Interview with Prof R N Bhattacharya

Prof. Dr. R. N. Bhattacharya MS, MCh ( Neuro Surgery) Ex-Prof. & Head of Dept. Sree Chitra TIRUNAL INSTITUTE FOR MEDICAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY(SCTIMST), Trivandrum, Kerala (Institute of National Importance under Dept. of Science & Technology, Govt. Of India). Prof R.N. Bhattacharya is considered amongst topmost Neurosurgeons not only in India but Internationally. His surgical excellence is highly acclaimed all over world. His name is considered synonymous with vascular neurosurgery. He is master of skull base, endoscopic and vascular Neurosurgery. He is first Neurosurgeon in India to do complete removal of acoustic neurinoma with facial nerve preservation,way back in early eighties He has operated more than 300 AV Malformations. ( More than any other Indian Neurosurgeon). and more than 2000 aneurysms with internationally comparable results. He joined SCTIMST as Asst. Prof in 1981 and left the institute as Professor and Head of Dept in 2006. In between he developed department of Neurosurgery in Central Hospital, Dhanbad on request of Coal India, the dept. is still running successfully.   Since 2006 he is working as Director Neurosciences in AMRI group of hospitals in Kolkata.Paper published more than 50 in National & International Journals.He trained more than 50 Neurosurgeons. Many of his students are leading the department in India as well as abroad. He is Ex - President of Cerebro Vascular Surgery Society of India, Ex President Neurological Society of India (NSI), Kerala Chapter, Ex executive member NSI and another subspecialities of Neurosurgery. He visited several International centres in Europe, USA, Japan and other countries as visiting professor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Stethoscope team recently spoke with renowned Neurosurgeon Prof R N Bhattacharya, who came to Bangladesh to be the chief speaker of Dhaka Neuroscience Summit held on 6th August.

 

 

 

Stethoscope: What is your opinion about the standard of treatment for neurological diseases in our country?
Prof Bhattacharya: Medical science is an ever evolving field of study and technological advances. This is truer now more then ever before. There is no ultimate standard of development for any of the branches of medical science. But at the same time a desired level of care and professional ability is always expected while treating patients. I believe the standard of neurological treatment here in Bangladesh is more or less up to par however as I have said earlier there is always room for excellence.
Stethoscope: Stroke is one of the most common neurological diseases in our country. Please tell us how we can prevent stoke?
Prof Bhattacharya: Stroke has several risk factors. Among the commonest are:
High blood pressure. High blood pressure is the main risk factor for stroke.
Diabetes.
Heart diseases.
Smoking
Young people these days often present with stroke and I think a sedentary life style and fast foods are also indirectly responsible as these factors can often trigger potential health problems like hypertension and heart diseases.
Stethoscope: How can we improve our treatment of patients with stroke?
Prof Bhattacharya: Raising awareness is more important these days as early diagnosis and early management is vital to limiting disabilities after a stroke has occurred. The signs which everyone and I also include patients and family members must look out for include:
Sudden numbness or weakness in the face, arm, or leg, especially on one side of the body.
Sudden confusion, trouble speaking, or difficulty understanding speech.
Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes. Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance, or lack of coordination
If such signs become evident the patient must be rushed to the hospital as soon as possible. Once initial treatment is complete, physiotherapy should be started soon afterwards. Early physiotherapy has been reported with a decrease in physical disability.
Health care professionals from around the world are looking to coin a new term for stroke and it is called Brain Attack. We think that a term similar to heart attack is more useful in creating a sense of urgency in the general population about the seriousness of stroke as a neurological emergency and therefore seeking emergency assistance.
Stethoscope: How can we improve our care of stroke patients at a larger scale or national level?
Prof Bhattacharya: People around the world are living a lot longer because of improved health care. However this has lead to an increased incidence of stroke, a disease more prevalent in the elderly. At the same time we see an increase in the number of nuclear families around the world thus causing our elders to be more alone and isolated then ever before. Organizations like Sir William
Beveridge Foundation, is doing excellent work to support elderly people around the world. I sincerely hope that their numbers increase while at the same time we treat our elders with as much love and compassion as they treated us when we were children.  
Stethoscope: Just as stroke is a problem more prevalent among elderly patients memory loss is also just as common. Can you inform us about memory loss and what can be done to help patients?
Prof Bhattacharya: Memory loss or dementia is in several cases just an eventual outcome of the natural aging process. However Alzeimer’s disease and Parkinson’s are medical causes which can also produce dementia. A surgical cause of dementia is Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus. If a patient with dementia develops urinary incontinence (inability to control the urge to urinate) and gait instability (unsteadiness in walking around), neurosurgical referral is very important. A relatively simply neurosurgical intervention can greatly improve the patients chances of recovery.   
Normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) is an abnormal buildup of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the brain’s cavities. It occurs if the normal flow of CSF throughout the brain and spinal cord is blocked in some way.The operation used to treat NPH is called a Ventriculo-Peritoneal Shunt. A shunt is a thin tube that is implanted in the brain by a neurosurgeon. It is inserted into the ventricles to drain excess CSF away from the brain. The tube is routed under the skin from the head to another part of the body, usually the peritoneum.
Stethoscope: We have heard that in first world countries there is a new branch of medicine which deals with care of elderly. How much have things improved in our subcontinent at this front?
Prof Bhattacharya: The branch of medicine you speak of is Geriatric medicine. Geriatrics or geriatric medicine is a specialty that focuses on health care of elderly people. It aims to promote health by preventing and treating diseases and disabilities in older adults. It is starting to emerge slowly as a separate discipline in India and hopefully doctors with training in geriatrics will be able to help our aging population.

Wrishi Raphael
The writer can be reached at: [email protected]

 

Interview with Prof R N Bhattacharya

Prof. Dr. R. N. Bhattacharya MS, MCh ( Neuro Surgery) Ex-Prof. Head of Dept. Sree Chitra TIRUNAL INSTITUTE FOR MEDICAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY(SCTIMST), Trivandrum, Kerala (Institute of National Importance under Dept. of Science Technology, Govt. Of India). Prof R.N. Bhattacharya is considered amongst topmost Neurosurgeons not only in India but Internationally. His surgical excellence is highly acclaimed all over world. His name is considered synonymous with vascular neurosurgery. He is master of skull base, endoscopic and vascular Neurosurgery. He is first Neurosurgeon in India to do complete removal of acoustic neurinoma with facial nerve preservation,way back in early eighties He has operated more than 300 AV Malformations. ( More than any other Indian Neurosurgeon). and more than 2000 aneurysms with internationally comparable results. He joined SCTIMST as Asst. Prof in 1981 and left the institute as Professor and Head of Dept in 2006. In between he developed department of Neurosurgery in Central Hospital, Dhanbad on request of Coal India, the dept. is still running successfully. Since 2006 he is working as Director Neurosciences in AMRI group of hospitals in Kolkata.Paper published more than 50 in National International Journals.He trained more than 50 Neurosurgeons. Many of his students are leading the department in India as well as abroad. He is Ex - President of Cerebro Vascular Surgery Society of India, Ex President Neurological Society of India (NSI), Kerala Chapter, Ex executive member NSI and another subspecialities of Neurosurgery. He visited several International centres in Europe, USA, Japan and other countries as visiting professor. The Stethoscope team recently spoke with renowned Neurosurgeon Prof R N Bhattacharya, who came to Bangladesh to be the chief speaker of Dhaka Neuroscience Summit held on 6th August. Stethoscope: What is your opinion about the standard of treatment for neurological diseases in our country? Prof Bhattacharya: Medical science is an ever evolving field of study and technological advances. This is truer now more then ever before. There is no ultimate standard of development for any of the branches of medical science. But at the same time a desired level of care and professional ability is always expected while treating patients. I believe the standard of neurological treatment here in Bangladesh is more or less up to par however as I have said earlier there is always room for excellence. Stethoscope: Stroke is one of the most common neurological diseases in our country. Please tell us how we can prevent stoke? Prof Bhattacharya: Stroke has several risk factors. Among the commonest are: High blood pressure. High blood pressure is the main risk factor for stroke. Diabetes. Heart diseases. Smoking Young people these days often present with stroke and I think a sedentary life style and fast foods are also indirectly responsible as these factors can often trigger potential health problems like hypertension and heart diseases. Stethoscope: How can we improve our treatment of patients with stroke? Prof Bhattacharya: Raising awareness is more important these days as early diagnosis and early management is vital to limiting disabilities after a stroke has occurred. The signs which everyone and I also include patients and family members must look out for include: Sudden numbness or weakness in the face, arm, or leg, especially on one side of the body. Sudden confusion, trouble speaking, or difficulty understanding speech. Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes. Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance, or lack of coordination If such signs become evident the patient must be rushed to the hospital as soon as possible. Once initial treatment is complete, physiotherapy should be started soon afterwards. Early physiotherapy has been reported with a decrease in physical disability. Health care professionals from around the world are looking to coin a new term for stroke and it is called Brain Attack. We think that a term similar to heart attack is more useful in creating a sense of urgency in the general population about the seriousness of stroke as a neurological emergency and therefore seeking emergency assistance. Stethoscope: How can we improve our care of stroke patients at a larger scale or national level? Prof Bhattacharya: People around the world are living a lot longer because of improved health care. However this has lead to an increased incidence of stroke, a disease more prevalent in the elderly. At the same time we see an increase in the number of nuclear families around the world thus causing our elders to be more alone and isolated then ever before. Organizations like Sir William Beveridge Foundation, is doing excellent work to support elderly people around the world. I sincerely hope that their numbers increase while at the same time we treat our elders with as much love and compassion as they treated us when we were children. Stethoscope: Just as stroke is a problem more prevalent among elderly patients memory loss is also just as common. Can you inform us about memory loss and what can be done to help patients? Prof Bhattacharya: Memory loss or dementia is in several cases just an eventual outcome of the natural aging process. However Alzeimers disease and Parkinsons are medical causes which can also produce dementia. A surgical cause of dementia is Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus. If a patient with dementia develops urinary incontinence (inability to control the urge to urinate) and gait instability (unsteadiness in walking around), neurosurgical referral is very important. A relatively simply neurosurgical intervention can greatly improve the patients chances of recovery. Normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) is an abnormal buildup of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the brains cavities. It occurs if the normal flow of CSF throughout the brain and spinal cord is blocked in some way.The operation used to treat NPH is called a Ventriculo-Peritoneal Shunt. A shunt is a thin tube that is implanted in the brain by a neurosurgeon. It is inserted into the ventricles to drain excess CSF away from the brain. The tube is routed under the skin from the head to another part of the body, usually the peritoneum. Stethoscope: We have heard that in first world countries there is a new branch of medicine which deals with care of elderly. How much have things improved in our subcontinent at this front? Prof Bhattacharya: The branch of medicine you speak of is Geriatric medicine. Geriatrics or geriatric medicine is a specialty that focuses on health care of elderly people. It aims to promote health by preventing and treating diseases and disabilities in older adults. It is starting to emerge slowly as a separate discipline in India and hopefully doctors with training in geriatrics will be able to help our aging population. Wrishi Raphael The writer can be reached at: [email protected]