Cardiovascular disease is a condition that is not restricted to a man alone. It is in fact the number one fatal disease killing women above twenty years of age in America irrespective of ethnicity or race. The irony is that the death rate of cardiovascular disease in men has decreased but has now begun to show a rise in women. Cardiovascular disease in women is mainly caused due to a condition called atherosclerosis, which refers to the condition when the arteries get clogged or hardened. This is a result of cholesterol building up from within and fatty deposits accumulating in the inside arterial walls. This stops the flow of blood to the heart and without enough blood; the heart gets depleted with oxygen. Most of the vital nutrients also decrease and this is what results in the state called angina. When one or more of the arteries get blocked completely, then the person normally suffers from a heart attack. Symptoms of any cardiovascular diseases in women are unusually rapid heartbeats,  [...]

Musculoskeletal disorders are greatly difficult and painful aches in the joints and the muscles. The person loses the strength in the hand and also has a lot of stiffness and swelling. Alongwith this there is a general pain in the forearms, wrists, neck, elbows, and the back. The motion is lesser in the neck, shoulder and the back. The vision is blurred and there is a lot of tingling and aching too. The person loses colour in the regions that are affected and there are headaches caused due to tension stress and other ailments. Why does a person get a musculoskeletal disorder? The reasons are many. It could either be a wrong posture due to sitting in front of the computer. It could be due to lack of support in the back while working. It could be because the person is in the same position for a long time. It could be due to the muscles stretching completely in the ligaments, tendons and muscles. Sometimes over activity leads to a pain in the musculoskeletal joints. So actions like bending  [...]

Skin rashes occur due to a problem in that particular anatomical area. These are found to affect people who are sensitive to certain situations and substances. There are many kinds of skin rashes so let us get to know what they exactly are. Seborrheic dermatitis is a kind of skin rash that is seen to affect most of the adults. This is an eruption that comes with red scales and that is seen to occur in the brows, scalp, forehead, external ears and cheeks. Then you have atopic dermatitis which is another kind of skin rash and is known as eczema and is a very common disorder during childhood. So children get red rashes which are itchy and ooze and these occur normally on the back of the knees and the elbows. They are also found in the wrists, cheeks, neck and ankles. It is normally seen in those patients who have hay fever and asthma. Then you have contact dermatitis that is another rash that is mainly brought on either due to touch and contact with a particular chemical or due to a substance  [...]

Grass pollen is said to cause a lot of allergic reactions. Grass pollen in the air affects many people. In late springs and in the early months of the summer season, this causes allergic conditions resulting in rhinitis, asthma, and conjunctivitis. Any contact of skin with the grass or any kind of sitting in the grass or actions like mowing the lawn etc causes a lot of itching sensation in the skin. So atopic dermatitis and urticaria result after a normal grass allergy. Grass pollen allergy is also said to be linked with the fruit pollen syndrome thus resulting in a lot of allergies to vegetables like potatoes and tomatoes and fruits like peaches. Grass pollen is normally the main pollen in the air in the summer months. Allergy to this kind of pollen results in sneezing, itchy eyes and runny nose. There are cases of asthma attacks in some people. Grasses can be classified as southern and northern grasses. The southern grass is found in regions with warm climate and here the Bermuda grass  [...]

We at all times are worried about our skin as we tend to expose our skin to harsh climatic conditions, stressed life style, lack of sleep, junk food, low quality cosmetics, itching skin, greasy skin, acne. It is imperative to take care of your skin and keep it glowing at all times by following some of these tips- 1.    During monsoons fungal and bacterial infections are common, hence use anti fungal powder on all body to avoid infection. 2.    If you have oily skin make sure to use light weight moisturizer after bath, and scrub your face to remove dirt and grime. 3.    If you have a dry skin the skin tends to get itchy, and you may use a good moisturizing lotion or cream, use a heavy weight sun screen, and keep your skin hydrated by using cleanser and alcohol free toner to keep it moisturized. 4.    Make sure you have a healthy diet as it reflects on your skin. Include Vitamin A and Omega 3 in your diet as they are rich in nutrients and rich in oils and keep your skin  [...]

Angina, a dreaded cardiovascular disease of heart is the number one killer today and begins with a minor chest pain, and which is often ignored by us as we have the tendency to describe it as acidity or gas, but if this symptom is not taken seriously and treated properly it may culminate in to a massive heart attack. Angina is a recuing pain in the chest when the flow of blood to the heart is erratic and the coronary arteries that carry blood to the heart become narrowed and blocked. The pain is usually in the chest but sometimes it may be felt in the arms, neck, jaw or upper abdomen. It is advisable to take a angiography test to determine the intensity of the angina and to find out the specific locations of the blockages or narrowing of the coronary arteries. If the blockage seems critical to your health a procedure termed as angioplasty is required. Angioplasty is a procedure and not an operation, a technique to widen your obstructed blood vessel. Also stents are now widely used,  [...]

There are a couple of diseases to watch out for in the month of monsoon. It is imperative that effective remedies may be used to prevent these diseases during monsoon. During monsoon we may be affected by common cold and flu- more than 200 viruses are known to cure the common cold but mostly it is rhinoviruses, which affects your upper respiratory system- nose, voice box, throat, wind pipes and lungs. The viruses spread through air particles that are expelled while coughing or sneezing. Also it is found that the viruses move from some ones hand to your hands by a simple handshake or by a door knob or handkerchief from your hands to your nose and mouth. The symptoms of this virus are you may get runny nose, nasal congestion, coughing. Medical treatment must be taken immediately and you must drink plenty of hot fluid like soup and water to keep your body warm The other kind of disease we get during monsoon is the viral fever, due to the change in temperature and we have fever, body  [...]

A great news for cancer patients- a second chance. This is a new aggressive procedure for those suffering from cancer of abdomen and intestine. This procedure is a combination of CRS (cytoreductive surgery) and hipec (hyperthermic intra-peritoneal chemotherapy). This treatment can also be used for ovarian cancer, appendix cancer, bowel cancer. The treatment with this procedure improves the quality of life and in some cases prolongs the life. CRS- removes all visible or macroscopic tumors from the abdominal cavity. Hipec - a hot, high concentrated dose of chemotherapy is given in the abdominal cavity to remove the remaining microscopic cancer cells. This treatment is prescribed for peritoneal mesthelmia which is cancer of the lining of the chest and abdomen, and for the psuedomyxoma peritonei build up mucus in the abdominal cavitity. In some cases it can be used for cancer of colon. The cost of surgery in India is about 10 lakh rupees. There is a huge potential for this treatment,  [...]

Lying is a very difficult, hard, tough task and lot more complex than telling the truth. At the outset you have to accept the truth and then use all means to deny the truth and make sure it is consistent with all the given answers that you are about to give. It has been scientifically proved and researched the fact that your brain is working harder can be seen in the called- electroencephalograph (EEG) which measures the electric signals and the activity in your brain. In our brain there is a part called anterior cingulate cortex which spots errors or conflicts as they are termed, and in case of deception, it spots the conflict between the truth and what you have just said. What can be measured using EEG, known as P300, is the amount of attention you are giving to any one given task. When someone is lying as they are multitasking as the attention given to any one task drops and so does the strength of the P300 signal, which can be used as a lie detector. It is this complexity that makes  [...]

Why do patients who need cancer treatment go to the west if they have the means and resources when India has more specialized advanced oncology departments then ever? It is the USA that is regarded as the best treatment point for cancer. The answer is disappointing and sad- from diagnosis to therapy there is glaring knowledge gap. Some of the reasons are: There is no compulsory registration of cancer patients and hence no data is available on different patterns of the disease. Since there is no information sharing all crucial decisions are taken by the individual doctor or pathologist. So there are about 28lacs of cancer at any given time in India, there are no official records regarding the number yet. The system of tumour boards -teams of oncologists, radiologists, and pathologists, is mandatory for all cancer cases in the west, but yet to be found in India. There are few specialized doctors with organ specific training and oncology centres with organ specific specialization. Diagnostics  [...]