Health Watch

Preventing ‘Festive Accidents’

Nadira GUNATILLEKE

The Health Ministry recently warned the public on some fatal 'Festive Accidents’ that can occur during this festive season. They are inhaling flour, traditional sports injuries, fire cracker related injuries and road accidents.

Explaining the seriousness of those accidents Health Ministry Additional Secretary Dr. Mahipala said that there are some non traditional games that are involved with flour. During these type of games kids and sometimes adults are being forced to remove flour or dig flour using their mouth. Their hands are tied together. The main objective of removing or digging flour is finding the bun and eating it or finding the coin and taking it using mouth. While doing these games people inhale flour which would cause asthma and many other respiratory diseases in them. They should be treated. During this festive season parents should not let their kids take part in these types of games.

People also get injured during certain games such as Pora Pol, Chak-Gudu and Tug-O'-war. During playing 'Pora Pol’ two persons throw coconuts among them and each other should receive the arriving coconut by pointing another coconut which would smash the coconut that is coming his way. He cannot catch the moving coconut using hands. Sometimes the coconuts (pealed) may hit his head, eyes and other parts of the body injuring them. Therefore people should take precautionary measures while playing such dangerous games. One such possible precautionary measure is wearing a safety helmet which is used by cricketers.

Children receive fatal head injuries while riding the swing (Onchillawa/Onchili pedeema). Therefore both adults and children should be vigilant on preventing such preventable accidents. An adult should monitor the kid while he/she rides the swing to avoid possible strangling. The other fact is the swing should be tied in a spacious place to prevent it hitting nearby walls, trees etc. Kids or adults should not stand behind or in front of a moving swing. Tug-O'-war can cause injuries to people if they use a decayed rope/cable.

Fire crackers cause some fatal injuries and some serious burn injuries when people/children light them inside tins, cups etc. Sometimes some adults hold fire crackers and fire them to show off their bravery but end up losing fingers and receiving serious burn injuries. Some children become permanently blind after receiving burn and other injuries. Some children put fire crackers into open air hearth/frying pan when hot oil set up outside to cook traditional sweetmeats. This can cause serious damages to both lives and properties. Therefore adults should always monitor their children and should not let them light them on their own.

Drink drivers cause major road accidents during all festive seasons. Sri Lankan road network is now in perfect condition to drive smoothly and fast. The first ever express way in Sri Lanka is now open for the public to travel from Colombo to Galle in one hour. The drivers should not drive under the influence of liquor. The young drivers should not try to show off their 'colours’ by driving their vehicles exceeding speed limits.They should also not drive if they do not get adequate sleep or feel too tired.

Doing overtime (driving) in offices is another key factor for road accidents because such drivers always feel sleepy and tired. If they feel sleepy or tired they must park their vehicle and take rest. The drivers should not use mobile phones while driving. The owners/drivers must keep their vehicles in good condition. Therefore the public should be vigilant on preventing all types of accidents during all festive seasons.

Most of the accidents can be prevented by taking precautionary measures and not going to show off bravery and talents and not taking liquor before or while driving. The crazy rush and rat race in the local society just prior to any festive season also significantly contribute towards accidents. The real happiness can be achieved during all festive seasons. Otherwise a festive season will mark the end of the normal life of you or your loved ones !

Oral health during pregnancy

Dr S. R. Gunasekera (Dental surgeon),
Base Hospital,Homagama.

Oral health care in pregnancy plays an important part in improving oral health of the pregnant mother and that of the new born. Oral health is important for general health. In pregnancy oral health of mother is of importance to the mother as well as for the baby’s wellbeing.

Improving oral health of a pregnant mother has many benefits. It will reduce complications of oral disease during pregnancy and prevent worsening of existing diseases. Untreated caries can progress to cause tooth ache while further negligence can result in abscess formation or spreading infection in the mouth and face region. These complications are minimized with timely restoration of carious teeth. Hormonal changes prevalent in pregnancy can modulate existing gum disease. There will be pain, swelling and bleeding of gums. Gum disease when neglected will result in gum recession, root exposure, mobility of teeth and finally loss of teeth. In non-controlled cases a development of pyogenic granuloma (red fleshy swelling) can be observed. Providing periodontal treatment during pregnancy has benefits such as prevention of pregnancy induced inflammation of the gum and pyogenic granuloma.Furthermore gum disease may lead to adverse pregnancy outcomes such as preterm babies and low birth weight babies. These adverse pregnancy outcomes can be prevented with proper oral health care.

Good oral health

Good oral health of the mother has the potential to decrease early child hood caries in their babies. This is by reduced transmission of causative bacteria from mother to newborn. Mothers with good oral health will have less caries causing bacteria in their mouth.

Maintaining good oral health in the entire family will reduce transmission of causative bacteria to the child. With the improved oral health in the family the direct financial burden imposed by oral disease on the family will be reduced.

The necessary dental treatment could be provided at any time during pregnancy. Dental treatment is safe and effective during pregnancy. The early second trimester is the ideal time to perform all dental procedures. At this stage the threat for teratogenicity (birth defects) has passed, nausea and vomiting are less common and the uterus is not large enough to cause discomfort. Delay in necessary treatment could result in significant risk to the mother and indirectly to fetus as indicated earlier.

A pregnant mother needs a screening for oral diseases initially and then can undergo uncomplicated restorations, oral hygiene measures such as scaling, polishing and rootplanning and extractions when necessary. She is also fit to undergo any emergency treatment to teeth or oral tissues following trauma. Dental procedures such as bridge work and cosmetic dentistry should be deferred until pregnancy is completed.

Oral health education provided for pregnant mothers is an important preventive measure. It is advised to brush teeth twice daily after meals with fluoridated toothpaste (volume equal to a pea) using a tooth brush. Those who are experiencing frequent nausea and vomiting should brush teeth at a convenient time when nausea is minimal. Rinsing the mouth thoroughly after vomiting will remove the residual acid that may damage enamel of teeth.

Food containing sugar should be limited to meal times. Choose fresh fruits, lightly cooked vegetables or whole grain foods for snacks. Choose fruits rather than fruit juice to meet the recommended daily fruit intake.

It is advised to avoid carbonated beverages during pregnancy. Rinsing the mouth after meals is thoroughly advised. The belief that calcium is removed from mother’s teeth during pregnancy and breast feeding is not correct. Through health education pregnant mothers are motivated to obtain timely dental treatment.

Dental caries is an infectious and transmissible disease. Certain factors are required for dental caries to establish and progress:

One or more susceptible tooth surfaces,Caries causing bacteria,Fermentable carbohydrates (particularly sugar) and Adequate time

These caries causing bacteria are transmitted to the new born from those who are in close contact, typically the mother. Treatment of caries in pregnant mothers significantly reduces the amount of bacteria and thereby reduces the rate of transmission. Use of fluoridated tooth paste and recommended mouthwashes further reduces caries causing bacteria. Good oral health of the entire family is a benefit.

Basic oral hygiene measures

Every mother should be aware of basic oral hygiene measures regarding children. Any saliva sharing behaviors such as sharing a spoon when tasting baby food should be avoided. Saliva sharing behaviors between children through their toys have to be discouraged.

Brushing is recommended from the day, the first tooth appear in the mouth, using a cloth or soft brush. Feeding should be followed by wiping an infant’s teeth, mainly along the gum line, with a soft cloth or a soft bristle tooth brush. Children can brush their own teeth under supervision. Small amount (a smear layer) of fluoridated tooth paste is recommended for a child. Swallowing tooth paste should be discouraged and children have to be trained to spit out the excess. In high fluoridated areas non fluoridated tooth paste is recommended. Brushing teeth has to be done twice daily after meals.

Introducing sugar to a child must be delayed as long as possible. The craving a child develops for sugar can be avoided by reducing frequency and amount of sugar intake to a minimum. Sticky sugary food such as biscuits, chocolate, cake and toffee should be especially discouraged. Sweets should be limited to meal times while frequent snacking of sugary food should be avoided as a means of reducing caries risk. Excessive intake of juices and fizzy drinks are harmful for good oral health. Child should be encouraged to have more fruits. Any child having night time feeding should be followed with some water to drink or have their teeth cleaned with a wet piece of cloth by the mother.

The mother can observe any decay in teeth by lifting up the upper lip. If any white or brown spots along the gum margin, mainly in front teeth are present it indicates early caries. The first visit to a dental surgeon is recommended at 6 to 12 months of age of the child. Thereafter it is advisable to get a checkup from a dentist every 6 month. However when signs of dental caries or any other dental disease is detected must seek advice without delay.

Oral health care received by a pregnant mother improves oral health of the mother and that of the new born. Health of teeth and other oral tissues are considered along with general health and wellbeing. Therefore proper oral health care received improve quality of life of pregnant mother and that of the new born.

Helping children with intellectual disabilities

Ishara MUDUGAMUWA

“A true friend knows your weaknesses but shows you your strengths;
feels your fears but fortifies your faith; sees your anxieties but
frees your spirit; recognizes your disabilities but emphasizes your
possibilities.” - William Arthur Ward

Most of the parents get frustrated over their babies with physical or intellectual disabilities. It doesn’t mean that they do not love their children with disabilities. But parents usually see the future of these children as dark and remain worried. They are very much anxious on how they will face future challenges in their absence in later years as such children .

“Parent should not be worry about their children with physical and intellectual disabilities as they can create a bright future for them to live independently in the society. Though these children are born with disabilities they have some talents. So parents should recognize these talents and sharpen them.” said Our Kids Organization Executive Director D.M.Thilakaratne addressing the media recently at the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute.

“We can easily recognize a child with physical disabilities and also we can identify their disabilities - who has a speech impairment, visual impairment, person who uses wheel chair etc. But it is not easy to identify a child with intellectual disability. So people try to consider all of them as ones with mental disorders.” he said.

There are various types of intellectual deficiencies such as Dyslexia, specific reading and writing difficulties, learning difficulties , receptive language disability, slow learner, slow growing minded, deficiency in attention , anxiety, emotional problems, behavioral problems, mental unstable, mentally degenerate, mental disorders , insane type and phobia.

“We consider all the children with those deficiencies as mental defective children. First we should recognize the real situation of the child. All the children those who suffer from above mentioned intellectual deficiencies are not intellectually disabled or impaired (Mental Defective) children. There is a possibility to change those intellectual deficiencies by using modern technologies and special teaching practices without let them to be a mental defective person. If children doesn’t show a positive response at the

developing period then only we can consider them as intellectually disabled children. So it is unfair to label all the children with intellectual deficiencies as intellectually disabled or impaired children .” said Thilakaratne.

People with Down’s Syndrome, Hydrocephaly Syndrome, Crydochat Syndrome, Autistic Spectrum Disorder, Cerebral Palsy and Multi Handicapped are intellectually disabled and impaired.

Support of the parents is very much essential for children with intellectual deficiencies to improve their lives. Parents should realize that this type of children are differently-abled and have different learning styles and strengths. They only have learning differences but not learning disabilities. It is important to build self-confidence in their children. Parents should identify the child’s learning style and strengths. This will help the parents to create the most effective learning environment for the child.

Some children experience various speech disorders. There are therapies to help them to improve their speech difficulty. Students should practise speech activities in a relaxed environment. It takes some time to improve their skills.

Though parents have a very big responsibility to change lives of children with intellectual disabilities the society too has a responsibility to help these children to live independently in the society by treating them with dignity and respect.

Post-menopause cancer risk linked to seaweed: study

A Japanese study Wednesday said regular seaweed consumption among post-menopausal women heightened their risk of developing thyroid cancer, linking it to iodine in the macrobiotic food.

A 14-year national survey of nearly 53,000 Japanese women, aged between 40 and 69, found that the group reported 134 thyroid cancer cases, including 113 cases of papillary carcinoma, a common type of the illness.

Those who ate seaweed daily were 1.7 times more likely to develop cancer than those who ate it no more than twice a week, the study said.

The risk more than doubled among post-menopausal women who were about 3.8 times more likely to develop the cancer than those who limited their consumption of seaweed, a popular food in Japan, the study said.

“Seaweed consumption was clearly associated with an increased risk of papillary carcinoma,” said the study led by the National Cancer Center and National Institute for Environmental Studies.

It was not clear why post-menopausal women had an increased risk of developing cancer but there may be a link with the iodine in seaweed, according to the research published in the European Journal of Cancer Prevention.

Japanese women were particularly at risk given their regular -- and sometimes excessive -- consumption of seaweed, which accounted on average for about 80.0 percent of their iodine intake.

AFP

Scientists hail revolutionary breast cancer breakthrough

Steve Connor

Cancer is the quintessential genetic disease, so it comes as little surprise to find it has benefited most from the unravelling of the human genome - the blueprint of life written in the digital DNA code of the cell’s chromosomes. It is now more than 10 years since the full DNA sequence of the human genome was first published and the benefits of that understanding are now apparent in a remarkable breakthrough in breast cancer genetics.

For the first time, scientists have been able to tease apart differences in the DNA of breast cancer patients that go far beyond the results of classical medical science, based on the tradition of analysing tumour tissue under a microscope.

Researchers have used advances in genetics to determine 10 subtypes of breast cancer, each of which has a unique genetic fingerprint that could in the future determine a patient’s tailor-made treatment - or cure.

At present, breast cancers are classified according to the presence or absence of a few “markers” or proteins found on the surface of tumour cells. In future, doctors will classify breast cancers based on the presence, absence or even activity of the smallest bits of DNA code.

The power of the latest study, published in the journal Nature, resides in the ability to retrospectively analyse some 2,000 frozen samples of breast-tumour tissue collected from women in Britain and Canada between five and 10 years ago.

Using powerful new developments in DNA analysis, such as computer-controlled “micro arrays” that can automatically scan the entire three-billion-letter code of the human genome for the smallest of mutations, scientists were able to confidently pigeonhole each tissue sample into one of 10 subtypes.

Each subtype had defined characteristics in terms of DNA variations and gene activity.

The scientists could also show that each subtype displayed subtle but important features in terms of a patient’s prognosis - in other words the DNA differences mattered.

AFP

Healthwatch Medical Crossword Draw No 52 : Held in Jaffna

by Edward ARAMBEWELA

Healthwatch Medical Crossword draw No 52 was held at the General Hospital Jaffna last week, at the opening of the newly constructed ENT Consultation and Examination Unit of hospital donated by the crossword sponsors WISH Foundation.

The ENT unit was opened by the Hospital Director Dr Ms Bhavani Pushpathirajah who was also the chief guest at the crossword draw.

She thanked the crossword sponsors WISH Foundation for donating the ENT unit, and also sponsoring the medical crossword in the Daily News, which make use of the crossword feature for health education.

Colombo Lady Ridgeway Childrens Hospital ENT Surgeon Dr Saman Yasawardena, and Jaffna General Hospital’s ENT Surgeon Dr V. Thirumaran also participated at this opening and in the crossword draw.

Prize winners at this draw were :

Student Category

1) Santhushi Rajapakse 13 yrs

2) G K M de Soysa 16 yrs

3) Archana Kodithuwakku 19 yrs

Professionals and Pensioners category together

1) Wing Commander Wimal Fernando

2) S M Fouzi (Rtd. Chemist)

3) Mohana Selva (Rtd. Teacher)

Housewives category

1) A G Fernando

2) Padmini Weerasuriya

3) Mariam Mansoor

Change in prizes – Sponsors have decided to offer gift vouchers to all prize winners from this crossword ranging from Rs 6,000 to 2,000. The sponsors will talk to the winners on this.