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Malaise

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]

Synonyms and keywords: General ill feeling

Overview

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]

Overview

Malaise is a feeling of general discomfort or uneasiness, an “out of sorts” feeling, often the first indication of an infection or other disease. Often defined in medicinal research as a “general feeling of being unwell”.

Colloquially, malaise has been referred to as “the creeping crud” (especially in reference to the malaise caused by communicable diseases such as influenza and the common cold). This usage may have originated in folk medicine, but it is adopted from the French word meaning “discomfort,” “feeling faint,” “feeling sick.”

The term is also often used figuratively in such contexts as “economic malaise.”

Historical Perspective

U.S. President Jimmy Carter, who on July 15, 1979, gave his famous “national malaise” speech where he described a “crisis in the growing doubt about the meaning of our own lives and in the loss of a unity of purpose for our nation.” The word “malaise” did not appear in the text of the speech.

Cause

There can be various causes to a malaise, from the slightest like an emotion (causing vagal response) or hunger (lighthypoglycemia) to the most serious (cancer, cerebrovascular accident, internal bleeding etc.).

Generally speaking, the malaise expresses that “something is wrong,” like a general warning light, but only a medical examination can determine the cause.

Treatment

Medical Therapy

The following step depends on the organization of the emergency medical assistance. Some countries provide free medical advice by phone (e.g., SAMU in France): it is then useful to call this service to know what to do. Otherwise, it is useful to contact the usual general practitioner of the person, to get his or her advice, or any medical or paramedical professional at least. The bystander who calls must mention all the elements collected so far. When it is not possible to contact the individual’s primary-care physician, it is then necessary to assess the situation in order to decide whether it is necessary to call anambulance.

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Historical Perspective

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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]

Overview

U.S. President Jimmy Carter, who on July 15, 1979, gave his famous “national malaise” speech where he described a “crisis in the growing doubt about the meaning of our own lives and in the loss of a unity of purpose for our nation.” The word “malaise” did not appear in the text of the speech.

References


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Pathophysiology
Causes

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1] Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Luke Rusowicz-Orazem, B.S.

Overview

Malaise is caused by a large variety of conditions and diseases that result in fatigue and lethargy. Common causes include microbial infection and the side effects of drug therapy.

Causes

Common Causes

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Causes by Organ System

Cardiovascular Beta blockers , Congestive heart failure, Cutaneous necrotizing vasculitis, Dressler syndrome, Familial hyperchylomicronemia , Familial lipoprotein lipase deficiency, Infective endocarditis, Lipoprotein lipase deficiency , Myocarditis , Polyarteritis nodosa , Postpericardiotomy syndrome , Temporal arteritis , Vasculitis, Wegener’s granulomatosis
Chemical/Poisoning 3-dichloropropene , Acute radiation sickness, Anthrax, Boric acid, Cutaneous anthrax, Cyclospora cayetanenis food poisoning, Ddd , Ddt, Decreased bicarbonate, Metal fume fever, Methomyl , Pulmonary anthrax , Sea snake poisoning
Dental Gingivostomatitis, Tooth abscess, Toothache
Dermatologic Actinic prurigo , Brill disease , Erythema chronicum migrans , Erythema multiforme, Erythema nodosum , Hydroa vacciniforme, Lymphadenopathy, Millian erythema , Mucha-habermann syndrome, Obstructive jaundice, Panniculitis, Pemphigus, Pfeiffer-weber-christian syndrome, Polymorphous light eruption , Scleredema adultorum, Scleroderma, Shingles, Squamous cell skin cancer , Stevens-johnson syndrome, Weber-christian disease, Yellow nail syndrome
Drug Side Effect Alanycarb , Aldicarb , Aldoxycarb , Aldrin, Allyxycarb, Ambenonium, Aminocarb , Anticonvulsant medicines, Antihistamines, Bcg vaccine, Bendiocarb, Benfuracarb, Beta blockers , Bufencarb, Butacarb, Butocarboxim, Butoxcarboxim, Carbanolate, Carbaryl , Carbofuran, Carbosulfan, Cloethocarb, Decarbofuran, Dexamethasone, Dicresyl, Dieldrin, Dimetan , Dimetilan, Dioxacarb, Diquat dibromide, Ethiofencarb, Fenethacarb, Fenobucarb, Furathiocarb, Hyquincarb, Interferon gamma, Isoprocarb, Lamivudine, Loratadine, Metolcarb, Mexacarbate, Morpholine, Nilutamide, Nitrilacarb, Oxamyl, Pergolide, Pirimicarb, Praziquantel, Promacyl , Promecarb, Propoxur, Sargramostim, Steroid withdrawal syndrome, Sumatriptan, Tazimcarb, Thiocarboxime, Thiodicarb, Thiofanox, Tiagabine, Tretinoin, Trimellitic anhydride, Trimethacarb, Xmc , Xylylcarb, Zidovudine
Ear Nose Throat Chronic sinusitis, Nasopharyngitis, Sphenoid sinusitis, Tonsilitis
Endocrine Addington disease , Adenitis, Adrenal gland dysfunction, Brennemann’s syndrome , Fatigue, Hypothyroidism, Multifocal fibrosclerosis, Pituitary gland dysfunction , Post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease , Subacute granulomatous thyroiditis, Subacute thyroiditis, Thyroid disease
Environmental Acute radiation sickness, Farmer’s lung, Space adaptation syndrome, Stachybotrys chartarum
Gastroenterologic Abdominal abscess , Acute cholecystitis , Acute fatty liver of pregnancy , Bowel bypass syndrome, Bowel-associated dermatosis-arthritis syndrome, Brennemann’s syndrome , Chronic infectious diarrhea , Colon cancer, Crohns disease, Dana syndrome, Distal colorectal cancer, End stage liver failure , Enteroaggregative e. coli infection , Enterohemorrhagic e. coli infection, Enteroinvasive e. coli infection, Enteropathogenic e. coli infection , Enterotoxigenic e. coli infection , Hamartomatous colorectal cancer, Hellp syndrome, Hepatocellular carcinoma, Hepatoma, Hookworm , Liver abscess, Liver cancer, Obstructive jaundice, Occasional hepatitis, Perirectal abscess, Protozoan infections, Proximal colorectal cancer, Pseudomembranous colitis , Rectractile mesenteritis, Sea sickness, Spleen cancer , Spleen conditions , Spleen neoplasm, Splenic infarct , Sporadic colorectal cancer, Traveler’s diarrhea, Viral digestive infections, Vlcad deficiency , Zieve syndrome
Genetic Vlcad deficiency , Warm-reacting-antibody haemolytic anemia
Hematologic Acute myelofibrosis, Acute panmyelosis, Aggressive nk-cell leukaemia, Anemia, Angioimmunoblastic with dysproteinemia lymphadenopathy, Bernard syndrome, Blood cancers , Blood conditions, Bolivian hemorrhagic fever, Burnett’s syndrome, Chronic leukemia , Classical hodgkin disease , Cyclic neutropenia, Dana syndrome, Diabetes , Eijkman’s syndrome, Hellp syndrome, Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis, Hodgkin’s disease , Leukemia, Lymphocyte depletion hodgkin’s disease , Lymphomatoid granulomatosis , Meningococcemia, Mixed cellularity hodgkin’s disease , Myelodysplastic disease , Myeloproliferative diseases , Nodular sclerosing hodgkin’s lymphoma, Pernicious anemia, Philadelphia-negative chronic myeloid leukemia, Polycythemia vera, Sepsis, Severe anemia, Type 2 diabetes, Warm-reacting-antibody haemolytic anemia, X-linked sideroblastic anemia
Iatrogenic Postpericardiotomy syndrome, Post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease
Infectious Disease Abdominal abscess , Acute pneumonia, Acute viral syndrome, African sleeping sickness, Aids, American mountain fever, Angiostrongyliasis, Arbovirus, Arcobacter butzleri infection, Arcobacter cryaerophilus infection, Arenavirus, Argentinean hemorrhagic fever , Astroviruses, Avian influenza, Babesiosis, Bolivian hemorrhagic fever, Boutonneuse fever , Breast abscess, Brill disease , Bronchitis, California encephalitis, Campylobacter jejuni subspecies doylei infection, Chagas disease, Chicken pox , Chronic active hepatitis, Chronic infectious diarrhea , Chronic sinusitis, Coccidioidomycosis , Colorado tick encephalitis, Colorado tick fever, Conor’s disease, Delayed viral syndromes, Eastern equine encephalitis, Ehrlichiosis, Enteroaggregative e. coli infection , Enterohemorrhagic e. coli infection, Enteroinvasive e. coli infection, Enteropathogenic e. coli infection , Enterotoxigenic e. coli infection , Epidemic typhus , Erythema chronicum migrans , Erythema multiforme, Erythema nodosum , Escharonodulaire, Fever , Flavivirus infections, Flea-borne diseases, Flu , Gingivostomatitis, Gnathostoma hispidum infection, Gnathostoma infection, Gnathostoma spinigerum infection, Guanarito virus, H1n1 flu, Hand-foot-and-mouth disease, Hantavirus, Helicobacter cinaedi infection, Helicobacter fenneliae infection, Helminthiasis, Hepatitis , Herpes simplex encephalitis , Histoplasmosis, Hookworm , Hypersensitivity pneumonitis, India tick typhus, Indian tick fever, Infectious diarrhea, Infectious mononucleosis, Infective endocarditis, Influenza a , Influenza b , Influenza, Invasive group a streptococcal disease, Isopsoriasis , Israeli spotted fever, Kenya fever , Kenya tick typhus, Kenya tick-bite fever, Legionnaires’ disease , Liver abscess, Lung abscess, Lyme disease, Lymphocytic choriomeningitis , Machupo virus, Marseilles fever, Mediastinitis, Mediterranean spotted fever, Meningococcemia, Mesenteric adenitis, Mononucleosis , Mosquito-borne diseases, Mountain fever , Mountain tick fever , Mumps, Mycobacterial infections, Mycobacterium xenopi , Nasopharyngitis, Newcastle disease, Ocular vaccinia , Paragonimiasis, Paratyphoid fever, Pelvic abscess , Pelvic inflammatory disease, Perirectal abscess, Pharyngoconjunctival fever , Pneumocytosis, Pneumonia, Pneumonitis , Polio, Poxviridae disease , Protozoan infections, Pseudomembranous colitis , Psittacosis, Q fever, Queensland tick typhus, Rabies, Renal carbuncle, Respiratory tract infections, Rhinovirus infection, Rhodococcus equi , Rocio encephalitis, Rubella, Sars, Secondary syphilis, Shingles, Simian b virus infection , Sindbis fever , Spirochetes disease, Stachybotrys chartarum , Tick-borne encephalitis , Tonsilitis , Tooth abscess, Toxoplasmosis, Transverse myelitis, Traveler’s diarrhea, Trypanosomiasis, Tuberculosis, Type a influenza, Type b influenza, Type c influenza, Typhoid fever, Upper respiratory infection, Urinary tract infection, Varicella virus antenatal infection, Varicella zoster, Vibrio vulnificus infection, Viral digestive infections, West african trypanosomiasis , West nile encephalitis, West nile fever , Western equine encephalitis, Whooping cough , Worm conditions , Yaws 
Musculoskeletal/Orthopedic Acute myelofibrosis, Acute panmyelosis, Hip cancer, Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumors , Mixed connective tissue disease , Pelvic abscess , Pelvic inflammatory disease, Ventral hernia
Neurologic Acute bokhoror , Acute viliuisk encephalitis, Acute viliuisk encephalomyelitis, African sleeping sickness, Brachial neuritis, California encephalitis, Chronic fatigue syndrome , Colorado tick encephalitis, Dermatomyositis, Dermatostomatitis, Eastern equine encephalitis, Eijkman’s syndrome, Encephalitis, Fatigue, Herpes simplex encephalitis , Inadequate sleep, Marchiafava-micheli disease, Myelitis, Opsoclonus myoclonus , Rocio encephalitis, Slowly progressive bokhoror , Slowly progressive viliuisk encephalitis, Slowly progressive viliuisk encephalomyelitis, Space adaptation syndrome , Tick-borne encephalitis , Treponema infection, Winkelman bethfe pfeiffer syndrome 
Nutritional/Metabolic Bicarbonate deficit , Burnett’s syndrome, Cyclospora cayetanenis food poisoning, Diabetes , Organic acidemia , Peanut allergy, Type 2 diabetes, Wheat intolerance 
Obstetric/Gynecologic Acute fatty liver of pregnancy , Autoimmune oophoritis, Breast abscess, Fitz-hugh syndrome, Hellp syndrome
Oncologic Aggressive nk-cell leukaemia, Back tumour, Blood cancers , Chronic leukemia , Classical hodgkin disease , Colon cancer, Distal colorectal cancer, Follicular dendritic cell tumor , Hamartomatous colorectal cancer, Hepatocellular carcinoma, Hepatoma, Hip cancer, Hodgkin’s disease , Hypereosinophilic syndrome, Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumors , Kidney cancer , Leukemia, Liver cancer, Lymphadenopathy, Lymphocyte depletion hodgkin’s disease , Lymphocytic choriomeningitis , Lymphoma, Mixed cellularity hodgkin’s disease , Nodular sclerosing hodgkin’s lymphoma, Ovarian cancer, Papillary renal cell carcinoma, Philadelphia-negative chronic myeloid leukemia, Pleuropulmonary blastoma , Proximal colorectal cancer, Renal cell carcinoma , Rib tumor, Spleen cancer , Spleen neoplasm, Sporadic colorectal cancer, Squamous cell skin cancer 
Ophthalmologic Acute posterior multifocal placoid pigment, Bruch’s disease, Ocular vaccinia 
Overdose/Toxicity Herbal agent overdose, Hypervitaminosis a , Sulfone syndrome, Zieve syndrome
Psychiatric Depression, Depressive disorders, Discontinuation syndrome, Dysthymia, Emotional trauma, Stress
Pulmonary Acute bronchitis , Acute lower respiratory conditions, Acute pneumonia, Bronchitis, Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Coccidioidomycosis , Familial interstitial fibrosis, Farmer’s lung, Hamman-rich syndrome, Histoplasmosis, Hypersensitivity pneumonitis, Legionnaires’ disease , Lung abscess, Mediastinitis, Pleuropulmonary blastoma , Pneumocytosis, Pneumonia, Pneumonitis , Polymer fume fever , Pulmonary anthrax , Renal tuberculosis, Respiratory tract infections, Sarcoidosis, Silicosis, Tuberculosis, Upper respiratory infection, Whooping cough , Yellow nail syndrome 
Renal/Electrolyte Acute renal failure, Chronic interstitial nephritis, Chronic pyelonephritis , Cope’s syndrome, Hyponatremia, Kidney cancer , Milk-alkali syndrome , Munk disease , Nephrotic syndrome, Papillary renal cell carcinoma, Pyelonephritis, Renal carbuncle, Renal cell carcinoma , Renal failure, Renal tuberculosis
Rheumatology/Immunology/Allergy Acute rheumatic fever, Allergic rhinitis , Bowel bypass syndrome, Bowel-associated dermatosis-arthritis syndrome, Brachial neuritis, Castellani syndrome, Conor’s disease, Dermatomyositis, Dermatostomatitis, Felty syndrome, Human adjuvant disease, Idiopathic diffuse interstitial fibrosis, Lupus, Mixed connective tissue disease , Mucha-habermann syndrome, Multifocal fibrosclerosis, Peanut allergy, Perennial allergic rhinitis, Perennial rhinitis, Polymyalgia rheumatica , Rheumatic fever, Rheumatoid arthritis, Sarcoidosis, Seasonal allergic rhinitis, Sulfone syndrome, Systemic lupus erythematosus, Wheat intolerance , Yaws 
Sexual Aids, Chronic active hepatitis, Secondary syphilis
Trauma Ventral hernia
Urologic Cope’s syndrome, Milk-alkali syndrome , Prostate disorders, Urinary tract infection
Miscellaneous No underlying causes

Causes by alphabetical order

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Epidemiology and Demographics

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Risk Factors

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Natural History, Complications and Prognosis

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Diagnosis

Diagnosis

History and Symptoms | Physical Examination | Laboratory Findings | Other Diagnostic Studies

Treatment

Treatment

Medical Therapy | Primary Prevention | Secondary Prevention | Cost-Effectiveness of Therapy | Future or Investigational Therapies

Case Studies

Case Studies

Case #1

Related Chapters

Template:Skin and subcutaneous tissue symptoms and signs Template:Nervous and musculoskeletal system symptoms and signs Template:Urinary system symptoms and signs Template:Cognition, perception, emotional state and behaviour symptoms and signs Template:Speech and voice symptoms and signs Template:General symptoms and signs

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