From http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/letters/article2799258.ece
A 50-year-old woman was brought in a state of septic shock to the hospital where I worked. An emergency surgery was performed and everyone was shocked to find a ripe coconut in her uterus. Enquiries revealed that the patient suffered from uterine prolapse and was treated by a quack in Kanyakumari. The coconut had held the uterus in position for some time but eventually created a life-threatening sepsis.
Similarly, using irritants like alum for treating piles and fistula; making a burn injury on the forearm with a heated coin for viral hepatitis; and pouring fish oil in the nose for bronchial asthma are some of the tricks of quacks. They exploit the ignorance of the common man. The switch from holistic to ‘evidence-based medicine' by allopathic doctors — confirming diagnoses after costly investigations to save themselves from legal action — has made health care costlier, which is the main reason for quacks flourishing.
P. Durai,
TirunelveliLabels: 1992to1998_Batch, Media
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