup ends.
- There should not be a ridge or bulging over the top or sides of the cups, even with a 'balconette' style or lower cut shape.
It is also important to remember that the correct bra size for a woman will depend on a number of factors including bra manufacturer and change as the size of her breasts fluctuates with weight gain/loss and stage in the menstrual cycle.
Breast pads or "falsies" are sometimes worn underneath the bra to give the appearance of larger breasts - this requires that the wearer wears a larger size of bra than actually required by her breasts.
Types of bra
A range of styles of brassieres exist, to be worn in a variety of situations. The degrees of support varies between styles, with some being designed from a highly practical point of view, and others to provide a deliberatly sexually alluring form.
- Full support bras are a type of bra designed to offer good support for whole of the breasts, and as such are a typical, practical bra for everyday wear. Balconette or demi bras are similar, but have lower cut cups, covering approxiamtely half the breasts. These offer less support, but enable low cut garments to be worn without the bra being seen.
- Shelf bras take the balconette concept to its logical conclusion, with cups covering only the bottom part of the breast, putting the nipples and breasts on display. Peep hole bras have cups which loosely cover the breasts, but holes around the nipples. These kinds of bra do not give the breasts much support, and are generally intended for wearing in sexual situations.
- Training bras, which are smaller than standard bra sizes, offer very little support and are generally have a simple fabric construction, without underwired cups. They are intended to be worn by girls in the early stages of breast development during puberty, and allow them to get used to the feeling of wearing a bra before their breasts develop to the point where significant support is required. Training bras were invented in the 1950s in response to the desire of adolescent and pre-adolescent girls to "fit in" amongst their more developed peers who could fill a standard bra. The acquistiton of a training bra by a girl is often seen as a siginificant turning point in her development, and a first step toward motherhood and a sexually alluring figure, at least as it was defined in the 1950s. Some observers believe that training bras serve no functional purpose, and are exploitative in that they allow entrepeneurs to benefit from, and even encourage, precocious sexuality in young girls.
- Nursing or Maternity bras are specifically designed for breastfeeding mothers. Unlike most bras, they have cups which fold down allowing easy access to the nipple when the infant is to be fed. Many women find underwired bras uncomfortable during breastfeeding and the latter stages of pregnancy due to the increase in both size and sensitivity of the breasts, and so most, though not all, nursing bras are constructed of fabric only.
- Push-up bras, are a type of bra that has additional padding, and is structured so that the breasts are lifted and the cleavage emphasised. The most well known brand of push up bra is the Wonderbra. Minimizer bras have the opposite effect to push up bras, and are worn by large busted women who wish to make their busts appear smaller.
- Strapless bras, with no shoulder straps are designed for wearing with clothes that reveal the shoulders, such as halterneck tops. Convertible bras have straps which may be detached and rearranged in different ways depending on the outfit.
- T-shirt bras are designed without raised seams, so that a tight t-shirt may be worn without the bra being visible.
- Built-in bras (also sometimes known as shelf bras, although entirely different to those mentioned above) are a supportive brassiere like structure on the inside of another garment, such as a swimsuit or tank top, which provides support for the bust without the need for a separate bra. In most such garments, these consist of a horizontal elasticated fabric strip, although some do have cups and underwires as with other bra types.
- Jogging or sports bras are for women to wear during exercise. They are more sturdy in their construction than regular bras, and offer greater support for the chest, thus increasing comfort and reducing the chance of damage to the ligaments of the chest during high impact exercises such as jogging. They are usually made of a stretchable, absorbant fabric such as Lycra, and may be designed to draw perspiration away from the skin to reduce irritation. Many women, particularly those with large breasts, find sports bras essential for exercise, as breasts bouncing can cause pain and discomfort, as well as embarrassment. Some sports bras are meant to be worn as outerwear.
- Mastectomy bras are designed so that a prosthesis may be held in place and are intended for women who have lost one or both breasts in mastectomy treatment for breast cancer.
Culture
Statistics show the average American woman today owns six bras- one of which is a strapless bra and one a color other than white.
Indeed in many Western cultures, it is often considered more noteworthy not to wear a bra. Much of the TV presenter Charlie Dimmock's fame may be attributed to her reputation for gardening without a bra. [http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/tv_and_radio/presenterbiogs_d.shtml]
Although similar in appearance to the upper part of a bikini, it is not generally considered suitable to expose one's brassiere in public in western cultures, and to do so is usually considered sexually provocative. A famous example of a bra being exposed for shock value is the conical bra outfit (designed by Jean-Paul Gaultier) worn by Madonna on her 1990 tour.
Bras have recently been used by charities (such as breast cancer charities) to raise money, either by sposored walks by women wearing exposed bras [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/4095982.stm], or selling bras owned or decorated by celebrities.
The oft-repeated story that the brassiere was invented by a man named Otto Titzling (phonetically, the humorous tit-sling) who lost a lawsuit with one Phillip de Brassiere is an example of an urban myth [http://www.snopes.com/business/origins/bra.asp].
Terminology
The word brassière derives from bracière, an Old French word meaning "arm protector" and referring to military uniform (bras in French means "arm"). This later became used for a military breast plate, and later for a type of woman's corset.
In modern European French, the word for a bra is soutien-gorge, (breast support) and 'brassière' refers to a baby's vest, although it is sometimes used for the "bra-top" without formed cups. In Quebec, soutien-gorge and brassière are synonyms.
References
- Maidenform Inc., company website, company history section. Retrieved Jun 2004 from http://www.maidenform.com/custserv/custserv.jsp?sectionId=33
- Dr. Susan Love's Breast Book, by Dr. Susan Love
- Smithsonian Institute, Museum of American History Archives MAIDENFORM COLLECTION, 1922-1997 #585. (35 CUBIC FEET: 54 DB; 10 [.5] DB; 19 F/O; 4 card-file boxes; 1 O/S Fldr.) by: Jennifer Snyder and Mimi Minnick, August 1997-July 1999. (Revised: February 3, 2004). Retrieved Jun 2004 from (http://americanhistory.si.edu/archives/d7585.htm#top. E-mail: archivescenter@si.edu.
- [http://www.brafree.org/index.htm Bra free = Pain free]
- Brumberg, Joan Jacobs (1998). [http://web.archive.org/web/20020328155254/http://course1.winona.msus.edu/pjohnson/e111/e111f99/brumberg.htm The Body Project : An Intimate History of American Girls]. Vintage Books. pp. 117-118. ISBN 0679735291.
External links
- [http://mrbra.com/historyofbras.ivnu A History Of Bras]
- [http://inventors.about.com/library/weekly/aa042597.htm Another History Of Bras]
- [http://www.inventionandtechnology.com/xml/2003/4/it_2003_4_dept_objlessons.xml Another History Of Bras]
- [http://www.85b.org/ International bra size calculator and converter]
- [http://www.sizes.com/people/brassieres.htm Brassiere Sizes]
- [http://mrbra.com/typesofbras.ivnu Types of bra]
- [http://www.007b.com/bra_sagging.php In support of natural breast sagging]
- [http://www.brafree.org/index.htm Bra free = Pain free]
- [http://www.lingerie-uncovered.com/womens/bras.htm Bras: A Conspectus of]
Category:Underwear
- [http://www.breastnotes.com/aware/aware-bra.shtml Essay questioning the purpose of the bra] Warning: Java on page causes 100% CPU usage with Java 2 Runtime Environment SE v1.4.2_06
- Brumberg, Joan Jacobs (1998). [http://web.archive.org/web/20020328155254/http://course1.winona.msus.edu/pjohnson/e111/e111f99/brumberg.htm The Body Project : An Intimate History of American Girls]. Vintage Books. pp. 117-118. ISBN 0679735291.
- [http://bustyblues.com/fit.html Plus Size Bra Fitting]
Patents
- [http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=/netahtml/srchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=24033.WKU.&OS=PN/24033&RS=PN/24033 US24033] — Combined breast pads and arm-pit shield
- [http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=/netahtml/srchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=844242.WKU.&OS=PN/844242&RS=PN/844242 US844242] — Bust supporter
- [http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=/netahtml/srchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=1115674.WKU.&OS=PN/1115674&RS=PN/1115674 US1115674] — Brassiere
Pictures
- [http://www.lasenza.co.uk/images/photos/290_0M.jpg Full support bra]
- [http://www.preciosalingerie.com/up_pic/CP1032.jpg Training bra]
- [http://www.babydayz.co.uk/images/nursing%20bra%2011.jpg Nursing bra]
- [http://www.isaacsultan.com/pictures/33447.jpg Push-up bra]
- [http://www.vintageslips.com/images/DiskB/b44.JPG Strapless bra]
- [http://www.longstreth.com/Images/Static/Team/Team_softball/sbundergear/jb1213_large.jpg Sports bra]
See also
- Bikini
- Underwear
- Breasts
Category:Clothing
als:BH
ja:ブラジャー
Foundation garmentA foundation garment is an undergarment designed to change the wearer's shape, producing a more fashionable figure. Foundation garments are also referred to as shapewear. Specific styles of foundation garments have been essential to some fashion movements, and required in some social situations in various fashion periods, particularly but not exclusively for women.
Foundation garments include:
- Bodysuits.
- Brassieres.
- Corsets.
- Control briefs.
- Garter belts.
- Girdles.
Category:Underwear
Category:Lingerie
Category:Corsetry
Breasts breasts]]
The term breast, also known by the Latin mamma in anatomy, refers to the upper ventral region of an animal's torso, particularly that of mammals, including human beings. In addition, the breasts are parts of a female mammal's body which contain the organs that secrete milk used to feed infants.
This article focuses on human female breasts, but it should be noted that male humans also have breasts (although usually less prominant) and are born with the main milk ducts intact. While the mammary glands that produce milk are present in the male, they normally remain undeveloped. In some situations male breast development does occur, a condition called gynecomastia. Milk production can also occur in both men and women as a rare adverse effect of some medicinal drugs (such as some antipsychotic medication). Both sexes have a large concentration of blood vessels and nerves in their nipples.
Anatomy of the female breast
nipple
The breasts are covered by skin; each breast has one nipple surrounded by the areola. The areola is colored from pink to dark brown, hairless, and has several sebaceous glands. The larger mammary glands within the breast produce the milk; they consist of several lobules, and each breast has some 10-20 lactiferous ducts that drain milk from the lobules to the nipple, where each duct has its own opening.
Most of the breast is adipose tissue (fat) and connective tissue (known as Cooper's ligaments). The breasts sit over the pectoralis major muscle and usually extend from the level of the 2nd rib to the level of the 6th rib anteriorly. The superior lateral quadrant of the breast extends diagonally upwards in an 'axillary tail'. A thin layer of mammary tissue extends from the clavicle above to the seventh or eighth ribs below and from the midline to the edge of the latissimus dorsi posteriorly.
The arterial blood supply to the breasts is derived from the internal thoracic artery (previously referred to as the internal mammary artery), lateral thoracic artery, thoracoacromial artery, and posterior intercostal arteries. The venous drainage of the breast is mainly to the axillary vein, but there is some drainage to the internal thoracic vein.
The breast is innervated by the anterior and lateral cutaneous branches of the 4th through 6th intercostal nerves. The nipple is supplied by the T4 dermatome.
Lymphatic drainage
About 75% of lymph from the breast travels to the ipsilateral (same side) axillary lymph nodes. The rest travels to parasternal nodes, to the other breast, or abdominal lymph nodes. The axillary nodes include the pectoral, subscapular, and humeral groups of lymph nodes. These drain to the central axillary lymph nodes, then to the apical axillary lymph nodes. The lymphatic drainage of the breasts is particularly relevant to oncology, since cancer cells can break away from a tumour (breast cancer being a common cancer), and spread to other parts of the body through the lymph system by a process known as metastasis.
Function
The function of the mammary glands in female breasts is to nurture the young by producing milk, which emanates from the nipples during lactation. However, zoologists point out that no female mammal other than the human has breasts of comparable size when not lactating, and this suggests that the external form of the breasts is connected to factors other than lactation alone.
The mammary glands that secrete the milk from the breasts actually make up a relatively small fraction of the overall breast tissue. It is commonly assumed by biologists that the real evolutionary purpose of women having breasts is to attract the male of the species; that, in other words, breasts are a sexually dimorphic, or secondary sex characteristics. Some biologists (notably Desmond Morris) believe that the shape of female breasts evolved as a frontal counterpart to that of the buttocks, the reason being that whilst other primates mate in the typical piggy-back position, humans are more likely to successfully copulate mating face on. A secondary sexual characteristic on a woman's chest would have encouraged this in more primitive incarnations of the human race, and a face on encounter would have helped found a relationship between partners beyond merely a sexual one.
Others believe that the human breast evolved in order to prevent infants from suffocating while feeding[http://www.breastfeeding.com/reading_room/breasts_shaped_babies.html]. Since human infants do not have a protruding jaw like our ancestors and the other primates, the infant's nose might be blocked by a flat female chest while feeding. According to this theory, as the human jaw became recessed, so the breasts became larger to compensate.
Size, shape and composition
Most of the human female breast is actually adipose tissue (fat) and connective tissue, rather than the mammary glands. There is naturally a great variety in the size and shape of breasts in women (and men), with size being affected by various factors including genetics.
The primary anatomical support for the breasts is thought to be provided by the Cooper's ligaments, with additional support from the skin covering the breasts themselves, and it is this support which determines the shape of the breasts. The breasts naturally sag through ageing, as the ligaments become elongated. This process may be accelerated by high impact exercises, and a brassiere may reduce this effect by providing external support, although the health benefits of wearing of a brassiere are not universally accepted. Sagging breasts (ptosis) are considered undesirable by some, and some older women seek cosmetic surgery to raise their busts.
As breasts are mostly composed of adipose tissue, their size can change over time if the woman gains or loses weight. It is also typical for them to grow in size during pregnancy and whilst breastfeeding, mainly due to hypertrophy of the mammary gland in response to the hormone prolactin. The size of a woman's breasts usually fluctuates during the menstrual cycle, particularly with premenstrual water retention. An increase in breast size is also a common side effect of use of the contraceptive pill.
There is no relationship between breast size and ability to breastfeed, and it is a common misconception that human female breasts are shaped the way they are so that they can feed babies by producing milk, their shape is thought to have evolved due to sexual attraction, as described above.
The size of a woman's breasts is typically expressed as a "bra size". According to the results of the "Size UK" survey [http://www.sizeuk.org/], the average bra size in the UK has increased from a 34B in the 1950s to a 36C today, and the average size for U.S. women is a 34B as of 2005 by the CDC. Women with exceptionally large breasts may experience back pain, whilst in some Western societies there is a belief amongst some that small breasts make a woman less sexually attractive. Some women suffer from insecurity about their breasts, and in some cultures a number of women who are unhappy with their size seek surgery either to artificially reduce or enlarge their breasts. The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery found that 334,052 breast augmentation procedures were performed in 2004 [http://www.cosmeticplasticsurgerystatistics.com/statistics.html#2004-HIGHLIGHTS]. Some women in developed countries undergo breast reconstruction after mastectomy for breast cancer, a result of the high value placed on symmetry of the female human form in those cultures, and because women often identify their femininity and sense of self with their breasts.
It is typical for a woman's breasts to be unequal in size (statistically it is slightly more common for the left breast to be the larger), particularly whilst the breasts are developing during puberty. In some rare cases, one breast may be greatly larger or smaller than the other, or fail to develop entirely.
Development
The development of a woman's breasts, during puberty, is caused by sex hormones, chiefly estrogen. This hormone has been demonstrated to cause the development of woman-like, enlarged breasts in men, a condition called gynecomastia, and is sometimes used deliberately for this effect in male-to-female sex reassignment surgery.
A number of medical conditions are known to cause abnormal development of the breasts during puberty. Virginal breast hypertrophy is a condition which involves excessive growth of the breasts during puberty, and in some cases the continued growth beyond the usual pubescent age. Breast hypoplasia is a condition where one or both breasts fail to develop during puberty.
Terminology
:For slang terms for the breasts, see WikiSaurus:breasts — the WikiSaurus list of synonyms and slang words for breasts in many languages.
A brassiere (from French, lit: arm-holder) or bra is an item of women's underwear consisting of two cups that totally or partially cover the breasts for support and modesty.
Being topless is the state of having bare breasts. For more on modesty regarding breasts, see Nudity.
Cultural status
Nudity
Historically, breasts were regarded as fertility symbols, due to their association with life-giving milk. Ancient statues of goddesses—so-called Venus figurines—often emphasised the breasts, as in the example of the Venus of Willendorf. In historic times, goddesses such as Ishtar were shown with multiple breasts, alluding to their role as goddesses of childbirth.
Breasts are considered as secondary sex characteristics, and are sexually sensitive in many cases. Bare female breasts can elicit heightened sexual desires from men and women. Since they are associated with sex, in many cultures bare breasts are considered indecent, and they are not commonly displayed in public, in contrast to male chests. Other cultures accept the baring of breasts as acceptable, and in some countries women have never been forbidden to bare their chests. Opinions on the exposure of breasts is often dependent on the place and context, and in some Western societies, exposure of breasts on a beach may be considered acceptable, although in town centres, for example, it is usually considered indecent.
In some cases, their display may be interepreted as indecent or sexual, even when they are being used for their primary purpose of nursing offspring. This has led, in several cases, to women being arrested for indecent exposure for breastfeeding their children in public.
Women in some areas and cultures are approaching the issue of breast exposure as one of sexual equality, since men (and pre-pubescent children) may bare their chests, but women are forbidden. In the United States, the Topfree equality movement seeks to redress this imbalance; this movement has won a decision in 1992 in a New York Court of Appeals which seems to substantially support their assertions. A similar movement succeeded in most parts of Canada in the 1990s.
In some cultures, breasts must always remain covered for religious reasons, for example, some Islamic cultures forbid exposure of any part of the female body.
In addition to the above references, see also modesty, nudism and exhibitionism.
Disorders of the breasts
Infections and inflammations
exhibitionism
- Mastitis
- bacterial mastitis
- mastitis from milk engorgement
- mastitis of mumps
- subareolar mastitis
- Other infections
- chronic intramammary abscess
- chronic subareolar abscess
- tuberculosis of the breast
- syphilis of the breast
- retromammary abscess
- actinomycosis of the breast
- Inflammations
- Mondor's disease
- duct ectasia/periductal masbreastis
- Breast engorgement
Benign breast disease
- Congenital disorders
- inverted nipple
- supernumerary nipples/supernumerary breasts
- Aberrations of normal development and involution
- fibroadenomatosis
- cyclical nodularity
- cysts
- fibroadenoma - benign tumor
- Duct ectasia/Periductal masbreastis
- nipple discharge
- abscesses
- mammary fistula
- Epithelial hyperplasia
-
- Pregnancy-related
- galactocoele
- puerperal abscess
Malignant breast disease
- breast cancer (mammary carcinoma)
- carcinoma in situ
- Paget's disease of the nipple, also known as Paget's disease of the breast
See also
- breastfeeding
- breast fetishism
- breast implant
- breast reconstruction
- gynecomastia
- intimate parts
- topfree equality
- mammary intercourse
- puberty
External links
- [http://www.puberty101.com/p_stages_breasts.shtml Stages of breast development, from Puberty101]
- [http://www.veresch.com/fun/boobs.php Real or Fake?] — online quiz to spot breasts with implants
- [http://www.007b.com/ 007 Breasts] — a website promoting the view that breasts should not be considered sexual
Category:Integumentary system
Category:Secondary sexual characteristics
Category:Reproductive system
ja:乳房
simple:Breast
th:เต้านม
Anatomy
Anatomy (from the Greek anatomia, from anatemnein, to cut up, cut open), is the branch of biology that deals with the structure and organization of living things. It can be divided into animal anatomy (zootomy) and plant anatomy (phytonomy). Major branches of anatomy include comparative anatomy, histology, and human anatomy.
Animal anatomy may include the study of the structure of different animals, when it is called comparative anatomy or animal morphology, or it may be limited to one animal only, in which case it is spoken of as special anatomy.
From a utilitarian point of view the study of humans is the most important division of special anatomy, and this human anatomy may be approached from different points of view.
From that of Medicine it consists of a knowledge of the exact form, position, size and relationship of the various structures of the healthy human body, and to this study the term descriptive or topographical human anatomy is given, though it is often, less happily, spoken of as anthropotomy.
So intricate is the human body that only a small number of professional human anatomists, after years of patient observation, are complete masters of all its details; most of them specialize on certain parts, such as the brain or viscera, contenting themselves with a good working knowledge of the rest.
Topographical anatomy must be learned by repeated dissection and inspection of dead human bodies.
It is no more a science than a pilot's knowledge is, and, like that knowledge, must be exact and available in moments of emergency.
From the morphological point of view, however, human anatomy is a scientific and fascinating study, having for its object the discovery of the causes which have brought about the existing structure of humans, and needing a knowledge of the allied sciences of embryology or developmental biology, phylogeny, and histology.
Pathological anatomy (or morbid anatomy) is the study of diseased organs, while sections of normal anatomy, applied to various purposes, receive special names such as medical, surgical, gynaecological, artistic and superficial anatomy.
The comparison of the anatomy of different races of humans is part of the science of physical anthropology or anthropological anatomy.
In the present edition of this work the subject of anatomy is treated systematically rather than topographically.
Each anatomical article contains first a description of the structures of an organ or system (such as nerves, arteries, heart, and so forth), as it is found in humans; this is followed by an account of the development (embryology) and comparative anatomy (morphology), as far as vertebrate animals are concerned; but only those parts of the lower animals which are of interest in explaining human body structure are here dealt with.
The articles have a twofold purpose; first, to give enough details of structure to make the articles on physiology, surgery, medicine and pathology intelligible; and, secondly, to give the non-expert inquirer, or the worker in some other branch of science, the chief theories on which the modern scientific groundwork of anatomy is built.
- Major body systems:
- Integumentary system
- Muscular system
- Nervous system
- Reproductive system
- Respiratory system
- Excretory system
- Circulatory system
- Lymphatic system
- Skeletal system (Human skeleton)
- Endocrine system
- Digestive system
- Immune system
- Organs:
- Anus
- Appendix
- Brain
- Breast
- Colon or large intestine
- Diaphragm
- Ear
- Eye
- Heart
- Kidney
- Labia
- Larynx
- Liver
- Lung
- Nose
- Ovary
- Pharynx
- Pancreas
- Penis
- Placenta
- Rectum
- Skin
- Small intestine
- Spleen
- Stomach
- Tongue
- Uterus
- Bones in the human skeleton:
- Collar bone (clavicle)
- Thigh bone (femur)
- Humerus
- Mandible
- Patella
- Radius
- Skull
- Tibia
- Ulna
- Rib
- Vertebrae
- Pelvis
- Sternum
- Glands:
- Ductless gland
- Mammary gland
- Salivary gland
- Thyroid gland
- Parathyroid gland
- Adrenal gland
- Pituitary gland
- Pineal gland
- Tissues:
- Connective tissue
- Endothelial tissue
- Epithelial tissue
- Glandular tissue
- Lymphoid tissue
- Externally visible parts of the human body:
- Abdomen
- Arm
- Back
- Buttock
- Chest
- Ear
- Eye
- Face
- Genitals
- Head
- Joint
- Leg
- Mouth
- Neck
- Scalp
- Skin
- Teeth
- Tongue
- Other anatomic terms (not classified):
- Artery
- Coelom
- Diaphragm
- Gastrointestinal tract
- Hair
- Exoskeleton
- Lip
- Nerve
- Peritoneum
- Serous membrane
- Skeleton
- Skull
- Spinal cord
- Vein
See also
- List of anatomical topics
- List of human anatomical features
- Important publications in anatomy
- History of anatomy
- Human anatomy
- Organ (anatomy)
- Superficial anatomy
- Zootomical terms for location
External links
- [http://brainmaps.org High-Resolution Cytoarchitectural Primate Brain Atlases]
- [http://www.innerbody.com/htm/body.html Free online anatomy atlas]
- [http://www.npac.syr.edu/projects/vishuman/VisibleHuman.html The NPAC Visible Human Viewer]
- [http://cancerweb.ncl.ac.uk/omd/index.html On-Line Medical Dictionary]
- [http://www.bartleby.com/107/ Anatomy of the Human Body by Henry Gray]
- [http://www.rtstudents.com/ Online Radiology Anatomy Resources]
- [http://www.wikimd.org/index.php?title=Gray%27s_Anatomy Gray's Anatomy wiki]
- http://immunity-info.net
Category:Anatomy
ko:해부학
ja:解剖学
simple:Anatomy
th:กายวิภาคศาสตร์
Cooper's ligamentsCooper's ligaments are the connective tissue in the breast that holds them up. As any ligament, over time, they may lose strength and tension in the elderly—especially so in females. That makes the breast hang down with the years. Samuel Shem (author of the "House of God") called them "Cooper's Droopers" in this state of tension.
Category:Eponymous anatomical structures
Skin:For alternate meanings see skin (disambiguation)
skin (disambiguation)
In zootomy and dermatology, skin is an organ of the integumentary system composed of a layer of tissues that protect underlying muscles and organs. As the interface with the surroundings, it plays the most important role in protecting against pathogens. Its other main functions are insulation and temperature regulation, sensation and vitamin D and B synthesis.
Skin has pigmentation, provided by melanocytes, which absorbs some of the potentially dangerous radiation in sunlight. It also contains DNA repair enzymes which reverse UV damage, and people who lack the genes for these enzymes suffer high rates of skin cancer. One form predominantly produced by UV light, malignant melanoma, is particularly invasive, causing it to spread quickly, and can often be deadly. Human skin pigmentation varies among populations in a striking manner. This has sometimes led to the classification of people(s) on the basis of skin color. See the article on human skin color.
Mammalian skin often contains hairs, which in sufficient density is called fur. The hair mainly serves to augment the insulation the skin provides, but can also serve as a secondary sexual characteristic or as camouflage. On some animals the skin is very hard and thick, and can be processed to create leather. Reptiles and fish have hard protective scales on their skin for protection, and birds have hard feathers, all made of tough β-keratins. Amphibian skin is not a strong barrier to passage of chemicals. A frog sitting in an anesthetic solution will quickly go to sleep.
Damaged skin will try to heal by forming scar tissue, often giving rise to discoloration and depigmentation of the skin.
The skin is often known as "the largest organ in the human body". This applies to exterior surface, as it covers the body, appearing to have the largest surface area of all the organs. Moreover, it applies to weight, as it weighs more than any single internal organ, accounting for about 15 percent of body weight. For the average adult human, the skin has a surface area of between 1.5-2.0 square metres, most of it is between 2-3 mm thick. The average square inch of skin holds 650 sweat glands, 20 blood vessels, 60,000 melanocytes, and more than a thousand nerve endings.
The skin on a person's face is seen by people that person interacts with. For some people, therefore, facial skin care is of particular importance, and they often use cosmetics to deal with the appearance of the face and condition of the skin, such as those for pore control and black head cleansing.
Layers
Skin is composed of the epidermis and the dermis. Below these layers lies the hypodermis, which is not usually classified as a layer of skin.
The outermost epidermis is made up of stratified squamous epithelium with an underlying basement membrane. It contains no blood vessels, and is nourished by diffusion from the dermis. The main type of cells which make up the epidermis are keratinocytes, with melanocytes and Langerhans cells also present. The epidermis can be further subdivided into the following strata (beginning with the outermost layer): corneum, lucidum, granulosum, spinosum, basale. Cells are formed through mitosis at the innermost layers. They move up the strata changing shape and composition as they differentiate and become filled with keratin. They eventually reach the corneum and become sloughed off (desquamation). This process is called keratinization and takes place within about 30 days. This layer of skin is responsible for keeping water in the body and keeping other harmful chemicals and pathogens out.
Blood capillaries are found beneath the epidermis, and are linked to an arteriole and a venule. Arterial shunt vessels may bypass the network in ears, the nose and fingertips.
The dermis lies below the epidermis and contains a number of structures including blood vessels, nerves, hair follicles, smooth muscle, glands and lymphatic tissue. It is made up of loose connective tissue otherwise called areolar connective tissue - collagen, elastin and reticular fibres are present. Erector muscles, attached between the hair papilla and epidermis, can contract, resulting in the hair fibre pulled upright and consequentially goose bumps. The main cell types are fibroblasts, adipocytes (fat storage) and macrophages. Sebaceous glands are exocrine glands which produce sebum, a mixture of lipids and waxy substances: lubrication, water-proofing, softening and antibactericidal actions are among the many functions of sebum. Sweat glands open up via a duct onto the skin by a pore.
The dermis can be split into the papillary and reticular layers. The papillary layer is outermost and extends into the dermis to supply it with vessels. It is composed of loosely arranged fibres. Papillary ridges make up the lines of the hands. The reticular layer is more dense and is continuous with the hypodermis. It contains the bulk of the structures (such as sweat glands). The reticular layer is composed of irregularly arranged fibres and resists stretching.
The hypodermis is not part of the skin, and lies below the dermis. Its purpose is to attach the skin to underlying bone and muscle as well as supplying it with blood vessels and nerves. It is made up of loose connective tissue and elastin. The main cell types are fibroblasts, macrophages and adipocytes (the hypodermis contains 50% of body fat). Fat serves as padding and insulation for the body.
Types
Skin can be dividided into thick and thin types. Thick skin is present on the soles of the feet and the palms of the hands. It has a larger stratum corneum with a higher keratin content. Thick skin does not grow hair; its purpose is to help grip. Thin skin is present on the bulk of the body and has a smaller stratum corneum and fewer papillae ridges. It has hair and is softer and more elastic. The characteristics of the skin, including sensory nerve density and the type of hair, vary with location on the body.
Functions
#Protection: an anatomical barrier between the internal and external environment in bodily defense; Langerhans cells in the skin are part of the adaptive immune system
#Sensation: contains a variety of nerve endings that react to heat, cold, touch, pressure, vibration, and tissue injury.
#Heat regulation: The skin contains sebaceous glands and smooth erector pili muscles.
#Storage and synthesis: acts as a storage centre for lipids and water, as well as a means of synthesis of vitamin D and B by action of UV on certain parts of the skin. This synthesis is linked to pigmentation, with darker skin producing more vitamin B than D, and vice versa.
#Excretion: The concentration of urea is 1/130th less than that of urine. Excretion by sweating is at most a secondary function to temperature regulation.
#Absorption: Oxygen, nitrogen and carbon dioxide can diffuse into the epidermis in small amounts. In addition, medicine can be administer through the skin, by ointments or by means of adhesive patch, such as the nicotine patch or iontophoresis. The skin is an important site of transport in many other organisms.
Hygiene
The skin must be regularly cleaned. Unless enough care is taken it will become cracked or inflamed. Unclean skin favors the development of pathogenic organisms. The constantly peeling off dead cells of the epidermis mix with the secretions of the sweat and sebaceous glands and the dust found on the skin to form a filthy layer on its surface. If not washed away the dirt begins to decompose emitting a foul smell. Functions of the skin are disturbed when it is dirty and it becomes more easily damaged. The release of antibacterial compounds decreases. Dirty skin is more prone to develop infections. Cosmetics should be used carefully because these may cause allergic reactions. Each season requires suitable clothing in order to facilitate the evaporation of the sweat. Sunlight, water and air play an important role in keeping the skin healthy.
The skin supports its own ecosystems of microorganisms, including yeasts and bacteria, which cannot be removed by any amount of cleaning. In general these organisms keep one another in check and are part of a healthy skin. When the balance is disturbed, e.g., by antibiotics which kill bacteria, there may be an overgrowth and infection by yeasts. The skin is continuous with the inner epithelial lining of the body at the orifices, each of which supports its own complement of flora.
Aging and disease
As skin ages, it becomes thinner and more easily damaged. Intensifying this effect is the decreasing ability of skin to heal itself. Skin sagging is caused by the fall in elasticity. Skin also receives less blood flow and lower gland activity.
In medicine, the branch concerned with the skin is called dermatology.
The skin is subject to constant attack from without, and so can be afflicted by numerous ailments, such as:
Tumors:
- Benign tumors of the skin: Squamous cell papilloma
- Skin cancer
Others:
- Rashes
- Blisters
- Acne
- Keratosis pilaris
- Fungal infections such as athlete's foot
- microbial infections.
- calcinosis cutis
- ulcer
- list of skin diseases
See also
- Dermatology
- skin color
- Cosmetics and cosmetic surgery
- Hair
- Nails
- sweat
External links
- [http://www.skinema.com/ Page about depiction of skin in the movie world]
Category:Integumentary system
Category:Dermatology
ja:皮膚
simple:Skin
Pain:Pain is also the name of a musical group; for further information see Pain (band)
Pain is an unpleasant sensation which may be associated with actual or potential tissue damage and which may have physical and emotional components. According to the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP), one should distinguish between pain and nociception. The term "pain" is a subjective experience that typically accompanies nociception, but can also arise without any stimulus. It includes the emotional response. Nociception, on the other hand, is a neurophysiological term and denotes specific activity in nerve pathways. It is the transmission mechanism for physiological pain, and does not describe psychological pain. These pathways transmit the nominally "painful" signals, though they are not always perceived as painful. Although pain can be associated with tissue damage or inflammation, this is often not the case.
Despite its unpleasantness, pain is a critical component of the body's defense system. It is part of a rapid warning relay instructing the motor neurons of the central nervous system to minimize detected physical harm.
Types of pain
Pain can be classified as acute or chronic.
- Acute pain is defined as short-term pain or pain with an easily identifiable cause. Acute pain is the body's warning of present damage to tissue or disease. It is often fast and sharp followed by aching pain. Acute pain is centralized in one area before becoming somewhat spread out. This type of pain responds well to medications.
- Chronic pain was originally defined as pain that has lasted 6 months or longer. It is now defined as pain that persists longer than the normal course of time associated with a particular type of injury. This constant or intermittent pain has often outlived its purpose, as it does not help the body to prevent injury. It is often more difficult to treat than acute pain. Expert care is generally necessary to treat any pain that has become chronic. An anterior cingulectomy, neurosurgury that disconnects the anterior cingulate gyrus, can be used in extreme cases to treat chronic pain. Post-surgery the patient will still feel the sensation of pain, but not the accompanying emotion.
The experience of physiological pain can be grouped according to the source and related nociceptors (pain detecting neurons).
- Cutaneous pain is caused by injury to the skin or superficial tissues. Cutaneous nociceptors terminate just below the skin, and due to the high concentration of nerve endings, produce a well-defined, localised pain of short duration. Examples of injuries that produce cutaneous pain include paper cuts, minor (first degree) burns and lacerations.
- Somatic pain originates from ligaments, tendons, bones, blood vessels, and even nerves themselves. It is detected with somatic nociceptors. The scarcity of pain receptors in these areas produces a dull, poorly-localised pain of longer duration than cutaneous pain; examples include sprains and broken bones.
- Visceral pain originates from body's viscera, or organs. Visceral nociceptors are located within body organs and internal cavities. The even greater scarcity of nociceptors in these areas produces pain that is usually more aching and of a longer duration than somatic pain. Visceral pain is extremely difficult to localise, and several injuries to visceral tissue exhibit "referred" pain, where the sensation is localised to an area completely unrelated to the site of injury. Myocardial ischaemia (the loss of blood flow to a part of the heart muscle tissue) is possibly the best known example of referred pain; the sensation can occur in the upper chest as a restricted feeling, or as an ache in the left shoulder, arm or even hand. Referred pain can be explained by the findings that pain receptors in the viscera also excite spinal cord neurons that are excited by cutaneous tissue. Since the brain normally associates firing of these spinal cord neurons with stimulation of somatic tissues in skin or muscle, pain signals arising from the viscera are interpreted by the brain as originating from the skin. The theory that visceral and somatic pain receptors converge and form synapses on the same spinal cord pain-transmitting neurons is called "Ruch's Hypothesis".
- Phantom limb pain is the sensation of pain from a limb that has been lost or from which a person or no longer receives physical signals. It is an experience almost universally reported by amputees and quadriplegics.
- Neuropathic pain, or "neuralgia", can occur as a result of injury or disease to the nerve tissue itself. This can disrupt the ability of the sensory nerves to transmit correct information to the thalamus, and hence the brain interprets painful stimuli even though there is no obvious or known physiologic cause for the pain.
Physiology
Pain receptors
All pain receptors are free nerve endings. There are mechanical, thermal and chemical pain receptors. They are found in skin and on internal surfaces such as periosteum and joint surfaces. Deep internal surfaces are only weakly supplied with pain receptors and will propagate sensations of chronic, aching pain if tissue damage in these areas is experienced.
Pain receptors do not adapt to stimulus. In some conditions, excitation of pain fibres becomes greater as the pain stimulus continues, leading to a condition called hyperalgesia.
Nociceptors are the free nerve endings of neurons that have their cell bodies outside the spinal column in the dorsal root ganglion and are named based upon their appearance at their sensory ends. These sensory endings look like the branches of small bushes.
Two main types of nociceptor, Aδ and C fibres, mediate fast and slow pain respectively. Thinly myelinated type Aδ fibres, which transmit signals at rates of between 6 to 30 metres per second mediate fast pain. This type of pain is felt within a tenth of a second of application of the pain stimulus. It can be described as sharp, acute, pricking pain and includes mechanical and thermal pain. Slow pain, mediated by slower, unmyelinated ("bare") type C pain fibres that send signals at rates of between 0.5 to 2 metres per second, is an aching, throbbing, burning pain. Chemical pain is an example of slow pain.
Transmission of pain signals in the central nervous system
The perception of pain occurs when the nociceptors are stimulated and transmit signals through sensory neurons in the spinal cord. These neurons release glutamate, a major exicitory neurotransmitter that relays signals from one neuron to another. The signals are sent to the thalamus, in which pain perception occurs. From the thalumus, the signal travels to the somatosensory cortex in the cerebrum, at which point the individual becomes fully aware of the pain.
There are 2 pathways for transmission of pain in the CNS. These are the neospinothalamic tract (for fast pain) and the paleospinothalamic tract (for slow pain).
- Fast pain travels via type Aδ fibres to terminate on lamina I (lamina marginalis) of the dorsal horn. Second order neurons of the neospinothalamic tract then take off and give rise to long fibres which cross the midline through the anterior commisure and pass upwards in the contralateral anterolateral columns. These fibres then terminate on the Ventrobasal Complex (VBC) of the thalamus. From here, third order neurons communicate with the somatosensory cortex. Fast pain can be localised easily if Aδ fibres are stimulated together with tactile receptors.
- Slow pain is transmitted via slower type C fibres to laminae II and III of the dorsa horns, together known as the substantia gelatinosa. Second order neurons take off and terminate in lamina V, also in the dorsal horn. Third order neurons then join fibres from the fast pathway, crossing to the opposite side via the anterior commisure, and travelling upwards through the anterolateral pathway. These neurons terminate widely in the brain stem, with one tenth of fibres stopping in the thalamus, and the rest stopping in the medulla, pons and mesencephalon. Slow pain is poorly localized.
Analgesia
The gate control theory of pain, proposed by Patrick Wall and Ron Melzack, postulates that pain is "gated" by non-painful stimuli such as vibration. Thus, rubbing a bumped knee seems to relieve pain by preventing its transmission to the brain. Pain is also "gated" by signals that descend from the brain to the spinal cord to suppress (and in other cases enhance) incoming pain information.
The analgesia system is mediated by 3 major components : the periaquaductal grey matter (in the midbrain), the nucleus raphe magnus (in the medulla), and the pain inhibitory neurons within the dorsal horns of the spinal cord, which act to inhibit pain-transmitting neurons also located in the spinal dorsal horn.
The body has several different types of opioid receptors that are activated in response to the binding of the body's endogenous endorphins. These receptors, which exist in a variety of areas in the body, inhibit firing of neurons that would otherwise be stimulated to do so by nociceptors.
Survival benefit
Despite its unpleasantness, pain is an important part of the existence of humans and other animals; in fact, it is vital to survival. Pain encourages an organism to disengage from the noxious stimulus associated wtih the pain. Preliminary pain can serve to indicate that an injury is imminent, such as the ache from a soon-to-be-broken bone. Pain may also promote the healing process, since most organisms will protect an injured region in order to avoid further pain. People born with congenital insensitivity to pain usually have short life spans, and suffer numerous ailments such as broken bones, bed sores, and chronic infection.
The study of pain has in recent years diverged into many different fields from pharmacology to psychology and neurobiology. It was even proposed that fruit flies may be used as an animal model for pharmacological pain research [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15763072&query_hl=21]. Pain is also of interest in the search for the neural correlates of consciousness, as pain has many subjective psychological aspects besides the physiological nociception.
Interestingly, the brain itself is devoid of nociceptive tissue, and hence cannot experience pain. Thus, a headache is not due to stimulation of pain fibers in the brain itself. Rather, the membrane surrounding the brain and spinal cord, called the dura mater, is innervated with pain receptors, and stimulation of these dural nociceptors (pain receptors) is thought to be involved to some extent in producing headache pain. Some evolutionary biologists have speculated that this lack of nociceptive tissue in the brain might be due to the fact that any injury of sufficient magnitude to cause pain in the brain has a sufficiently high probability of being fatal that development of nociceptive tissue therein would have little to no survival benefit.
Since pain is defined as a signal of present or impending tissue damage effected by a harmful stimulus, the ability to experience pain or irritation is observable in most multicellular organisms. Even some plants have the ability to retract from a noxious stimulus. Whether this sensation of pain is equivalent to the human experience is debatable.
Chronic pain, in which the pain becomes pathological rather that beneficial, is an exception to the idea that pain is helpful to survival.
Children and pain
Children have been proven to be markedly more sensitive to pain, but this fact is commonly dismissed as a fear reaction or a lack of coping abilities. Research has been carried out on how children can cope with pain due to increased sensitivity and it has been established that strategies that remove pain can help prevent long-term increases in sensitivity as the nervous system is still developing.
Pain and alternative medicine
A recent [http://nccam.nih.gov/news/2004/052704.htm survey] by NCCAM found pain was the most common reason that people use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). Among American adults who used CAM in 2002, 16.8% used CAM to treat back pain; 6.6% for neck pain; 4.9% for arthritis; 4.9% for joint pain; 3.1% for headache; and 2.4% used CAM to treat recurring pain. (Some survey respondents may have used CAM to treat more than one of these pain conditions.)
One such alternative, traditional Chinese medicine, views pain as a qi "blockage" equivalent to electrical resistance, or as "stagnation of blood" – theorized as dehydration inhibiting metabolism. Traditional Chinese treatments such as acupuncture are more effective for nontraumatic pain than traumatic pain.
External links
- [http://www.iasp-pain.org/ International Association for the Study of Pain] - scientific multidisciplinany body
- [http://www.pain.remedica.com International Journal of Pain Medicine and Palliative Care]
- [http://www.lower-back-pain-answers.com Lower Back Pain Answers]
- [http://www.thenakedscientists.com/html/columnists/barrygibbcolumn3.htm Sea Snails (Conus) harbour powerful new painkillers] - the ACV1 snail polypeptide appears to be a potential analgesic
- [http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99993673 Fish capable of experiencing pain] (rainbow trout may show pain responses, contrary to popular belief) - New Scientist 2003
- [http://www.thenakedscientists.com/html/columnists/petermcnaughtoncolumn1.htm Developments in the neuroscience of pain]
- [http://www.childsdoc.org/spring2002/chronicpain.asp Children and pain treatment]
Category:Nociception
simple:Pain
Foundation garmentA foundation garment is an undergarment designed to change the wearer's shape, producing a more fashionable figure. Foundation garments are also referred to as shapewear. Specific styles of foundation garments have been essential to some fashion movements, and required in some social situations in various fashion periods, particularly but not exclusively for women.
Foundation garments include:
- Bodysuits.
- Brassieres.
- Corsets.
- Control briefs.
- Garter belts.
- Girdles.
Category:Underwear
Category:Lingerie
Category:Corsetry
Lymphatic systemLymph originates as blood plasma lost from the circulatory system, which leaks out into the surrounding tissues. The lymphatic system collects this fluid by diffusion into lymph capillaries, and returns it to the circulatory system. Once within the lymphatic system the fluid is called lymph, and has almost the same composition as the original interstitial fluid.
Lymphatic circulation
Unlike the circulatory system, the lymphatic system is not closed and has no central pump; the lymph moves slowly and under low pressure due mostly to the milking action of skeletal muscles. Like veins, lymph vessels have one-way valves and depend mainly on the movement of skeletal muscles to squeeze fluid through them. Rhythmic contraction of the vessel walls may also help draw fluid into the lymphatic capillaries. This fluid is then transported to progressively larger lymphatic vessels culminating in the right lymphatic duct (for lymph from the right upper body) and the thoracic duct (for the rest of the body); these ducts drain into the circulatory system at the right and left subclavian veins
Lymph vessels are present in the lining of the gastrointestinal tract. Whilst most other nutrients absorbed by the small intestine are passed on to the portal venous system to drain, via the portal vein, into the liver for processing, fats are passed on to the lymphatic system, to be transported to the blood circulation via the thoracic duct. The enriched lymph originating in the lymphatics of the small intestine is called chyle. The nutrients that are released to the circulatory system are processed by the liver, having passed through the systemic circulation.
Primary lymphoid organs
The thymus and bone marrow are the primary lymphatic organs. Lymphocytes are produced by stem cells in the bone marrow and then migrate to either the thymus or bone marrow where they mature.
T-lymphocytes undergo maturation in the thymus, and B-lymphocytes undergo maturation in the bone marrow. After maturation, both B- and T-lymphocytes circulate in the lymph and accumulate in secondary lymphoid organs, where they await recognition of antigens.
Secondary lymphoid organs
The spleen, lymph nodes, and accessory lymphoid tissue are the secondary lymphoid organs. These organs contain a scaffolding that support circulating B- and T-lymphocytes and other immune cells like macrophages and dendritic cells. When microorganisms invade the body or the body encounters other antigens (such as pollen), the antigens are transported from the tissue to the lymph. The lymph is carried in the lymph vessels to regional lymph nodes. In the lymph nodes, the macrophages and dendritic cells phagocytosis|phagocytose the antigens, process them, and present the antigens to lymphocytes, which can then start producing antibodies or serve as memory cells to recognize the antigens again in the future.
The spleen contains lymphocytes that filter the blood stream rather than the lymphatics. Thus, the spleen has importance in fighting infections that have invaded the blood.
Mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue is specialised lymphoid tissue associated with the mucosa of a number of organs.
External links
- [http://www.medicalengineer.co.uk/The+Lymphatic+System.php The Lymphatic System] (MedicalEngineer.co.uk)
- [http://www.innerbody.com/image/lympov.html Lymphatic System Overview] (innerbody.com)
See also
- Olaus Rudbeckius, one of the discoverers of the lymphatic system
- History of anatomy in the 17th and 18th centuries
Category:Lymphatic system
Greece
Greece, (Greek: Ελλάδα, older form: Ελλάς, Hellas), officially the Hellenic Republic (Greek: Ελληνική Δημοκρατία, Ellinikí Dimokratía; see also List of traditional Greek place names), is a country in southern Europe on the tip of the Balkan peninsula. It has land boundaries with Bulgaria, The Republic of Macedonia, and Albania to the north and with Turkey to the east. The waters of the Aegean Sea border Greece to the east, and those of the Ionian and Mediterranean Sea to the west and south. Regarded by many as the cradle of Western civilization and the birthplace of democracy, Greece has a long and rich history during which its culture has proven especially influential in Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East.
Name
Main article: Names of the Greeks
The historical name of Greece in Greek is Ellás . This name is also written Hellas in English, following the ancient Greek pronunciation . In modern Greek it is called more commonly Ελλάδα Elládha . The mythical ancestor of the Greeks is the eponymous Hellen.
The name of Greece in European languages (English: Greece, French: Grèce, Portuguese: Grécia, Spanish and Italian: Grecia, Welsh: Groeg, German: Griechenland, Dutch: Griekenland, Russian: Греция, etc.) comes from a different root: Graikós (via Latin Graecus) which according to Aristotle was an ancient name for the Greeks. The Japanese name is ギリシャ (Girisha), lent from European languages. On the other hand, the name of Greece in some Middle Eastern and Eastern languages (Turkish: Yunanistan, Arabic: يونان, Hebrew: יוון, ancient Persian: Yaunâ, Indian Pali: Yona, Malay and Indonesian: Yunani) derives from the Greek toponym Iōnía. Norwegian, Chinese (希腊 Xila) and Vietnamese are three of the few languages apart from Greek in which the name Hellas predominates.
An interesting and unique form is kept in Georgian. In ancient times, Georgians (Colchs and Iberians) called Greeks ბერძენი berdzeni. This form derives from the Georgian word ბრძენი brdzeni – wise. According to Georgian historians, the name is connected with the notion that philosophy was born in Greece. Modern Georgians still call Greeks ბერძენი berdzeni and Greece საბერძნეთი saberdznet'i, 'Greeks' land' or literally 'land of the wise'.
Some Greeks prefer the name Hellas for the country and Hellenes for the people even in English. See Hellenes for discussion.
History
Hellenes
Main Article: History of Greece.
Prehistory and antiquity
The shores of Greece's Aegean Sea saw the emergence of the first civilizations in Europe, namely the Minoan and the Mycenaean. After these, a Dark Age followed until around 800 BC, when a new era of Greek city-states emerged establishing colonies along the Mediterranean. Greek culture would later become the basis of the Hellenistic civilization that followed the empire of Alexander the Great. For a detailed history of Ancient Greece see the relevant articles in: History of Greece.
Roman rule and Middle Ages
Militarily, Greece itself declined to the point that the Romans conquered the land (168 BC onwards), though, in many ways, Greek culture would in turn conquer Roman life. Greece became a province of the Roman Empire, but Greek culture continued to dominate the eastern Mediterranean. When the Roman Empire finally split in two, the Eastern Roman Empire, known as the Byzantine Empire, centered around Constantinople (known in ancient times as Byzantium), remained Greek in nature, encompassing Greece itself. From the 4th century to the 15th century, the Byzantine Empire survived eleven centuries of attacks from the north, west and east until Constantinople fell on May 29 1453 to the Ottoman Empire, when Constantine XI, the last emperor of the Palaeologus dynasty, fell. Greece was gradually conquered by the Ottomans during the 15th century.
Ottoman rule
While the Ottomans completed the conquest of the Greek Mainland, two Greek migrations occurred. The first migration saw the Greek intelligentsia migrate to Western Europe and contribute to the advent of the Renaissance. The second migration of Greeks left the plains of the Greek peninsula and resettled in the mountains. The Ottomans were unable to create a permanent military and administrative presence in these mountainous regions. As a result some Greek mountain clans across the peninsula, as well as some islands, were able to maintain a status of independence. The Sphakiots of Crete, the Souliots from Souli of Epirus, and the Maniots from Mani of Peloponnesus were the most resilient mountain clans throughout the Ottoman Empire. By the end of the 16th century and until the 17th century, Greeks began to migrate back to the plains and cities, adding to the increasing urban population. The millet system contributed to the ethnic cohesion of Orthodox Greeks by segregating the various peoples within the Ottoman Empire based on religion. The Orthodox Church, a religious institution with a strong national character, helped the Greeks from all geographical areas of the peninsula (i.e. mountains, plains, and islands) to preserve their ethnic, cultural and linguistic heritage during the years of the Ottoman rule (although at the time it was not stictly speaking a "Greek" church - the Greek Church was instituted after the liberation). The Greeks who remained on the plains during Ottoman occupation were either Christians, who dealt with the burdens of foreign rule, or to a considerable extent Crypto-Christians (Greeks Muslims who were secret practitioners of the Orthodox faith) in order to avoid heavy taxation. The Greeks who converted to Islam and were not Crypto-Christians became Turks in the eyes of Orthodox Greeks. There were no "Greek Muslims", and no "Christian Turks". As a result, religion played an integral part in the formation of the Modern Greek and other post-Ottoman national identities.
Turks
Creation of the modern Greek state
The Ottomans ruled Greece until the early 19th century. In 1821, the Greeks rebelled and declared their independence, but did not succeed in winning it until 1829. The elites of powerful European nations saw the war of Greek independence, with its accounts of Turkish atrocities, in a romantic light (see, for example, the 1824 painting the Massacre of Chios by Eugène Delacroix). Scores of non-Greeks volunteered to fight for the cause — including people like Lord Byron. At times the Ottomans seemed on the verge of entirely suppressing the Greek revolution but were eventually forced to give in by the direct military intervention of France, Great Britain and Russia. This was the prelude of the so called "Eastern Question", the gradual dismemberment of the decaying empire by the western powers. The Russian ex-minister of foreign affairs, Ioannis Kapodistrias, himself a Greek, actually a noble from the Ionian Islands, a British protectorate in the Ionian Sea, was chosen as President of the new Republic following Greek independence. That republic disappeared when a few years later Western powers helped turn Greece into a monarchy, the first king coming from Bavaria and the second from Denmark. During the 19th and especially the early 20th centuries, in a series of wars with the Ottomans, Greece sought to enlarge its boundaries to include the ethnic Greek population of the Ottoman Empire (the Ionian State however was donated by Britain upon the arrival of the new king from Denmark in 1863, and Thessaly was ceded by the Ottomans without a fight). Greece would slowly grow in territory and population until reaching its present configuration in 1947.
In World War I, Greece sided with the entente powers against Turkey and the other Central Powers. In the war's aftermath, the Great Powers awarded parts of Asia Minor to Greece, including the city of Smyrna (known as Izmir today) which had a large Greek population. At that time, however, the Turkish nationalists, led by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, denounced the Sultan's government in Istanbul and organised a new one in Ankara. During the Greco-Turkish War (1919-1922) the Turks eventually defeated the Greek armies and regained control of Asia Minor. Soon afterwards, the Treaty of Lausanne was signed, fixing the borders to this date. A population exchange was included in the agreement and immediately afterwards, hundreds of thousands of Turks then living in mainland Greek territory left for Turkey in exchange for about a million Greeks living in Turkey. The refugees from Asia Minor revived the population, provided cheap labour and hellenized the now depopulated regions, especially in Macedonia.
In 1936, General Ioannis Metaxas established an authoritarian conservative dictatorship in Greece, seen as similar to Antonio Salazar's "New State". Greece under Metaxas is also compared to Spain at the time, although it lacked the political violence associated with Francisco Franco's regime.
Despite the country's numerically small and ill-equipped armed forces, Greece made an important contribution to the Allied efforts in World War II. At the start of the war Greece sided with the Allies and refused to give in to Italian demands (see Oxi Day). Italy invaded Greece on 28 October 1940, but Greek troops repelled the invaders after a bitter struggle (see Greco-Italian War). This marked the first Allied victory in the war. Hitler then reluctantly stepped in, primarily to secure his strategic southern flank. Troops from Germany, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Italy successfully invaded Greece, overcoming Greek, British, Australian, and New Zealand units within weeks.
To reduce the threat of a counter-offensive by Allied forces in Egypt, the Germans attempted to seize Crete in a massive attack by paratroops. Allied forces, along with Cretan civilians, however, offered fierce resistance. Although Crete eventually fell, it is pointed out by historians that this, and the whole Greek campaign, delayed German plans significantly, with the result that the German invasion of the Soviet Union started fatally close to winter.
During the years of Nazi occupation, hundreds of thousands of Greeks died in direct combat, in concentration camps, or of starvation. The occupiers murdered the greater part of the Jewish community despite efforts by the Greek Orthodox Church and many Christian Greeks to shelter Jews. The Greek economy languished. After liberation, Greece experienced an equally bitter Greek Civil War between the communist-led Democratic Army and the Hellenic Army that lasted until 1949, when the communists were defeated in the battle of Grammos-Vitsi.
In the 1950s and 1960s, Greece continued to develop slowly with grants and loans through the Marshall Plan, and later through growth, notably in the tourism sector. In 1967, the Greek military seized power in a coup d'état and overthrew the conservative government of Panayiotis Kanellopoulos which had been preparing a general election set for May 28. The military established what became known as the Régime of the Colonels. In 1973, the régime abolished the Greek monarchy. In October 1973, George Papadopoulos appointed politician Spiros Markezinis as Prime Minister, with a mission undertake a transition to parliamentary democracy. Following the events of the Athens Polytechnic uprising, Papadopoulos and Markezinis were overthrown by a countercoup headed by junta hardliner Brigadier Ioannides on November 25, 1973. A new president, Phaedon Ghizikis, and a new Prime Minister, Adamantios Androutsopoulos, were appointed.
Ioannides organised a military coup against President Makarios of Cyprus, which was considered a pretext for the first Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974 and the resulting crisis between Greece and Turkey. Escalation in Cyprus led to the implosion of the military régime. Ex-premier Konstantinos Karamanlis was invited from Paris as interim prime minister under President Ghizikis. He later gained re-election for two further terms at the head of the conservative Nea Dimokratia party, which he founded. In 1975, following a referendum to confirm the deposition of King Constantine II, a democratic republican constitution came into force. Another previously exiled politician, Andreas Papandreou also returned and founded the socialist PASOK party, which won the elections in 1981 and dominated the country's political course for almost two decades.
Since the restoration of democracy, the stability and economic prosperity of Greece have grown. Greece joined the European Union in 1981 and adopted the Euro as its currency in 2001. New infrastructure, funds from the EU and growing revenues from tourism, shipping, services, light industry, and the telecommunications industry have greatly raised the standard of living in Greece. Tensions continue to exist between Greece and Turkey over Cyprus and the delimitation of borders in the Aegean Sea, but relations have thawed considerably following successive earthquakes - first in Turkey and then in Greece - and an outpouring of sympathy and generous assistance by ordinary Greeks and Turks. This is in stark contrast to decades of hostility between these two countries, which saw repeated threats of war. Even though both were members of NATO, at times more than half of the entire Greek military was | | |
