avea grijă

Panvel to Karjat bus timings

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Fri, 02 Nov 2012 06:34:00 +0000

The current route to Karjat from Panvel is long and not of global standards. It is approximately 30 kms long and takes around 45 minutes to one hour to travel the distance. There is a new route proposed that will cut the distance drastically , making it extremely convenient for passengers traveling. Just like the Thane Vashi corridor has opened a doorway to development, it is expected that the Karjat Panvel corridor will do the same for the region.

Panvel to Karjat (Courtesy: Google maps)

Here is the list of the bus timings for state transport buses leaving from Panvel to Karjat.

Morning:
07:05 am   08.15 am   08.30 am   09.15 am
10.00 am   10.15 am   11.00 am   11.45 am

Afternoon:
12.00 pm   12.30 pm   12.45 pm   13.00 pm
14.00 pm   15.00 pm   15.30 pm   16.00 pm

Evening
17.00 pm   17.30 pm   18.00 pm   18.30 pm
18.45 pm   19.00 pm   20.00 pm   20.30 pm
20.50 pm

Here is the list of the bus timings for state transport buses leaving from Karjat to Panvel.

Morning:
06:00 am   06.15 am   07.00 am   07.30 am
08.00 am 09.00 am 09.15 am 11.00 am
11.45 am

Afternoon:
13.45 pm   16.15 pm

Evening
18.15 pm   18.45 pm   19.30 pm

The contact numbers of the Bus stations are :
Panvel Bus depot: (022) 27452761
Karjat Bus Depot: (02148) 222086

Congratulations Saina Nehwal!

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Sat, 04 Aug 2012 17:30:00 +0000

4th of August 2012.... The day when history was made in Indian Badminton... as Saina Nehwal became the first Indian ‘shuttler’ to win a medal at the Olympics after China's Xin Wang retired hurt due to a knee injury.

With this achievement, Saina improved on her quarterfinal finish at the Beijing Games in 2008.

Medal ceremony - Women's Single Badminton, London Olympics 2012

Saina Nehwal, aged 22 is currently ranked as the 5th top badminton player in the world by the Badminton World Federation. She is the first Indian woman to get to the Badminton semi-finals and the first Indian to win the World Junior Badminton Championships.

Saina started in a blistering fashion, taking lead over Wang. However the chinese was too good to bounce back and overturned the lead in quick time till she won the first game after a late fightback from Saina with the score card reading 21-18 in Wang's favor.

In the next game, Wang took the first point and immediately went down with noticeable pain in her left knee. Finally she surrendered and the game was awarded to Saina. Though in disappointing circumstances, Saina deserved the bronze medal more than anyone...

Do Cell Phones really cause Cancers?

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 20:24:00 +0000

While research on the area of cell phones causing cancer has remained inconclusive, the recent study by the WHO has once again opened a can of worms.

The World health Organization now lists mobile phone use in the same "carcinogenic hazard" category as lead, engine exhaust and chloroform. Before this announcement, the WHO had assured cell phone users that no adverse effects had been established.

A brief synopsis of the study undertaken by the WHO - A team of 31 scientists from 14 countries, made the decision after reviewing peer-reviewed studies on cell phone safety. The team found enough evidence to categorize personal exposure as "possibly carcinogenic to humans." What that means is they found some evidence of increase in glioma and acoustic neuroma brain cancer for mobile phone users, but have not been able to draw conclusions for other types of cancers You can download the full WHO report here.

Contradictory points of view – ABC news reports that some are wondering why, if there truly is a link between cancer and cell phone usage, there has not been a spike in brain cancer cases in the recent years, as cell phone usage has gone up dramatically. Of course time is a major issue as tumors take years and even decades to develop.

Previous research – At least 30 studies conducted in the last 5 years, on the same topic, have tried and failed to establish links between cell phone usage and cancer. One such study from Denmark (2007), studied 4,20,000 people and failed to find a link between cell phone use and cancer. Participants were tracked by matching phone records to people in the Danish cancer registry, who were diagnosed with cancer. Among the 4,20,000 callers tracked through 2002, 14,249 cancers were diagnosed -- less than the 15,001 predicted by national cancer rates. The study did not find an increased risk for tumours either.

It's better to be safer than sorry – Prevention, as we all know, is the much better alternative. Let the experts debate about whether we all face the risk of brain cancer with cell phone usage. While there is still no conclusive evidence, we should all take steps in avoiding this hazard instead of risking it. A hands-free is a must if you do talk on the cell phone a lot.

Tips to cut back on cell phone usage and reduce radiation – 1. Use the landline when possible. 2. Send an sms instead. Voice calls expose you to the highest amount of radiation. 3. Buy a phone with low SAR. When buying a mobile phone, opt for one that has a low SAR or Specific Absorption Rate. An ideal rate is <0.6 W/Kg. 4. Wait for a strong signal. Try to use your cell phone only when the signal quality is good. Cell phones emit much more energy seeking a strong signal when the reception is low. 5. Keep calls short.

(Courtesy : Health Me Up)

Myth about Sachin's centuries and India's losses

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 18:30:00 +0000

Why India loses when Sachin scores a century? Once again the 'myth' has come true. Sachin Tendulkar scored a classic 111 in the first innings last saturday, taking India to 267/1 in 39.3 overs and yet India lost the match to South Africa who showed a marvelous bowling display by bundling up the so much famed batting order of India in just 29 runs later. More than the loss, it was disgusting to see how the tasteless Sachin critics tried to blame his century as a bad omen to India's pathetic loss against the resurgent Proteas. I find it so ridiculous to hear these people giving frivolous reasons for putting down Sachin's record over his highly illustrious career over the last two decades.

(Picture Courtesy: esakal.com)

Why do people even come with such baseless conceptions that Sachin is not a match-winner! Can't this simple stat shut these critic's mouths that out of 48 centuries that the master blaster has scored, only 13 have ended in a losing cause! Moreover in the history of One day cricket the maestro tops the list of those batsmen who have most number of their centuries resulting in their team lifting the winning trophy. I seriously believe these Sachin bashers are always in a state of denial. Despite these stats completely proving them wrong, they will have many other stupid reasons up their sleeve to down play Sachin's dedication towards the game. The above stats can be clarified here.

So for all those Sachin critics who hate him for so many (nonsense) reasons, which I dont want to know, here I have analysed the 13 matches in which India lost despite Sachin scoring a century, an insignificant statistics on which you guys have such a delusional theory built up against the most prolific sports-person this game has ever seen.

1. In the first ever losing cause, 7 years after the maestro's debut, in 1996, India lost to Sri Lanka in the World Cup. Sachin scored 137 off 137 balls with India reaching 271/3 on a slow Ferozshah Kotla pitch. Yet the bowlers couldnt defend the total. Manoj Prabhakar (I dont know why I hate him so much), initially scored only 7 runs off 36 balls while opening the innings also gave a massive 47 runs in just 4 overs. (source)

2. Next in 2 months, in Singapore India played Pakistan. Sachin got out on 100 from 111 balls with the scoreboard reading 186/4. But as it was a trend then, the whole team got out for a meagre 226. The rain affected game gave a revised target of just 187 to win from 198 balls. V. Raju went for 51 in 5 overs in a match which was completely dominated by Pakistan's then in form openers Aamir Sohail and Saeed Anwar. (source)

3. Next up was a match against the Sri Lankans at Colombo. He scored 110 from 137 balls. Agreed that this innings was on a slower side but Azhar, the only other half-centurion in the match took 99 balls for his 58. No wonder India could manage only 226 in 50 overs. Sri Lanka easily chased it in 44 overs, losing only 1 wicket, which was taken by Sachin himself with a third most economical bowling stats in the Indian side. (source)

4. Sharjah 1998... no one can forget this series when Sachin was at the peak of his career. Australia raced to 284 in a match which saw a dramatic sandstorm. The revised target of 276 to win in 46 overs seemed impossible when India were reduced to 138 for 4 in 29 overs. Yet Sachin made a fighting 143 off just 131 balls. Sachin fell on 242/5 after making sure that India surpassed the required 237 runs in 46 overs so as to beat New Zealand on NRR to qualify for the finals. The other six batsmen could contribute only 107 more runs taking India to 250. (source)

5. In the first match of the Coco-Cola Champions trophy against Sri Lanka, India managed only 224 in 50 overs, of which 101 came from Sachin's bat alone. In a not-so-good bowling chart of India, Sachin finished with bowling figures of 5-0-22-0 with only Zaheer having a better ER. No wonder Sri Lanka won the match comfortably in 44 overs. (source)

6. Jodhpur saw one of the most humiliating defeats in Indian cricket history when they lost to Zimbabwe after putting 284 on board. When wickets were tumbling at the other end, Sachin guided the innings till the 47th over while scoring 146 with almost a run-a-ball. Zaheer was the second highest scorer with 32. Indian bowlers showed one of the most indisciplined display of all times giving away 30 extras in that match which had 15 wides!!! In a nail biting finish Zimbabwe won with 1 wicket and 1 ball remaining. (source)

7. On the bouncy pitches of Johannesburg, India had moved to a flying start with Saurav Ganguly and Sachin scoring an opening stand of 193 runs! After Ganguly fell, the others followed suit, but Sachin calmly finished his century and was the last man to get out with a score of 101 balls off 129 with India managing only 279. The bowlers couldnt restict the Proteas and Sachin yet again showed a decent display with bowling (9-0-51-0) with ER better than the regular bowlers in the team. (source)

8. In the second match of the famous Indo-Pak series in Pakistan, the hosts had ripped open the Indian bowling by posting a strong 329/6 on board. Sachin scored a quick 141 off 135 balls with 17 fours and a six just to end on the losing side in a closely fought match with India reaching 317 before being bowled out. When Sachin got out at 245/4 in 38.4 overs, India needed only 85 from 68 balls with 6 wickets in hand! (source)

9. India made a commendable 315/6 in 48 overs with Sachin scoring 123 from 130 balls. But with a poor display from bowlers (5 out of 7 with ER more than 6 and Nehra going for 75 runs in 9 overs), Pakistan won the thriller on the last ball scoring 319 in return. (source)

10. In yet another match with the arch-rivals India made 328 in the series opener in Peshawar thanks to Sachin's century off 113 balls and the other half centuries from Pathan and Dhoni. But Indian bowlers were a no-show on the Pakistan soil as their batsmen chased down the revised target of 305 on the last ball of 47th over. Only Pathan had ER less than 6 amongst the total 6 bowlers used by Dhoni. (source)

11. In 2006, India played the West Indies at Kuala Lumpur. Sachin batted throughout the 50 overs scoring 141 off just 148 balls giving Windies a target of 309 in 50 overs. But in yet another rain affected match, the west Indians won the match on D/L method after scoring 142 in 20 overs for 2 wickets. It would be utterly childish to blame Sachin for such losses. (source)

12. Open up your eyes fellas for this one! In 2009, at Hyderabad the Aussies made a massive 350 in 50 overs making the Indian bowlers look pathetic. In such a match India was down at 162/4 with the big three Gambhir (8), Yuvraj (9) and Dhoni (6) already back in the pavilion! Yet chasing down in the lights, Sachin gave an unbelievable fight running down the pitch with 4 sixes and 19 fours making 175 from just 141 balls!!! Tendulkar got out on 332/7 taking India comfortably close to the victory margin, requiring only 19 runs from 14 balls with 3 wickets in hand. But the infamous kid Ravindra Jadeja, Nehra, P. Kumar succumbed to pressure and India lost by just 3 runs in a match which many believed was far from reach. (source)

13. And now the mother of all matches that India lost despite Sachin's century. India, the most hyped team in this world cup, finally got to an explosive start against the Proteas with Sachin and Sehwag scoring almost at 8.5 runs per over taking India to 141 in just 17 overs! Sachin and Gambhir took the score to another level when the Indian score board read 267/1 in 39.3 overs. Almost everyone believed that at least 350 was on cards with 9 wickets in hand. Sachin got out on 111 from just 101 balls. But who would believe that later these famed batting line-up will collapse even faster than playing cards in just 29 runs with India managing only 296 with 8 balls to spare!!! With morale down, India was never in the match with rubbish bowling display and absolutely sluggish fielding with dropped catches and missed run-outs! India lost the match in the last over which needed 13 runs. (source)

So this is how it goes. Do not be so blinded with some unknown meaningless hatred against this man and resorting to stupid line of thinking that Sachin's tons are a bad omen to India! Barring these above 13, India never lost a match in the remaining 35 matches when the master blaster went past 100.

Even when Sachin fails to score a hundred, India has won 56 times out of a total 93 when he has atleast scored a fifty. Sachin has most number of 'man of the match' and 'man of the series' than any other cricketer in the world.

Hopefully these statistics will open your ignorantly shut eyes and bring you back to reality and accept this gentleman as he is and respect his never die attitude towards the game of cricket.

May 'GOD' Bless you all...

(This is a re-post. It was written earlier during the ICC World Cup 2011, a day after the India v/s South Africa match)

Happy Birthday Sachin!

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 19:31:00 +0000

Dear Sachin,

Here's wishing you a very Happy Birthday... I wont quote the number because every fan of yours knows how insignificant it is to know how old Sachin Tendulkar has become... I am taking this privilege to write down this letter to you through my blog on this special day which is no less than a festival for billions of your fans in India and across the globe. Your birthdate 24th April 1973, is etched in the minds of all of us.

(courtesy: Internet)

Writing this itself makes me feel so euphoric and special. Thank you so much for the World Cup victory! By doing so, you did not just fulfill your dream, but that of billions of us too. If you ask me which is my most memorable photo of the World Cup, it has to be the one in which Yusuf Pathan lifts you on his shoulder and all the players do a victory lap with you with the tricolor in your hand! That photo still gives me goosebumps every time I watch it. It beautifully reflects the emotion of the majority of us... a deep satisfying feeling inside to have won the world cup for you than anyone else.

You know Sachin, its an emotional roller-coaster ride every time we watch you playing. Its amazing how strongly attached we all are with every inning of yours. Every time you are on a song, new superstitions are born. When you inch closer to a milestone, everything around us comes to a standstill. As Greg Baum rightly says about you, 'He can stop time in India' quoting his famous train journey from Shimla to Kalka. Thank you for giving us this immense joy of watching you play those 'divine' shots in the outfield. Only a 'God' can play like that. Every stroke is a treat to watch. Nothing can be straighter than your straight drive. It's my favorite shot that comes off your willow. Its like sweet music flowing so serenely through your bat. Videos of you hitting Brett Lee with your gorgeous straight drives are a hit on YouTube.

When you cross a landmark, the whole nation erupts! When you fall early, a wave of sorrow grips the same nation. No one will forget that moment when you edged to Sangakkara off Malinga on that eventful night of 2nd April at the Wankhede in the World Cup finals. That picture of the raging bull Malinga celebrating against the backdrop of a completely shocked Mumbai crowd, soaked in a deafening silence, says it all. It was a mixed emotion for many including me, trying hard to resist the devils in my mind, constantly asking me whether this was going to be your last innings. In the sports bar where I was watching you along with some 500 odd crowd, many around me had misty eyes as they saw you walk back with your willow tugged under your elbow. That silence was indeed the loudest sound I must have heard in my entire life. Your expression said it all. You kept looking at the crowd, as if you were continuously saying 'sorry' to them. India slowly rose to their feet and clapped... to cheer you up, as the whole of Wankhede broke into applause as you returned... But thanks to your wonderful team, finally the dream came true when we all saw the World Cup trophy in your hands after 22 long years of perfect devotion and integrity with which you played this magical game. 'Sach' is your aura... 'Sach' is our love for you!

(picture courtesy: mirror.co.uk)

When you started your career, you gave a new meaning to the word 'precocity'. Today the whole of India would thank the selectors back in 1989 for the bold decision that they took for including a short, shy, 16 year old in a team that was going to tour the land of the most dangerous fast bowling attack then. Expectedly the tour started with painful blows targeted towards you from Waqar and Akram. The Waqar snorter that hit your face leaving you with a bloody face and the way you declined to get retired hurt, later going on to score a match saving half century, showed the world your resolve to fight right from your early days. You made the whole world take notice of you, barely a few days after you had left your school.

Having said that I am a big fan of your straight drive, even more attractive than the masterstroke, is the 'discipline' that you have showed towards this game for more than two decades now. Just like all your shots, you have thoroughly mastered this principle of life as well. When it comes to balancing fame and success, you are cited as an example for a 'complete' personality. You are an 'Institution' in yourself. What you have given to this sport is immense but the influence you have on the young minds watching you play this game with sheer passion and dedication is simply terrific. Your illustrious career has all those values imbibed in it, that are essential to make it big as a human being, may it be leadership, management, excellence or discipline. Many would frown when I put 'leadership' right ahead, making you remind of the captaincy debacle. But most of us know that it wasn't your lack of captaincy skills that was solely responsible. There was definitely more to it during those days.

On the mental side of the game, you are undoubtedly the master of all. No doubt why you are called the secular saint of Cricket. Your every inning not only teaches how to set realistic goals, but also how to achieve it with positive thinking, efficient energy management and a cool and calm mind. Needless to say, your humility has bowled even your oppositions over. Its so heartening to hear from you, especially after so many proud moments in your life, that the most poignant moment of your 22 year old career is still the day you wore the India cap first! How humble you can be! Sachin, every image of yours has so much to tell and so much for us to learn. For example, every time you step down the team bus, you have your headphones on. Amidst the crazy media with their constant clicking and flashing of cameras, its amazing how oblivious you are to the mad world around you. It will always remain a big mystery about what exactly lies beneath that helmet, under those curly hairs. Its the best show of equilibrium, when you approach the pitch and take guard.

Your batting is a beauty to watch. The way you drive the ball, your back foot cuts, pulls and flicks look as if they have taken right out of the textbook. And as one would expect only from a person like you, you have shown master class in the other fields of cricket too. Your variations in bowling are so unpredictable. I still remember the last over you bowled in the Hero Cup against South Africa back in 1993. Today you are a part of a team of youngsters who were barely learning to walk when you started your career, and yet the enthusiasm you show in your fielding, even today, can make these young guns embarrassed. Your constant hunger for learning is what sets you apart from others.

For me you are not just the greatest Cricketer ever, but you are the greatest sportsperson this world has ever seen. Many believe that you are the next Don Bradman... agreed! Even Sir Don saw himself in you. But looking at you today, I can proudly say, without even a glimpse of doubt, that there wont be 'a next Sachin Tendulkar' ever!

(Courtesy: Internet)

Sachin, you are aware of the media frenzy around you. Even after all eyes are always upon you, day and night, no scandal has even come close to you in this long career. Your clean image has been an inspiration for many. There are and will always be cynics around you, questioning your contribution in tense match situations, some still living in the delusion that your centuries do not often take India to the wins. (For them I have an answer here). In fact it is you who looks to build a strong base for a win, but the ten other men in the team fail to capitalize on it. Despite this, you never ever showed any emotion whenever India lost despite your heroics. You simply walk away from the field shaking hands with the same teammates that let you down. 'These' cynical minds who criticize you, forget that its not a one man show, but a team effort that matters at the end. But that criticism has no logical basis and I believe it is often an emotional outburst, an immature one though! More so, it is so ridiculous to hear it from someone who have not even held a bat in their entire life. These are people who like to make cheap fun and criticize you for their personal gains. Sadists!!! Anyways, dear 'God', please keep ignoring them and forgive them as you always do.

Despite living in a country where expectations from you grow day by day, you have made it a point to bring each one of them to reality. You didn't let expectations bog you down even a bit. But we mad, crazy fans will always remain hungry for more success from you. Just like you, even we never get satisfied with your achievements. We insanely crave for the 'next milestone' thats closing in. We easily forget that its a 38 year old body which has been toiling hard ever since it stepped for the first time in 1989, whose joints are often bandaged all the time. However impatient we are, you have never disappointed us. No wonder the latest 'wish' that is doing the rounds in your fan club is for you to play alongside Arjun one day in the national cricket team. What a day that will be! However distant it seems, we will always be hopeful from our 'God' to fulfill our wish one day!

Words fail when I say 'thank you' Sachin, for all the wonderful moments you have given this cricket-mad nation to savor for years to come. Finally, here's wishing you a very Happy Birthday once again... and also wishing you luck in Aamchi Mumbai style...

'Come on Tendlya... Gheun Tak!'

-Yours lovingly,

Dr. Kirti Tandel

(a die-hard fan)

What is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder?

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 16:11:00 +0000

What exactly is Posttraumatic stress disorder? Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a type of an anxiety disorder. It usually develops as a result of a terribly frightening, life-threatening, or otherwise highly unsafe experience. PTSD sufferers re-experience the traumatic event or events in some way, tend to avoid places, people, or other things that remind them of the event (avoidance), and are exquisitely sensitive to normal sensory life experiences (hyperarousal). Although this condition has likely existed since human beings have endured trauma, PTSD has only been recognized as a formal diagnosis since 1980. However, it was called by different names as early as the American Civil War, when combat veterans were referred to as suffering from "soldier's heart." In World War I, symptoms that were generally consistent with this syndrome were referred to as "combat fatigue." Soldiers who developed such symptoms in World War II were said to be suffering from "gross stress reaction," and many troops in Vietnam who had symptoms of what is now called PTSD were assessed as having "post-Vietnam syndrome." PTSD has also been called "battle fatigue" and "shell shock."

(Courtesy: Internet)

PTSD statistics in children and teens reveal that up to more than 40% have endured at least one traumatic event, resulting in the development of PTSD in up to 15% of girls and 6% of boys. On average, 3%-6% of high school students in the United States and as many as 30%-60% of children who have survived specific disasters have PTSD. Up to 100% of children who have seen a parent killed or endured sexual assault or abuse tend to develop PTSD, and more than one-third of youths who are exposed to community violence (for example, a shooting, stabbing, or other assault) will suffer from the disorder.

Although not all individuals who have been traumatized develop PTSD, there can be significant physical consequences of being traumatized. For example, research indicates that people who have been exposed to an extreme stressor sometimes have a smaller hippocampus (a region of the brain that plays a role in memory) than people who have not been exposed to trauma. This is significant in understanding the effects of trauma in general and the impact of PTSD, specifically since the hippocampus is the part of the brain that is thought to have an important role in developing new memories about life events. Also, whether or not a traumatized person goes on to develop PTSD, they seem to be at risk for higher use of cigarettes, alcohol, and marijuana. Conversely, people whose PTSD is treated also tend to have better success at overcoming a substance-abuse problem.

What are the effects of PTSD?

Symptoms in women with PTSD who are pregnant include having other emotional problems, poor health behaviors, and memory problems. Women who were sexually abused at earlier ages are more likely to develop complex PTSD and borderline personality disorder. Babies who are born to mothers who suffer from this illness during pregnancy are more likely to experience a change in at least one chemical in their body that makes it more likely (predisposes) the baby to develop PTSD later in life. Individuals who suffer from this illness are at risk of having more medical problems, as well as trouble reproducing. In children and teens, PTSD can have significantly negative effects on their social and emotional development, as well as on their ability to learn.

What causes PTSD?

Virtually any trauma, defined as an event that is life-threatening or that severely compromises the physical or emotional well-being of an individual or causes intense fear, may cause PTSD. Such events often include either experiencing or witnessing a severe accident or physical injury, receiving a life-threatening medical diagnosis, being the victim of kidnapping or torture, exposure to war combat or to a natural disaster, exposure to other disaster (for example, plane crash) or terrorist attack, being the victim of rape, mugging, robbery, or assault, enduring physical, sexual, emotional, or other forms of abuse, as well as involvement in civil conflict. Although the diagnosis of PTSD currently requires that the sufferer has a history of experiencing a traumatic event as defined here, people may develop PTSD in reaction to events that may not qualify as traumatic but can be devastating life events like divorce or unemployment.

What are the symptoms and signs of PTSD?

The following three groups of symptom criteria are required to assign the diagnosis of PTSD:

1. Recurrent re-experiencing of the trauma (for example, troublesome memories, flashbacks that are usually caused by reminders of the traumatic events, recurring nightmares about the trauma and/or dissociative reliving of the trauma)

2. Avoidance to the point of having a phobia of places, people, and experiences that remind the sufferer of the trauma or a general numbing of emotional responsiveness

3. Chronic physical signs of hyperarousal, including sleep problems, trouble concentrating, irritability, anger, poor concentration, blackouts or difficulty remembering things, increased tendency and reaction to being startled, and hypervigilance (excessive watchfulness) to threat. The emotional numbing of PTSD may present as a lack of interest in activities that used to be enjoyed (anhedonia), emotional deadness, distancing oneself from people, and/or a sense of a foreshortened future (for example, not being able to think about the future or make future plans, not believing one will live much longer). At least one re-experiencing symptom, three avoidance/numbing symptoms, and two hyperarousal symptoms must be present for at least one month and must cause significant distress or functional impairment in order for the diagnosis of PTSD to be assigned. PTSD is considered of chronic duration if it persists for three months or more.

A similar disorder in terms of symptom repertoire is acute stress disorder. The major differences between the two disorders are that acute stress disorder symptoms persist from two days to four weeks, and a fewer number of traumatic symptoms are required to make the diagnosis as compared to PTSD.

In children, re-experiencing the trauma may occur through repeated play that has trauma-related themes instead of or in addition to memories, and distressing dreams may have more general content rather than of the traumatic event itself. As in adults, at least one re-experiencing symptom, three avoidance/numbing symptoms, and two hyperarousal symptoms must be present for at least one month and must cause significant distress or functional impairment in order for the diagnosis of PTSD to be assigned. When symptoms have been present for less than one month, a diagnosis of acute stress disorder (ASD) can be made.

Symptoms of PTSD that tend to be associated with C-PTSD include problems regulating feelings, which can result in suicidal thoughts, explosive anger, or passive aggressive behaviors; a tendency to forget the trauma or feel detached from one's life (dissociation) or body (depersonalization); persistent feelings of helplessness, shame, guilt, or being completely different from others; feeling the perpetrator of trauma is all-powerful and preoccupation with either revenge against or allegiance with the perpetrator; and severe change in those things that give the sufferer meaning, like a loss of spiritual faith or an ongoing sense of helplessness, hopelessness, or despair.

What is the treatment for PTSD?

Treatments for PTSD usually include psychological and medical interventions. Providing information about the illness, helping the individual manage the trauma by talking about it directly, teaching the person ways to manage symptoms of PTSD, and exploration and modification of inaccurate ways of thinking about the trauma are the usual techniques used in psychotherapy for this illness. Education of PTSD sufferers usually involves teaching individuals about what PTSD is, how many others suffer from the same illness, that it is caused by extraordinary stress rather than weakness, how it is treated, and what to expect in treatment. This education thereby increases the likelihood that inaccurate ideas the person may have about the illness are dispelled, and any shame they may feel about having it is minimized. This may be particularly important in populations like military personnel that may feel particularly stigmatized by the idea of seeing a mental-health professional and therefore avoid doing so.

Teaching people with PTSD practical approaches to coping with what can be very intense and disturbing symptoms has been found to be another useful way to treat the illness. Specifically, helping sufferers learn how to manage their anger and anxiety, improve their communication skills, and use breathing and other relaxation techniques can help individuals with PTSD gain a sense of mastery over their emotional and physical symptoms. The practitioner might also use exposure-based cognitive behavioral therapy by having the person with PTSD recall their traumatic experiences using images or verbal recall while using the coping mechanisms they learned. Individual or group cognitive behavioral psychotherapy can help people with PTSD recognize and adjust trauma-related thoughts and beliefs by educating sufferers about the relationships between thoughts and feelings, exploring common negative thoughts held by traumatized individuals, developing alternative interpretations, and by practicing new ways of looking at things. This treatment also involves practicing learned techniques in real-life situations.

Eye-movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) is a form of cognitive therapy in which the practitioner guides the person with PTSD in talking about the trauma suffered and the negative feelings associated with the events, while focusing on the professional's rapidly moving finger. While some research indicates this treatment may be effective, it is unclear if this is any more effective than cognitive therapy that is done without the use of rapid eye movement.

Families of PTSD individuals, as well as the sufferer, may benefit from family counseling, couple's counseling, parenting classes, and conflict-resolution education. Family members may also be able to provide relevant history about their loved one (for example, about emotions and behaviors, drug abuse, sleeping habits, and socialization) that people with the illness are unable or unwilling to share.

Medications that are usually used to help PTSD sufferers include serotonergic antidepressants and medicines that help decrease the physical symptoms associated with illness like some beta-blockers. Individuals with PTSD are much less likely to experience a relapse of their illness if antidepressant treatment is continued for at least a year. SSRIs are the first group of medications that have received approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of PTSD. Treatment guidelines provided by the American Psychiatric Association describe these medicines as being particularly helpful for people whose PTSD is the result of trauma that is not combat-related. SSRIs tend to help PTSD sufferers modify information that is taken in from the environment (stimuli) and to decrease fear. Research also shows that this group of medicines tends to decrease anxiety, depression, and panic. SSRIs may also help reduce aggression, impulsivity, and suicidal thoughts that can be associated with this disorder.

Other less directly effective but nevertheless potentially helpful medications for managing PTSD include mood stabilizers, as well as mood stabilizers that are also antipsychotics. Antipsychotic medicines seem to be most useful in the treatment of PTSD in those who suffer from agitation, dissociation, hypervigilance, intense suspiciousness (paranoia), or brief breaks in being in touch with reality (brief psychotic reactions). The antipsychotic medications are also being increasingly found to be helpful treatment options for managing PTSD when used in combination with an SSRI. Benzodiazepines (tranquilizers) have unfortunately been associated with a number of problems, including withdrawal symptoms and the risk of overdose, and have not been found to be significantly effective for helping individuals with PTSD

(Disclaimer: The above article has various inputs from www.medicinenet.com . The images in the post are from various sources from the internet.

The Author provides the Site and the services, information, content and/or data (collectively, “Information”) contained therein for informational purposes only. The Author does not provide any medical advice on this blog, and the Information should not be so construed or used. Nothing contained in the Site is intended to create a physician-patient relationship, to replace the services of a licensed, trained physician or health professional or to be a substitute for medical advice of a physician or trained health professional licensed in your state/Country. You should not rely on anything contained in the Site, and you should consult a physician licensed in your state/Country in all matters relating to your health. You hereby agree that you shall not make any health or medical related decision based in whole or in part on anything contained in the Site)

Save the girl child

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Sat, 16 Apr 2011 17:21:00 +0000

When God made Adam, he also made Eve. But looking at the current provisional Census data released by the government of India, I really wished God had made provisions for one Eve for every Adam. In a country presided by a woman and where the 'hand' behind the ruling party is that of a woman, the census shows a really shameful face of India when it come to the child sex ratio. The 'Save a Girl Child' campaign has again gained momentum in India. Slogans, campaigns, posters are all over the place. But what remains a major question is that even after 64 years of Independence, why the girl child still craves for her freedom here in India?

(source: www.indianchild.com)

The census did give us a reason to smile with the welcome news that since the last nine decades, India is finally showing a significant slowing of the growth rate. It gives us a ray of hope that India's population will definitely stabilize in the near future. Also the literacy rate has gone up from 64.83 to 74.04 in the last ten years. But what has really shamed the nation is one statistic that shows the 'child sex ratio' has fallen steeply from 927 in 2001 to 914 in 2011! Even though the number of girls per 1000 boys in the age group of 0-6 has been falling continually since 1961, the fall in the last decade is the worst since independence, as the statistics reveal. So are we moving ahead or backwards?

Cynics will still argue that the overall sex ratio in the general population has in fact increased 932 in 2001 to 940 in 2011 and so we should be happy about it. Yes we definitely should be, but only after accepting the fact that the improvement is a mere reflection of the greater natural longevity that the female sex enjoys over its counterpart and also to the recent advances and improvement in the health care sector. It can be my no means be used as a blanket to cover the disturbing reality of the declining child-sex ratio.

The recent census has widened the gap between the northern and the southern India. Though the north-east states show a very healthy picture with Mizoram, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh displaying the most admirable picture of child sex ratio, the rest of the country has shown decline in the stats with even Kerala and Puducherry failing to sustain the upgoing ratio back in 2001. Only a few states like Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Mizoram and Andaman and Nicobar have shown improvement.

So where have we actually gone wrong? Everyday most of the dailies have some or the other editor emphasizing the fact that India is evolving into a global superpower. But what piece of wisdom explains the continually plummetting number of girl child as compared to the boys? The reasons are many! People started misusing the concept of the MTP act that was laid down in 1971. It took 23 years for the government to realise this, before the act was amended in 1994 so as to criminalise the practice of getting an ultrasound scan done for the sole purpose of determining the sex of the foetus. But that was certainly not going to be enough. Even the new PNDT act has failed to keep up to it's name and has not been strictly implemented as many studies have revealed.

Looking at the way this issue is handled in this country, it is rightly said that 'The hardest profession one can take in life is to be a girl child.' Right from the time she is in the womb to her adulthood, its not just the male domination in the society that is responsible for the pain and discrimination she goes through but even the elder females in the family contribute to it. Female foeticide, infanticide, early marriage, sex-discrimination and dowry are the social evils that have crippled the society right from the pre-independence era. It has become a norm in the northern and the western states of India that a male child is a must so as to inherit the name of the family for many generations to come.

Ever wondered what would be the consequences if the child sex ratio keeps dipping down in the years to come? If not, dont be shocked that the 'doomsday' has already started showing it's ugly face in northern states like Haryana where people have finally started 'buying' girls from other states like Bihar, West Bengal, Orissa and the North East so as to give birth to their family inheritor. Often the poor girl is 'shared' by men in the same family and once the 'motive' is accomplished the same girl is resold. This 'bride-trading' has become a concept that will be hard to erase unless and until some major stringent action is taken by the competent authorities in near future.

What are the reasons that is pushing this 'global superpower' so behind when it comes to gender equality? Certainly the three main factors are Poverty, Illiteracy and lack of awareness about health resources. Poverty leads to malnutrition. It is said that out of 7.5 crore malnourished children in India 75% are females! It is no surprise that how nutrition wise girls are still discriminated even during their adolescence. This further results in various reproductive disorders. Add to it, the custom of child marriages and early marriages with ill-planned pregnancies and lack of proper health care. Needless to say that dowry and domestic violence are the next social evils that many women in our country have to face with a notion which they are expected to accept that its natural to suffer because of the X chromosome which they have inherited. With 70% of our population coming from the rural setup, this picture is really alarming.

To all those who are still stuck in this age old ideology of male inheritor, I request you all to please free up your mind. Listen to your inner voice, listen to the unseen face of that beautiful life inside that womb which asks you 'Why?' every time a thought crosses your mind to take away her right to see this beautiful world even before she is born. In the end it's not the 50:50 sex ratio that is important but the equality in the thoughts of each one of us towards a girl child and the acknowledgement in her abilities to stand at par with the male sex that should make the difference. Its not about how one sex is superior than the other or which sex has an advantage over the other. Its all about giving equal opportunities to both of them and not resort to the devils in your mind that doubt the abilities a girl child has, to bring a smile on your face. Its high time that the gender bias should be uprooted from the social ideology and apprehensions towards a girl child be overthrown.

No wonder why they say,

"If you educate a man, you educate one person, but if you educate a woman, you educate a whole family!"

Should Sachin get Bharat Ratna Award?

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 18:21:00 +0000

The famous questions doing the rounds in the media now-a-days is that 'Should Sachin Tendulkar get the Bharat Ratna award?' or 'Does he deserves the honour?' And since 2nd April 2011, after India won the ICC cricket world cup 2011, the demand has gathered steam and creating a buzz not only in the cricketing circle but also in the political arena. Many of the previous Bharat Ratna awardees, ex-cricketers, politicians and other sportspersons also back the thought of giving the Little Master the highest civilian award as soon as possible.

(Courtesy: Internet)

I completely agree and I am aware of the basic facts that revolve around granting this prestigious honour. The award is given for exceptional service towards advancement of Arts, Literature and Science and in Public service of the highest order. Agreed sports is not included in the above mentioned criteria and the current rules do not make Sachin eligible for the prize. But it goes without saying that his achievements neither need any explanation or a debate to determine their influence on the billions across the country. And if rules need to be changed and amendment of the criteria are imminent, Sachin's is the best excuse for doing so because the reason is worthy enough.

Some argue that Sachin is too 'young' to get the award and hence it would be too premature to honour him with such a prestigious award. But for a man who has devoted more than two-thirds of his life for a game which is no less than a religion in this country, giving him this highest honour is the most apt thing to do to give him back what he has given to this country. This man has not played cricket just like a game but it his passion towards it. Ironically, even after being 38 yrs old, it is this 'youth' factor that makes him stand apart from the rest. Look at the joy on his face every time he dives on the field or takes a catch. He is as excited and rearing to go as an 18 year old. Virat Kohli put it down really well on the world cup winning night, that as Sachin has been carrying the burden of this nation on his own shoulders for the last 21 years, its high time now we carry him on ours and reciprocate!

If you will go through the list of the 41 Bharat Ratna awardees, most of them are politicians and the last three are musicians. Not taking anything away from them, the argument that individual performances in a particular field should not be the basis of the award appears baseless. For example talk about Satyaji Ray, M S Subbalakshmi, Ravi Shankar, Lata Mangeshkar, Bismillah Khan, Bhimsen Joshi, etc. These great people were also honoured for what they achieved in their respective fields. So how is Sachin different from them. Sachin shouldn't be given the award based on his performances, but for the tremendous influence he has over the billions of us. He is an institution in himself with his absolutely down to earth persona and disciplined lifestyle. His achievements are no less than a social service. His every innings is a learning module for not just the buddying cricketers but also for other young minds because it has all the core values like determination, passion, devotion and integrity that one needs to excel in his field. No wonder he is truly called as the 'God of Cricket'.

Regarding the 'art' angle, Cricket is an art form too and Sachin has mastered it so well. He is the only cricketer in history to have played in the last 4 decades i.e. 1980s, 1990s, 2000s and 2010s! Finally just to sum it up I feel if despite all that he has done for this country, he doesn't get this honour, it would be as blasphemous as Mahatma Gandhi not getting the Noble Peace award. I hope such a time never comes and the true 'Jewel' of India does get the Bharat Ratna award soon. Amen!

We all are Anna Hazare!

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 13:32:00 +0000

India is a country of festivals, love, peace, enthusiasm and... corruption. However harsh the last word sounds, we as Indians have accepted the reality. But what have we done to counter it? Today one man has rose to the occasion and doing it for all of us. 72 year old social activist Anna Hazare's fast unto death has entered the third day in demand of a stringent anti-corruption bill as a part of the 'India Against Corruption' movement. And its our moral duty to step ahead and support him and tighten the noose around the government to get the common man heard.

(Courtesy: Internet)

The 'Modern Mahatma' is showing tremendous courage and determination to push through the Lokpal Bill, which will see an independent non-political body being empowered to punish all those guilty of corruption, not even sparing the Prime minister of this country. After 105 years since the real Mahatma introduced Satyagraha in the non-violent fight against the Britishers, here is one man who is using the same principle to fight against even more dangerous culprits than the firangis, our own corrupt politicians. I haven't seen the country explode with such marvelous support across all the age groups and across all the strata of the society in support of this great Gandhian. Right from the media, the celebrities, the sports people to the common office goer, the school teacher, the farmer, college students, all are showing solidarity in unison to this amazing movement of 'India against Corruption'. It only waits to be seen whether Jantar Mantar will turn out to be the Tahrir Square of India if the government does not heed to Anna's demands.

1) Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/IndiACor

2) Twitter : http://twitter.com/janlokpal

My only appeal to all those who are reading this is to come out and support this movement in your own way. Spread the word. If Anna Hazare can... we all can! Even if we show just 10% of support that we showed towards the Indian cricket team during the Cricket World Cup, we can still win this one. It is so ridiculous how Sonia and Rahul Gandhi sat in the general stands while watching the cricket matches just to show their connect with the common man and when it came to participating the same common man in drafting the revolutionary Lokpal bill, they have ignorantly shut the door on him. People there were as many as 8 instances when the government had fooled us on passing the bill by dissolving the house when it came to clearing the bill. Stand up and say "Not This Time!". Enough is Enough!

Remember...

There is no one Anna Hazare... I am Anna Hazare too, You are Anna Hazare, We all are Anna Hazare!

How long will we let these corrupt politicians drain our nation's resources and demoralize us? It is really pitiful to hear the same politicians who hail from a party based on Gandhian principles calling Anna's satyagraha as 'childish' and 'blackmail'. I have immense respect for our Prime minister but it is very sad to see him heading a cabinet full of corrupt ministers.

Friends and colleagues, we were not lucky enough to experience the euphoria of the great freedom struggle that our great leaders fought 60 years back. But now is the time. Its now or never! The path adopted by Anna may be a very old one, but we all need to believe in him and ourselves. We need to believe in a better tomorrow. In Anna we can see a leader, a selfless one, with no political greed. In him we can see a savior who can take us to the end of this fight against corruption. We need to stand up for ourselves and for our next generation. We cannot doubt each other any more. We have to rise and stand firm. THIS IS THE MOMENT!

Jai hind!

Cricket and the rise of the 'D' word!

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 16:21:00 +0000

'Depression doesn't care who it attacks: if it wants you, you cannot beat it off with a CV or a bank balance' - Marcus Trescothick

I am writing this post in the wake of the recent events in the ongoing Cricket World Cup 2011, where an English Cricketer withdrew from the team because of depression. Michael Yardy, the left arm spinner from the England squad left the camp last week citing depression. It was so brave and honest of him to have come forward and accept the situation and letting it know to the authorities. But this is not the only event in which sports with the cruel and demanding image it has today, has taken its toll on the mental health of the athletes.

(Courtesy: Internet)

The 30-year-old Sussex man, who has played a bit-part role during the tournament but has been a regular on the one-day scene over the last two years, is flying back to England immediately after discussions with the squad's medical team. But Yardy was not the only English cricketer to feel the blues. Marcus Trescothick, the Ex-English opener too failed to beat depression during his 2006 tour of India, which lead him to take a decision to quit his international career in 2008, cowed into submission by what he called the “black wings” of stress, sleeplessness and psychological torture.

The erratic schedule and the huge burden of expectations with lack of quality time with the loved ones have all contributed in players confronting their demons every now and then. The simple fact that Yardy spent only 4 days at home with his wife and the two kids in a span of 5 months explains the apathy of these brave sportsmen. I call him brave because Yardy did not try to beat around the bush by faking injuries or feigning illness. Instead he uttered the 'D' word with courage and honesty.

Graham Thorpe and Phil Tufnell were also the victims of the curse of Cricket. It is said that Tufnell had even spent a night in the psychiatry ward during the Ashes tour of 1994-95. Lou Vincent, who made a century on debut for New Zealand against an Australian attack containing Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne, also dropped out of top-class cricket because of depression.

Cricket today is such a game where the players spend more time with their team mates than their own families. Moreover, the uncertainty and the huge pressure to fight for your place in the playing eleven, especially in teams like India, South Africa, Australia who boast a terrific bench-strength, sometimes tears at the nerves. It has become a one-cap wonder game. One match you play good, you are the apple of so many eyes. The very next match you under perform, and you are on the hit-list of many. Though sport is all about showing your strengths and not your weakness, burning out of the cricketers due to a crazy schedule is becoming a serious issue today. Self-doubt, loneliness and home-sickness are the demons that these cricketers are confronting in this mad world of cut-throat competition.

But I believe there are more Yardys and Trescothicks in other teams too. And they are certainly not going to be the last ones. It is high time that constructive steps are taken into considerations, so as to avoid such circumstances. People like Geoffrey Boycott, should not criticize and overlook such new problems the current generation of cricketers are going through. These oldies need to realise one thing, that cricket has changed drastically today. It was very insensitive on Boycott's part to have correlated Yardy's confession of being depressed with his cricketing abilities.

Depression is just like any other illness. It has nothing to do with the 'strength' or 'weakness' of one's mind. It is due to an imbalance of neurotransmitters in your brain that are responsible for your mood in your day to day activities. Comments like 'Pull yourself together mate' or 'Cheer up boy' will not serve any purpose. Once depression attacks someone the only way out is to seek professional help and even more importantly accept it honestly. Yardy did it with courage. Hats off to him. Wishing the man a speedy recovery...

Do not forget... 'Everyone is vulnerable!'

Pepsi Change the Game Videos

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 17:53:00 +0000

Recently there have been many Pepsi adverts on 'Change the Game' campaign being shot for the current ICC Cricket world cup 2011 that is being held in the subcontinent with India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh being the co-hosts. The cricketers that acted in the shoots were Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Harbhajan Singh, Virender Sehwag, Kevin Pieterson, Billy Bowden, Malinga, Dilshan and Shakib-ul-Hasan. I am just posting all the videos together here as I love them a lot.

If you ask me, I really love the one shot with Billy Bowden. That man is just terrific with his antics and he acted so natural in that advert. Way to go Bowden! Anyways enjoy.

1. Dhoni's Helicopter Shot

2. Sehwag's Upar cut

3. Bhajji's Doosra

4. Dilshan's Pallu Scoop

5. Pietersen's Palti shot

6. Bowden's Tedi Ungal

7. Malinga's Slinga

8. Shakib-ul-Hasan's super scoop

So which one did you like???

(Disclaimer: All the above videos are part of Youtube and whole credit is given to the source)

Liver or 'Lover'? Alcohol kills both!

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 16:50:00 +0000

William Shakespeare once said,

"Alcohol provokes the desire but takes away the performance"

(Courtesy: Internet)

It is perfectly true that medically it is advisable to have alcohol in small amounts especially the red wine, as it increases the HDL which is the 'good' cholesterol. When in moderate amounts, it is also seen as an aphrodisiac, thereby increasing the libido during sex by removing the sexual inhibitions and intensifying the feelings of well-being and sexual satisfaction during intimacy. But the catch word here is 'moderate'. Overconsumption often leads to the culmination of the euphoria and thus results in the impotence that follows later. So how is alcohol and impotence connected? And what are the symptoms?

I have already discussed how Smoking may lead to impotence. Impotence is when the man is not able to maintain his erection sufficient enough to complete his act of sexual intercourse with his partner. The erection is lost much prior to ejaculation. It only includes the lack of sustaining the erection and not any other problem like failure to ejaculate, loss of libido, etc.

There are many theories why excessive alcohol can cause impotence.

1. Long term alcohol abuse can result in interference in the signal pathways between the brain's pituitary gland and the genitals. This system is responsible for engorging the penis with blood by dilating the blood vessels in the penile architecture.

2. Some physicians also believe that the alcohol abuse can cause damage to the nerves of the penis thereby hindering the sensory input during the intercourse which is essential for the erectile mechanism to initiate.

3. After initial euphoric stimulation of the brain's libido center, excessive alcohol further causes inhibition of the center, thus reducing the sexual desire terminating the sexual pleasure. Concentration and judgement become cloudy as the brain is suppressed by the inhibition through alcohol and physical activity and movement are also impaired.

4. Many scientists believe that alcohol has a deleterious effect on the testosterone producing capacity of the cells in the testis. Testosterone is the masculine hormone that is responsible for differentiating a man from a woman. Low levels of testosterone thus diminishes the sexual drive and function.

5. Heavy drinkers are often associated with co-morbid psychological conditions like depression, stress and anxiety. This makes them all the more susceptible to impotence. It is a vicious cycle in this case leading to the aggravation of the physical and psychological deterioration in their health increasing the chances of impotence.

6. Since alcohol has a really bad effect on the liver, the body may develop chemical substances within the skin that create inflammation as well as irritation which will make sexual activity so uncomfortable that the psychological effect may cause your body to disassociate with intimate contact. Cirrhosis will even cause hypogonadism which atrophies a mans testicles, also reducing or even ruining the lovemaking drive and/or performance.

So what do you do when you end up with alcohol induced impotence?

a. Firstly you need to acknowledge that the problem exists and that Help is available. Early intervention can almost cure the disorder with effective co-operation between the physician and the patients themselves.

b. It is always advisable to just avoid alcohol when its time for intimacy or before your love making. Alcohol being a depressant, lowers blood pressure making it tough to stay in rigidity while keeping focused. Since alcohol constricts the bloodstream, particularly the smaller capillary routes, there is certainly much less awareness within the sensors which support erectile performance.

b. There are medicines available such as Viagra which can be prescribed by the physician after taking into consideration, the etiology, the risk factors and the benefits of starting the drug.

c. If the impotence is as a result of physical damage to the vessels of the penis or the nervous system there are injectables that your doctor may offer you for correcting the impotence.

d. Alcoholic induced impotence can best be addressed with a lifestyle adjustment. When one cannot remove drinking completely, one could at the least cut it right down. A 50% decline in drinking can give significantly enhanced efficiency potential. Changing to a more gentle kind of alcoholic drink, such as wine beverages, may also assist the return of sexual performance if this continues to be the main reason for impotence

So think ahead before sipping that glass before making love, because you may not just kill the liver inside you but also the 'lover' inside you...

(The above post is written only from informative point of view. Kindly do not consider it as a prescription. Talk to your physician for further details of the treatment discussed here.)

Are you addicted to Pornography?

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 15:08:00 +0000

What is pornography? Wikipedia states it is the portrayal of explicit sexual subject matter for the purposes of sexual excitement and erotic satisfaction. With the advent of the internet and in the age of YouTube, the current young generation have an easy access to free sexual content at the click of a button. There are hoards of websites scattered around the internet that provide ample of free uncensored sex related media that ranges from free pictures, watch videos, mms, movies and free webcam chatting too. Today in India even a schoolboy knows what 'XXX' stands for. In the land of Kamasutra, it wasn't long when 'desibaba' was a huge sensation in the adolescent minds, which has now given way to 'Savita Bhabhi'.

Porn: Good or Bad?

But it waits to be seen that whether pornography and the associated internet addiction does really have any effect on the psychology of these young minds. Some believe that pornography is not that bad as it is an healthy outlet for one's sexual needs. But most other psychologists are of the opinion that pornography can contribute to a distorted view of sex and unhealthy personal relationships. Medically speaking, some psychiatrists believe that this porn addiction can be a cause or an effect of depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder as well.

Love and Porn:

For a person to have a good mental health, love plays a very important role. But the uncensored sexual information that is relayed across the websites often depict the sex partner as an object of exploitation. Instead of looking at sex as a way to develop an emotional bond between the partners, a wrong message is usually passed through that it is all about reaching the big 'O' someway or the other. Love helps develop emotionally satisfying sexual relationships.

Whereas while indulging in Pornography it is usually one-sided. There is complete absence of emotional angle to it. It is usually followed with masturbation and hence can further push the subject into loneliness and depression. Low self esteem is often a sequelae. Clinical studies have proved a possible correlation between masturbation and depression in individuals.

Relationships and Pornography:

Watching porn excessively not only alters sexual attitudes but also behavior. It is seen as a major threat to marriage, to family, to children and to individual happiness. In undermining marriage it is one of the factors in undermining social stability. Married men addicted to porn are found to be emotionally less interested in the real conjugal relations with wives and feel less satisfied. This gives way to infidelity and divorce collapsing even long relationships.

Psychology and Pornography:

Neuroscientists around the world have begun mapping the biological substrate of this unique addiction. It is found that an individual tends to become desensitized to the type of pornography they use. Eventually they become bored with it and then seek more perverse and more hardcore forms of pornographic content. Regular porn watchers have an increasing tendency towards abnormal and criminal sex behavior like rape, sexual aggression and promiscuity. Women are often seen as 'sex objects' by such men. The high risk behavior that follows often result in the individual getting exposed to STDs and legal issues like out-of-wedlock births, pulling them into a vicious cycle of stress and depression related debilities.

Pornography and Help:

The main defenses against pornography are close family life, a good marriage and good relations between parents and children, coupled with deliberate parental monitoring of Internet use. The best way to deal with any kind of addiction is to seek the help of a qualified therapist. Though neither sex addiction nor porn addiction is considered an official mental disorder, they are definitely categorized under compulsions that can have serious effects on one’s sexuality and thus can be detrimental to social functioning.

So keep a check on yourself, the next time you type XXX in the search bar...

Sachin - a true gentleman

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 12:15:00 +0000

Why Sachin is a gentleman? What makes Sachin so great? If you google these questions, you will be directed to n number of blogs where people have posted a photo of a female fan taking an autograph of M S Dhoni with Sachin sitting to his left and Uthappa, Dinesh Karthik and Yuvraj sitting besides him. And the naughty trio looking at what young men will usually look at but Sachin simply looking away from the girl...

(Courtesy: Cricketcountry.com)

Pretty fine! But that incident doesn't really give you the wholesome idea of how gentlemanly this man is. There are many people not only in India, but in the whole world who live with the notion that 'Sachin Tendulkar is God'. At the same time there are also many who condemn him and pull him down by calling him selfish and not a matchwinner. No wonder with the recent form with which this genius is playing, he has reduced the latter bunch to a mere handful now. But apart from being lauded by millions around the world, the mystery still remains that what makes him such a gentleman and such a down to earth soul.

Yesterday I saw the last league game of the CWC world cup 2011 where India played the West Indies. Sachin was on the brink of his 100th century in international career. The stage was set for him and everyone were hopeful as always that he will easily do it this time against a side which had not even fielded its best bowlers. But the jampacked Chepauk stadium in Chennai witnessed one of the most beautiful moment in the history of cricket in recent times. On the very last ball of the first over bowled by Ravi Rampaul, Sachin was beaten by an in-swinger. No wonder the Sachin hungry opposition went up in unison to appeal for a caught behind. But Umpire Steve Davis wasn't convinced and he turned down the appeal to a huge sigh from the 40000 odd crowd, only to be followed by a deafening silence seconds later. But then what happened was a pure gentlemanly gesture from the master blaster. He didnt even look towards the Umpire, convinced that he had indeed nicked the ball, he gracefully headed off towards the pavilion.

Sachin today has reached such dizzying heights in his career but yet his feet are firmly planted on the ground. Any other person in his shoes would have gone astray with the kind of fame, money and the divine status that he enjoys in this country. But I guess coming from a family with such beautiful middle class values has prevented him from getting all these into his head.

I dont know why people compare him with Ponting. Sachin is far away from him, may it be the career highlights or even the character or the sportsmanship. It wasn't a surprise that this came a day after Ponting stood his ground despite knowing that he had nicked the ball in a match against Pakistan. More so, he had the shameless guts to admit that he was completely aware of the nick and he stood there because the umpire didn't raise the finger. Needless to say he deserved the undignified exit that came minutes later after he was given out by the referral umpire.

Yes there will be cynics who will say that Sachin did this deliberately, or that it was an inconspicuous game so it didnt matter to him so he walked out. But then living in a country grappled with loads of dishonesty and corruption, one man stands out as a blissful sight of sheer passion and commitment towards his dream, inspiring millions of mortals like me...

Happy Holi

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Sun, 20 Mar 2011 08:26:00 +0000

(Courtesy: Internet)

Holi is the time to develop understanding and love for each other. Wishing all my readers all over the world and their families a very happy and colourful Holi. May God spray colors of joy and success over you. Enjoy the colours, the water balloons and the delicious dishes at home...

Happy HOLI to everyone out there!

Doomsday theories!

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 10:04:00 +0000

Is Doomsday really going to happen? Will the world end in 2012? Will Planet X Nibiru going to collide with Earth in 2012? Will world war III happen in 2012? Will Nostradamus sea turn black?

So many questions are doing the rounds over the internet. They say that the world is going to end on December 21st, 2012 and they have ample of theories as to how Nostradamus will prove himself right in the coming few months. But sometimes I seriously feel like applauding these maniacs who come up with such strong creative ideologies to back their theories. The most popular sms doing the rounds is

The U.S. lost many lives on 09-11-01 and Japan lost even more on 03-10-11. If you add all the numbers, you get 12-21-12 and so the world is indeed going to end!

So I tried to find out all the theories that are being stated by many 'experts'. Here are a few...

1. The Mayan Calendar

So what exactly is the Mayan Calendar? Everyone seems to be worried about the recent prediction that the world will end in 2012. Some doomsday writers are using the Mayan calendar to support their claims.

The Mayas studied astronomy and had a complicated mathematical system, but they were not able to predict the future. If they had that ability, they would have taken measures to prevent the collapse of their own civilization before the post-classic period. By the 1000 A.D., the Great Maya system had collapsed, and peoples migrated outside the city centers. Historians, anthropologists and archeologists still debate over the cause. Some claim it was a result of warfare, while others believe it was a direct result of environmental changes and land overuse.

The Mayas used several different calendars, not just one. The Tzolk'in calendar is based on a cycle of 260 days. One interesting theory is that it is based on the female gestation period, if it is counted from the first missed menstrual cycle to the birth. The days in the cycle are numbered from one to thirteen, starting over again at one. This calendar tracked religious ceremonies.

The Haab' calendar is a solar calendar based on a cycle of 365 days. Although, inaccurate over time, the calendar attempted to track the agrarian year.

The Long Count calendar is the one used by doomsday prophets. The calendar begins with the first day of Maya creation. The Long Count was created to keep track of events over long periods of time. Just as our modern calendar rolls back to January 1st every year, so will the Long Count calendar.

2. Geomagnetic Reversal

Also referred to as polar shift, is said to be triggered by a massive solar flare, one with energy equal to 100 billion atomic bombs! They say that the Earth's magnetic field is weakening, which would reverse the polarity of the magnetic field of the Earth. But the fact remains that the planet's magnetic fields are caused and regulated by the spinning of the solid inner core inside the molten outer core, and so cannot be influenced by something external to the planet. A solar maximum would be mostly notable for its effects on satellite and cellular phone communications. At the most it can cause some damage to the satellites revolving high up in the orbit.

3. Planet X/Nibiru

Some theories also point to some planet called Planet X or Nibiru which is set to collide with or pass by Earth in 2012. This idea, which has appeared in various forms within New Age circles since 1995, initially slated the event for 2003 but abandoned that date after it passed without incident. It originated from claims of channeling of alien beings and has been widely ridiculed. Astronomers calculate that such an object so close to Earth would be visible to anyone looking up at the night sky.

4. Alien invasion

In late 2009, rumours began circulating in UFO forums on the internet that SETI (Search for extraterrestrial Intelligence) had detected several city-sized spacecraft headed towards Earth, often citing a particular image from the Digitized Sky Survey as evidence. In December 2010, an article appeared in examiner.com, again citing the photograph, and stating that a high-ranking SETI researcher named "Craig Kasnov" had reported that three "flying saucers", each tens of kilometres long, would arrive in Earth orbit by December, 2012. This article was referenced in a number of mainstream news outlets, including the English language version of Pravda. Later it was found that the supposed UFO photograph bore more resemblance to a bit of grit or a defect in the photographic plate.

So Myths are abound and seem to be fuelling even movie storylines. It also highlights the hype that can be stirred, lighting up religious, scientific and not-so-scientific ideas that the world is doomed. There is so much evidence against these things happening in 2012, it’s shocking just how much of a following they have generated. Just because the Mayan calendar turns 13.0.0.0.0. it doesn't mean that the world is going to end! We celebrate 31st December every year not as a doomsday but a new beginning to a new year ahead...
(The above blog post has inputs from the internet and wikipedia)

Fathers - the unsung heroes!

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Sat, 05 Mar 2011 18:02:00 +0000

"आई हे घराचे मांगल्य, तर वडील अस्तित्व असतात"- सिंधूताई सपकाळ

This is one of the famous lines said by Sindhutai Sapkal which signifies the role of a father in a family. It says that if a mother denotes the heart and the beauty of a home, then the father denotes its 'existence'. Often in literature, the role of a father is never spoken of. Saints and poets have always been seen lauding their mothers and their importance in their life. Writers and various authors have written in their biographies and literature about how their mother influenced their life so much. But hardly few texts have mentioned the importance of a father in a family. If ever a father is mentioned, he is often portrayed as an arrogant, stubborn or a negative figure. But barring a handful of them falling in this category, what about the many others who deserve equal recognition and respect from their offspring.

A mother may take support of her tears. When in difficult times, she ventilates herself with tears, but a father is not expected to cry, rather he is expected to be strong and support her and the family however hard he breaks down. No one understands the pain he goes through during such situations. He is like the lamp which has to bear more heat than the flame itself. But almost every time it is the flame that gets the credit of showing the light and not the lamp. We remember our mother who takes care of us day in and day out, but we easily forget the father who has toiled hard to connect each dots of our life for us to live a happy future. A mother may cry and let her feelings come out, but it is the father who suppresses his emotions in front of others, till he goes to bed and vents out his feelings between the pillows.

When we say Jijabai influenced Shivaji Maharaj to become a successful ruler in Indian history, we should not forget the hardships that Shahaji Raje went through while carving a gem out of Maharaj. Devki and Yashoda are hailed for their role in Lord Krishna's life, but at the same time, how much importance is given in mentioning Vasudeva who carried the little Krishna on his head when he himself had completely drowned in the flooded Yamuna.

These fathers will never see beyond the happiness of their families. Every month or so, he will buy a new gown for his daughter, or a new jeans for his son, but will himself show no reluctance in wearing the same trousers for years. A son may not think before spending money to get a trendy hairstyle, nor would the daughter while going to a beauty parlour, but this father will use his old shaving kit for months to save money to meet his children's needs. When he falls ill, he will never agree to go to a doctor... not because he is afraid of the illness but because he is afraid of the possibility that the doctor might advice him a month long bed-rest. He is afraid of the lack of income if he stays at home. Who will take care of the household needs then?

You will seldom see a father say, "I love you" to his children. Though the feeling is always there, he has his own ways of expressing his love towards them. His love may not be visible immediately in hugs or kisses but it does become apparent in months and years in the secure future that he keeps planning for his children.

What I feel is that though both mother and father play a crucial role in the development of their child, the mother is more associated with the softer side of a child like love, affection and sharing of inner feelings to which children easily connect to. A mother’s love is boundless and is imperative in the development of a child, more so in the moral and psychological perspective. But a father is more associated with the harder side of the child’s development; he who guides them to be a stronger person in mind, who guides them on their education and career and show them the outer sphere of the world. A father provides physical protection of a child while a child finds more secure with mother.

So this is how it is. Right from our birth, there is always this bias for us towards our mother. Fathers have nothing to do with it. Even if they love their children, the creator has so programmed it that, it is difficult to prove a father's love and so it needs an extra effort. Perhaps they have to speak love and get love back in return in a fashion of their own...

(This post is not about 'mother v/s father' and hence preferably dont give a sensitive angle to it. The views should not be generalized.)

Why one should donate blood?

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 06:47:00 +0000

Trypanophobia - is the extreme fear of medical procedures involving injections or hypodermic needles. And it is one of the main reason why many people, though willing to take part in blood donation drives, don't gather enough courage to do so. Blood Donation is essentially a voluntary act where one allows one's blood to be taken out from his/her body for any medical purpose. It is widely promoted by the Red Cross. There are various blood donation centers in almost all the cities in India. There are many types of blood donation, as whole blood donation, blood plasma donation, etc. When I asked many of my friends and relatives about their views on blood donation, I came across many misconceptions and myths that are prevalent in the society about the procedure and it's benefits or side-effects. So here I am writing this post to help you understand that there are many benefits of blood donation as compared to an almost blank list of disadvantages of doing so.

(Courtesy: Internet)

Being Altruistic : It goes without saying, that the most important benefit of blood donation is the most satisfying feeling of being a reason for saving someones life, in most of the cases you are unaware of who the person is. And this feeling cannot be described unless and until you yourself experience it. Did you know that only 3 teaspoons of blood can save a life of a premature baby in blood crisis?

Free Health check-up : Every time you donate blood, you get to undergo a free health screening! You are subjected to a basic health check up where a doctor, a nurse and a lab technician wont charge you for getting your vitals checked. Your hemoglobin level is also tested. If it is low, then you will not be allowed to donate blood. Besides hemoglobin, your blood pressure, blood group and body weight will also be checked. In addition, your blood will also be subjected to screening for the presence of five diseases, namely Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, Syphilis, HIV/AIDS and Malaria. If you are not suffering from these diseases, only then you will be allowed to donate your blood.

Iron overloading: Blood donation is one of the most easiest way to get rid of the excess iron accumulated in our body due to over consumption. Excess of iron is not good for health as it is responsible for formation of free radicals which cause damage to the body cells and tissues and are also related to various heart diseases and cancers. Iron oxidizes cholesterol which in turn causes atherosclerotic changes in the blood vessels. Iron overload is also seen in Hemochromatosis which is a genetic disease due to defective iron metabolism causing serious damage to pancreas, adrenal glands, indirectly resulting in diabetes, liver disorders, etc. Thus donating blood on a regular basis will help one to regulate the iron levels in one's circulation, especially in young males, thereby decreasing the risk of heart diseases.

Calories : It is said that one pint of blood which may be around (350-400 ml which is only 7.5% of your total blood volume) on an average burns 650 calories!

Press F5 to refresh : Once you donate blood, the blood cell count in your body decreases. This stimulates your bone marrow to produce new red blood cells so as to replenish the loss. Indirectly, this stimulates the production of new blood cells and thus it refreshes your circulation.

When talking about the disadvantages, the list is almost blank except for the fact that sometimes your blood pressure may drop temporarily or you may experience nausea or dizziness for a few seconds. But at the end the feeling of saving one's life and the free health benefits that come along with it, should certainly motivate one to plan a visit to a blood donation drive, once you end reading this post. Try it once, I assure you... it feels good!

How to annoy someone?

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 17:50:00 +0000

Here is a list of 27 methods to annoy someone. I am quoting this from my college magazine 'Antarnad' by an unknown author. Just read it and have a laugh...

1. Adjust the tint on your TV so that all the people are green and insist to other people that 'you like it that way'

2. Drum on every possible surface.

3. Write the surprise ending of a novel on it's first page.

4. Learn Morse code and have conversations with your friends in public consisting entirely of the words, 'Beep Bip Bip Beep Bip.'

5. Publicly investigate just how slowly you can make a croaking noise.

6. Change channels five minutes before the end of every show.

7. Decline to be seated at a restaurant and simply eat their complimentary mints by the cash register.

8. Begin all your sentences with 'Ooh la la'.

9. Pay for your dinner in paise.

10. Repeat everything someone says as a question.

11. Leave tips in Bolivian currency.

12. As much as possible, skip rather than walk.

13. Stand over someone's shoulder mumbling as they read.

14. Inform others that they exist only in your imagination.

15. Ask people what gender they belong to.

16. Blow your nose when someone's eating.

17. Declare your apartment as an independent nation and sue your neighbors upstairs for 'violating your how-cool-life-airspace'

18. Chew on pens you have borrowed.

19. Claim that you must always wear bicycle helmets as part of your 'astronaut training.'

20. Forget the punchline to a long joke but assure the listener that it was indeed a good one.

21. Listen to a 33 rpm record at 45 rpm speed and claim that the faster speed is necessary for your 'superior mental processing.'

22. Ask the waiter for an extra seat for your imaginary friend.

23. Never make eye contact.

24. Never break eye contact.

25. Invite lots of people to other people's parties.

26. Make appointments for the 30th of February.

27. Send fifty retweets or facebook shares of this list to everyone you know.

Sachin and the 'dog' mentality

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 17:54:00 +0000

A very common notion that the entire 1.2 billion population of India shares with pride is

"Cricket is my religion and Sachin is my GOD"

Suddenly some chap in the southern most tip of Africa shows his dyslexic skill when he appears before the media and says, "Sachin is my DOG!"

(Courtesy: Internet)

The South African Cricket team Bowling coach Vincent Barnes, has reportedly admitted before the media that he's missing Sachin - his dog that is, and not the Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar, after whom he named the canine. Barnes also made it clear that he is one of the most ardent fan of Sachin (Tendulkar). He has held the post of a bowling coach for half a decade now. The most funny thing about this news, according to me, is the question, whether this is even a news in the first place. A major Indian daily put it on their front page and the whimsical media, both electronic and print, followed suit. As expected, the Indians were hurt. Some call it as a sheer disrespect, some even point a racist angle to it and many feel that its a mind game to pluck the master blasters wicket in the coming India-SA world cup match.

Relax guys! One thing that makes me happy about this 'news' is the fact that these westerners do love their pets more than their wives sometimes. They will invest huge amount of money for maintaining their pets especially dogs. In West, pets have their own rights just like we humans do. We, as Indians, can only think of a stray who gets kicked and stoned every other day, when the word 'dog' comes in our mind and understandably so many felt that this was a matter of abuse and disrespect for the little master. But as a die-hard Sachin fan myself, I am pretty much sure that Sachin, himself would have just laughed over this and took it sportingly.

(Courtesy: Hindustan times)

Pets are a symbol of love, comfort and compassion. People need to understand that it should be a matter of pride for us when Sachin gets symbolised for love. There is no need to get cynical over this. Sadly so, the Indian press and media are the ones who have gone to the 'dogs'. They are just there to build a mountain out of a molehill. They cash in on our Indian mindset which is always hungry for some spicy news. Journalism has surely gone for a toss. The electronic media has become a joke and now the print media is following suit. They are responsible for instigating a negative mindset in the people. The fact that the guy is himself admitting this in front of the so-called media and that too in India, certainly points to the fact that he has no malice against Sachin. Its just another case of 'Cultural difference.' We as Indians need to be more mature and see through these gimmicks and think rationally before coming to a hasty conclusion.

So lets put this aside. Let us not behave like immatures and just accept the idea that Vincent must have named his DOG as Sachin, so that he could feel even more closer to our GOD!

Should Doctors go on strike?

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 03:54:00 +0000

My younger brother called up today evening to let me know that he was participating in a debate in his medical school. The topic was "Should doctors be allowed to go on strike?" I asked him whether he was talking from the pro or the against side? Being in the first year of medical school, not yet exposed to the clinical environment and the set-up, it was understandable when he said that he was going to talk from the 'no-strike' point of view. So that tempted me to open my lappie and post about the topic here.

(Courtesy: Internet)

Every month or so, people in India are used to reading the 'Breaking News' that says - "Doctors in so-and-so state have called for an indefinite strike." I believe, 'strike' is a legitimate form to protest in a democracy like India. But with the principle behind medicine rests in alleviation of suffering, the issue about doctors using that form of protest is slightly questionable. But I feel even before asking the question as to 'Should Doctors go on strike', the first question should be, 'What are the reasons behind these strikes?' And hence this question needs to be answered so that the media and indirectly the general public gets to know the real facts for the doctors to step against their Hippocratic Oath.

What leads to strike?

In India, the medical system is not an autonomous organisation. The government controls a major part of it. The medical community is too small as compared to the vast patient load that it has to face in the public as well as the private sector. In India a student has to undergo a total of five and a half years of continuous academic training that also includes the compulsory one year rotatory internship. Some states even have a bond to complete one more year of exclusive rural hospital training before assigning the graduation hat to the candidate. Once MBBS is over, the chap has to go through yet another rigorous phase of life for his/her post-graduation studies and then when he/she gets that seat after many attempts (which is usually the scenario), the real struggle starts.

The resident doctors are the core of any public hospital. They are the ones who are present 24/7 in the hospital campus. A HSC passed science student has many aspirations and a noble thought of selfless service to the community, when he clears the CET and steps into a medical school. Yes later as he matures, he does think about earning money, which I feel is completely justified. But unfortunately, the conditions in which the resident doctors work in, make them feel hopeless about their future and the spark of the noble cause gradually dwindles along the way. Despite being the crème of the society, when they feel that their grievances for even their basic needs are not heard, the only step that remains is to resort to strike so that their apathy is somehow brought to notice.

Media and the Doctors:

Unlike what is portrayed in the electronic media (which has become a real farce in today's society), Doctors do think a lot before going on strike. They are completely aware of the repercussions that may follow in form of canceling of their registration, delay in their completion of studies and needless to mention, their image in the society. Nevertheless, the trust between the doctor and patient is not as strong as it was a few decades ago. All that the lay man today cribs about the doctor is that they are money-minting machines! But no one gives a thought to the tough and an impatient journey which the doctors go through in their early life to be called one later. It is certainly not like Dr. Armaan and Dr. Riddhima who are shown to attend patients in between their romantic and fun filled lifestyle rather than what it should be, the other way round.

Today doctors are beaten up like dogs by hooligans, not to mention, right in front of the security. We doctors certainly don't expect people to worship us like God. All we want from them is to understand that the person behind that white coat is a human being, no different than them. I am not amongst those who completely blame the relatives for such outbursts. Somewhere the communication gap between the doctor and the patient is increasingly widening leading to such shameful incidents. Both the sides should equally give efforts to understand each others point.

These strikes have become a daily affair since last few years. During my undergraduate days, I had been a part of three major strikes over a period of 3 years, everytime the cause was a different one but the pattern used to be the same. After all the means of protest proved fruitless, a strike used to become inevitable, media would spice up the stories at their own will, after 7-10 days or so, the government would wake up and do bla-bla in front of the camera without giving any written assurances and finally the strike used to get called off just to be repeated after few months as the demands used to get thrown away of the window with some or the other excuses.

Why doctors strikes are often failures?

(Courtesy: The Hindu)

The problem for all these 'strikes' remaining unsuccessful lies in the fact that the resident doctors come and go every 3 years unlike the politicians which are glued to their seats for eternity. And this is also one of the many reasons that the media openly seems biased towards the government during such confrontations. Today's media is more like that small kid desperate for attention of his friends for all the silly and stupid reasons that he has. They will loop a clip of a patient being turned away from a hospital n number of times but will not bother to step into the pathetic hostel room of a resident doctor just a few blocks away.

Another big reason for resident doctors pushed away in the corner is the lack of unity and support by their own seniors, the lecturers and the professors. Instead of increasing the medical seats for both post-graduates and the professors, the government is still hell bent on increasing the age of retirement, thereby increasing the stagnating gap between the PGs and the teachers. This is serving absolutely no purpose for those lecturers who are waiting for more than 10 years to get promoted to a professors job.

The most important reason for strike now-a-days was the decrease in the number of post-graduates seats in the government hospitals as compared to the surprisingly increase in the same in the private medical colleges, especially in Maharashtra, where almost all of them have some or the other politician heading the university they are affliated to. Talk of the pathetic political will to implement a central common entrance on merit for all the medical seats which also would include the private ones.

So all these frustrating scenarios make a doctor shed his white coat and resort to a democratic way to show his protest to the tyrannical political way of working that has infested the medical education system in India. If doctors wouldnt have gone on strike, this minutely noticeable population would have deteriorated even further. This strikes don't happen only for increase in wages as the media always focuses on. There are lot many issues that the Resident doctors associations come up with, selflessly putting the welfare of the society ahead of everything. But still there is so much indifference and insensitivity that people show towards doctors. The media shows the doctors as evil since no one would like to see a channel that supports the doctors. The media industry just cashes in on the ongoing mood, which is usually a common man's hatred and disgust towards a doctor leaving his OPD and coming on to the roads and polishing shoes in front of cameras to show their pathetic state of living.

Despite this the question still remains debatable. As long as the root of this problem is not addressed with unbiased approach by the authorities, the media and the government, these strikes will continue, irrespective of the fact that a doctor never willingly thinks about hurting his patients by holding up his services temporarily...

(The recent strike going on by the Interns in Maharashtra can be followed here...
ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING by fellow blogger Karan Choudhary)

Are you really depressed?

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 12:50:00 +0000

Most of us feel sad in our daily life. Its not unusual for someone to feel the 'blues' now and then. But then what exactly falls in the criteria of being 'depressed'? Let me put up a few points for you to help you identify the signs and symptoms of Depression. Do NOT stop reading further! Even if you feel you are strong enough mentally to not 'encounter depression at any point ever', I insist you to go through this once, as it might help you help your dear ones or friends in their low times. I would specifically write focusing on the younger teen-agers who I feel are the most vulnerable lot during this exam season.

(Courtesy: Internet)

Being sad is not unusual but being sad most of the time is. The phrase 'most of the time' medically suggests a period of at least 2 weeks of sustained sadness of mood. If this sadness is often giving you problems with your studies or your performance in schools/colleges, your behavior at home or with friends or getting addictions like alcohol, smoking or problems during sex, then most probably you are going through DEPRESSION. To put it in a simpler way to help you identify I am putting down a check list below with criteria for depression. Remember that the following symptoms should not be secondary to any other medical condition.

1.You feel depressed most of the day, nearly every day like feeling empty or feeling sad. In younger age and children this may rather manifest as irritable mood.

2. a significant decrease in interest in activities which used to be pleasurable before.

3. a marked decrease or increase in weight or appetite. (>/= 5% of baseline body weight)

4. inability to sleep or excessive sleep pattern

5. feeling tired/lethargic most of the day, almost everyday.

6. often feeling 'I am worthless' or excessive or inappropriate guilt about something.

7. psycho-motor agitation/retardation : restlessness or slowing down while performing activities or doing mental work.

8. inability to think rationally or finding it difficult to take any decision on your own.

9. Lastly... recurrent thoughts about death and not just fear of dying, thinking about suicide with or without a plan ready.

So if you check at least 5 out of the above 9 criterias, you are just one of the ten people in this world who are going through Depression. But as you can see, by that statistics, Depression is really common in todays world. At least 4 percent of adolescents get teen depression each year. But the good news is that you have treatment ready and if you take early interventions, you need not worry much about the duration of the treatment or relapses.

(Courtesy: Aasra)

If you are depressed, please TALK to someone! It is very important to talk and ventilate yourself. There are many people out there waiting to LISTEN to you. The sooner you do this, the better. You can yourself visit some mental health professional or take someone's help, someone whom you trust the most, your family member, your friends, your teacher. Remember there is always some help around you. You need not feel ashamed of what you are going through, however down your life takes you. They say, "If you are going through hell... still Keep going!"

Having depression doesn't mean you are mentally 'weak', its just another ailment which needs 'treatment'. Some may require psychotherapy, some may need medicine and some need both. Your Psychiatrist, unlike few years ago, has many choices to choose the right medicines today with minimal side-effects. Anti-depressants are no longer always 'sedatives'. Psychopharmacology is an upcoming trend today. Needless to say, if you know someone who might be going through depression, please step forward and offer help. If directly helping doesn't work, talk to an adult related to that person whom you can trust.

Why do people get depressed? The answer is a huge one. There are many causes for depression just like any other medical disease like diabetes, heart disease or say liver disease. Mental disorders are different only in the aspect that they affect your day to day activities and their management requires a psycho-socio-behavioral approach and not just an individualistic one.

I hope this article helps those who need help and also for those who are willing to help... Remember,

"We cannot help everyone, but Everyone can certainly help someone."

What is Cord Blood Banking?

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 08:38:00 +0000

Stem cell research is a relatively new technology and it primarily deals with working with the most primitive human cells (stem cells) and developing them into any of the 220 variants of cells in the human body. Where do we find these stem cells? When a baby is born, the cord blood is a rich source for these stem cells. The cord blood is nothing but the blood that remains in the umbilical cord and the placenta once the baby is born.

(Courtesy: Internet)

These stem cells are a very rich source of the blood cells in the human body. Till now bone marrow was seen as a good source of stem cells and bone marrow transplant was 'the' treatment in many blood disorders in the younger population. But due to the recent advances in clinical research revolving around cord blood stem cell research it is proved that cord blood is the most important source for blood stem cells as far as the quality and the therapeutic approach is considered. This blood can be easily retrieved from the umbilical cord without causing any harm to the child. Later it can be stored in approved bank centres and can be used at any point of time to replenish the stem cells in various medical disorders.

Thus cord blood banking is just like an insurance by saving it for the future, if need arises. It is a one in a lifetime opportunity as the blood has to be collected and processed within 10 minutes of the child-birth. It is much advisable for those parents who themselves have the disorder or have a family history of the blood disorders. It has nothing to do with the mode of delivery, whether normal or cesarean.

The process:

1. The medical staff usually has a specialised kit for collecting the cord blood. Once the baby is born, the umbilical cord is clamped and the blood from the cord is collected in a bag that comes along with the kit. Some doctors advise to do this before the placenta is delivered where as some think its insignificant.

2. The mother's blood is also collected and lab tested for any infectious diseases.

3. The baby's and the mother's blood are then labeled and transferred to the processing unit. Part of the umbilical cord is also collected (10-25 cms) in the cord tissue collection containers which is usually done by the obstetrician.

4. Then all the samples are kept in the kit box along with the frozen gel packs and sent to the lab.

5. An array of tests are conducted on the fetal blood, the mother's blood and the cord tissue. There are certain eligibility criteria to which the samples have to go through and accordingly the samples are accepted, rejected or quarantined.

6. The accepted samples are harvested using a red cell depletion method aided by a chemical called 'HESPAN' which facilitates the separation of red cells from the white cells. This is further subjected to centrifugation for more accurate results. The cord tissue is washed, minced and put into tissue culture for extracting a pure mesenchymal stem cell population.

7. Once this is done, the processed sample is mixed with a cryo-preservation solvent (Dimethyl sulphoxide) which prevents the crystallization of the cells which could lead to cell membrane damage. Later the sample is preserved in a very low temperature freezer (-196 degrees centigrade). These preserved samples remain viable for decades as the recent researches have concluded.

Cord blood stem cells can be used for transplant as well as regenerative medicine. In transplant medicine, patient undergoes through chemotherapy to receive cord blood stem cells to regenerate healthy immune and blood system. In transplant medicine, availability of more cells helps the patient to recover faster reducing chances of complications considerably.

Regenerative cord blood stem cells applications are used to repair damaged organs or tissues. In regenerative treatments, availability of more cells makes multiple treatments at a time possible. Today, cord blood stem cells are being used widely to treat hearing loss, brain injury, Cerebral palsy, heart disease, congenital heart defects, Juvenile diabetes, liver disease, orthopedic injury and spinal cord injury etc.

(Disclaimer: The above post was written only from informative point of view. Kindly do not take this as an advice or a consultation. Do consult your physician for more detailed information and the pros and cons related to cord blood stem cell banking)

A man with a mission

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 22:49:00 +0000

It was this rainy day in the last week of September. Morning breeze, cup of coffee and Times of India... Front page news... 'Generous commuters put prof's school for poor kids on track'. Some professor was collecting money from the commuters in local trains for funding a school. 'Bravo!'... I muttered and flipped the page right to the last page for the sports section. It wasn't a good sports day, Indian teams not doing well in the Champions League and the shameless stories about the corruption and scams in the buildup of the Commonwealth Games made the matter even worse. In no time the paper was back on the table and me back to work. The 'man with a mission' was forgotten right then and there...

(Courtesy: Rediff.com)

February 14th 2011... Bright sunny day outside. Had boarded an evening local from Virar. As the train passed Vasai, the cool breeze from the window tempted my brain to shutdown and off I went to sleep. Somewhere close to Andheri, suddenly I woke up. There was this man in his late thirties, with a black rucksack, very decently dressed standing in the aisle, holding a few placards in his hand with some news articles bearing his photos and a donation box in his other hand. 'Ok one more guy with 'charity' on his mind.' I grinned as I closed my eyes again trying to complete my sleep. But I woke up again when he said in fluent English, "Namaskar, I am Professor Sandeep Desai... and I am asking for your help to run a school in Ratnagiri." And then he started showing all the placards with national dailies mentioning him with his unique way of collecting charity. He didn't take long, may be 2-3 minutes and he explained everything how he and his organisation 'Shloka missionaries' have already started a school in Goregaon and now are building a new one in Ratnagiri with the help of the donations that Professor Desai collects from his train travels.

"Vidya Daan, Shreshtha Daan" he says... and ends his speech with a strong message. "If you feed a hungry man, you feed him for a day, but if you educate him, you help him out of that life forever." That really moved me. Soon as he finished his short speech, collections started pouring in as he walked down the aisle holding the donation box in front. Some gave 10 Rs, some 100 and some even put only a few coins. But that man accepted each donation with equal humility and a smiling face as he bowed down everytime saying, "Thank you for your kind help, Sir". I recollected reading about him that day in September. I had donated but I still felt that it was not enough. Bandra was nearing... I got up, went to him, he was standing there near the door, holding the rail.

I greeted him, "Hello Sir!".

"Hello", he replied with the same smile.

"Sir I really want to congratulate you for whatever you are doing and I wish you accomplish the goal soon."

He replied back, "Thank you son, thank you for your kind words. They will go a long way".

And he got down at Bandra and boarded yet another train on the down track continuing his mission.

I returned home. I googled his name and foundation, and was awed with the information I got. Professor Desai, on an average collects around Rs 5000 a day. He also got the attention of many national dailies and has been even mentioned in a magazine. His unique efforts also caught the eye of Salman Khan who tweeted about him and called up to congratulate him one day when Desai was in the middle of his mission, collecting funds in the train. Salman has reportedly agreed to fund him Rs 20 lakhs every year for whichever school he opens in any part of India.

Professor Desai is a former engineer who used to teach at the S. P. Jain Institute of Management and Research. But he quit his job in 1997 to teach the children in the Goregaon slums. He usually starts his mission in late noons and ends up at 6 p.m. It was his mother's dream too, he says, to open a school for the slum children. He is not only looking for money but is also in need of volunteers or 'Vidyasevaks' as he calls it, who may be willing to teach for at least 10 hours a month or participate in any other activities for his Shloka foundation. Here are his details:

Name: Sandeep Desai

B.E., MBA from NMIMs

Ex-professor of S. P. Jain Institute of Management & Research

Organisation: Shloka Missionaries, A-6, Ujval, Road no. 6, Pandurangwadi, Goregaon (East)- 400063

Schools:

1. Shloka Public school, Lucky apartments, Building No. 9C, 1st floor, Iraniwadi, Goregaon (E)

2. Sudha-Manohar National School, 55, Thiba Palace Road, Zadgaon, Ratnagiri- 415612

Contact details: Tel: +9122-28740859, (+91) 9322757030, (+91) 9820366127

email: vidyadaan@shlokamissionaries.org

website: http://www.shlokamissionaries.org

Its difficult to believe that in such a fast, selfish lifestyle of Mumbai, there are people like Professor Desai who are giving their everything for the betterment of the society. All I can say is "Thank you Professor for 'waking' me up that day!

His foundation's website welcomes you with a message from Mahatma Gandhi saying,

"Strength does not come from physical capacity, but from an indomitable will."

So true...

(Inputs from TimesofIndia.com, The Telegraph, Rediff.com)

What is Schizophrenia?

noreply@blogger.com (Doctor who blogs) — Sun, 13 Feb 2011 10:29:00 +0000

Schizophrenia is a mental disorder in which the patient finds it difficult to tell the difference between real and unreal experiences, to think logically, to have normal emotional responses, and to behave normally in social situations. There are various symptoms, the combination of which establishes the type of Schizophrenia the person may be suffering from. Despite many researches and studies, there is still no concrete evidence as to what exactly causes Schizophrenia.

CAUSES:

(Courtesy: Internet)

1. Genetic factors play a major role. People with family history of schizophrenia may be more likely to get the illness themselves.

2. Environmental events may trigger schizophrenia in people with genetic background. For example, infection during intranatall development or stressful psychological experiences may increase the risk for developing schizophrenia later in life. Social and family support plays a vital role in the improvement of the illness.

PREVALENCE:

Schizophrenia affects about approximately 1% of the people worldwide. However, it occurs equally among men and women. In women it is seen to begin later and is milder in intensity. Although schizophrenia usually begins in young adulthood, there are cases in which the disorder begins later (over age 45). Childhood-onset schizophrenia is the one which starts after age 5.

SYMPTOMS:
Schizophrenia develops slowly over months or years. Like other chronic illnesses, it cycles between periods of fewer symptoms and periods of more symptoms. At first, you may feel tense, or have trouble sleeping or concentrating. You can become isolated and withdrawn, and have trouble making or keeping friends. As the illness continues, psychotic symptoms develop:

Appearance or mood that shows no emotion (flat affect)

Bizarre movements that show less of a reaction to the environment (catatonic behavior)

False beliefs or thoughts that are not based in reality (delusions)

Hearing, seeing, or feeling things that are not there (hallucinations)

Problems with thinking often occur:

Problems paying attention

Thoughts "jump" between unrelated topics (disordered thinking)

Symptoms can be different depending on the type of schizophrenia:

Paranoid types often feel anxious, are more often angry or argumentative, and falsely believe that others are trying to harm them or their loved ones.

Disorganized types have problems thinking and expressing their ideas clearly, often exhibit childlike behavior, and frequently show little emotion.

Catatonic types may be in a constant state of unrest, or they may not move or be underactive. Their muscles and posture may be rigid. They may grimace or have other odd facial expressions, and they may be less responsive to others.

Undifferentiated types may have symptoms of more than one other type of schizophrenia.

Residual types experience some symptoms, but not as many as those who are in a full-blown episode of schizophrenia.

People with any type of schizophrenia may have difficulty keeping friends and working. They may also have problems with anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts or behaviors.

SIGNS AND TESTS:

A psychiatrist should perform an evaluation to make the diagnosis. The diagnosis is made based on a thorough interview of the person and family members. No medical tests for schizophrenia exist. The following factors may suggest a schizophrenia diagnosis, but do not confirm it:

Course of illness and how long symptoms have lasted

Changes from level of function before illness

Developmental background

Genetic and family history

Response to medication

CT scans of the head and other imaging techniques may find some changes that occur with schizophrenia and may rule out other disorders.

TREATMENT:

During an episode of schizophrenia, you may need to stay in the hospital for safety reasons, and to receive basic needs such as food, rest, and hygiene.

MEDICATIONS:

Antipsychotic medications are the most effective treatment for schizophrenia. They change the balance of chemicals in the brain and can help control the symptoms of the illness.

These medications are helpful, but they can have side effects. However, many of these side effects can be addressed, and should not prevent people from seeking treatment for this serious condition.

Common side effects from antipsychotics may include:

Sleepiness (sedation) or dizziness

Weight gain and increased chance of diabetes and high cholesterol

Less common side effects include:

Feelings of restlessness or "jitters"

Problems of movement and gait

Muscle contractions or spasms

Tremor

Long-term risks of antipsychotic medications include a movement disorder called tardive dyskinesia. In this condition, people develop movements that they cannot control, especially around the mouth. Anyone who believes they are having this problem should check with their doctor right away.

For people who try and do not improve with several antipsychotics, the medication clozapine can be helpful. Clozapine is the most effective medication for reducing schizophrenia symptoms, but it also tends to cause more side effects than other antipsychotics.

Because schizophrenia is a chronic illness, most people with this condition need to stay on antipsychotic medication for life.

SUPPORT PROGRAMS AND THERAPIES:

Supportive and problem-focused forms of therapy may be helpful for many people. Behavioral techniques, such as social skills training, can be used during therapy or at home to improve function socially and at work.

Family treatments that combine support and education about schizophrenia (psychoeducation) appear to help families cope and reduce the odds of symptoms returning. Programs that emphasize outreach and community support services can help people who lack family and social support.

Important skills for a person with schizophrenia include:

Learning to take medications correctly and how to manage side effects

Learning to watch for early signs of a relapse and knowing how to react when they occur

Coping with symptoms that are present even while taking medications. A therapist can help persons with schizophrenia test the reality of thoughts and perceptions.

Learning life skills, such as job training, money management, use of public transportation, relationship building, and practical communication

Family members and caregivers are often encouraged to help people with schizophrenia stick to their treatment.

PROGNOSIS:

The outlook for a person with schizophrenia is difficult to predict. Most people with schizophrenia find that their symptoms improve with medication, and some can get good control of their symptoms over time. However, others have functional disability and are at risk for repeated episodes, especially during the early stages of the illness.

To live in the community, people with schizophrenia may need supported housing, work rehabilitation, and other community support programs. People with the most severe forms of this disorder may be too disabled to live alone, and may need group homes or other long-term, structured places to live. Some people with milder forms of schizophrenia are able to have satisfying relationships and work experiences.

COMPLICATIONS:

People with schizophrenia have a high risk of developing a substance abuse problem. Use of alcohol or other drugs increases the risk of relapse, and should be treated by a professional.

Physical illness is common among people with schizophrenia due to an inactive lifestyle and side effects from medication. Physical illness may not be detected because of poor access to medical care and difficulties talking to health care providers.

Not taking medication will often cause symptoms to return.

CALLING FOR HELP:

Call your health care provider if:

Voices are telling you to hurt yourself or others.

You feel the urge to hurt yourself or others.

You are feeling hopeless and overwhelmed.

You are seeing things that aren't really there.

You feel like you cannot leave the house.

You are unable to care for yourself.

PREVENTION:

There is no known way to prevent schizophrenia. If you do have the condition, the best ways to prevent symptoms from coming back are to take the medication your doctor prescribed, and see your doctor or therapist regularly. Always talk to your doctor if you are thinking about changing or stopping your medications

(Disclaimer: The above post has inputs from the PUBMED Health articles. It is written only from an informative point of view. It should not be taken as a consultation. Kindly discuss with your physician regarding the details about Schizophrenia.)