Combating Dermatitis In another big advance, dermatologists have learned to control allergic skin inflammation, or contact dermatitis. For 14 years, Renate Charbonneau, a hairdresser in Milwaukie, Oregon, suffered unknowingly from chemicals in acid permanent-wave solutions. They caused severe eczema on her hands. Cortisone ointment relieves the pain, she says, adding, “By avoiding the acid perms [...]

The overall function of the kidneys is to maintain the normal composition and volume of the blood. This is accomplished by four interrelated activities. (1) Wastes of metabolism are excreted. These include urea, uric acid, creatinine ammonia, sulfates and other products of metabolism, and toxic substances. (2)  The amounts of fluid and electrolytes that are [...]