8 months ago
Noida, Ghaziabad Hospitals See Rise in Lung-Screening Tests Due to Pollution
In Noida and Ghaziabad, many people are going to hospitals because they have trouble breathing and coughing.
Doctors think this is because of the bad air outside.
Even young and healthy people are having these problems.
Doctors are suggesting a special test called a PFT to check their lungs.
This test helps find out if the lungs are working properly.
Many people, especially those who work outside or travel in public transport, are getting this test for the first time.
Doctors say the bad air can make lungs sick over time, so it's important to check them.
Hospitals in Noida and Ghaziabad are seeing an increase in lung-screening tests due to pollution-related respiratory issues.
Doctors are recommending PFTs to young, healthy individuals experiencing unexplained breathlessness or persistent cough.
The PFT test costs Rs 2,499 and takes 10-15 minutes to complete.
There has been a 40% rise in lung-related issues compared to the summer.
Doctors caution that long-term exposure to pollution can lead to chronic lung problems and even lung cancer.
- Who
- Patients, including a 19-year-old student and a 60-year-old contractor, in Noida and Ghaziabad
- What
- Increase in lung-screening tests due to pollution-related respiratory issues
- Where
- Noida and Ghaziabad hospitals, particularly Yashoda Medicity, Felix Hospital, and Yatharth Hospital
- When
- Recent, with a notable rise in the past week
- Why
- Due to high levels of air pollution triggering respiratory problems even in healthy individuals
Key facts
- Location
- Noida and Ghaziabad
- Age of Patients
- 19-year-old student and 60-year-old contractor
- Symptoms
- Persistent dry cough, chest tightness, breathlessness
- Test Recommended
- Pulmonary Function Test (PFT)
- Test Cost
- Rs 2,499
- Increase in Lung-Related Issues
- 40% rise compared to summer
Quotes
19-year-old student
A 19-year-old college student from Delhi, now residing in Ghaziabad, who visited Yashoda Medicity with respiratory issues.
“For the past one week, my throat felt heavy and I had a dry cough. I ignored it, thinking it was just symptoms of a common cold. Last night, after I returned from college, I felt a sudden tightness in my chest and breathlessness. It lasted the whole night…”
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“I am a first-year college student from Delhi. I shifted here at the beginning of this year”
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Dr Ankit Bhatia
Senior consultant, Respiratory and Sleep Medicine at Yashoda Medicity.
“Pollution is now triggering airway obstruction even in people who never had respiratory complaints. That’s why we recommend PFTs to young adults experiencing unexplained breathlessness or persistent cough”
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“This is the body box. Once the person sits inside, we close the door, creating a controlled vacuum. The patient blows into the machine, and we get detailed readings of lung performance”
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Dr Priyadarshi J Kumar
Respiratory, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine specialist at Felix Hospital in Noida.
“If someone has been experiencing chronic cough, chest pain, breathlessness and wheezing for a couple of days, and has no history of any kind of lung disease, we recommend lung screening tests. We also have been recommending the same to school children these days”
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“When we do lung screening for air pollution — which comprises innocuous particles including aerosols — we find inflammation… After the irritant causes persistent inflammation for several days, it becomes chronic. We see young patients worrying about lung cancer due to the rise in pollution levels. Particulate matters are carcinogenic too. Over the years, these can lead to lung cancer”
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Rakesh Kumar Gupta
A 60-year-old contractor from Muzaffarnagar who visited Yashoda Medicity for a lung-screening test.
“I’m a contractor, we are currently working on NH-58 in Muzaffarnagar. A week ago, I stood for an hour waiting for some officials who had to inspect the road… when I returned home, I had a bout of breathlessness”
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Dr Vipul Mishra
Director, Critical Care and Pulmonology at Yatharth Hospital in Noida.
“We ask patients to take a PFT test even if they have no history of any pre-existing lung disease and don’t smoke. Apart from PFT, we also ask them to get Chest X-rays, blood tests…”
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