Date:25/09/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/09/25/stories/2008092559550200.htm

Karnataka - Bangalore

Hospital shows it has a heart

Staff Reporter

Bangalore: To promote awareness on heart-related diseases, Manipal Hospital conducted a free heart check-up and heart scan for around 200 students and staff of “The Dream School”, a school for orphans run by the Association for Promoting Social Action (APSA) on Tuesday on the school premises.

The camp, organised in context of World Heart Day that will be observed on September 28, was held to educate children on the importance of a healthy heart.

According to the organisers, the children of “The Dream School” were excited on being subjected to various scans which they had never heard of. The children underwent echocardiogram and ECG tests.

P. Lakshapathy, one of the founders of APSA, said: “We welcome such an event because the children living in APSA have come from poor backgrounds and the probability that heart defects may have gone undetected is high.”

“A free check-up and heart scan has been organised for the first time here but our organisation has always been associated with Manipal Hospital. They have been giving concessional treatment to the children at APSA from many years. Cardiac surgery has also been conducted on one child by doctors in the hospital,” he said.