Recent Blogs Posts

Some scientists poke needles at our bubbles of happiness. Yes, at least they did for me.

I was touting my gray hair as a sign of wisdom for the last 3 to 4 years. But now, some researchers from UK and Germany have 'discovered' the 'real' reason for this graying, thus exposing my 'wisdom'!

Wood et al [1] using FT-Raman spectroscopy have proved H2O2-induced oxidative damage in the entire human hair follicle, inclusive of the hair shaft, ...

Updated 6 Days Ago at 04:11 PM by Shashikiran

Tags: gray hair, graying, h2o2, hair, hydrogen peroxide, oxidative damage, premature graying, senile, wisdom

Categories

General , Medicine

We need low-density lipoprotein (LDL) to transport cholesterol (and triglycerides) from liver to the peripheral tissues. Traditionally, LDL is also called bad cholesterol as high levels of this lipoprotein may mean increased transport of cholesterol towards arteries, causing plaques and coronary heart disease (CHD) eventually.

When we detect high levels of LDL in our patients, we attempt to reduce the levels to an individualized target based on the patient's (cardiovascular) risk profile. ...

Tags: cholesterol, diabetes, ldl, low-density, safety, sceptic

Categories

Diabetes , Medicine

Every office has politics, as long there are at least two employees!

Experienced something which I don't want to discuss here, but while googling about it, found this very well made statement:

If you don't know the problem; you are INNOCENT.
If you know the problem, but don't know the solution; you are IGNORANT.
If you know the problem, you know the solution, but you don't want to use or implement; you are a CULPRIT.

Perfect.

Mahatma Gandhi's quote ...

Are we inducing mass hypochondria? Making even apparently 'normal' persons suspect that they 'may' have some disease? Seek medical attention for diagnosis of prediabetes and prehypertension?

I wrote a response in 2005 to an editorial in the BMJ. Here's the text:

Dear Editor,

I have read the editorial by Westin & Heath and the subsequent rapid responses to that article with great interest. The extremes of views apparent in some of these are

...

Updated January 21st, 2010 at 05:50 PM by Shashikiran

Tags: consumerism, fear, hypochondria, iatrogenic, prediabetes, prehypertension, sceptic, screening

Categories

Medicine

The diagnosis of diabetes mellitus is traditionally based on demonstrating high blood glucose.

The American Diabetes Association (ADA) criteria, 1997:

1. Symptoms of diabetes plus casual/random* plasma glucose (RPG/RBS) concentration ≥200 mg/dl (11.1 mmol/l), or
2. Fasting** plasma glucose (FPG/FBS) ≥126 mg/dl (7.0 mmol/l), or
3. 2-hour postload/postprandial*** glucose (PPG/PPBS) ≥200 mg/dl (11.1 mmol/l) during an OGTT.

* Casual/random is defined as any ...

Updated January 21st, 2010 at 05:50 PM by Shashikiran

Tags: diabetes, diagnosis, glycated, glycosylated, hba1c

Categories

Diabetes , Medicine