Dr Maran

Stress Ulcer – What in the World is it? Stress Ulcer is not caused by the “every day stress” a person undergoes in his work or family. It rather is the manifestation of peptic ulcer because of a prolonged and serious illness. Patients who experience prolonged stay in Intensive Care Unit (ICU) typically get stress ulcers. That does not essentially mean that the facilities in the ICU have caused “Stress Ulcer”. It is because a patient undergoes prolonged stay in ICU because of the seriousness of the illness and whose health is at stake. Patients who have met with accident and have lost lot of blood also get stress ulcer when they are hospitalized. Medications also play a role in getting stress ulcer. Generally in stress ulcer the upper region of the stomach has ulceration because the patient is in a lying down position. Not all patients in ICU may get stress ulcer. Typically stress ulcer is found to affect 3-4% of patients in ICU. What causes Stress Ulcer? Prolonged stay in th

Prevention of Ulcer By now we all know what causes Peptic ulcer. Let me recap for you the factors that contribute to peptic ulcer. They are, Genetic – A definitive family history of having Ulcer Excessive alcohol (drinking) and Smoking Use of drugs not prescribed by doctors – Improper dose of antibiotics, painkillers, steroids and blood thinners (aspirin) Infection of Helicobacterium Pylori is also supposed to cause Ulcers. Prolonged illness can also cause stomach ulcer. This is called Stress Stomach Ulcer. Overage – Risk of Ulcer increases with age. Generally it is said that people over 50 have more risk of Peptic Ulcer. Against each factor let us discuss how to prevent. Genetic factor is something where no one has any control. On a funny note, genetic factors can be overcome if you get married to someone from a distant culture. Consumption of alcohol and smoking can obviously be stopped for good. As a matter of fact, if you are unable to stop, there are counseling

How Smoking and Drinking Causes Stomach Ulcer How Smoking and Drinking Causes Stomach Ulcer We all have a doubt if smoking and drinking alcohol have the potential to cause stomach ulcer. Yes, they both have. First and foremost, it is common knowledge that people, who smoke, consume alcohol and people who consume alcohol, do smoke. People who are exception to this rule are indeed present and our point is, even if you are habituated to any one of these, you run an increased risk of getting stomach ulcer. Nicotine in tobacco has been found to induce more acid production in the stomach which causes stomach ulcer. Alcohol is found to irritate the mucous lining of the stomach and contributes to erosion of this protective lining.  This in turn induces the stomach to produce more stomach acid which comes in contact with the unprotected stomach lining, only to cause stomach ulcer. Nicotine and alcohol also have a rather indirect way of causing ulcer. They induce H.Pylori to multipl

In the last post we emphasized the need to rule out any heart related ailments if you have crossed 35 years of age and if your pain is more on the upper left side of the body closer to where your heart is. And we also added that if you have a family history of heart attack, hypertension, cholesterol, and diabetes, and over and above if you also drink and smoke, then you get yourself checked for any heart related ailments first. Once your medical report confirms that you do not have any heart related diseases, you can now get your medical checkup done to diagnose the presence of Peptic ulcer. The only gold standard diagnostic methodology that is more accurate to find out the presence of Ulcer is  ENDOSCOPY . An endoscope (a finger sized flexible tube with camera) inserted inside is the best method to check the presence of ulcer first hand. This method is medically referred as OGD, Oesophago-Gastro-Duodenoscopy. Advancement in technology has made endoscopes flexible and painless. P

Symptoms of Ulcer Every ailment has a moderate start and peptic ulcers are no exception to the rule. 90% of the people present themselves to the doctor only after complaining of pain. The pain could either be mild / dull or intense or a rather slowly progressing pain on the upper abdomen area. Generally a feeling of a heart burn should ring alarm bells. More clearly, if there is a burning sensation or pain somewhere in between the chest and the belly button; it can be signs of ulcer. The burning sensation or pain either lasts for few minutes or can last for few hours. This sensation of course can recur. But before ulcer can manifest fully and pain begin to show up, they do give other symptoms beforehand, probably forewarning you of what is coming. A sense of bloating (gaseous abdomen)  a sense of feeling full even after having very  small amount of meal (a condition referred as  early satiety ), a general feeling of loss of appetite, burping often and feeling nauseate especially

Hernia repair surgery is one of the commonly done surgeries. The inguinal hernia sac usually presents itself with omentum, a layer of peritoneum that surrounds the internal abdominal organs, fat and parts of small intestine. Sometimes they can also contain other contents that are unusual albeit in smaller percentage. http://www.springfieldwellnesscentre.com/inguinal-hernia-contents/

Men and women are affected by many types of Hernia. Data says that men are six times more prone to Inguinal Hernia than women. There are few websites and literatures that talk about a possible connection between hernia and infertility. Are there elements of truth in it? What about other abdominal hernia types? Let us explore. http://www.springfieldwellnesscentre.com/connection-between-hernia-infertility/

Obesity has always been hard on people. The increased fat accumulation of the body apart from causing many co-morbid conditions like diabetes, blood pressure, etc., can also lead to many medical issues at times and one such issue can be Hernia. If an obese person already has Hernia, it makes the Hernia more complicated. Let us explore. http://www.springfieldwellnesscentre.com/influence-obesity-hernia/

Hiatus is a natural opening in the diaphragm, a muscular wall that separates the chest region and the abdominal region. Through this Hiatal opening the oesophagus (food pipe) and major blood vessels gets inside the abdominal region to join the stomach. If the hiatus opening is larger, then the stomach begins to get into the chest region due to the breach in the hiatus. http://www.springfieldwellnesscentre.com/hiatal-hernia-surgery/

Inguinal Hernia (Groin Hernia) is more common in male than in female. Since the hernia here occurs closer to the testicles, a perception that it might affect male fertility is present. There are two things to look at. Does the hernia surgery cause problem in sexual dysfunction? Even if there was no problem in sexual dysfunction will it affect the male’s ability to fertilize and produce a baby? http://www.springfieldwellnesscentre.com/hernia-male-fertility/

There are many websites that boasts that Yoga can offer cure to Hernia. But if you carefully watch those websites, they are mostly websites that promote Yoga. You can hardly find neutral websites that posts the success of Yoga in curing Hernia. Does that mean Yoga is ineffective in curing Hernia? We clearly are not undermining the benefits of Yoga here. We perfectly understand that Yoga is an ancient Indian wisdom and is a perfect gift to the human world. We want to tread carefully on how Yoga can impact if you definitely show symptoms of Hernia and is confirmed by your surgeon. http://www.springfieldwellnesscentre.com/can-yoga-cure-hernia-and-hernia-surgery-in-chennai/

Hernia correction surgery is one of the common surgeries performed these days. They happen by thousands every year throughout India. Despite this many do not perform Hernia surgery due to reasons like fearing a surgery, postponing the surgery for many reasons like financial shortage, poor diagnosis (happens mostly in rare hernia cases), etc. However it may be noted that not getting your Hernia treated surgically can lead to other complications which are sometimes life threatening too. http://www.springfieldwellnesscentre.com/complications-abdominal-wall-hernia/

In simple terms, Abdominal Hernias are protrusions of either intestine or fatty mass outside the abdominal wall breaching the thin muscle that holds them. If you have been diagnosed with any one of the six common Abdominal Hernias, namely, Inguinal, Femoral, Umbilical, Epigastric, Hiatal and Incisional Hernias. http://www.springfieldwellnesscentre.com/7-precautions-take-abdominal-hernia/

Yes, there are different types of Hernia. Hernia can occur in the abdominal walls, brain, spine, and chest cavity. However the Hernia occurring in the abdominal walls is the most common and we can presume that it can be over 95%. The Hernia occurring in the abdominal wall can be classified based on where in the abdominal region the Hernia has occurred. There are many types of hernia , which the common 6 types are Inguinal, Femoral, Umbilical, Epigastric, Hiatal and Incisional Hernias. http://www.springfieldwellnesscentre.com/different-types-of-hernia/

The instance of piles or haemorrhoid has shot up in recent years. It can be attributed to the change in lifestyle and the wrong food habits. People with piles often are confronted with what type of treatment to undergo to get rid of piles. Is haemorrhoidectomy for all piles patients? http://www.springfieldwellnesscentre.com/piles-surgery-getting-operated/

Piles generally happen when the pressure in the veins in the rectal region increases and they swell like a bag of worms. This pressure is mainly due to constipation. Other reasons responsible are pregnancy, lifting heavy weights using improper lifting techniques, or chronic diarrhoea. We are aware that piles or haemorrhoids can be internal or external. http://www.springfieldwellnesscentre.com/grades-internal-piles/

Piles or Hemorrhoids is the condition where the veins present in the anal region gets inflamed and swells up. Among the many reasons that cause piles like ageing, pregnancy, etc. constipation stands out because this is one factor that is in our control if the food we take is proper. However that said and done, if Hemorrhoids has indeed occurred these are the food you can avoid to worsening of your hemorrhoids. http://www.springfieldwellnesscentre.com/6-foods-avoid-case-piles/

Piles / Fissures are a literal pain in the ass. The pain can manifest anytime despite being under medication. What happens if there is a sudden spike in pain in the night time when it is not possible to consult your regular physician? There are home remedies that can give relief from pain. http://www.springfieldwellnesscentre.com/4-useful-tips-reduce-pain-due-fissure-piles-home/

Piles or Hemorrhoid is the ultimate penalty we pay as a result of our evolution that has made us to walk upright. We did see in one of our earlier post on how piles is caused and what are the factors that are responsible for it. http://www.springfieldwellnesscentre.com/symptoms-diagnosis-piles-hemorrhoid/

In the tip of the anal canal there are clump of tissues filled with blood vessels, muscles and fibroid materials that gives a sort of cushion. This region is also referred as Hemorrhoid.  If complex Hemorrhoid tissue gets dilated by normal blood vessels with blood, the condition is referred as Piles or Hemorrhoid. In India Piles is a more common term understood by all where Hemorrhoid is a term understood in the Americas. http://www.springfieldwellnesscentre.com/what-are-piles-and-what-causes-them/