Category: Health

Hepatitis – this is not just another H-word, but a deadly disease about which you should know everything. There are various reasons why you need to know about the virus, its impact on the body and the ways to protect yourself from this disease.

What is hepatitis?

“Hepat” means liver and “itis” means swelling, which means Hepatitis is the swelling of the liver. The disease is caused by the virus – Viral Hepatitis. Affecting around 325 million people and causing around 1.4 million deaths every year, viral hepatitis B and C, it is the second major infectious disease after tuberculosis. Thankfully, hepatitis is preventable and treatable if diagnosed on time. Hepatitis hospitals in Delhi have a record of successfully curing hepatitis patients.

This is not the only thing you need to know about the disease. Given below are some more things you need to know about hepatitis, its symptoms, treatment, prevention, etc.

Different types

There are different types of Hepatitis caused by various viruses. Though the symptoms of all the types are similar, the treatment and impacts are different. So, you should be aware of all types of Hepatitis to get the right treatment.

Hepatitis A

This is the easily curable type of Hepatitis if detected at the right time. If it goes unnoticed, the symptoms can take a severe turn and be life-threatening. Doctors give a vaccine to help you fight against the virus and advise you to stay away from alcohol and drugs during treatment.

Hepatitis B

Caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV), this type spreads through infected blood, semen, and some other body fluids. This is a sexually transmitted disease (STD) that directly affects the liver of the patient. Not just the swelling of the liver, if not treated on time, it can also cause cancer known as hepatocellular carcinoma. Thankfully, hepatitis hospitals in India have a safe and effective vaccine to cure hepatitis B.

Hepatitis C

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is the most dangerous type of hepatitis that can cause liver damage, swelling, cirrhosis and liver cancer. Infectious fluids and secretions from an infected person are the reasons behind a person contracting the HCV.

Symptoms of Hepatitis

As mentioned above, symptoms of all three types of hepatitis are almost similar. Based on the severity of the disease, patients feel mild or no symptoms of the disease. The common symptoms in the initial phase of hepatitis include:

• Diarrhea
• Fatigue
• Nausea and vomiting
• Weight loss
• Jaundice
• Loss of appetite
• Mild fever
• Muscle or joint aches
• Abdominal pain

As the disease progress, the symptoms might also progress to chronic infection, liver failure and swelling of the lower extremities.

Prevention

As the disease can be dangerous and difficult to treat, it is advisable by the doctors to take preventive steps and stay safe from the possible infection. By following the tips given below, you can prevent hepatitis:

• Wash hands with soap after using the bathroom
• Never get engaged in unprotected sex
• Choose hygienic places when you eat outside
• Get a regular check-up for Hepatitis B and C so that the cases can be diagnosed at the early stage
• Don’t share toothbrushes and razors
• Consume alcohol with moderation

Your health is your most precious asset. Invest your precious time in taking care of it by taking preventive steps. If you still notice any symptom of hepatitis, visit an expert immediately.

Blood cancer is a serious diagnosis that creates havoc in the family. Thankfully, advances in diagnosis and treatment of blood cancer have given new hopes to the patients as well as their families. But getting the benefit of the promising blood cancer treatment is possible only when you are aware of the breakthroughs in this field. Continue reading the article to know about the breakthroughs in blood cancer treatment and increase the survival chances of your loved ones suffering from any type of blood cancer including leukaemia, lymphoma and myeloma.

Lymphoma

This is the most common blood cancer type that starts in the cells of the body’s immune system. Hodgkin Lymphoma and Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma are the top main types of this disease with different treatments. HL is treated with chemotherapy and radiation while to treat NHL, doctors go with stem cell therapy and monoclonal antibodies drugs.

Breakthrough in Lymphoma treatment – In 2013 the FDA approved ibrutinib as a treatment for the patients suffering from an aggressive form of NHL. In addition to this, the drug also showed promising results in the treatment of other types of NHL and follicular lymphoma.

Myeloma

Caused by malignant plasma cells, this blood cancer is found in the bone marrow and affects the immune system. This is the least common blood cancer types but still is the deadliest cancer. Thankfully, with the help of new drugs, the survival rate among patients suffering from myeloma has improved over time. Stem cell transplant, chemotherapy and drugs such as bortezomib are the common treatment options used by the doctors for this blood cancer treatment.

Breakthrough in Myeloma treatment: In 2015, three new treatments, including daratumumab (Darzalex), elotuzumab (Empliciti) and Xiaomi (Ninlaro) were approved by the FDA. These treatments activate the immune system of the body to prevent the growth of multiple myeloma cell in the body. These drugs are considered to be more effective for patients with cancer return after one therapy.

Leukaemia

This blood cancer type majorly attacks the white blood cells. But at times it also occurs in red blood cells and in platelets that clot the blood. There are four main types of Leukaemia – acute myeloid leukaemia (AML), chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML), acute lymphocytic leukaemia (ALL) and chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL). Advancements in diagnosis and treatment of leukaemia have given new hopes to the patients as well as their family members. The promising treatments have increased by the survival rate of leukaemia by double in the past 50 years.

Breakthroughs in leukaemia treatment: With just a five-year survival rate, AML is considered one of the deadliest blood cancer types. Though there hasn’t been any major development in the treatment of this cancer type, researchers are studying experimental drug and early results are promising.

Some more breakthroughs in blood cancer treatment

Blood tests instead of biopsies

Gone are the days when doctors used to rely on biopsies to track the progress of treatment, which was a painful and invasive process. Now a simple blood test can provide the same result achieved from a time-consuming and painful process.

Genomic profiling of blood cancer

Advanced technologies and procedures like genomics have helped doctors get a better picture of the disease. With the study of genetic material present in DNA, doctors can get detailed and important information about a patient’s biology.

Stem cell transplant

There have been many advancements in stem cell transplant technology for blood cancer treatment. Now doctors can kill patient’s cancer cells with chemotherapy and bone marrow transplant. This has also helped doctors give approval to more donors for transplant as the possibility of a relapse of the disease has gone down.

If you hear about blood cancer in any of your loved ones, don’t panic; rather, think of these breakthroughs and look for the reliable doctor for an effective treatment.

Back pain has become one of the common problems nowadays among people of almost all age groups. Some are suffering from it due to age while the younger generation is going through this problem due to their lifestyle and habit of sitting for long hours in the office. Normal back pain in lower parts can be treated with medications, but for acute pain, at times doctors suggest back surgeries. There are situations when back surgery is the only option to treat the problem.

To ensure that you get the maximum benefit from the treatment, you should act wisely by knowing about different types of spine surgeries and the situations when you should consider it. Let’s first look at different types of spine surgeries:

1. Discectomy

In this surgery, the surgeons remove the herniated portion of the disk to treat irritation and inflammation of a nerve. Based on the severity of the problem, the surgeons remove a full or partial portion of the lamina to access the ruptured disk.

2. Fusion

In this surgery, the doctors connect two or more bones in the spine through spinal fusion. It gives you relief from the pain by adding stability to a spinal fracture. This surgery is suggested to the patients with degenerated or injured disk.

3. Laminectomy

Removal of the bone overlying the spinal canal is the main process of this surgery. Through the surgery, the doctors enlarge the spinal canal and help the patients get relief from nerve pressure caused by spinal stenosis.

4. Foraminotomy

In this process, the doctors enlarge the bony hole where a nerve root exits the spinal canal. This surgery is performed in the old age people having bulging disks or joints thickened with age due to pressure on the nerve.

5. Artificial disk replacement

This is an alternate of spinal fusion surgery and suggested to the patients with severely damaged disks. In this process, the surgeons remove the disk and replace it with a synthetic disk to restore the height and movement between the vertebrae.

When do you need spine surgery?

Not every back-pain treatment requires the surgical process. There are specific conditions and problems when doctors will suggest spine surgery. Given below are the conditions when you might need surgical treatment to get rid of back pain:

Herniated disks

This is the situation when one or more of the disks that protect the spine bone are damaged.

Spinal stenosis

In this situation, the spinal column narrows down that puts extra pressure on the spinal cord and nerves and the only way to treat is a surgical process.

Spondylolisthesis

In this problem, one or more bone in the spine slips out of place, which can be treated only by following spine surgery.

Degenerative disk disease

This is the problem of damaged spinal disks which usually happens with older age people due to weak bone.

Overgrowth of bone

Called Osteoarthritis in medical terms, this results in bone spurs on the spine which affects the hinge joint. Doctors treat this problem of excess bone through spine surgery.

If you have some more questions about the process, the recovery, side effects or anything else, make sure you get answers to them before you make the final decision. The best spine surgeon in India always answer queries of their patients to make the surgical process comfortable and less stressful for them.

Hepatitis C is an infectious disease that directly attacks the liver. If not diagnosed and treated on time, liver swelling due to Hepatitis C can even progress to liver cancer. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), around 3.5 million Americans have chronic hepatitis C. The growing number of HAC affected patients has created an alarming situation and has made it essential for the people to be aware of the disease, its treatment, and other things.

Continue reading to know more about hepatitis C and the reasons you should care about it.

What is Hepatitis C? 

Hepatitis is a disease that causes inflammation of the liver. The disease of three types, Hep A, Hep B, and Hep C. Hepatitis C is also a liver inflammation caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV). The major causes of the spread of hepatitis C contract with an infected person’s blood or other body fluids.

Common causes of Hepatitis C

• Shared injections drugs and needles
• Having sex with an HIV infected person or with several partners
• Transfer from mother during birth
• Shared personal care products like toothbrush, razor and manicure products
• Piercing or tattoo with unclean or infected needles

Symptoms of Hepatitis C

Knowing the symptoms helps you get an alarm at the right time and take preventive steps. Find below Hepatitis C symptoms you might notice between 2 weeks and 6 months:

• Dark urine
• Joint pain
• Loss of appetite
• Stomach pain
• Fever
• Fatigue
• Clay-colored poop

Different stages of Hepatitis C

HCV virus has multiple stages and affects different people differently at each stage. To get the right treatment at the right time, you should be aware of the stages of hepatitis C, which are given below:

• The incubation period is the time when a person first gets exposed to the disease.
• Acute hepatitis C is a short-term illness that can last for 6 months after the virus enters the body. Usually, the body gets rid of the virus itself.
• Chronic hepatitis C is a long-term infection that can lead to serious health problems like liver cancer or cirrhosis.
• Cirrhosis is the inflammation that with time replaces healthy liver cells with scar tissues and takes around 20-30 years to reach this level.
• Liver cancer is the next stage of cirrhosis with no early symptoms. The only way to cure this is a regular treatment by a hepatitis doctor who provides regular screenings.

Self-care tips to manage hepatitis C

No doubt medical treatment by the best hepatitis doctor in India is essential to get rid of the problem, you still need to bring some lifestyle changes to make the treatment more effective. Just taking medicines won’t help until you look and feel good. Even the small changes and self-care tips can help your mind, body, and soul to fight the disease.

Quit alcohol and drugs

Alcohol and drugs are like poison for patients suffering from hepatitis C. As we all know alcohol is harmful to the liver and so is hepatitis C, and when to put together these speeds up the liver damage. If you want to get rid of the HAC virus, you should say NO to alcohol and drugs.

Hydrate

Keep your body hydrated by drinking plenty of water. Dry skin and mouth are common problems people face when on hep C treatment, which can be avoided by proper hydration. Take a target of at least 6-8 glasses of water a day. You can also add flavor to your water or can include food items with lots of water like watermelon.

Keep a check on your weight

Hep C for patients with overweight can be more dangerous as it can deposit the fat in your liver. If not controlled on time, it can increase your chances of cirrhosis. So, make your lifestyle more active and cut calories to keep your weight under control.

Hepatitis C is a curable disease but only when diagnosed and treated on time. Be careful with your health, pay attention to even a small symptom and fix an appointment with an experienced hepatitis doctor in India if you notice any problem in your liver.