Hepatologist Cyriac Abby Philips, well known online as "The Liver Doc," from Kerala, recently revealed a humble story. Even as a specialist, he struggled to determine the ailment of a family member. He was disappointed by the standard medical tests' insufficient clarity.
"My adult family member had episodes of relentless low-grade fever with chills and crippling fatigue and arthritis and a weird rash and I tested everything from viral hepatitis to covid-19 to influenza and dengue and Ebstein Barr Virus and nothing came back positive and it was frustrating," he posted to X.
While Dr. Philips was conducting additional studies by consulting medical texts, his maid unintentionally provided insightful information.
My elderly maid comes in and tells me she has seen this rash in her grandchildren and it's called 'Anjaampani' in the local language (5th Disease) and I don't have to worry and got checked for Parvovirus B19 and it came positive.17 years of medical school and a Harrisons on my lap and my elderly maid got it in like 10 seconds.
Dr. Philips, Hepatologist
The fifth disease, also called erythema infectiosum, is defined by Medline Plus as a viral infection brought on by the human parvovirus B19. When an infected person coughs or sneezes, respiratory droplets are released, mainly affecting children.
The most identifiable sign is a distinctive rash that appears bright red on the cheeks and is commonly referred to as "slapped cheek syndrome." Later on, this rash may extend to other areas of the body and be accompanied by other symptoms.
"People do not understand that most of the time, nowadays, a 'GP' is not the GP that we expect these days," the doctor said in response to social media users' questions about why he did not contact a general practitioner. I spend half of my time in outpatient care deprescribing drugs that so-called specialists and general practitioners give me needlessly. While virtue signaling on social media is simple, the real world is very different. I didn't have to take a day off work to see a "GP," and I found the maid's diagnosis to be really helpful."
A man's life was saved in midair on an Akasa Air journey from Kochi to Mumbai earlier this year, thanks to Dr. Philips' heroic actions. His studies to debunk the fallacies surrounding complementary and alternative medicine are also well-known."
(Input from various sources)
(Rehash/Priyanka Pandey/MSM)
