Many conditions, lifestyle choices, medicines, and diseases interfere
with your ability to heal or fight infection. You may be at risk for a more
serious problem from your symptoms if you have any of the following. Be sure to
tell your doctor.
Conditions
- Drinking untreated well, stream, or lake
water
- History of a head injury
- History of a mental
health problem
- History of panic or anxiety
disorders
- History of pelvic or abdominal surgery
- Recent
travel outside the United States
- Surgery to remove the
spleen
Lifestyle choices
- Alcohol abuse or withdrawal
- Being
overweight
- Drug abuse or withdrawal
- Smoking or other
tobacco use
Medicines
- Blood-thinning medicines, such as warfarin,
heparin, and aspirin
- Corticosteroids, such as prednisone
- Medicines to prevent organ transplant rejection
- Medicines to treat cancer (chemotherapy)
- Radiation
therapy
Diseases
- Blocked intestine (intestinal obstruction)
- Cancer of
the colon or rectum
- Cancer of the stomach or
esophagus
- Cirrhosis of the
liver
- Diabetes
- Diverticulosis
- Gallbladder
problems
- Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
- Heart
disease or risk factors for heart disease
- Hiatal
hernia
- Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
infection
- Inflammatory bowel disease such as Crohn's disease or
ulcerative colitis
- Kidney disease
- Liver
disease
- Neurologic disease
- Ovarian
cancer
- Parasitic infection, such as amebiasis, worms, or
giardiasis
- Sickle cell disease
- Stomach
ulcer
- Thyroid disease
