HEALTH

Brain awareness week from March 13
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 6
The Departments of Neurology and Neurosurgery, PGIMER, Chandigarh, in association with the European Dana Alliance of Brain (EDAB), London, and the PGI Neurological Society is organising a Brain Awareness Week from March 13 to 19.

This will be an international event coordinated by the EDAB. Various centres and institutions across the globe will promote awareness on neurosciences by talking about the achievements in brain research and enhancing awareness on brain diseases in public.

“In today’s world the incidence of brain attacks are on the rise, causing increase in morbidity and mortality, raising financial burden on society. It is the need of the time to educate the people and address their misconcepts and curiosities regarding diseases like this,” says Prof S. Prabhakar.

During the Brain Awareness Week, meetings of patients with multiple sclerosis and Parkinson's disease will be held. Information regarding common diseases like epilepsy, brain fever, headaches, movement disorders and head injury will be given to the people through lectures and interactive sessions.

Informative materials on brain diseases in the form of leaflets and brochures will be distributed among people visiting the new OPD complex. Posters pertaining to the aspects of the diagnosis and treatment of brain diseases will also be displayed. A drawing and painting competition for children with epilepsy will also be conducted during this week.

The care and rehabilitation of patients afflicted by these diseases, including their dietary requirements and physiotherapy, will also be dealt with. Live demonstrations of physiotherapy will be carried out for the benefit of the patients. Dietary modifications and ideal dietary recommendations will also be displayed for the patients and their attendants.

To enquire about the event, the public can call on telephone Nos. 2756690, 2756691 and 5536695.

Rise in number of viral infection patients
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 6
Dispensaries and OPDs are flooded with patients complaining of body ache, fever, running nose and cough. And, if you are having any of these symptoms, chances are that a viral infection is just beginning to set in. Children and adults alike are in the grip of viral and the number of patients visiting doctors is increasing everyday.

Prof Atul Sachdev from the Department of Medicine, Government Medical College and Hospital, Sector 32, blames it squarely on the weather. “The dryness in the air is responsible for more and more patients coming in with complaints of viral, the symptoms being high fever, cough and running nose,” he says.

Dr S.K. Bhardwaj, Department of Medicine, General Hospital, Sector 16, said: “It lasts for three or five days and causes weakness and loss of appetite.

The difference in the day and night temperature, the days being hot and the nights being slightly cold, and the fact that people are no longer wearing any woollens even in the evenings is aggravating the problem.”

Maintaining that the number of patients reporting with viral infections has risen significantly in the past few days, Dr Bhardwaj says self-medication, even for treatment of common cold, is not advocated.

“While chewing tablets of Vitamin C is recommended to keep cold at bay, it is of hardly any help in checking the virus once it gets into the system,” he explained.

Mohali-based Dr Deepinder Kapoor advises: “Since there is no treatment for viral, the only solution lies in building up the immune system. Missing meals and dieting as also exposure to cold can lead to a viral infection. Taking a healthy diet, avoiding sudden change of temperatures and keeping distance from patients suffering from infection can help reduce the chances of catching an infection.”

He suggests keeping a distance of at least three meters from a patient with a viral infection and avoid sharing of towel, pillow and handkerchief. And, if despite all precautions, a viral infection does grip you, visiting a doctor rather than popping pills is the best bet. 

De-addiction centre to open today
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 6
The new building of the Drug De-addiction and Treatment Centre (DDTC) of the PGIMER will be inaugurated by Gen. S.F.Rodrigues, Governor of Punjab, and Administrator, U.T., tomorrow. The centre has already been shifted to the new building.

The DDTC was established in 1988 as part of Department of Psychiatry, PGIMER, Chandigarh. It was planned as a regional centre for patient-care and training of personnel. It started its outpatient and inpatient services from the OPD and ward of the Department of Psychiatry in the Nehru Hospital.

In 1989, it established its eight-bed inpatient unit and a laboratory for drug analysis. In 1998 a weekly community clinic was started at the Civil Hospital, Kharar. 

SPORTS

National Cue Masters League begins
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 6
Kanwal Chaba outclassed Ashish Gupta 2-1(snooker 76-22, pool 0-3, billiards 52-28), in the National Cue Masters League qualifying rounds which started today at Asia Billiards at Sector 34, here today.

In an exciting inaugural match, Ashish Gupta won the toss and opted for snooker. This turned out to be a costly mistake as Kanwal cued ahead Ashish 76-22. However, Kanwal opted for pool as the second game and Ashish trailed it to 3-0, taking the match to a 1-1 tie.

In billiards, Kanwal got the better of Ashish 52-28. In the second match, Anandit Joshi could not prevail over his rival Nishant and lost the tie 0-2. The story was repeated in the matches of Monu Chaudhary vs Manoj Thakur and Manav Diman vs Geetika where Monu and Manavi won comfortably 2-0 each.

The fifth match between Shiven Chaudhary and Gaurav Bharti was a thriller with Shiven winning the snooker tie 47-39 but Gaurav bounced back by racing ahead in pool 3-2. In billiards, Shiven got the better of Gaurav 51-15.

As many as 48 players from Chandigarh, Haryana, Punjab and Delhi are participating in the meet. Arjuna Awardee Alok Kumar, Joint Secretary, Billiards and Snooker Players Association of India, inaugurated the Qualifier, inspected the tables and certified them fit for a national level tournament.

The National Cue Masters League has a unique and exciting format in which each match consists of all 3 cue games - 1 frame of snooker, 50 point game of billiards and Race to 3 racks of 9 Ball Pool. The player who wins the toss chooses the first game- snooker, pool or billiards. The second game is selected by the opponent out of the two remaining disciplines. In case the score gets tied 1-1 after the 2 games, the third discipline will decide the winner.

The scores: Kanwal Chaba bt Ashish Gupta 2-1 (Snooker 76-22, Pool 0-3, Billiards 52-28), Nishant bt Anandit Joshi: 2-0 (Snooker 47-42, Billiard 52-45), Monu Chaudhary bt Manoj Thakur 2-0 (Snooker 68-35, Billiards 52-42), Manav Dhiman bt Geetika 2-0 (Snooker 76-16, Billiards 52-37); Shiven Chaudhary bt Gaurav Bharti 2-1 (Snooker 47-39, Pool 3-2, Billiards 51-15).

Five cops suspended

Chandigarh, March 6
Five police personnel, including an ASI of the Chandigarh police, who had been found drinking in uniform in a Sector 48 tavern, were today placed under suspension. A spokesman for the Chandigarh Police said the action had been taken following publication of a photograph in a newspaper in which ASI Surinder Singh, two head constables Jaspal Singh and Iqbal Singh and two constables Baljinder Singh and Suresh Kumar were shown drinking at the tavern last night. — OC