Spine surgery
Dr Deshpande V Rajakumar successfully performed a Minimal Invasive Spine Surgery on 34-yr old software engineer at Wockhardt Hospital Bangalore. The patient was complaining of chronic pain in the lower back.  Until now, such patients had only conventional treatment options including pain killers, exercise therapy or a major spine surgery, says a press release.

The new CD HORIZON SEXTANT Spinal System uses a mechanical arc device to deliver the rod and screws to stabilize adjoining vertebrae, through 1.4 cm skin incisions with minimal injury to the muscles near the spine. This minimally invasive technique significantly reduces the size of the incision and the resulting scarring to the major muscles in the back.

The key benefit is reduced trauma to the soft tissue surrounding the spine. As also less post-operative pain, shorter recovery times and easier rehabilitation.

Degenerative disc disease is part of the natural process of growing older but seen in youngsetrs due to sedentary working lifestyle.

Pumpkins for diabetes
Asian pumpkin may help thwart type 1 diabetes, according to a preliminary new study from China reported in the WebMD. The study was done on rats. The Chinese study suggests that Asian pumpkin extract may help protect pancreatic cells from the ravages of type 1 diabetes where the cells are attacked by the immune system. These pumpkins unlike the orange coloured ones have a green and white rind.