I. Google Search
A. http://www.mymsaa.org/about-ms/overview/
This is a website of Multiple Sclerosis Association of America. Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disease wherein the myelin sheath sof the nerves are damaged causing symptoms such as numbness, fatigue, mobility problems and more (Mymsaa.org).
5 Facts
A steroid (Cortisone) was first to treat Multiple Sclerosis relapses in the year 1951.
The French neurologist, Jean-Martin Charcot gave MS its name in 1868.
The myelin sheath or the protective covering of nerves is damaged in MS.
“Lesions” or “plaques” are the inflamed or damaged areas in the brain and spinal cord.
Worldwide, about 2.5 million individuals have Multiple Sclerosis. (Mymsaa.org)
No specific author was indicated in the page. MSAA is a member of The Multiple Sclerosis Coalition, America’s Charities and Better Business Bureau (BBB) Wise Giving Alliance.
Purpose
The Multiple Sclerosis Association of America (MSAA) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing support and services to people with multiple sclerosis. This website serves as a resource for the MS community.
5. They claim that the information from this site come from the most up to date research and reviewed by their chief medical officer. The site is user friendly and highlights the most important information in bullet form. If one wants to read the complete information, they have the option to do so. The information are easily understandable and positive.
6. This site is verified by the Health on the net Foundation which guarantees the commitment to reliable health and medical information on the internet.
B. http://www.healthline.com/health/multiple-sclerosis/early-signs
1. Multiple Sclerosis is a disease that affects 2.3 million individuals worldwide. The most common symptoms are visual problems, chronic pain and muscle spasms, fatigue and weakness. A neurological exam, eye exam and lumbar puncture are performed to diagnose Multiple Sclerosis (Healthline).
2. 5 Facts
Women are twice more likely to be affected by MS more than men.
Chronic pain is experienced by half of the patients with MS.
Earlier stages of MS manifest unexplained fatigue and weakness in 80 percent of patients.
Having close family with MS gives one 2.5 to 5 percent chance of developing MS.
Urinary problems such as frequency, urgency and incontinence occur in upto 80 percent of individuals with MS. (Healthline)
3. The page is written by the Healthline Editorial Team, composed of a team of professionals. It is reviewed by Healthline’s medical reviewers who are medical professionals. Each of them are affiliated with different organizations/ institutions in their respective fields such as HealthWell Foundation, American Society for Reproductive Medicine, etc.
4. The purpose of this site is to be a resource of approachable content on health conditions, medications, or health and wellbeing in general.
5. There is no evidence for scientific method the page but some of their information are based on the facts by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.
6. This health information website is certified by the Health on the Net foundation. The article on MS contained information and statistics from the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.
II. Academic Database
BioOne Online Journals
MEDIAL ARTERIAL SCLEROSIS IN CAPTIVE BEAVERS, Castor canadensis Kuhl
Written by: ROBERT A. DIETERICH
Affiliated with: Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska, College, Alaska 99701
This article is on medial arterial sclerosis which is the hardening of the arterial vessels found on captive beavers. There were two cases of a male and female beaver and tt was unclear what the etiology of the medial arterial sclerosis was. The condition could be the because of aging and nutritional imbalance (Dieterich).
Comparisons of Estimated Economic Burdens due to Insufficient Solar Ultraviolet Irradiance and Vitamin D and Excess Solar UV Irradiance for the United States
Written by: William B. Grant*a, Cedric F. Garlandb, Michael F. Holickc
Affiliated with: aSunlight, Nutrition and Health Research Center (SUNARC)
bDepartment of Family and Preventive Medicine, University of California
cVitamin D, Skin and Bone Research Laboratory, Section of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Nutrition, Department of Medicine, Boston University Medical Center Boston University School of Medicine
Vitamin D insufficiency and excess UV irradiance can both cause problems in health. Sufficient vitamin D can help reduce risk for multiple sclerosis and other forms of cancer. The numbers shown in the abstract show that vitamin D sufficiency coupled with proper nutrition and supplementation could help reduce diseases (Grant, Garland and Holick).
Functional Roles of Arginine During the Peri-Implantation Period of Pregnancy. III. Arginine Stimulates Proliferation and Interferon Tau Production by Ovine Trophectoderm Cells via Nitric Oxide and Polyamine-TSC2-MTOR Signaling Pathways1
Written by: Xiaoqiu Wang3,4, Robert C. Burghardt5, Jared J. Romero6, Thomas R. Hansen6, Guoyao Wu3,4, and Fuller W. Bazer2,3,4
3Center for Animal Biotechnology and Genomics, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas
4Department of Animal Science, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas
5Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas
6Department of Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University
This study was done to assess the role of arginine in conceptus development. The results showed that arginine is a growth factor. This amino acid is essential in signaling the polyamine biosynthesis pathway (Wang et al.).
Acetic Acid Induced Ulceration in Rats Is Not Affected by Infection with Hymenolepis diminuta
Written by: Derek M. McKaya and John L. Wallacea,b
aGastrointestinal Research Group, Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Calgary
bInflammation Research Network, Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of Calgary
Infection with helminth parasites in rodents showed that the severity of diseases like multiple sclerosis can be reduced. In this study, it showed that Hymenolepsis diminuta did not protect nor aggravate induced gastric ulceration in rodents (McKay & Wallace).
PHEOCHROMOCYTOMA IN AN AGED FEMALE AFRICAN ELEPHANT (LOXODONTA AFRICANA)
Written by: Christopher J. BonarV.M.D., Albert H. LewandowskiD.V.M., Baha ArafahM.D., and Charles C. CapenD.V.M., Ph.D.
Affiliated with: 101From the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, University Hospitals of Cleveland, USA (Arafah); and the College of Veterinary Medicine, The Ohio State University
This study showed that the cause of the acute death of a 43 yr old African elephant was pheochromocytoma according to necropsy. In elephants with Suspected hypertension and acute death, pheochromocytoma should also be considered (Bonar et al.)
ScienceDirect
Comorbidity is associated with pain-related activity limitations in multiple sclerosis
K.M. Fiest, J.D. Fisk, S.B. Patten, H. Tremlett, C. Wolfson, S. Warren, K.A. McKay, L. Berrigan, R.A. Marrie, for the CIHR Team in the Epidemiology and Impact of Comorbidity on MultipleSclerosis (ECoMS)
This study was done to explore the correlation of comorbidity and pain in Multiple Sclerosis. The presence of fibromyalgia, Irritable bowel syndrome, migraine and many others were associated with pain. The results of this study may be used as a guidance for management for pain in MS (Fiest et al).
Interleukin 2 receptor α chain gene polymorphisms and risks of multiple sclerosis and neuromyelitis optica in southern Japanese
Gulibahaer Ainiding, Yuji Kawano, Shinya Sato, Noriko Isobe, Takuya Matsushita, Satoshi Yoshimura, Tomomi Yonekawa, Ryo Yamasaki, Hiroyuki Murai, Jun-ichi Kira, the South Japan Multiple Sclerosis Genetics Consortium
This study was done to prove if Interleukin 2 receptor α subunit (IL2RA) is associated with MS and neuromyelitis in Japanese population as it does with Caucasians. The results showed that there were no significant associations and it did not confirm whether (IL2RA) is a risk factor in the Japanese population (Ainiding et al.).
Increased incidence of multiple sclerosis in systemic sclerosis: A nationwide cohort study
Chia-Chun Tseng, Shun-Jen Chang, Wen-Chan Tsai, Tsan-Teng Ou, Cheng-Chin Wu, Wan-Yu Sung, Ming-Chia Hsieh, Jeng-Hsien Yen, Kaohsiung Medical University
The results of this retrospective cohort study concluded that Systemic sclerosis increases the risk for multiple sclerosis. The age and sex of the patients did not affect the results (Tseng et al).
High-intensity resistance training in multiple sclerosis — An exploratory study of effects on immune markers in blood and cerebrospinal fluid, and on mood, fatigue, health-related quality of life, muscle strength, walking and cognition
Marie Kierkegaard, Ingrid E. Lundberg, Tomas Olsson, Sverker Johansson, Sofia Ygberg, Christina Opava, Lotta Widén Holmqvist, Fredrik Pieh Karolinska Institutet,
This research was done to assess if high-intensity resistance training had an effect on immune markers and the quality of health of patients with MS. The results showed that it indeed had positive effects on the given dependent variables (Kierkegaard et al).
Dicer and microRNA expression in multiple sclerosis and response to interferon therapy
William J. Magner, Bianca Weinstock-Guttman, Mina Rho, David Hojnacki, Rabia Ghazi, Murali Ramanathan, Thomas B. Tomasi, Roswell Park Cancer Institute Jacobs Neurological Institute, Hanyang University, State University of New York, School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
The results of this study showed that Dicer protein decreases in Multiple Sclerosis patients. This finding can provide a potential therapy for MS patients (Magner et al.).
5. In all of the 5 articles, there are clear evidences of scientific method. All the information in each of the 10 articles from the resource BIoOne and ScienceDirect are based on scientific research and empirical data.
6. The 10 articles I believe are reliable because they are based on scientific research. These are published studies and journals on biology, ecology and environmental science. They host scientific, technical and health information from journals and books. The publications are peer-reviewed.
III.
1. The academic database articles include in-text citations and references pages. Each of the journal articles have first hand evidences and results from the research or experimentations done. Most of the terms used are scientific and medical terms that would be somehow difficult to understand for those who are not medically or scientifically inclined.
The Google searched health information websites were made specially for the general public. An average person can easily comprehend and understand the information in these types of websites. These websites simplify information and are made to be approachable that a layman interested in a certain topic would not be intimidated to read.
2. If I am to write a research work and need empirical data, it would be appropriate for me to use scientific journals and databases like BioOne and ScienceDirect. These are published researches that would make any research work or report more credible. If I just need basic information and known facts on diseases or health conditions, I would definitely go to the health information websites. These certain websites are still reliable and have a group of professional medical reviewers behind their articles. These websites are just more user friendly and approachable.
3. Both types are reliable but searching information on science or research journals are more reliable. These are academic databases that provide well-researched, empirical evidences on scientific topics. The google searched websites have articles based on researches on these scientific databases. If you wish to verify information from Google search, you should go to these academic database. First hand sources are always more reliable.
Works Cited
Ainiding, Gulibahaer et al. "Interleukin 2 Receptor Α Chain Gene Polymorphisms And Risks Of Multiple Sclerosis And Neuromyelitis Optica In Southern Japanese". Journal of the Neurological Sciences 337.1-2 (2014): 147-150. Web.
Bonar, Christopher J. et al. "PHEOCHROMOCYTOMA IN AN AGED FEMALE AFRICAN ELEPHANT (LOXODONTA AFRICANA)". Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine 36.4 (2005): 719-723. Web.
DIETERICH, ROBERT A. "MEDIAL ARTERIAL SCLEROSIS IN CAPTIVE BEAVERS, Castor Canadensis Kuhl. 1". Journal of Wildlife Diseases 5.2 (1969): 115-116. Web.
Fiest, K.M. et al. "Comorbidity Is Associated With Pain-Related Activity Limitations In Multiple Sclerosis". Multiple Sclerosis and Related Disorders 4.5 (2015): 470-476. Web.
Grant, William B., Cedric F. Garland, and Michael F. Holick. "Comparisons Of Estimated Economic Burdens Due To Insufficient Solar Ultraviolet Irradiance And Vitamin D And Excess Solar UV Irradiance For The United States". Photochemistry and Photobiology 81.6 (2005): 1276. Web.
Healthline,. "Early Signs Of Multiple Sclerosis". N.p., 2016. Web. 9 Feb. 2016.
Kierkegaard, Marie et al. "High-Intensity Resistance Training In Multiple Sclerosis — An Exploratory Study Of Effects On Immune Markers In Blood And Cerebrospinal Fluid, And On Mood, Fatigue, Health-Related Quality Of Life, Muscle Strength, Walking And Cognition". Journal of the Neurological Sciences 362 (2016): 251-257. Web.
Magner, William J. et al. "Dicer And Microrna Expression In Multiple Sclerosis And Response To Interferon Therapy". Journal of Neuroimmunology 292 (2016): 68-78. Web.
McKay, Derek M., and John L. Wallace. "Acetic Acid Induced Ulceration In Rats Is Not Affected By Infection With Hymenolepis Diminuta". Journal of Parasitology 95.2 (2009): 481-482. Web.
Mymsaa.org,. "What Is Multiple Sclerosis? | MS Association Of America". N.p., 2015. Web. 9 Feb. 2016.
Tseng, Chia-Chun et al. "Increased Incidence Of Multiple Sclerosis In Systemic Sclerosis: A Nationwide Cohort Study". Preventive Medicine 84 (2016): 6-11. Web.
Wang, X. et al. "Functional Roles Of Arginine During The Peri-Implantation Period Of Pregnancy. III. Arginine Stimulates Proliferation And Interferon Tau Production By Ovine Trophectoderm Cells Via Nitric Oxide And Polyamine-TSC2-MTOR Signaling Pathways". Biology of Reproduction 92.3 (2015): 75-75. Web.
