Pectus excavatum (or funnel chest) is a common chest wall deformity where the breastbone (sternum) and ribs grow inward, creating a sunken or caved-in appearance, often noticeable at birth or during teenage growth spurts. While mild cases are cosmetic, severe cases can cause shortness of breath, chest pain, fatigue, and reduced exercise tolerance by affecting heart and lung function, leading to treatments like physical therapy, vacuum devices, or surgery (Nuss or Ravitch procedures) to correct the shape.

Causes

• Congenital: Present at birth, often due to excess growth of connective tissue joining ribs to the sternum, causing it to push inward. 
• Growth Spurt: Can become more noticeable during teenage growth spurts.
• Genetics: May have a genetic link and can run in families.

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Harlequin ichthyosis is the most severe type of ichthyosis and a rare genetic skin disease that affects newborns. It causes babies to be born with hard, thick plates of skin that crack and split apart. Babies born with harlequin ichthyosis need special care in the NICU. For them, the most dangerous time is the first few weeks of life, before the thick casing they’re born with falls off.  baby might also get support from physical and occupational therapists, skin doctors (dermatologists), nutritionists, or other professionals. Improved treatment options have given babies a better chance at survival than in the past. But many still die within the first few weeks of life due to complications of the disease.

Symptoms

Facial palsy is a condition in which the muscles in your face become weakened or paralyzed due to injury or disease. It usually affects one side of your face, causing it to droop or suddenly become stiff. resulting from some kind of trauma to the seventh cranial nerve, which controls your facial muscles. it causes difficulty in blinking, smiling, eating, drinking and speaking. Facial palsy can happen to anyone, it mostly affects people aged 15-60 years. It affects men and women equally. These patients often face psychological and social challenges and being treated as unfriendly and uninterested due to their appearance which can lead to chronic anxiety, isolation, least interested in daily activities, fear of negative reaction etc…There are definitive treatments available for facial palsy, depending on the duration of the disease. facial palsy treatment requires multi disciplinary approach like – plastic surgeon, ophthalmologist, oculoplastic surgeon, physiotherapist, speech therapist and clinical psychologist. Treatment always depends on several factors with most important being the time since the injury ha s occurred, if it has been 6months to a year old injury  simple operations like nerve repair and nerve transfer are appropriate treatments  yielding good results otherwise, it may require multiple treatments with physiotherapy as a crucial aspect of treatment.

Causes

Although the exact reason facial /Bell’s palsy occurs isn’t clear, it’s often related to having a viral infection. Viruses that have been linked to Facial/Bell’s palsy include viruses that cause:

• Cold sores and genital herpes, also known as herpes simplex.
• Chickenpox and shingles, also known as herpes zoster.
• Infectious mononucleosis, caused by the Epstein-Barr virus.
• Cytomegalovirus infections.
• Respiratory illnesses, caused by adenoviruses.
• German measles, also known as rubella.
• Mumps, caused by the mumps virus.
• Flu, also known as influenza B.
• Hand-foot-and-mouth disease, caused by a coxsackievirus.

Symptoms

The onset of your symptoms may be sudden or may appear over two or three days. Alternatively your symptoms may develop slowly over time (over weeks, or even months).

• Mild weakness to total paralysis on one side of the face — occurring within hours to days.
• Facial droop and trouble making facial expressions, such as closing an eye or smiling.
• Drooling.
• Pain around the jaw or pain in or behind the ear on the affected side.
• Increased sensitivity to sound on the affected side.
• Headache.
• Loss of taste.
• Changes in the amount of tears and saliva produced.

Diagnosis

There’s no specific test for Bell’s palsy. Your healthcare professional looks at your face and asks you to move your facial muscles. You’re asked to close your eyes, lift your brow, show your teeth and frown, among making other movements.

Other conditions — such as a stroke, infections, Lyme disease, inflammatory conditions and tumors — can cause facial muscle weakness that mimics Bell’s palsy. If the cause of your symptoms isn’t clear, your healthcare professional may recommend other tests, including:

• Electromyography (EMG).
• Imaging Scans (MRI, CT scan)
• Blood tests

Treatment

If you have Facial palsy, you’re likely to make a full recovery even if you don’t get treatment. But there are some things that may help you heal faster.

• Corticosteroids (such as prednisone). These can help ease swelling of your facial nerve and help it start working normally faster. Corticosteroids work best if you take them soon after the start of your symptoms.
• Antiviral drugs. Antiviral medications  are sometimes prescribed in combination with corticosteroids, typically in severe cases of Facial palsy. They don’t seem to have much effect when they’re taken alone.
• Eye drops. If your Facial palsy affects your ability to blink and close your eye, use eye drops or an ointment to keep it moist. Wear an eye patch to keep dirt and dust out and moisture in.
• Surgery. Surgery is usually a last resort if your symptoms don’t go away, or if you have complications.

Facial palsy therapy

Physiotherapy may help strengthen your facial muscles and help you get back facial coordination. You can also try massaging your face with your fingertips or exercising your facial muscles. Try to move every part of your face gently and slowly, using your fingers to help.

Conclusion

Most people with Facial palsy completely recover, sometimes the symptoms are permanent. and you may have long-term effects, such as – lopsided face, crooked smile, tightness of facial or neck muscle, narrowed eye etc.. But it’s not serious and usually clears up with early and appropriate treatments in a few months.

So, we  GTS is always available 24/7 at your service to assist and guide you with the right speciality of doctors  and everything in case you or your loved ones unfortunately encounter any type  major disease which may require therapies and surgery.

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Some people are born with a deviated septum, but it can also be caused by an injury to your nose. Most people with a deviated septum have one nasal passage that’s much smaller than the other. This can cause difficulty breathing. Other symptoms of a deviated septum may include frequent nosebleeds and facial pain. Surgery is the only way to fix a deviated septum(i.e, septoplasty)

Septoplasty is a minor, low-risk procedure inside your nose to straighten a deviated septum. It is generally performed to improve quality of life. Recovery usually takes a few days and requires an average of a week of downtime. But, as with any surgery, septoplasty carries some risks, including bleeding, infection and numbness.

Causes

• bleeding
• scarring
• perforation of your septum, which happens when a hole forms in your septum
• an altered nose shape
• a discoloration of your nose
• a decreased sense of smell

Excessive bleeding and infection are possible risks of any surgery. Keeping your nose clean and washing your hands frequently can reduce these risks.

Benefits

Overview

Rhinoplasty is the medical name for surgical procedures that some people call a “nose job,” “nose reshaping” or “nasal surgery.” It involves the surgical reconstruction and shaping of the bone and cartilage to enhance the appearance or function of the nose. The nose is the most defining characteristic of the face, and even a slight alteration in its size or shape can greatly change a person’s appearance. Many surgeons prefer to perform cosmetic nose surgery after the nasal bone has finished growing. This is around age 14 or 15 for girls and a bit later for boys. Post surgery swelling of the nose may persist for several weeks. It takes a year or more for all the swelling in the nose to resolve, but most patients see improvement in their appearance within a few weeks. however in few cases there is revision surgery required in fail rhinoplasty.

Causes for Rhinoplasty

Patients born with a defect that affects the development of the nose often benefit from rhinoplasty. These defects include:

• cleft lip
• craniosynostosis
• frontonasal dysplasia
• Tessier clefts
• Treacher Collins syndrome
• Apert syndrome
• Hemangiomas
• vascular malformations

What rhinoplasty can treat

• Nose size in relation to facial balance
• Nose width at the bridge or in the size and position of the nostrils
• Nose profile with visible humps or depressions on the bridge
• Nasal tip that is enlarged or bulbous, drooping, upturned or hooked
• Nostrils that are large, wide or upturned
• Nasal asymmetry

Breast augmentation Augmentation mammoplasty  is a cosmetic surgery technique using breast-implants and fat-graft mammoplasty techniques to increase the size, change the shape, and alter the texture of the breasts. Although in some cases augmentation mammoplasty is applied to correct congenital defects of the breasts and the chest wall. whereas in some cases it is used purely as a cosmetic surgery and post mastectomy for breast cancer.  primary breast augmentation changes the aesthetics – of size, shape, texture and fullness of breast. In some cases breast augmentation is a way to feel more confident. For others, it’s part of rebuilding the breast for various conditions.

Breast implants cost depends on the location, doctor, and type of implant used. Typically, the surgery ranges from $5,000 to $10,000/- tentatively. Because it is a cosmetic procedure and these Implants last from 7 to 12 years on  an average. If you’re considering breast augmentation, talk to a plastic surgeon. Make sure you understand what surgery involves, including possible risks, complications and follow-up care.

Reason for Augmentation Mammoplasty

• It enhances your appearance if you think your breasts are small or that one is smaller than the other and this impacts how you dress or the type of bra needed to help with the asymmetry
• It adjusts for a reduction in the size of your breasts after pregnancy or significant weight loss
• It Corrects your uneven breasts after breast surgery for other conditions
• It Improves your self-confidence
• Reconstructive breast surgery may be done as a part of the treatment for breast cancer. Cosmetic breast surgery is done for esthetic purposes.

Surgical breast augmentation

There are four types of implant:

1. Saline implants filled with sterile saline solution- the saline breast implant, filled with saline solution. The technical goal of saline-implant technique was a less-invasive surgical technique, by inserting an empty, rolled-up breast implant through a smaller surgical incision. the plastic surgeon would then fill each device with saline solution through a one-way valve and, because the required insertion incisions were short and small, the resultant incision scars would be smaller and shorter than the surgical scars typical of the pre-filled, silicone-gel implant surgical technique.
2. Silicone implants filled with viscous silicone gel-Silicone gel-filled implants are silicone shells filled with a plastic gel (silicone). Although many women say that silicone gel implants feel more like real breasts than saline, they pose more of a risk if they leak.
3. Alternative-composition implants (no longer manufactured), filled with various fillers such as soy oil or polypropylene string.
4. “Structured” implants using nested elastomer silicone shells with saline between the shells – Structured implants were approved by the FDA and Health Canada in 2014 as a fourth category of breast implant. These implants incorporate both saline and silicone gel implant technology. The filler is saline solution, in case of rupture, and has a natural feel, like silicone gel implants.his implant type uses an internal structure consisting of three nested silicone rubber “shells” that support the upper half of the breast, with the two spaces between the three shells filled with saline. The implant is inserted, empty, then filled once in place, which requires a smaller incision than a pre-filled implant.

Risks

Breast augmentation poses various risks involved  such as follows:

• Infection
• Scar tissue that distorts the shape of the breast implant (capsular contracture)
• Breast pain
• Changes in nipple and breast sensation
• Implant position changes
• Implant leakage or rupture

Correcting these complications might require more surgery, to either remove or replace the implants.

Conclusion

Breast augmentation is a way to feel more confident but, breast implants are not designed to last a lifetime. You may need to have the implants replaced if you have complications or if the size and shape of your breasts change over time.

Women who have silicone gel-filled implants need to get regular mammogram screenings yearly plus an MRI or ultrasound scan five to six years after the initial implant surgery and every two to three years after that to check for silent rupture. If you have symptoms at any time or uncertain ultrasound results for breast implant rupture, an MRI is recommended If your implants rupture, you will need to have them removed or replaced.

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Elephantiasis is a condition characterized by gross enlargement of an area of the body, especially the limbs. Other areas commonly affected include the external genitals. Elephantiasis is caused by obstruction of the lymphatic system, which results in the accumulation of a fluid called lymph in the affected areas.  Elephantiasis is a painful and profoundly disfiguring disease, caused by infection with parasites classified as nematodes (roundworms) of the family Filariodidea that are transmitted through the bites of infected mosquitos. Mosquito-transmitted larvae are deposited on the skin from where they can enter the body. The larvae then migrate to the lymphatic vessels where they develop into adult worms, thus continuing a cycle of transmission. The affected skin can thicken and harden to look something like an elephant’s skin.

It’s more common in tropical or subtropical areas. In endemic countries, lymphatic filariasis has a major social and economic impact. causing temporary or permanent disability. Lymphatic filariasis affects over 120 million people in 72 countries throughout the tropics and sub-tropics of Asia, Africa, the Western Pacific, and parts of the Caribbean and South America.

CAUSES

Elephantiasis is caused by parasitic worms that are spread by mosquitoes. It starts when mosquitoes infected with the roundworm larvae bite you. The tiny larvae survive in your bloodstream and grow. They finish maturing in your lymph system. They can live there for years and cause a lot of damage to your lymph system.

SIGNS & SYMPTOMS

• Mild Edema
• Huge swelling
• pain in affected swollen area.
• Thickened, nonelastic saggy skin
• chills and fever

Elephantiasis may also affect the male and female external genital organs. In a male, there may be enlargement of the scrotum, and the penis may be retracted under skin which has become thickened, nonelastic, hot and painful. The spermatic cords may thicken. Affected individuals may experience pain and a burning sensation.

DIAGNOSIS

A detailed patient history and identification of characteristic symptoms. They also will have blood tests done to see if roundworms are in your bloodstream. These tests need to be done at night, because that’s when these parasites are active.

TREATMENT

Treatment of elephantiasis always involves treating the underlying condition. Lymphatic filariasis is a chronic lymphedema, which should be treated in the early stages with good compression therapy and garments to prevent elephantiasis.

There are some things you can do on your own to ease them:

• Wash and dry the swollen areas daily.
• Use moisturizers.
• Check for wounds and use medicated cream on any sore spots.
• Exercise, and walk when possible.
• If your arms or legs are swollen, keep them elevated when you’re lying down or seated.

However, in the majority cases, medical therapy alone is not enough and surgery may be necessary as a last option. In cases where the male genitals have been affected, reconstructive surgery on the penis and scrotum has been successful. Anti-streptococcal antibiotics are used to relieve secondary infection. Lymphatic tissue may be removed by surgery or radiation therapy.

LIVING WITH ELEPHANTIASIS

Elephantiasis can be disabling. Sometimes it’s hard to move the affected body parts, which means it could be difficult to work. It might even be hard to get around in your home.

You might also worry about how your condition looks to other people. This can cause anxiety and depression. If you have elephantiasis and want information about support groups, ask your doctor. You can also go online to find resources that might help.

Liposuction is a type of cosmetic surgery that breaks up and “sucks” fat from the body. Liposuction is not an overall weight-loss method. Liposuction may work for you if you have a lot of body fat in specific places but otherwise have a stable body weight. Also called lipoplasty, liposculpture suction, lipectomy, or lipo.

People who undergo liposuction usually have a stable body weight but would like to remove undesirable deposits of body fat in specific parts of the body.The procedure does not remove cellulite, dimples, or stretch marks. The aim is esthetic. It suits those who wish to change and enhance the contour of their body.Liposuction permanently removes fat cells, altering the shape of the body. However, if the patient does not lead a healthy lifestyle after the operation, there is a risk that the remaining fat cells will grow bigger.

Liposuction is normally advised only if lifestyle changes have not achieved the desired results. It can treat areas of fat that are resistant to exercise and diet.When an individual gains weight, each fat cell increases in size and volume. Liposuction reduces the number of fat cells in isolated areas.

The following body areas are commonly targeted for liposuction treatment:

• abdomen
• back
• buttocks
• chest
• inner knees
• hips
• flanks (love handles)
• neckline and the area under the chin
• thighs, both “saddlebags,” or outer thighs, and inner thighs
• upper arms

PURPOSE

Liposuction is normally done for cosmetic purposes, but it is sometimes used to treat certain conditions.

These include:

• Lymphedema: A chronic, or long-term, condition in which excess fluid known as lymph collects in tissues, causing edema, or swelling. The edema commonly occurs in the arms or legs. Liposuction is sometimes used to reduce swelling, discomfort, and pain.
• Gynecomastia: Sometimes fat accumulates under a man’s breasts.
• Lipodystrophy syndrome: Fat accumulates in one part of the body and is lost in another. Liposuction can improve the patient’s appearance by providing a more natural looking body fat distribution.
• Extreme weight loss after obesity: A person with morbid obesity who loses at least 40 percent of their BMI may need treatment to remove excess skin and other abnormalities.
• Lipomas: These are benign, fatty tumors. 

RESULTS

After liposuction, swelling typically goes away within a few weeks. By this time, the treated area should look less bulky. Within several months, expect the treated area to look slimmer.Skin loses some firmness as people age, but liposuction results usually last a long time if you maintain your weight. If you gain weight after liposuction, your fat levels may change. For example, you may gain fat around your abdomen no matter what areas were originally treated.

Liposuction works best for people with good skin tone and elasticity, where the skin molds itself into new contours.People whose skin lacks elasticity may end up with loose-looking skin in areas where the procedure was done.

The person needs to be over 18 years of age and in good health. Those with circulation or blood flow problems, such as coronary artery disease, diabetes, or a weakened immune systems should not undergo liposuction.

People should discuss the pros and cons of liposuction with their doctor before deciding on whether to proceed. Liposuction should only be carried out after careful consideration.After liposuction, swelling typically goes away within a few weeks. By this time, the treated area should look less bulky. Within several months, expect the treated area to look slimmer.Skin loses some firmness as people age, but liposuction results usually last a long time if you maintain your weight. If you gain weight after liposuction, your fat levels may change. For example, you may gain fat around your abdomen no matter what areas were originally treated.

RISKS

The risk of complications is usually associated with how large the procedure is, as well as the surgeon’s skills and specific training.

The following risks, unpleasant side effects, or complications are possible:

• Severe bruising: This can last for several weeks.
• Inflammation: The swelling may take up to 6 months to settle, and fluid may continue to ooze from the incisions.
• Thrombophlebitis: A blood clot forms in a vein, causing inflammation and further complications.
• Contour irregularities: If there is poor skin elasticity, if the wound heals in an unusual way, or if fat removal has been uneven, the skin may appear withered, wavy, or bumpy.
• Numbness: The affected area may feel numb for a while, but this is usually temporary.
• Infections: Rarely, a skin infection may occur after liposuction surgery. Sometimes this needs to be treated surgically, with the risk of scarring.
• Kidney or heart problems: As fluids are being injected and or suctioned, the change in the body’s fluid levels may cause kidney or heart problems.
• Pulmonary embolism: Fat gets into the blood vessels and travels to the lungs, blocking the circulation in the lungs. This can be life-threatening.
• Pulmonary edema: Sometimes, when fluid is injected into the body, it accumulates in the lungs.
• Allergic reaction: The patient may be allergic to medications or materials used during surgery.
• Skin burns: The cannula movement may cause friction burns to the skin or nerves.

Those who are most satisfied with the results tend to be the people who consider carefully the pros and cons beforehand, who are informed about what to expect, who choose a qualified and experienced surgeon, and who discuss the details carefully with their surgeon.