The liver is one of the most ignored organs in the body. But in reality it is  one of the most important.Performing close to 500 functions the liver is one  of the most hardworking organs of the human body. It clear toxins from  blood, it releases strength and energy, it fights infection and even regenerates itself!Learning about it is the first step to keeping your liver healthy.

The liver is a marvellously resilient and vital organ that plays an indispensable role in nurturing and protecting our body everyday with clockwork precision. It has several key functions to perform:

It helps filter and dispose of toxic materials from the blood
Feeds our body the energy it needs to function
Wards off viruses and infections
Produces blood-clotting factors
Regulates sex hormones, cholesterol levels and vitamins and mineral supplies in our body.

The liver performs over 500 and odd functions, far more than any other organ in our body!

The liver rarely shows symptoms which is why it's important to get them checked at aLiver Clinic. However tell tale symptoms that can be watched out for are:

Fatigue
Upper abdominal pain
Itchy skin
Yellow eyes

What are the main liver problems?

Today 14th  February is also ” CHD Day ( Congenital heart Awarenes Day ) This day gives  us an opportunity to relook at our perceptions and instrospect on ” the chance to take on a humane cause: Promoting Awareness of Congenital Heart Defects.

Congenital Heart Defects (CHD) are a lethal constellation of birth defects of the heart that affect millions of newborn infants and children worldwide; a killer that claims thousands of lives every year. Eight of every 1000 children born alive (0.8%) will have some form of congenital heart defect.
Paediatric cardiac surgery – what is new and progressive? – Dr. Joseph Xavier, Consultant Pediatric Cardiac Surgeon, Fortis Hospitals

On this day when hearts are handed to the loved ones as symbol of love, let us take a moment to reflect on the heart disease of children.Many of them are born with the problem and many develop the disease due to various infections that affect the heart like rheumatic fever affecting the valves of the heart. In India about 1.5 lakh children are born each year with defects of the heart and only about 10 thousand get surgical or other interventional treatment. The rest wait endlessly some dying of heart failure, some becoming inoperable with time. The problems which plague this spectrum of disease include disease being more common among the poor with less access to diagnostic facilities and treatment which is expensive. In India insurance does not cover children with congenital (born with) problems. Apathy on the part of parents who think that it’s easier to have another child than care for a disabled child. And on the part of care providers many do not want get involved with care for heart problems of the child because one needs to hire and train special skill sets besides the fact that many of the complex problems drain resources. Children with rheumatic heart disease also form a large group who need constant monitoring and surgery for the valves of the heart. Valve repair is preferred inn this group because of the intricacies of anticoagulation associated with valve replacement in a group that is dynamic and injury prone.

World over, the advances in paediatric cardiac surgery is focused on the area of intra uterine (foetal) surgery, which is in its infancy and still mostly in laboratory models. A step ahead would be the attempt to make an antenatal diagnosis by expert ultra-sonogram, called anomaly scan and if any congenital heart defect is found out, and then preparations are made to have the delivery in a tertiary care hospital with paediatric cardiac intervention capabilities. This seemingly simple protocol has taken a long time to catch on; then consider a country like ours where primary health care has not reached all the corners of the nation, and 90% cannot afford cardiac surgery, government infrastructure for critical medical care is restricted to very few government institutions and medical insurance for the common man unheard of.

Advances in surgical techniques in paediatric cardiac surgery are limited, as treatment protocols for most of the conditions have been clearly outlined and only small variations happen from case to case. However advances in technology are going on all the time to make management of complex problems and tiny neonates easier for the physician. Artificial perfusion during cardio-pulmonary bypass, ventilation of small babies with very small breaths and airways, administration of microscopic doses of drugs accurately, are a few of the recent developments where advances in technology have improved outcome. Continuous research is on, to better understand the body functioning and develop treatment modalities accordingly, including drugs and devices like artificial heart and lung, and methods to preserve and use biological tissue, like a heart valve with its tube in continuity called homograft. All these advances have improved the survival, and conditions once thought to be non correctable are today treated successfully.

The other fallout of all these developments is that more centers across the country are able to carry out these complex procedures and a larger population now has access to such amenities. Yet for paediatric cardiac surgery in India there are miles to go before we sleep.

Pediatric Care Services at Fortis Hospitals

Services (Cardiology & Cardiothoracic Surgery)

Paediatric Cardiology

1. Fetal Echocardiography
2. Paediatric Cardiac Catheterization
3. Balloon Atrial Septostomy (BAS)
4. Balloon Valvotomy (Pulmonary, Aortic)
5. Device Closure of ASD, VSD, PDA
6. Embolization of MAPCA, etc.
7. Complex Palliative & Corrective Interventions
8. Paediatric Electrophysiology

Paediatric Cardiothoracic Surgery

1. Congenital Heart Disease Surgery
2. Neonatal Surgery for Heart Conditions
3 Closed Heart Surgeries
• BT Glenn Shunt
• PDA Interruption
• Coaractation Repair
4. Simple Open Heart Surgeries
• ASD and VSD Closure
5. Complex Open Heart Surgeries
• Intra-cardiac Repairs
• Arterial Switch Operation
• Double Switch Operation
• Rastelli Operation
6. Valve Repairs, Replacements and ROSS procedure
7. Extra Cardiac Fontan
8. Intra-operative Stenting
6. Minimally Invasive Heart Surgery
7. Pacemakers
8. Extra Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO)

For appointments with our pediatric Doctors, write to us at enquiries@fortishospitals.in

Fortis Hospitals, Mulund organizes Drawing Competition On Cancer Day

Mumbai, February 3, 2011: On the occasion of “WORLD CANCER DAY”, Fortis Hospital organises an inter-school drawing competition with an aim to create awareness about cancer through children and eradicate it at the onset from the society.

Dr Anil Heroor, Oncosurgeon, Fortis Hospital Mulund elaborates, “Cancer is the most rampant disease which normally gets detected at the terminal stage. It is very important to create awareness about the symptoms, leading to early detection of Cancer so that it can be treated at the onset. We organized an inter- school drawing competition, reaching out to twenty thousand families with an aim to spread awareness and help the society to understand and prevent the incidences of cancer and the timely treatment required for the detected cases.”

Fortis Hospital reached out to around 20 schools like St Xavier’s school, VPM International, New Horizon Public school, to name a few and conducted a intra school drawing competition amongst 7^th, 8^th and 9^th standard students.  The students of these classes of each school were given a canvas to be taken home and were asked to put forth their perception of cancer through their drawings. The top three winners of each standard of every school were then selected to participate in the inter- school drawing competition at Fortis Hospital, Mulund today.

The competition witnessed participation around 400 students who came along with their teachers and parents. Winners were felicitated at the function and certificate of participation was awarded to all. The hospital also gave complimentary discount coupons for health check-up & various screenings coupons to all the elders who accompanied the children for the competition.

The drawings of the competition will then be displayed in an exhibition open to all from 4^th to 20^th February.

Mr Vijay Ratna, Regional General Manager, Fortis Hospital further elaborates “Through the students we are trying to reach twenty thousand households with an aim to create awareness about cancer and gradually eradicate it from the society at large. The competition is an effort by the hospital to spread a message to the public through children on healthy living. We also distributed “Fight against Cancer” badges to all the students of the participating schools.”

This is one of the social initiatives of Fortis Cancer Institute, Mulund. Fortis Cancer Institute a supreme center which provide Comprehensive Customized Care (3C) for cancer with the most sophisticated equipments, trained technicians, physicians and nursing professionals and doctors and offers the best cancer care.

To know about  Fortis Cancer Institute , Click Here