Monthly Archives: February 2018
Importance of Skin Care During Holi
Holi is a festival of colors and celebrated with the full spirit in India. These days, it is being celebrated in many places all over the world as well. However, the ill effects of poor grade colors on the skin is a very common scenario these days. Dermatologists advise taking special precaution during Holi.
Let’s understand the importance of skin care for Holi season with the help of a case study.
Miss Sayantani Mitra, a second-year college student had an unpleasant incident last Holi. Miss Mitra had a sensitive skin since an early age. Her parents always encouraged her to stay away from color ever since. However, after she moved to the residential academy, the scenario changed. Her friends and peers encouraged her to get involved in the Holi party.
After playing for about 3 to 4 hours outdoors, she washed off most of the colors while bathing. However, during the evening, she started experiencing itching, burning sensation, and irritation of the skin. A friend asked her to use a moisturizer to soothe the discomfort. But it did very little to improve the condition, in contrast, things worsen overnight. She was brought to a dermatologist the next day. After examining her, the doctor found her skin was severely damaged.
It became dry, scrubbed, cracked and also had early symptoms of eczema. The scrubbing of skin in the attempt of removing color also contributed to excessive damage to the skin. As she had pre-existing skin issues, her condition became quite severe. After getting extensive treatment of 2 weeks, the primary signs of skin allergy was resolved, but regular medication was prescribed for 2 more months to negate any more ill effects of the chemicals.
Dermatologists confirm that several such cases are registered each year following the day of Holi. Many of such patients even complain severe allergy in scalp and eyes as well. Moreover, apart from the ill effects of chemicals present in colors, spending long hours in direct exposure to sunlight also damages the skin simultaneously. It causes pigmentation, sunburn and also acts as a catalyst to skin damage caused by chemicals.
During this festival season of Holi, we, at ILS Hospitals, wish you all happy and prosperous moments with your family and friends. But stay in charge of your health amidst enjoyment and happiness. In case of any skin allergies, instead of trying homemade remedies and making things worse, get in touch with a dermatologist.
Bust These 5 Mammogram Related Myths Forever
Getting an annual screening of mammogram is recommended by gynecologists to ensure the earliest detection of breast cancer. It is highly advised for women with age more than 40yrs. Several myths surrounding the sensitive subject, which leads to a misconception among women make them avoid regular mammogram.
Let’s have a look at 5 of such myths and extract the truth out of it.
Myth 1 – Mammogram is not required until some symptoms appear
The biggest and most dangerous myth that jeopardizes the lives of many patients each year often leads patient to neglect the need for a mammogram until they experience some discomfort like pain and swelling or other symptoms like a lump or discharge. This reduces their chances of success of curing cancer entirely.
Myth 2 – Mammogram is irrelevant for women with no family/personal history of breast cancer or other breast illnesses.
As the patient keeps wasting precious moments by skipping the screening, malignant cells keep growing and make thing worse. As per statistics, about 8 in every 10 breast cancer patient has no family history of the same.
Myth 3 – Routine screening is nonessentials if nothing suspicious surfaced in the previous report
A very common belief that a previous report with no threat rules out the need to have it regularly in the future as well. However, it should be kept in mind that a mammogram is simply a diagnostic probe and not a preventive measure. Thereby, it is best to keep having those after crossing 40yrs of age.
Myth 4 – A 2D mammogram serves the same purpose as a 3D mammogram
Medical science and technology has advanced and so has the mammogram techniques. The traditional 2D mammogram is effective, but it has certain drawbacks that have overcome by 3D mammogram. The 2D mammogram might not be able to diagnose a cancer growth for patients with denser breast tissues or might misdiagnose or minor cells mimicking as cancer threats. A breast MRI or ultrasound may be additionally suggested to confirm the report.
Myth 5 – A mammogram exposes to harmful radiation to make thing worse.
It is true that a mammogram utilizes the radiation, but it closely follows the medical protocol. Getting a mammogram is absolutely safe if it is being availed at a certified facility.
Thus, it is advised to stay vigilant of the actual facts, rather than getting misguided by myths for a healthier future ahead.
The Scope and Benefits of Laparoscopic Surgery
The laparoscopic surgery is an advanced surgical technique that overcomes several negative aspects of traditional open surgery. It is also known as MIS (minimally invasive surgery), Band-Aid surgery or Keyhole surgery. It is executed by making few minor incision, instead of making a large slit across the site.
Let’s have a look at few of its aspect and importance in the field of medical science.
The Procedure of Surgery
Though laparoscopic surgery can be executed for several domains, the most common ones are done in the abdominal region. After the anesthesia is administrated, the surgery begins by making a single incision first, through this a cannula in inserted and carbon dioxide is used to inflate the stomach. Though the abdomen does have some of it already, but often extra is pumped in order to make the surgery more convenient.
After the administration of carbon dioxide, the outer layer of the stomach inflates, creating enough working space for carrying out the surgery. Few more incisions are made through which other instruments, camera and light source etc. are inserted. The real-time feed and movements are tracked and displayed on the monitor in the Operation Theater.
The displayed images are of extremely high resolution and can easily be zoomed in and out and moved around for better visual and for carrying out the procedure. The part of the instrument extended outside the body can be moved accordingly to make the desired movement inside. These include making dissecting, stitching, perforating, stapling, collecting and extracting portions of dissected diseased organs.
After the completion of the procedure, nearby organs re-checked for any signs of possible damage or infection. Upon assurance, the instruments are retracted back and the gas is extracted back in order to retain the abdomen, its original shape.
Scope of Laparoscopy
Laparoscopy is a diagnostic as well as a surgical technique which can be used to assist surgeries in the following domains, such as
- Gallbladder surgery
- Small and large intestine surgery
- Orthopedics Surgery
- Hernia repair surgery
- Liver and pancreas surgery
- Appendix surgery
- Infertility treatment
- Reproductive organ surgery like Hysterectomy
As a diagnostic tool, it is helpful to check several medical aspects, without perforating the organ or making things worse. It is used for the following purpose
- To evaluate the effectiveness of any treatment or medication
- To evaluate the stage of any disease
- To check a polyp or tumor
- To release fluid or gas trapped in the abdominal cavity
- To collect tissue samples for biopsy
In a nutshell, it is the top-notch surgical approach that is replacing the traditional surgery these days.
The Importance of Audiology These Days
Taking medical care of every organ is kind of an impossible task these days. After crossing the age of mid-30s and 40s, often people are recommended to undergo screening in hospitals for several possible illnesses as a preventive care. These often include a breast exam, blood profile, prostate exams, eye and dental screening etc. Getting a hearing test is not something, any individual often opt for, even though it is highly recommended by audiologists. Let’s have a brief understanding of the same.
Read further: 4 SCREENING EVERY MAN SHOULD HAVE SINCE HIS EARLY 40S
Ears are important organs of our body. It facilitates detection and transmission of sound. It performs a very crucial function of maintaining the sense of balance as well. Individuals often neglect the need for an accurate hearing diagnosis from time to time, mostly due to negligence and the belief that the perfect hearing begins to degrade solely upon aging itself.
In reality, though, this does not hold true. Hearing loss can occur at any age. In fact, as per audiologists, the count of youth suffering from hearing loss is increasing alarmingly these days. This is true for both temporary and permanent hearing loss. The primary reason for the same is the excessive use of earphones for listening to music and other multimedia. Not only they use these devices for long hours but also tune them in higher volume than recommended.
Read further: 4 MUST-HAVE HEALTH SCREENING FOR EVERY WOMAN ABOVE 35
Hearing loss is the first sign of any possible ear injury or complication. Secondary symptoms like such as persistent swelling and pain in the internal ear, feeling thumbing or ringing in the ear, loss of balance etc. should be calibrated carefully.
It is advised to undergo a hearing screening once in every two years even with no visible signs of hearing loss, particularly for people above the age group of 50yrs. In case, any hearing difficulty is experienced, the screening should be even more frequent. Any sudden hearing impairment should be evaluated immediately as it may be a resultant factor of something more severe underlying reason. This is either a result of some tumor growth (both malignant and non-malignant) or due to some neurological issue.
Any hearing imparts if left untreated for long can give rise to other collateral issues, particularly in the domain of psychological health such as irritability, fatigue, depression, and impaired memory. Thus, it is always recommended to get treatment as soon as possible for any hearing discomfort.
ILS Hospitals Contribute Towards Cancer Awareness on World Cancer Day
Illness is never a thing of fancy. However, there are several illnesses that can be cured effectively with drugs, surgery, and therapy in hospitals without much loss of overall health and spirit of the individual. But sadly, the same cannot be said for several other illnesses and cancer is one of such medical conditions. Let’s understand several aspects of cancer along with the importance of world cancer day.
There are several myths that surround cancer, that misdirect people regarding their treatment options and diagnosis. These myths usually include people assuming that cancer is an illness of old age people and is like a life sentence without a cure. However, medical science is improving drastically and timely medical intervention is capable of improving the cancer overall and sometimes, it may even cure it altogether.
Cancer is one of the most prevalent medical threat all around the world. About 6 to 8 million new patients get diagnosed with some or the other form of cancer each year. To make things worse, nowadays, the rarer forms of cancers are emerging more frequently and the new patients are mostly belonging to a much younger age group that it used to be a few decades back, often as young as the early 20s.
The most common site of cancer is often the breasts and cervix in case of women, whereas it is the lung and prostate, in case of men. Other common suite includes skin, lung, blood, uterus, colon, and rectum, etc. Even though the genetics and personal history of similar background is the prime cause for the same for many patients, but it is not the only factor contributing to cancer. The heavy consumption of tobacco, alcohol, junk food and leading a sedentary life with no physical activity often contributes highly to the onset of cancer.
The World Cancer Day is the perfect gateway to spread the role of timely diagnosis and treatment of cancer. It is a joint effort of World Health Organization (WHO) and Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) to educate an individual, society, government and non-government organization to unite and fight towards the cause. This 4th February, in the event of World Cancer Day, we, at ILS Hospitals, pledge to do our bidding by spreading awareness of the same. We extend our support to the patents and families who are suffering from any form of cancer.
4 Ways How Love Can Improvise Your Overall Health
Love, love, and love! With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, that is all you get to hear. You might even be getting sick of hearing about love but it turns out that being in love has its perks too. Let’s take a different approach to love and gather few medically positive aspects of being in love. It might not serve the same purpose as the best heart hospitals, it certainly does add several wonderful aspects in your life.
1. Love makes you psychologically more stable
A happy soul is a key towards a healthier body, and people often find inner strength through their beloved. Moreover, mental issues like hypertension, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic experienced etc. are best resolved along with the company of loved ones. That is the reason why often the presence of the patient’s spouse is also welcomed and encouraged during psychiatric evaluation and consultation.
2. Love makes your heart healthier
Once again, the magical words ‘I love you’ would do no good in event of any cardiac emergency and rush to nearest best heart hospital will only save the life. However, as per studies, the happily married/engaged people have been found to have much better cardiovascular health. Moreover, they contribute towards a lower range of blood pressure, ruling out several cardiovascular issues.
3. Love makes post-surgery and recovery much easier
Despite being rich, young, healthy and careful, having an illness from time to time, and feeling vulnerable at the same is inevitable. Often the surgical approach becomes the only treatment for several illnesses as well. Dealing with post-surgery care and recovery back to health is more effective with a beloved by the side. The feeling of dependency and reliability contribute significantly towards the overall sense of security and well-being and thus speed up the recovery procedure.
4. Love makes you live longer
Loved ones certainly cannot transfer their years into others lifeline, but it indirectly makes them go for positive changes that yield longevity in a long run for sure. Surviving stored and highly processed food, heavy smoking/drinking, being a couch potato etc. can lead to several illnesses in near future.
Having a spouse or even a lover often brings positive reinforcement in these sedentary lifestyle choices. It encourages to make better choices in terms of diet and other factors. It often reduces the chances of getting engaged in rash behavior such as abuse, rash driving, etc as well. Thus, the person lives an ideal lifespan altogether.
Apart from the stated points, a family also gives a sense of purpose and encourage to invest towards medical needs including screening and medical insurance etc. Overall, it ensures a longevity of an individual with healthier aspects.