Kolkata :

Arthritis, traditionally believed to be the disease of the old, is striking the young at an alarming rate. Over 180 million patients in India are suffering from this disease that causes severe painful and restricts movement, severely affecting normal life.

According to recent trends, doctors have seen that with changing lifestyle, the severity of arthritis at young age, especially in women, is on the rise. Any patient showing the signs of varied levels of pain, swelling, joint stiffness, and a constant ache around the joint(s) or other symptoms like inability to use the hand or walk, weight loss, poor sleep and muscle aches and pains is recommended to visit an orthopaedic consultant.

With a large number of patients reporting symptoms of arthritis, the department of orthopaedics at Rabindranath Tagore International Institute of Cardiac Sciences has decided to conduct arthritis clinics periodically for people residing in and around Kolkata. The inaugural clinic will be held on Saturday, July 19, from 1pm onwards.

The clinic will offer free Bone Mineral Density (BMD) test screening along with consultation with a seasoned specialist Abhirup Maulik, consultant, rheumatologist, Rabindranath Tagore International Institute of Cardiac Sciences. The clinic will be functional on every second week of every month.

Commenting on the clinic, Maulik said, “Awareness about Arthritis is important as it can help one to act on time since early detection results in better treatment.” He further added,” Treatment options vary depending on the type of arthritis and include physical therapy, lifestyle changes (including exercise and weight control), orthopaedic bracing, and medications. Joint replacement surgery may be required in eroding forms of arthritis.”

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Kolkata / by Subhro Niyogi, TNN / July 16th, 2014