Certain symptoms, which people often find harmless can actually be signs of a more sinister problem. These symptoms, if caught early, can guide a clinician to a diagnosis of an underlying problem. If you have any of these symptoms, under these conditions, please consult your doctor.

1. A consistent fever - a consistent low grade fever which goes on for more than seven days can be indicative of many underlying conditions.

2. An unexplained bruise - if one or more bruises develop anywhere on the body and you cannot explain why; this may point to hepatitis, liver disease, leukemia, etc.

3. A persistent cough - if this last for more than two weeks this could suggest a chest infection. Furthermore, it could mean asthma, heart disease, etc. If this occurs in children especially at night this is a diagnostic feature of asthma.

4. A brief cognitive impairment - a instance of problems with vision or speech should not be ignored.  This could indicate a period where the blood is not able to reach a certain part of the brain.  This is sometimes referred to as a TIA and they are known to occur before a stroke or a heart attack.  Other health symptoms like numbness, a tingling feeling, dizziness, etc.should be referred to a doctor immediately.

5. A visual disturbance -  this would include blurry vision and pain in the eyes may signal the eye disease known as Glaucoma.  That is why if you have the health symptoms mentioned, visit your eye specialist immediately.

Health symptoms may not be able to pinpoint exactly what sickness a person has.  However, those health symptoms may prompt us that it is about time we head to the hospital, have a check up and find out the causes and what treatment is needed to cure them.