Bypass surgeries performed in city hospital without cutting bone (India)

The conventional bypass surgery invariably involves cutting the breast bone to reach out to the clogged heart vessels. However, cardiac surgeons at Jehangir Hospital, Pune, India, adopted a minimally invasive approach and successfully performed a bypass on a 68-year-old diabetic patient by taking just an 8 cm cut on the side of his chest to fix four blockages in his heart. "The approach is called lateral thoracotomy wherein a small 7-8 cm cut is all that is needed to perform the surgery. There is absolutely no cutting of bone in this approach. Traditionally, this approach has been used to bypass only one blocked vessel, but now we are in a position to offer this for multiple blocks. Using this approach, we fixed four blockages in a 68-year-old diabetic patient without cutting any bone," said cardiac surgeon Chandrashekhar Kulkarni of the Jehangir Hospital. The surgery was done on December 7 at Jehangir Hospital and the patient was discharged on December 13

India to host the 20th world congress on cardio-thoracic surgery

"Dr. K. M. Cherian's Frontier Lifeline Hospital will play host to the 20th World Congress on Cardio-Thoracic Surgery to be held on October 20-23, 2010. The World Congress conducted by the World Society of Cardio Thoracic Surgeons (WSCTS) is a time honored and highly prestigious international scientific event. This annual conference witnesses the august presence and didactic participation of the best minds in the exacting science of cardiothoracic surgery. It provides a worldwide forum for presentations and discussions on the latest findings and techniques in this delicate branch of surgery"

Cockroach inspires GBP1,500 heart created by Indian doctor Sujoy Guha

"A ground-breaking GBP1,500 artificial heart inspired by the anatomy of the cockroach could revolutionise human cardiac care, scientists in India believe. The development of a robust, affordable and safe synthetic heart remains one of the holy grails of biomedical engineering amid a shortage of donated organs and rising levels of heart disease. In Britain, critically ill adults wait an average of 103 days and children 143 days for a donated heart, according to the NHS. In India, heart disease will end more lives per year than all infectious illnesses combined, including diarrhoea, tuberculosis and malaria, by 2015, World Health Organisation figures suggest, as Western lifestyle diseases take a grip" - Times, London

India set to be heart disease capital of the world by 2010

"Various issues related to heart diseases as well as the latest advancements in their treatment were discussed at the 10th CME (Continued Medical Education) organised at Hotel Shivalikview in Sector 17 on the occasion of World Heart Day on Sunday. 'Three-dimensional imaging is now helping in remote diagnostics and even in training doctors in invasive procedures on virtual heart models,' said Dr Navin C Nanda, former president of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin, and an authority on echocardiography. Dr Naresh Trehan, CEO of Medicity Gurgaon, PGI director Dr K K Talwar, Dr J P S Sawhney of Sir Gangaram Hospital, Dr Puneet Verma, executive director of Prime Heart Institute, Mohali, too, spoke on the occasion. Dr Trehan lamented the continued incidence of heart disease in the country and said with over a 100 million people affected by heart-related diseases, India is set to be the heart disease capital of the world by 2010"

Smoking major cause of rise in cardiac deaths (India)

As cardiovascular diseases pose one of the biggest health threats in the country, experts believe tobacco consumption is emerging as a major "preventable" risk factor in making the population prone to heart disorders and lowering the age of vulnerability. Tobacco intake, especially smoking, is also a major cause of rise in sudden cardiac deaths, particularly in patients who have no known history or genetic disposal towards cardiac ailments, cardiologists say. "While there are a number of factors that make people prone to cardiac problems, besides genes, tobacco is the most notable facilitator that is leaving a large section of population with blocked arteries and troubled vascular systems," said Dr Balbir Singh, senior cardiologist at Delhi's Apollo hospital - Zeenews

Doctors perform bypass surgery on 20-month-old boy (India)

"Stawan Bijal Shah is now likely to live a normal life after undergoing coronary artery bypass for a rare heart disease in a Delhi hospital, with the 20-month-old possibly becoming the youngest patient in the world to undergo this surgery, doctors said. Shah underwent a coronary artery bypass surgery on Monday after he was found to be suffering from the Kawasaki disease, which damaged his heart. He is now recuperating in the intensive care unit (ICU) of Batra Hospital here where doctors believe that Stawan is the youngest child in the world to undergo such surgery. "Kawasaki is an extremely rare disease among children. It causes thickening and dilation of arteries resulting in severe blockage," said SC Bhan, director cardiac unit, Batra Hospital" - Times of India

Mumbai gets holistic cardiac rehabilitation unit

"World's first holistic Cardiac Rehabilitation Unit with exclusive cardio-respiratory and other heart care treatment services has been started in Mumbai's Vikroli-Jogeshwari Link Road. Pegged to be a holistic therapy centre with integrated services of allopathic, physiotherapy and ayurvedic specialties, the new-age Cardiac Rehabilitation Unit - Apex Beat holistic heart care centre - promises to rehabilitate every heart that seeks quick pre-operative or post-operative cardiac care"

Heart attack? Call this emergency helpline (India)

"Imagine a heart patient experiencing pain in the chest with no medical care available close at hand. How does one administer first-aid while awaiting professional help? It is exactly for such emergencies that the Asian Heart Institute (AHI) launched a 24-hour heart helpline number (126-126) which was launched by Union Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss, Governor SC Jamir and actor Akshay Kumar."

53-year-old undergoes India's first keyhole multiple bypass

Dr Naresh Trehan conducted India's first keyhole multiple bypass surgery on Suman Singhal (53) at the Indraprastha Apollo hospital last week. It took him less than four hours to perform the scarless surgery, without cutting any bone of the patient. Conventionally, the breastbone is cut to reach the heart. Singhal, from Uttar Pradesh, was diagnosed with multiple blockages. Trehan and team put five grafts in her blood vessels through a three-inch incision, using the minimally invasive coronary artery bypass grafting method and octopus stabilisers. The stabilisers are reusable tissue stabilisers with collapsible pods that enable insertion into and removal from the thoracic cavity through a port, eliminating the need for an incision for the stabiliser's insertion. "It is the first of its kind surgery. It will benefit patients, especially women. One cannot see the scar as it is below the breast," said Dr Trehan, senior cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon at Apollo.

Mardil Inc. advances its novel cardiac device to first-in-human trials for mitral valve regurgitation

"Mardil Inc., a cardiac device company with novel technology for treating mitral valve regurgitation, has successfully advanced its device to first-in-human testing, a milestone achievement for the 2-year-old company. The first patient was successfully implanted with the Mardil device last month in India. The patient had a significant improvement in heart function after the procedure, according to preliminary data from a 20-patient pilot study. Pending U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval of the clinical protocol, Mardil will launch a multinational clinical trial in the U.S., Canada, Israel, Australia and Europe in the fall of 2009."

Angioplasty performed on nonagenarian (India)

"Angioplasty was performed successfully on a nonagenarian woman, S Choudhary, who was brought to the Heart Hospital in Patna here with acute anginal pain. When the doctors' team led by cardiac unit chief of the hospital Dr Bhuvanesh Agrawal examined the patient, it found that three arteries of her heart were blocked which was causing her repeated anginal pain. Dr Agrawal said that successful angioplasty of a nonagenarian patient is rare and thereby it is a good news in the field of cardiology" - Times of India

Stem cell hope for heart patients comes to India

"The ultimate hope of regeneration and repair of heart muscle through stem cell therapy might actually be inching closer to reality as clinical trials involving use of specially cultured cardiac muscle cells in chronic heart failure patients begins in Belgium. What's more, the global trials are proposed to be conducted on heart patients in Ahmedabad which is pending Drug Controller General of India, New Delhi. World Health Organisation has projected that the number of cardiac patients in India will touch 100 million by 2010" - Times of India

Indian heart institute performs rare procedures

"Within just two years of its inception, cardiologists at the Fabiani and Budhrani Heart Institute here have managed to perform rare cardiac interventions' procedures which have been performed by few hospitals in the country. "Advances in technology have made interventions in congenital heart defect conditions like atrial septal defect (a hole in the heart), ventricular septal defect (a cardiac malformation) and patent ductus arteriosis (abnormal circulation of blood between two of the major arteries near the heart) feasible," said cardiologist Ritu Dhawan-Bhatia. The procedure entails treatment of patients, including children, by non-surgical methods, said Dhawan-Bhatia. "Normally these cardiac conditions are corrected by surgical procedures as expertise to deal with them non-surgically is not available in all cardiac centres." On a rare cardiac intervention carried out by the hospital, Dhawan-Bhatia said, "A four-year-old girl who was born with a narrowed aorta was treated with balloon angioplasty instead of surgery. The patient was discharged within two-three days." Similarly, cardiologist Manohar Sakhare planted an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) a device that monitors heart rhythms on a 62-year-old person. "The patient had suffered a heart attack in 2006 after which he had recurrent episodes of ventricular tachycardia (heart rhythm abnormalities) which was a life threatening condition and required high intensity electric shocks," said Sakhare." - Times of India

Heart attacks kill 13 persons per minute

"It is going to be the leading cause of many deaths in the coming few years, yet there is no programme to create awareness about acute myocardial infarction (heart attacks) in India. According to Dr Deepak Natarajan, senior consultant cardiologist, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, 'Annually, nearly 72 lakh people die due to heart attacks worldwide of which nearly 50% cases are from India. A rough calculation shows that 13 people die due to heart attacks every minute worldwide, which is a huge figure. But we don't even have a proper registry in India to know the exact figure.' Lack of awareness about the disease is just adding to the number of deaths. 'We have national programmes for many diseases, but there is none for heart attack. There is a dire need to have one for heart attacks as there are so many people who don't even know that they had an heart attack. By the time they reach a nearby hospital the precious time is lost. A recent survey shows that most heart attack patients reach hospital roughly six hours after the heart attack. This makes doctors' task difficult and diminishes survival chances too,' Natarajan added. Speaking at the conference on contemporary trends in the management of acute myocardial infarction, Dr Natrajan informed that primary angioplasty is the only treatment of a heart attack. 'A heart attack happens when there is a clot formation in the blood due to platelets, resulting in the blockage of arteries. In many cases the arteries are tightly blocked and angioplasty is the only solution,' he added" - Times of India

New risk scale for Indian hearts

"India will soon have its own thresholds for risk factors like diabetes, hypertension and lipid profiles that can lead to cardiac diseases. This follows a finding that Indians are likely to get cardiac disorders even if the risk factors were lower than those defined by Western countries. The Indian Council of Medical Research and Apollo Hospitals will soon bring out India-specific guidelines on levels of blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol that would require medical intervention or lifestyle modification, said Apollo Hospitals chairman Dr Prathap C Reddy, ahead of the Cardiology Society of India's 60th annual conference. The ICMR recently brought out Indian guidelines for obesity" - Times of India

Cardiac arrest cases increase in winters: Doctors

"With mercury set to go down making 'weak hearts' even more vulnerable to disorder, it is time for cardiac patients to spend more time indoors and cut down exposures to cold. Doctors claim that they have noticed an increase of about 20 per cent incidence of cardiac arrests in winters as compared to warmer months as low temperatures increase the possibility of spasms in arteries. 'The main problem faced by cardiac patients in winters is greater chances of increased blood pressure levels. This in turn increases the needed quantity of BP controlling medicines,' said Dr Vishal Rastogi, senior cardiologist at the Escorts Heart Institute in Delhi" - expressindia

Rare cardiac surgery to repair aneurysm

"A 61-year-old man got a virtual second lease of life and went home to Goa, India, on Saturday after a team of doctors from the Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences here performed a rare keyhole procedure to repair an aneurysm on the main blood vessel from the heart. The aneurysm, which is a dilatation of the blood vessel on the arch of aorta, was done without an open-chest surgery while preserving the blood flow to the brain. The procedure, called the thoracic chimney technique, is the first to be done in the country, said cardiologist K.K. Haridas, who led the team. Aortic aneurysms are abnormal massive dilatations of the main blood vessel. They have a tendency to distend and rupture over a period of time. Rupture of the blood vessel would have meant immediate death. Aortic aneurysms are seen in one in 10,000 people past the middle age worldwide" - The Hindu

Indian ban on smoking in public

"A ban on smoking tobacco in public has come into force in India. Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss says he aims to cut the number of smokers and to protect passive smokers from the harmful effects of tobacco. The government says India has more than 120 million cigarette smokers. Observers say the ban will need to be strictly enforced. Those flouting it face fines of 200 rupees ($4.50). Tobacco smoking in India kills 900,000 people a year. That figure is expected to rise to a million by 2010" - BBC

DRI develops alternative drug to statins

"The Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI), Lucknow, India, has received the 'Innovation Award' from the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) for developing a new drug which is a better alternative to the statins used worldwide for lowering high cholesterol levels. CDRI Director Rakesh Tuli said unlike the statins, the new drug - Gugulipid - has no side-effects. 'Statins have various side-effects like muscular fatigue, pain and degeneration of muscles. Some patients even develop kidney problems,' said Tuli" - Indian Express

Don't ignore child's chest discomfort

"Ignoring your adolescent child's chest discomfort or presuming it to be muscular pain might be dangerous as it could actually be a precursor to a major heart attack. Given the higher propensity in Indians towards cardiac ailments as compared to people of other races, there is an urgent need to make people aware of the danger from an early age, doctors say" - Times of India