Health

Braving biting cold, incessant rain and strong winds, transplant teams of the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) ensured that the precious gift of life reached two waiting recipients without compromise. In a remarkable demonstration of medical excellence, the hospital retrieved and transplanted vital organs from AIIMS Rishikesh in Uttarakhand under exceptionally challenging conditions and critical time constraints. Raghu Paswan’s liver, one kidney and pancreas were allocated to PGIMER in Chandigarh, while one kidney was allocated to AIIMS in New Delhi, the heart to the Army Hospital (Research and Referral) in New Delhi, and the lungs to Apollo Hospital in Chennai, extending the donor’s legacy of life across multiple regions of the country. From sudden loss...

Doctors at the All India Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Delhi have successfully treated a colon cancer patient by removing a whopping 19.9 kg tumour from a 43-year-old, giving her a new lease of life.  Munmun, hailing from Durgapur, West Bengal, came to the hospital in July 2024 with abdominal distension (a larger-than-normal belly). She had a history of unilateral salpingo-oophorectomy -- the surgical removal of one ovary and one fallopian tube on one side of the body -- 25 years ago. Munmun was diagnosed with Stage-4 colon cancer, featuring pelvic predominance. She had visited multiple hospitals and undergone several cycles of chemotherapy. Despite that, there was no improvement, and the disease kept progressing. With the tumour spreading to multiple abdominal organs, she was given only 3-4...

Mumbai doctors have successfully performed a landmark monportal endoscopic spine surgery on a 45-year-old woman who presented with severe back pain and marked loss of mobility. The patient was “super obese", weighing 120 kg with a BMI of 52, which placed her at significant surgical risk. This case makes it the highest documented BMI in India at which this Interlaminar endoscopic technique has been performed safely. The 45-year-old woman, originally from India and currently living in Germany, returned home for her annual visit and developed sudden, severe back pain soon after arrival. The pain intensified to the point that she could barely stand or walk. Initial evaluation confirmed an L4–L5 disc herniation with severe nerve-root compression. Although such cases usually respond well to s...

A team of German researchers has developed a new imaging technology that can noninvasively scan your skin and also reveal early signs of cardiovascular risk.  Fast-RSOM skin scan can detect tiny changes in blood vessels, oxygen levels, and tissue composition that are invisible to traditional imaging. It can capture detailed images of the smallest blood vessels directly through the skin -- and detect tiny changes in their ability to expand and contract, known as microvascular endothelial dysfunction (MiVED). Until now, doctors had no precise and noninvasive way to see or measure these early changes in humans. According to the team from the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres, by revealing early signs of heart disease risk, the technology could help doctors intervene sooner,...

Mumbai doctors are observing a clear rise in the number of fractures among elderly patients, with nearly 10-15 senior citizens reporting fractures requiring surgical intervention every week. These injuries are no longer simple cracks but often involve multiple bones, peri-implant fractures, joint damage, and slow healing. Early diagnosis and timely management can prevent long-term disability, bed confinement, and loss of independence among older adults. A 78-year-old housewife from Chembur complained of hip pain after a minor fall at home. Living alone, she delayed seeking medical help, assuming the pain would reduce. Within days, she became completely bedridden. The fracture had worsened, leading to muscle weakness and severe pain. Hip replacement surgery was done, followed by intensive...

In a rare case, a 25-year-old Pune woman was diagnosed with both a slow-growing mesenteric tumour and abdominal tuberculosis, but has now been treated successfully by doctors in the city.  The extraordinary medical case was take up and treated by successfully tackled by a multidisciplinary team led by Dr Gauri Jagdale, consultant – Obstetrics & Gynaecology, Motherhood Hospitals in Kharadi,  The new mother had developed a massive abdominal tumour and abdominal tuberculosis (TB) just months after delivering her baby. What began as a normal postpartum recovery quickly turned into a medical puzzle involving two rare conditions occurring simultaneously — a combination never recorded before in medical literature for someone so young. Imagine bringing a baby into the world after a full-ter...

Doctors at a hospital in Kolkata have successfully performed their first-ever stem cell therapy for an advanced case of Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD) on a 62-year-old retired government employee from the `City of Joy`. The therapy was done under the expertise of Dr Jayanta Das, consultant - Vascular and Endovascular Surgery, and Dr Krishnendu Mukherjee, consultant – Vascular and Endovascular Surgery, Manipal Hospital, Broadway. The patient was a chronic smoker, had been diagnosed with PAD nearly a year ago and was initially advised angioplasty with possible stenting. Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD) is a condition in which the blood vessels in the legs become narrowed or blocked, reducing blood flow. This can cause leg pain, non-healing wounds, and in severe cases, infection or ampu...

Adolescent girls who actively partake in recreational physical activity can have significant protection against risks of breast cancer, according to a study.  Researchers from the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health in the US showed that recreational physical activity may be associated with breast tissue composition and biomarkers of stress in adolescent girls. In the study, girls who reported engaging in at least two hours of recreational physical activity in the prior week, compared with none, had lower percent water content in breast tissue -- an indicator of lower breast density and lower concentrations of urinary biomarkers linked to stress. The findings, published in the journal Breast Cancer Research, shed new light on how physical activity during adolescence -- a...

At 90 million, India ranked second in the number of adults living with diabetes in 2024. China was first at 148 million and the US ranked third at 39 million, according to a study published in The Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology journal. Researchers, including those from the International Diabetes Federation in Belgium and the India Diabetes Research Foundation and Dr A Ramachandran`s Diabetes Hospital in Chennai, said countries with large populations, such as China, India, the US, and Pakistan, contribute a very large share of the number of people with diabetes worldwide. They projected that Pakistan could surpass the US by 2050. The eleventh edition of the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) Diabetes Atlas provides national, regional and global diabetes prevalence estimates for ...

The modern social calendar is often at odds with our biological requirements. Whether it is a holiday season, a string of late-night weddings, or the occasional weekend party, our internal systems pay a heavy price for social jetlag. We often view the resulting exhaustion as a simple debt of hours, but as Dr Sneha S consultant internal medicine at Manipal Hospital, Kanakpura Road, Bengaluru, explains, the reality is far more disruptive. “When our schedules shift abruptly, our internal clocks become desynchronised, leading to sleep that is light, fragmented, and fundamentally unable to perform its restorative functions,” she shares. Repairing a shattered sleep schedule is not a matter of sheer willpower or ‘catching up’ on a Sunday morning. Instead, it requires a strategic realignment of th...