Dr. Avneesh

08/08/2020

When we were doing MBBS, once going somewhere by road, one of our friends went across to a drain to spit. We all laughed at him saying " vadda aya Angrej ".
At least one thing we all should learn from CORONA and get rid of this great Indian spit.

02/08/2020

Initially during summer and winter vacations, number of kids with infectios used to fall. We could never understand the reason .
Nowadays due to covid19 , education institutes are closed. Infectious diseases are markedly less. It seems that closed, congested and prolonged contact provided by the classrooms gives ideal opportunity for infections to spread . Online teaching is no alternative .
CAN SOME OTHER BETTER ALTERNATIVE BE THERE ?
OR CAN INFRASTRUCTURE IN CLASSROOMS BE MODIFIED IN A WAY WHICH DOESN'T HELP SPREAD OF INFECTIONS ?
IT MAY BE A STEP FORWARD FOR A HEALTHY SOCIETY.
JUST A FOOD FOR THOUGHT .

28/07/2020

WISHING FOR A HEPATITIS FREE WORLD

28/07/2020

Today is World Hepatitis Day . This day is commemorated each year to make the people aware about Hepatitis . Hepatitis is an inflammation of liver caused by hepatitis virus . This virus is of five types namely Hepatitis A,B,C ,D and E .Without going into nitty gritties, I will like to divide hepatitis into two broad groups .
One group is of Hepatitis B ,C and D .Hepatitis D can not occur on its own . It can occur either as superinfection or coinfection with Hepatitis B .So by eradicating Hepatitis B , we can eradicate Hepatitis D .These viruses are transmitted by
1]From mother to child during birth (mainly Hepatitis B)
2] Exposure to contaminated blood and body fluids .So exposure to infected blood ,s*x with an infected person can transmit these .
3] Sharing of syringes ,tattooing ,piercing can also transmit these .
There is no vaccine against Hepatitis C . But there is very effective vaccine against Hepatitis B .This vaccine is in our universal immunization schedule given to every newborn with in 24 hours of birth . Screening of all pregnant mothers for Hepatitis B followed by immunization of newborns has made a big impact on prevalence of Hepatitis B .
This group of viruses is important because these infections can lead to chronic liver disease which can lead to cirrhosis and liver cancer . In age group less than 5 years, percentage of hepatitis B infections leading on to chronic liver disease is 90 to 95 % .while in adults it is less than 5%.So by preventing Hepatitis B ,we are preventing future burden of cirrhosis and liver cancer .
Other group is of Hepatitis A and E .These viruses are mainly transmitted by faecooral rout i.e by intake of contaminated water , food or when food handler is infected .These infections do not lead to chronic liver disease.BUT very very few cases go into fulminating liver failure which may lead to even death .These infections can be prevented by food and water hygiene . Hand washing before meals also helps a lot .There is a vaccine available against Hepatitis A but not against Hepatitis E .Hepatitis A vaccine is started at 1 year of age .This is available only in private sector not in government immunization schedule.
Dr. Avneesh.

26/07/2020

As a practicing pediatrician, many parents come and Complaint that their children are badly addicted to mobile phones. And that their best efforts to dissuade their kids from mobile phone overuse are proving futile.
This makes me wonder as to who is at fault in such cases. Without any doubt, it is the parents themselves who are at fault. It was them who encouraged their kids to use mobile phones in the first place.
More often than not, the parents expose their young children to mobile phone usage in order to pacify their kids’ tantrum, which is a wrong practice. Sometimes, the parents use mobile phone games etc. as an enticement to make their obstinate and recalcitrant children eat or behave. This kind of bribing is physically, mentally and emotionally harmful to the kids.
This unwise encouragement of mobile phone usage in kids may lead to many issues and problems which don’t sit well with their physical and psychological well-being.
Here are some suggestions for the parents:
1. Don’t let children of tender ages use mobile phone at all. They simply DON’T NEED it.
2. The school going children, who, under the present circumstances, are forced to attend e-classes on phones or laptops, should not be allowed mobile phone usage beyond the absolutely necessary duration.
3. Children should be given mobile phone sets with lower Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) value.
4.if kids have to use mobile phones, parents must use Parent Control Apps like KIDSLOX to limit the mobile phone usage for their children.
5. Parents ought to promote physical activity among their kids. Coax your children away from virtual games, and lead them on to play physical games.
And above all, parents must need to rationalize and restrict their own mobile phone usage. There are many parents who, themselve are badly hooked to mobile phones. Such parents will find it hard to discipline their kids in this regard. Here, they need to lead by example. They should not only cut down on their own mobile phone usage, but also proactively persuade and check their children from mobile phone over-exposure.
-- Dr. Avneesh

20/07/2020

In a way, mobile phones and other smart devices have become our bodily extensions today: an integral and inseparable part of our beings. People tend to spend a lot of their wakeful time using (to the extent of abusing) these devices, without realizing, that, in overdoing it, they might be bringing an irreversible harm – both physical and psychological – to themselves.
It is now well established that these devices, particularly the smart phones, use non-ionizing radiation, which can be quite dangerous and harmful to the human tissue. A large number of research studies have revealed that its harmful effects become way more pronounced when children are exposed to the radiation emanating for smart phones for a somewhat longer duration of time.
Though there has been much debate as to what constitutes the excessive use (or abuse) of blue-screen media, yet there seems to be a consensus of sorts around a general cut off limit, which has been put at no-more-than 120 minutes in a day, that is, TWO HOURS of usage at the max.
Some of the possible harmful effects of over-exposure of children to smart-phones and other similar devices include:
1. As the bones, tissues and protective linings of most of their organs such as brain are still very supple and thin, and hence vulnerable, in children, so these organs end up absorbing more than 60 percent of the harmful radiation emitted by mobile phones. Though, at present, there is no concrete evidence of the causal relationship between excessive mobile usage and tumors, but it is worth noting that this has been marked and classified as a possible carcinogen by the WHO. It is also notable that advanced studies are underway aimed at probing this relationship still more deeply.
2. Second, as mobile phone and other similar devices function on low-frequency electromagnetic waves, they interfere substantially with the natural electric impulses in human brain’s neural network. This interference becomes even more pronounced in case of children. And as a result, it can lead to acute anxiety syndrome, depression, and many other behavioural disturbances. It also interferes with one’s quality and pattern of sleep, and may ultimately compromise with one’s mental health and general psychological well-being.
3. Third, bed time use of mobile phones or any other blue-screen media affects sleep health. It not only affects the quantity and quality of sleep, but also increases sleep onset latency. It also increases the number and frequency of sleep wake-ups during the night. Further, the use of blue-screen media at night fuels the increasing trend among the adolescents and youth to be awake during the night and only go to sleep in the small hours and then sleep till late afternoon. This gross disrespect of our biological clock which has evolved over hundreds of thousands of years can cost us very dearly in more than one respect.
4. Fourthly, there has been found to be a positive correlation between excessive mobile phone usage and obesity as it tends to promote couch-lounge culture and a static lifestyle which, invariably means no or little physical activity.
5. Moreover, excessive use of cellphone has been known to cause many minor health issues and hazards such as back and neck sprains and strains, eye-strain, and headaches and migraine.
- Dr. Avneesh

11/07/2020

Monsoons have finally arrived in Punjab. And with them Dengue, too, is ready to knock on our doors. In fact, a number of cases of Dengue fever have already been reported. Many from Patiala, even.
Dengue, as we all now know, is a vector borne disease, the virus of which is spread by the female Aedes Aegypti mosquito.
Though, this mosquito, which is also responsible for spreading Chikungunya among many other life threatening diseases, much like its male counterpart, feeds primarily on plant nectar, however, to enable itself to lay eggs, it has to additionally feed on human blood to get the requisite nutrition. This female mosquito has to fortify itself with multiple human blood meals before it could lay eggs.
If this mosquito bites an infected person, it becomes a carrier of Dengue virus. And, in about 8 to 12 days, it becomes capable of transmitting the same Dengue virus to all its human hosts for the remainder of its life. It’s notable that the total life-span of an Aedes Aegypti mosquito ranges from 3 to 4 weeks.
This mosquito typically lays eggs onto the inner lining of undisturbed empty containers. These eggs require the presence of stagnant or still water to hatch into larvae. Nonetheless, these eggs can remain viable for months even in dry conditions. Once such containers get filled with rain-water, these eggs hatch into larvae which, then, go on to become mosquitoes.

NOW, the Question is, whether we, as a people, can afford to bear the burden, and brunt, of yet another deadly viral disease, when Novel Coronavirus (Covid-19) is already raging with full fury and wrath?
And the Answer, my dear friends, is an obvious monosyllabic NO.
A BIG NO, INDEED.
It will be highly unfortunate, if we let Dengue take hold this time around. The consequences will be simply disastrous.
The Governments, both the State and Central, must do what they should be doing in this respect. But before all that, We, too, have a great personal responsibility to discharge in this regard: To nip the evil in the bud.
That is, we need to protect ourselves, and others as well, by taking prompt preemptive actions against Dengue this time.
Over the past few years, thanks to intensive awareness campaigns undertaken by the government and other non-government agencies, now everyone is well versed with the measures that need to be carried out to prevent Dengue.
BUT THE FOREMOST THING IS – ARE WE READY TO UNDERTAKE THESE PREVENTIVE MEASURES AGAINST DENGUE FEVER IN A PROACTIVE MANNER?
At the cost of being seen as stating the obvious, I will emphasize that chiefly only the following two things need to be done:
First, Wear Full Body Clothing
Second, Don’t Let Water To Stagnate In Your Surroundings.
Towards the First step, kindly cover yourself as much as possible, especially towards dawn and dusk.
For the latter purpose, fix a day in a week, probably Sundays, and ensure that there is no such place where rain-water could gather and become a possible breeding ground for the mosquitoes. Believe me, it won’t take more than 10 minutes of your time.
THESE 10 MINUTES ARE GOING TO BE WORTH YOUR WHILE. THEY WILL GO A LONG WAY IN SAVING YOU AND YOUR DEAR ONES FROM A LOT OF UNNECESSARY TROUBLE.
Let It Be: हर रविवार, डेंगू पर वार
COME THIS SUNDAY, I’M TOTALLY RESOLVED TO DO IT!
ARE YOU?

07/07/2020

https://youtu.be/4xC-_7ZiQoY

Using alcohol-based hand sanitizers is a good way to prevent infection and the spread of germs including coronavirus. Hand sanitizer is a convenient alternat...

07/07/2020

https://youtu.be/1K9Zs16dhRE

This video is part of a series created Akron Children's Hospital's School Health Services to provide brief, school- and family-friendly tips for staying safe...

07/07/2020

Corona is in the air. When lock down was there, everybody was so careful. People not venturing out, doctors not doing OPD, any object brought to home was being treated with defined protocols. Now when unlocking has started, people are behaving as if there is no corona in spite of the fact that corona incidence is attaining new heights daily.
Everybody knows how to prevent Corona. There are three mainstays of corona prevention. Everybody knows it . But are we following these?
1) Social distancing - Everybody is aware of this. But are we maintaining it ?
2)most of people are wearing masks. But it is really sad to see even educated people wearing their masks only on mouth not covering the nose. It is a common sight people lowering their mask while conversing. There are lot of videos covering mask ettiquetes.
3) frequent hand washing - Sanitization is no substitute for hand washing. People just pour sanitizer over there hands, rub their palms together few times and process is over. There is proper way to sanitize the hands.
WEARING MASK, SANITIZATION OF HANDS JUST FOR THE SAKE OF DOING IT AND NOT FOLLOWING THE LAID DOWN PROCEDURES GIVES A FALSE SENSE OF SECURITY ,WHICH DOES MORE HARM THAN GOOD.
ALL THE BEST !

01/07/2020

Today is Doctor’s day . Much has been written about doctor’s dilemma ,apathetic attitude of government towards doctors ,rude behavior and often violent behavior of public towards them .
Without going into these things, first I wish all my colleagues a very happy Doctor’s day .In this scenario , what is the right path for us
Without expecting much from government and people , we should fight against the wrongs being committed on us but at the same time raising our morals and sticking to the ethics and values because at the end of the day we are answerable to our selves not to anybody else .

30/06/2020

1) one should learn to live with CORONA.
2)one should not live as if there is no CORONA.
3) one should not stop living because there is CORONA.