Infections Archives - InnoHEALTH magazine

Vaginal discharge- Basic know about!!

InnoHEALTH magazine digital team — Wed, 14 Jun 2023 06:51:34 +0000

Delay in seeking treatment may lead to long term sequelae of infertility.

Vaginal discharge is the liquid or mucus coming out of the vagina. The discharge is made up of vaginal and cervical cells and its secretions under the effect of female hormone estrogen. This clearly explains that vaginal discharge in small amounts is normal for a woman also known as physiological discharge. Physiological discharge may increase during certain days of menstrual cycle like at the time of ovulation and before menstruation begins. Following menopause which is the period following cessation of menses for 1 year, the amount of physiological discharge decreases due to decrease in estrogen levels on the body. Physiological discharge is non-foul smelling and not associated with itching.

Vaginal discharge is considered abnormal in following cases:

Excessive amount of discharge.
Associated with bad odour.
Associated with itching in the vulvar region.
Associated with pain in the lower abdomen.
Associated with difficulty in passing urine and burning sensation while passing urine.
Presence of dyspareunia or pain during coitus.
Presence of green-yellowish discharge or bloody discharge.

There can be many reasons behind abnormal vaginal discharge. These can be:

Bacterial, yeast or protozoal infections. These can be sexually transmitted infections.
Forgotten foreign body like tampons or condoms.
Chemical agents used like fragrance soaps or vaginal pH altering agents to clean vulva.
Use of certain pads containing synthetic fragrance producing agents.
Use of tight and synthetic undergarments.
Cancer of cervix, vagina or vulva in rare cases.

In cases of any of the above-mentioned associations with vaginal discharge, it is always better to visit the gynaecologist. Doctor will elicit the probable reason behind abnormal vaginal discharge by examination. She/he may take a vaginal swab as well to identify the pathogen involved and start treatment accordingly. Treatment should be completed as advised. In many instances, even the sexual partner will be advised treatment.

Delay in seeking treatment may lead to long term sequelae of infertility. Any genital tract infection can affect the fallopian tubes, which can get damaged leading to inability of females to conceive. In cases where the cause of abnormal vaginal discharge is cancer of genital tract, early visits to the doctor can help detect cancer in early stages. Many screening tests are available to detect cervical cancer i.e., cancer of the mouth of the uterus. The tests available are PAPS, LBC (liquid base cytology), HPV-DNA, VIA and VILI. The details of these tests will be discussed in future articles.

Avoiding delay in seeking advice in cases of abnormal body signals is the most important way of preventing serious consequences thereafter.

“Composed by: Dr. Kanika Chopra is associated with Lady Hardinge Medical College.She is keen in learning, writing and has contributed numerous research publications in both National and International journals.”

The post Vaginal discharge- Basic know about!! appeared first on InnoHEALTH magazine.

Rising Pollution in the City Intensifying Cases of COPD

InnoHEALTH Magazine — Thu, 11 Jul 2019 10:18:29 +0000

In the wake of urbanization and modernization although we are making our lives comfortable, at the same time our health is being affected the most. The air that we breathe is laden with a layer of poisonous pollutants and gases to an extent that it is posing risk to our lungs and is causing serious damage to the respiratory tracts. And the result is a rise in the cases of asthma and progression in respiratory ailments like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Various studies have revealed that the situation of the air we inhale is as bad as smoking some forty cigarettes in a day!

It is exposure to such micro-particles emitted from vehicular emissions, wide – scale industrialization, construction activities, and exhaust coming from cars which is a mixture of combustion gases and ultra fine particles coated with organic compounds that result in obstructive airway diseases like COPD. And, the moment these particles enter our respiratory tracts, these pollutants can activate an inflammatory cascade that results in severe damage to our lungs.

Earlier the problem was prevalent among elderly, smokers or was confined to rural areas where use of Gobar gas and biomass was making things worse as people were exposed to fumes from burning fuel for cooking and heating in poorly ventilated spaces. But now due to various kinds of pollutants, soot and carbon particles in the air which is aided by changing weather, smog, etc., people in the cities are equally affected.

What is COPD?
Know it better

Now that we know the cause of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) which is characterized by narrowing of the airways, it is important to understand how the disease affects our health. In larger airways, the inflammatory response is referred to as chronic bronchitis. At times, it may even lead to the destruction of tissues lining our lung’s passage and cause “emphysema”- a long-term and progressive disease of lungs.

Although smoking accounts for most patients with COPD, exposure to air pollutants play an important role too. Basically, in a patient ailing from COPD, diffusion of carbon dioxide and oxygen in the blood does not take place which is why adequate oxygen does not reach the bloodstream through lungs and thus more amount of carbon dioxide is retained in the body, causing difficulty in breathing.

About 50 percent of COPD cases remain un-diagnosed during the physical examination and the symptoms do not appear until significant lung damage has already occurred which only worsens over time. But a chest x-ray and pulmonary function test can diagnose and reveal the progression of the disease.

For chronic bronchitis, the main symptom is persistent cough along with mucus (sputum) production for at least three months. However, other symptoms may include shortness of breath, wheezing, tightness in the chest, frequent respiratory infections, swelling in ankles, legs, etc.

Treatment

Much of the treatment for COPD includes things that one can do to manage the disease on their own.

However, the medicines prescribed to treat COPD can be for long-term duration as these help to prevent/ relieve symptoms. If you are a patient of COPD, make sure.

You don’t skip or discontinue medicines without consulting your doctor. Also, there is lack of awareness about non-invasive ventilation (NIV) treatment for COPD even though it reduces respiratory distress and risk of death considerably. A patient in moderate or advanced stages of COPD can be treated with an NIV machine, which aids in bringing down the carbon dioxide level in the blood thereby enabling the patients to breathe normally.

Measures to Combat COPD
Because people with COPD or the ones who are susceptible to having respiratory diseases are recommended to stay indoors, it is important they improve their surroundings at home and take necessary precautions listed below:

Stay Indoors: Stay away from smoke and air pollution. Even though you quit smoking, it’s important to avoid places where others smoke because passive smoking can be equally harmful for the health of your lungs. As a cautionary measure, you can avoid stepping out without wearing a mask.
Invest in Right Mask: Make sure you buy only N95 mask which can filter about 95 percent pollutants in the air. Surgical and other masks available in the market are ineffective so avoid wasting money on those.
Keep your Indoors Smoke-Free: As a rule, do not burn mosquito coils and incense sticks at home as the smoke/soot emitted from them can cause further breathing problems.
Keep Hydrated: It is advisable to consume at least 2 litres or more water in a day.
Exercise Daily: A little bit of exercise/yoga everyday will improve your respiratory muscles. Avoid strenuous exercises and discuss with your doctor to know which activities are safe for you.
Have a Healthy Diet: It can help to boost your immunity and strength. Make sure you don’t step out without having meals. Also, have fruits which are rich in antioxidants regularly.

About the author

Dr. Rakesh Chawla is a Sr. Consultant for Respiratory Medicine, Critical Care and Sleep Disorders and Interventional Bronchoscopist with Saroj Super Specialty Hospital, Delhi. He has published approx. 54 papers in national and international Journals.

The post Rising Pollution in the City Intensifying Cases of COPD appeared first on InnoHEALTH magazine.

Vision on Blindness Cure Needs Aggressive Approach

InnoHEALTH Magazine — Thu, 19 Jul 2018 10:31:24 +0000

Despite current measures, blindness in the world is increasing by 1 to 2 million cases per year – the result is a 100% increase in world blindness by the year 2020 unless more aggressive measures are in place.
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 80% of visual impairment is either preventable or curable with treatment. As of 2015, there were 940 million people with some degree of vision loss. 246 million had low vision and over 45 million were blind with 60% of these individuals living in China, India and Sub-Saharan Africa. Majority of people with poor vision reside in the developing world and are over the age of 50 years. Visual impairments have considerable economic costs both directly due to the cost of treatment and indirectly due to decreased ability to work.
Also Read: Artificial Retinas

India is home to over 8 million blind people, another 50 million have moderate to severe vision impairment. The loss of sight causes enormous human suffering for the affected individuals and their families. It also represents public health, social and economic problem for countries, especially the developing ones, where 9 out of 10 of the world’s blind live.
Visual impairment, also known as vision impairment or vision loss, is a decreased ability to see to a degree that causes problems not fixable by usual means. The term blindness is used for complete or nearly complete vision loss. Visual impairment may cause people difficulties with normal daily activities such as driving, reading, socializing and walking.
The most common causes of visual impairment globally are uncorrected refractive errors (43%), cataracts (33%), and glaucoma (2%). Refractive errors include nearsighted, farsighted, presbyopia and astigmatism. Cataracts are the most common cause of blindness. Other disorders that may cause visual problems include age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, corneal clouding, childhood blindness, and a number of infections. Screening for vision problems in children may improve future vision and educational achievement.
According to Mr. J.P. Nadda, Minister of Health & Family Welfare, “The central government is committed, inter alia, to developing and strengthening the strategy of NPCB towards ‘Eye Health for All’ by way of preventing visual impairment through provisioning of comprehensive universal eyecare services and quality service deliveries”.
Mr. Ashwani Kumar Choubey, Minister of State for Health & Family Welfare says, “Despite greater awareness and policy interventions, blindness in the world is increasing phenomenally and according to WHO unless more aggressive measures are taken, there may be 100 percent increase in blindness by the year 2020. This is highly alarming & needs drastic wholesale measures”.
This calls for reducing the backlog of avoidable blindness through identification and treatment of curable blind at primary, secondary and tertiary levels, based on an assessment of the overall burden of visual impairment in the country.
Optometrists as the first point of contact for primary eye care services and equipped with the requisite knowledge and expertise, thus create a huge impact in preventing this avoidable blindness & vision impairment.
Mr. Santosh Kumar Gangwar, Minister of State, Labour & Employment says, “The traditional core of optometry has been the assessment of visual health and management strategies centered on spectacle lens and contact lens therapy. This core, however, has expanded greatly over the past century to include a number of other important services. Today’s optometry professionals are well educated and well trained to provide the full range of services thereby enhancing vision, protecting the health and preventing avoidable blindness due to refractive errors and visual impairment by over 80%”.
Mr. Ashok Siddharth, MP (Rajya Sabha) & Member Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health and Family Welfare noted that “Optometrists today provide approximately two-thirds of all eye care in the country and are prepared to meet the growing needs of the public”.
“The role of optometrists in tackling the problem of refractive error and visual impairment is important. Timely detection of refractive errors and their correction by spectacle can not only improve the child’s potential during the formative years but also prevent complications associated with uncorrected refractive error” said Dr. Promila Gupta, Director General of Health Services, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.
The hard work and devotion of Indian optometrists within their profession and around their communities thus provide an invaluable service to millions of Indian citizens. Without their dedication, desire to serve the community and professionalism in delivering excellent eye care services; our fellow countrymen would not enjoy the optimal vision they have today.
In the backdrop of the above, Indian Optometric Association, the apex industry association representing approximately 12,000 Doctors of Optometry, optometry students, and paraoptometric assistants accessible to the common public.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Anil Tyagi, President, Indian Optometric Association said “AIOC has become synonymous with providing participants from across India & abroad, an excellent opportunity to share their research, experiences & optometry advancements. They sought to generate, from the conference, a better understanding of the role of optometry in eradicating the 80 percent avoidable blindness in India and other developing countries. The key to success would be making primary eye-care services easily accessible &economicaaly viable for a common public”
AIOC 2018 Organising Secretary, Dr. Subodh Dixit said: “the 37th AIOC 2018 conference spread over 16 interactive sessions & 10 workshops showcased over 75 prolific speakers, nearly 600 plus industry delegates & 20+ exhibitors; thus, offering exceptional value both as a traditional technical conference & a global networking forum”.
Dr. Rajeev Prasad, Conference Chairman, AIOC 2018 added that “the All India Optometry Conference (AIOC 2018) engaged collective experience & expertise of practitioners, optometrists, industry partners, academia, and technology organizations to discuss, deliberate, share & learn the best of practices and leadership traits”.

The post Vision on Blindness Cure Needs Aggressive Approach appeared first on InnoHEALTH magazine.

Vitamin D deficiency – A 'Silent Epidemic'

InnoHEALTH Magazine — Tue, 27 Mar 2018 10:32:26 +0000

Due to adoption of urban lifestyles, vitamin D deficiency has reached epidemic proportions; 90% of patients we see are severely vitamin D deficient. The issue with Vitamin D deficiency is that patient complaints are extremely vague and possible to be missed by most doctors and sometimes even patients may not report them putting them down to the general wear and tear of life. Some can, however, get severe symptoms including stress fractures as well as neurological symptoms. Studies have shown that vitamin D decreases the risk by half in certain forms of Cancer like Colon and Breast Cancer. People with deficiency have been shown to have significantly higher incidences of various neurological disorders like Dementia, Depression, Multiple sclerosis, Psychosis and even Schizophrenia. The biggest plus point is that people who have good vitamin D levels have a much lower risk of developing Type 2 Diabetes, which is another epidemic we are facing in urban India.

Vitamin D plays another important role; boosting the immune system. Multiple studies have shown that people with high vitamin D levels are less likely to get Influenza and Flu like infections. Other less well established but actively under research benefits of Vitamin D includes protection against heart disease, high blood pressure and Autoimmune Disorders. Vitamin D supplementation is a no-brainer. Supplementation is extremely easy and after an initial weekly dose can be consumed once a month. However, you can obtain it naturally; the only problem lies in the consistency of sun exposure. To obtain a day of sufficient vitamin D supply, you have to spend time in direct sunlight, approximately between 60 and 120 minutes with 30% body surface exposed.

Want to write for InnoHEALTH? send us your article at magazine@innovatiocuris.com

Read all the issues of InnoHEALTH magazine:
InnoHEALTH Volume 1 Issue 1 (July to September 2016) – https://goo.gl/iWAwN2
InnoHEALTH Volume 1 Issue 2 (October to December 2016) – https://goo.gl/4GGMJz
InnoHEALTH Volume 2 Issue 1 (January to March 2017) – https://goo.gl/DEyKnw
InnoHEALTH Volume 2 Issue 2 (April to June 2017) – https://goo.gl/Nv3eev
InnoHEALTH Volume 2 Issue 3 (July to September 2017) – https://goo.gl/MCVjd6
InnoHEALTH Volume 2 Issue 4 (October to December 2017) – http://amzn.to/2B2UMLw
InnoHEALTH Volume 3 Issue 1 (January to March 2018) – https://goo.gl/fksdQx

Connect with InnovatioCuris on:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/innovatiocuris
Twitter: https://twitter.com/innovatiocuris
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7043791
Stay updated about IC, visit: www.innovatiocuris.com

The post Vitamin D deficiency – A 'Silent Epidemic' appeared first on InnoHEALTH magazine.

Forecast dengue spread

InnoHEALTH Magazine — Wed, 24 Jan 2018 08:05:41 +0000

New method developed To forecast dengue spread

By Dr. Shikha T. Malik

Given its close link with both temperature and rainfall, it is possible to forecast outbreak of dengue. But for such disease forecasting to be effective it should be based on models specific for different climatic zones in the country, a new study has shown. The study has been jointly done by the Hyderabad-based Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT), National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER), Guwahati, in collaboration with scientists at the University of Liverpool.

Scientists have reached this conclusion after evaluating the relationship of climatic factors in the spread of dengue in different climatic zones in the country – Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Kerala. They focused on changes in a factor called ‘extrinsic incubation period (EIP) of the dengue virus by taking into account daily and monthly mean temperatures in these areas.
The extrinsic incubation period (EIP) is the time taken for incubation of the virus in the mosquito. During this period, after the mosquito draws virus rich blood meal, the virus escapes the gut and passes through the mosquito’s body and reaches it salivary glands. Once this happens, the mosquito is infectious and capable of transmitting the virus to a human host.

It has been found that climatic conditions play an important role in EIP. Lower temperatures (17–18 °C) result in longer EIPs thereby leading to decreased virus transmission. With increasing temperatures, feeding increases because of enhanced metabolism of the mosquito, leading to shorter EIPs. Even a 5-day decrease in the incubation period can hike transmission rate by three times, and with an increase in temperature from 17 to 30 °C, dengue transmission increases fourfold. However, a further increase in temperature beyond 35 °C is detrimental to the mosquito survival.
Dr. Shikha T. Malik The researchers observed that except for Gujarat which comprises of arid regions, there was a strong correlation between rainfall and dengue disease burden.

The study found that Kerala being warm (temperature range 23.5-30°C) and wet and with short EIPs (9-14 days) experiences the highest number of dengue cases.It has been found that EIP is the shortest during the monsoon season in most states and therefore there is an enhanced risk of dengue during this time.

This climate-based dengue forecasting model could help in planning effective and efficient disease control operations well in advance and optimize the use of resources meticulously.

With changes in temperature affecting the extrinsic incubation period of the virus, future changes in the climate might have a substantial effect on dengue and other vector borne disease burden in India. “Though such methods are in vogue for disease control operations, we are still in the initial stages of implementation of such strategic control methods,” Dr Rao told India Science Wire. Factors such as population density and migration also need to be included for future risk assessment studies. The study was published in journal Emerging Microbes & Infections.

Article shared from ‘India Science Wire’

Want to write for InnoHEALTH? send us your article at magazine@innovatiocuris.com

The post Forecast dengue spread appeared first on InnoHEALTH magazine.