Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), also known as acid reflux, is a very common condition affecting around 20-40 % of the population over a one year period. This book describes all the essential features of GERD for the general public in an engaging and stimulating manner that facilitates learning and reinforcement. This is accomplished by applying methods that accommodate various learning styles, including the use of illustrations, tables, charts, and boxes that highlight definitions, facts, or website links for more detailed information. Features: Provides questions and answers about the features, definitions, and descriptions of GERD Includes numerous in-text Web links to WebMD, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), USDA, the CDC, pharmaceutical companies, YouTube, and other sites with animations, diets, practical case studies, and tools related to GERD. Selected Topics: Causes, risk factors, symptoms, degrees of GERD, anatomy and physiology of the esophagus, lower esophageal sphincter and stomach as it relates to GERD, complications, diagnostic tests, and treatments based on lifestyle modifications, medications, endoscopic procedures, and surgery, diets.

Asthma is a very serious, widespread, and growing problem in the U.S. Asthma affects over 24 million Americans, and its prevalence has increased 12% in the last decade. This book describes all the essential features of asthma for the general public in an engaging and stimulating manner using the principles of health literacy. Various learning styles are accommodated by the use of videos, illustrations, tables, charts, and boxes that highlight definitions, facts, and website links that provide more detailed information. Features: Provides questions and answers about the medical definitions and descriptions of asthma. General topics include the causes of asthma and available treatments as well as preventative measures Includes numerous in-text Web links to Web MD, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), pharmaceutical companies, journal articles, YouTube, and other sites with animations, diets, practical case studies, and tools related to asthma Uses animations, practical tips, case studies, charts and tables, figures, and photos to explain topics under discussion Includes companion files with videos, animations, color figures from the book, and Web links to references in the text.