The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

HEALTH

Acupuncture being used to cure various diseases
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 27
When it comes to treating pain, acupuncture is no longer a flaky alternative but a mainstream tool of modern medicine. This was stated by Dr Raman Kapur, HOD, Department of Acupuncture, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi. According to him “Acupuncture has been used not only in the treatment of arthritic, back pains and frozen shoulder but it has successfully been used in the treatment of bronchial asthma, migraine, epilepsy, stomach problems including ulcers, and cardiovascular disease and various kinds of de-addictions.”

Dr Kapur has treated thousands of patients with high success rate in the past 20 years. With the advancement of science, newer modalities of treatment without the use of needles like laser, ultrasonics, acutron and scraping therapy have been added, and all of them are now available to the patients in India.

Speaking about two new technologies, the Acutech and PAS, which have been introduced for the first time in India, Dr Kapur said, “Acutech is a computerized system which is able to check energy flow in the 12 acupuncture channels through which energy is flowing on the surface of the body and suggest treatment accordingly.

The PAS is called ‘Pulse Analysis System’ and is able to check all our internal organs and suggest the imbalance in the interior organs, causing disease. Accordingly, the doctor is able to choose points and correct the imbalance. It is very scientific and we can assess improvement of the patients also by using these modern techniques.”

Dr Sunita Kapur, director, Institute of Acupuncture and Natural Medicines, present on the occasion, was delighted about the new affiliation of the institute with the Acupuncture College of Beijing, University of TCM.

“We have been committed to provide 40 quality Acupuncturist every year in 4 session. Some of them are from abroad, who have been successfully practicing abroad. Through this affiliation with the Chinese University, we will be able to invite doctors from China to teach acupuncture to our students.”

The institute also provides online courses (website wwwicanm.com) on acupuncture for busy practitioners who can cover the theoretical aspect online and then come for the clinical training.

BODY & MIND
Surgeon’s skilled fingers stitch amputated hand
Tripti Nath

AAKASH, a four-year-old boy from Mandkola village in Palwal (Haryana) who came to Sir Ganga Ram Hospital early this month with an amputated left hand was discharged on Christmas eve with a repaired hand.

The boy cut his hand through the wrist while running a fodder-cutting machine at home.

Dr Mahesh Mangal, Consultant Plastic Surgeon at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, is satisfied with Aakash’s progress after the six-hour-long surgery. He is hopeful that the boy’s hand will heal very soon. “The bones take six weeks to heal while the nerves and tendons take three weeks.

Three weeks from the date of operation, we will pursue the patient for physiotherapy and gradual mobilisation of the finger.”

Dr Mangal said that an orthopaedic surgeon in Mandkola village referred the boy to him.

“The boy had cut his hand through the wrist. His father, a farmer said that he was unable to afford treatment. The hospital administration spared the boy a bed in the general ward. The operation was done free of cost. The parents had taken care to bring with them the amputated part of the hand. The surgery lasted six hours. The size of

the blood vessels in children is small. So, we have to use an operating microscope and repair the blood vessels.’’

He said that that the boy injured himself while his parents were away at work. Aakash thought that running the fodder-cutting machine was a child’s play and fed his hand instead of the fodder under the machine’s merciless and sharp blade.

Dr Mangal says that it is important to preserve the amputated part in such cases. “The amputated part should be put in a small plastic bag. This bag should be put into a bigger plastic bag and ice should be put on the base of the small plastic bag. The temperature around the packed amputated part should be 4 degree C. Care should be taken to ensure that the amputated part does not come into direct contact with the ice. In cases of amputation wrist downwards, one must bring the patient within 10 hours. This is the golden period though we have replanted the finger even after 18 hours of amputation. Such operations are done by plastic surgeons trained in microvascular surgery. Every year, I do about 20 such cases.’’

Hernia repair technique

Patients advised hernia surgeries need no longer dread pain. The Prolene Hernia System introduced in India by Ethicon, a division of Johnson & Johnson, promises patients a definite advantage over traditional hernia repair techniques.

The new technique is less painful than the traditional hernia repair techniques and is indeed a blessing for India which has about 800,000 Hernia patients.

Dr Satish Jain, Medical Director and Chief of Surgery, Surgical Oncology, Mohan Dai Oswal Memorial Hospital, Ludhiana, says that they have overtaken other hospitals in the northern region by doing 10 surgeries in the last one year using the Prolene Hernia System.

Most of these patients were old and very comfortable after the operation.

“In the traditional hernia repair technique, we suture the upper and lower part of the defect in the abdominal wall together. That creates a lot of tension in that area and leads to a lot of pain. Chances of recurrence are more. The new system eliminates the possibility of tension and recurrence. The abdominal wall is strengthened by the Prolene Hernia System. A minimal number of stitches are needed to secure the device. This reduces discomfort and chances of nerve damage,” he explained.

The surgeon further said that hernia is a protrusion of the abdominal contents because of a defect in the abdominal wall. The most common part of the body that is affected is the groin. It can also be in the umbilical or para umbilical area. It occurs among newborns, children, adults and the elderly.

Dr Jain said that the cost of the Prolene Hernia System is almost double the traditional hernia repair technique.

The mesh used in the Prolene system alone costs Rs 8,000. It is a double layer system which strengthens the abdominal wall. So far, about 2,500 patients across the country have benefited from the new hernia repair system evolved by Ethicon.

Indian doctors welcome in UK

Indian doctors and surgeons are in demand in the UK, according to a report published in the September-October issue of Britain Today. Britain’s National Health Service (NHS) is planning to recruit Indian medical professionals on a large scale. The report titled ‘Healthy Opportunities’, says that NHS international programme is targeted to reduce waiting time for treatment, improve facilities and allow patients more choice in the place and modalities of treatment. The placement scheme is aimed at attracting experienced consultants who are interested in working in the Department of Health (DoH).

According to the report, NHS has maximum vacancies in General Practice, Psychiatry, Histopathology, Anaesthetics, Orthopaedic Surgery, Ophthalmology and General Internal Medicine.

NHS executed its decision by organising a week-long guidance seminar in July. An NHS delegation led by Dr Pradeep Singhal and Dr Steve Atherton, medical advisors to the DoH on international recruitment guided about 250 doctors on the application and selection process and replied to questions about the placement schemes and aspects of living and working in the UK.

Hailing the NHS initiative, Dr Subhash Gupta, Consultant Surgical Gastroenterologist at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital who has spent six years in the UK says, “There are quite a large number of Indian doctors in the UK.

They prefer Indian doctors because most Indian doctors have had some training in the UK and have good linguistic abilities.

Their English is quite good. They have made an impression there. They also go through rigorous examination as PLAB (Professional and Linguistic Abilities Test) to be able to get a licence from the General Medical Council to practice.

This kind of a recruitment drive by the NHS is unprecedented. It will provide Indian doctors rich experience and volume of work. Even if they are appointed on a short-term contract, it is worthwhile. A number of doctors in the government set-up in India may like to avail themselves of this opportunity. Some may even go in the hope of migrating to other countries after their contract comes to an end.”

Enumerating the merits of NHS, Dr Gupta who served in the UK from 1993 to ‘98, first as a Registrar in Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Burmingham and finished as Senior Clinic Fellow in St. James’ University Hospital, Leeds says, “NHS is a wonderful and unique system. The beauty of NHS is that it promises equal treatment to everybody irrespective of what social station he/she belongs to. Although NHS has a waiting time for treatment, it has guidelines to prioritise treatment according to the gravity of the disease. It also has a waiting list initiative which gives surgeons an incentive to operate on weekends.”

SPORTS

National School Games
Delhi girls run away with baseball title
Our Sports Reporter

New Delhi, December 27
Delhi emerged winners in the under-19 girls baseball final while Goa took the second position and Madhya Pradesh the third place in the National School Games at the Chattrasal Stadium in the Capital on Saturday.

In the girls under-14 handball title clash, Uttranchal defeated Chandigarh 8-6 and NVS trounced Uttar Pradesh 14-1. In the boys section, Goa defeated Madhya Pradesh 24-14, Chhattisgarh beat Gujarat 12-9 and Rajasthan defeated Jammu and Kashmir 23-5.

In the under-19 boys handball contests, Uttar Pradesh beat Gujarat 21-19, Kerala defeated Uttranchal 28-24, Rajasthan beat Chhattisgarh 25-20 and Jammu and Kashmir beat NVS 26-25.

Following are the other results: Under-17 boys wrestling semi-finals: 42kg: Naveen of Delhi b Pankaj of UP, Ranjeet of MP b Sehdev of Orissa. 45kg: Jitender of MP b Ram Prakash of UP, Sunil of Delhi b Venktesh of Karnataka.

48kg: Sumeet of Delhi b Satish of Uttranchal, Jitender of Rajasthan b Bhola Yadav of MP. 52kg: Mohamad of Uttranchal b Vikas of Haryana, Somvir of Delhi b Anil of UP. 57kg: Sunder of Rajasthan b Hardeep of Haryana, Manoj of Karnataka b Kuldeep of UP. 63kg: Kanhaya of MP b Vivek Rana of Uttranchal, Jaipal of Delhi b Rama Shankar of UP. 69kg: Gurmail of Uttranchal b Sandeep of Haryana, Kapil of Delhi b Mahesh of Rajasthan. 76kg: Vijay of Delhi b Kulvinder of UP, Monupal of Haryana b Amit of MP.

Under-14 boys semi-finals: 25kg: Amil of Delhi b Akshay of MP, Manju Nath of Haryana b Rohit of Chandigarh. 30kg: Anup of Haryana b Gopal of MP, Yogesh of Delhi b Sandeep of Karnataka. 32kg: Jitender of Delhi b Jogender of Chandigarh, Jitender of MP b Parveen of Haryana, Jaideep of Delhi b Shareef of Karnataka. 38kg: Surender of Delhi b Mohsin Khan of MP. 55kg: Jaiveer of Delhi b Mehfar Khan of MP, Amit of Haryana b Manish Mali of Rajasthan. Plus 60kg: Ranjeet of Delhi b Parasnath of UP, Bittu Yadav of MP b Malik Parekh of Gujarat.

Young Friends earn full points
Our Sports Reporter

New Delhi, December 27
Match-winning bowling spells by Rakshi Pant (3 for 10) and Rippu Daman (3 for 12) helped Young Friends Club defeat Abhay Ram Gymkhana by seven wickets in a league match of the fourth Shakuntala Devi Memorial Under-19 Cricket Tournament at the Dogra Academy ground.

Scores: A R Gymkhana: 126 all out in 33 overs (Sahil Chaudhary 40, Vipin Kumar 28, Ripu Daman 3 for 12, Rakshit Pant 3 for 10, Arjun Choudhary 2 for 11). Young Friends: 130 for 3 in 21 overs (Ishan Bakshi 49, Sumit Poria 44 n o, Rakshit Pant 21 n o, Chirag Kumar 2 for 27).

Malik beat KG Colts

Malik Sports beat K G Colts by 18 runs in an A-II Division match of the DDCA League at the RSKP ground.

Scores: Malik Sports: 149 all out in 34.4 overs (Mohd Shakir 33, Mohd Yasin 27, Rohit Saini 3 for 30, Saurabh Jain 3 for 17).

KG Colts: 131 all out in 32.5 overs (Jaladh Dua 31, Simranjeet Singh 20, Mohd Shakir 4 for 18, Shadab Malik 4 for 31).

Veteran soccer player dead

Former Delhi State football player Durga Pershad died in Delhi on Saturday following cardiac failture. He was 58, and is survived by his wife, one son and three daughters.

Durga Pershad was an inspector with the Army Headquarters. He played as a regular left-out from 1967 to 1982 in the Delhi Soccer Association league for Army Headquarters, Delhi Cantt, Modernites and Delhi Veteran Club. The DSA condoled the untimely death of Durga Pershad.