Monday 26 September 2016

Treatment for Diabetes and Gastroparesis

Overview

In diabetes patients, the stomach problems and gastroparesis problems are reduced with dietary changes. A gastroparesis is a progressive disorder which causes the food to remain in the stomach for prolonged periods of time and this condition is known as delayed gastric emptying. This disorder stems from the damage to the nerves that run through the digestive tract thereby these muscles do not work as they would normally due to which the food remains in the stomach undigested.


Gastroparesis is a common disorder in patients with type 2 diabetes and those who have been diagnosed with high uncontrolled glucose levels for a long time which will lead to nerve damage resulting in this disorder. Since this is progressive, you may not even realize you have the condition as many of the early symptoms resemble other conditions.
The symptoms include nausea, heartburn, early fullness after eating a small meal, vomiting of undigested food, loss of appetite, weight loss, stomach spasms, bloating, glucose levels which are hard to stabilize and acid reflux.

Study: Stomach problems in diabetes patients reduced with dietary changes

The stomach problems due to diabetes can be reduced with dietary changes. About 35% of diabetes patients suffer from gastroparesis and the researchers at the University of Gothenburg have found that the dietary changes are able to reduce the symptoms due to this disorder.
In this study, 56 diabetics with gastroparesis participated and they were piut on a small particle diet that falls apart such as a boiled potato when mashed with a fork and other examples such as thin soups, fish gratin, meat loaf, etc. They experienced significant relief from the symptoms of gastroparesis as compared to those who stuck with a traditional diabetes diet that focused on large food particles.

Eating and the resulting symptoms can be very anxiety producing for the gastroparesis patients. The participants who were put on a small particle diet experienced reduced anxiety levels. The small particle food is directly related to the stomach emptying. The researchers found that the patients on a small particle food has rates of stomach emptying similar to those of the healthy individuals since it leads to fewer hypoglycemic events which are easier to manage and tremendous value to the patients.

A large particle food could be used for diagnosing gastroparesis with the patients swalloing a special marker which can be followed through the digestive tract. These two are easily accessible and help to reduce the number of unknown gastroparesis cases which will help to reduce costs to the patients and society in the form of medical treatments.

Diet for diabetes-related gastroparesis

Here are some tips to keep in mind while adjusting the diet for diabetes related gastroparesis:

  • Eat the vegetables cooked as opposed to raw
  • Choose low-fat foods such as low-fat yogurt, cottage cheese, egg whites, fruits, lean meats and vegetables
  • Consume plenty of liquids
  • Eat pureed foods or soups to speed up digestion
  • Follow a low fiber diet and avoid the fibrous foods such as oranges or broccoli
  • Drink homemade ginger tea
  • Avoid carbonated beverages and alcohol
  • Eat small frequent meals throughout the day
  • Ensure you chew your food properly
  • Choose foods which are soft and easy to digest
  • Eat probiotic foods such as kefir or greek yogurt
  • Avoid lying down immediately after eating
  • Avoid drinking water during meals as it dilutes the stomach acids making the digestion less effective
  • Exercise gently after each meal
  • Apple cider vinegar helps to relieve heartburn, bloating, abdominal pain and improve digestion
  • Consume aloe vera to improve digestion and bowel regularity
  • Coconut oil contain the essential fatty chains which will help in digestion
Treatment options for diabetes-related gastroparesis


The treatment options for the diabetes related gastroparesis are medications which stimulate the stomach muscles and controls the nausea and vomiting. In certain cases, surgery is required for treating the gastroparesis if the patient is not able to tolerate food and liquids. Doctors will recommend a feeding tube to be placed temporarily in the small intestine or a gastric venting tube for relieving the pressure from gastric contents. Your doctor will determine the best treatment depending on the severity of your condition. 




Tuesday 20 September 2016

Congenital Heart Diseases in Children: What Should You Know?


A congenital heart disease of CHD in children refers to an abnormality problem in the strurcture of the heart which is present at birth. The problem can be in the walls or the valves of the heart and the defect can be with veins and arteries. CHD affects about 1,310,000 newborns each year and acoount for a high proportion of infant deaths worldwide. Most of the heart defects do not need treatments but others can be serious. If you see any of the symptoms or if you feel something is not right with your baby then get in touch with your paediatrician immediately.


Symptoms of CHD

The paediatricisn will look for signs to diagnose CHD by giving the child a physical examination. The common symptoms include cyanotic lip, falred nostrils, retraction of lung muscles, swelling of the abdomen, visible veins and arteries in the neck, abnormal sound in the chest, cool skin, slow growth and development in the child, too weak or very strong pulse, less active physically and bue or purple or widened nails.

Types of Congenital heart defects

There are different types of congenital heart defects depending on where the problem lies:

1)    Hole in the heart
a.      Atrial septal defects
b.     Ventricular septal defects
c.      Patent ductus arteriosis

2)    Narrowed or abnormal valves restricting blood flows
a.      Pulmonary stenosis
b.     Aortic stenosis
c.      Ebstein’s anamoly
d.     Pulmonary atresia

3)    Abnormal blood vessels
a.      Transposition of the great arteries
b.     Coarctation of the aorta
c.      Hypoplastic left heart syndrome

4)    Combination of heart defects
a.      Tetralogy of fallout

Reasons for occurrence of heart defects:

The heart begins to take shape during the first six weeks of pregnancy and this is the time when the heart defects occur. Dividingwall in the heart will start to form in fifth week and this is the time when any abnormality in the wall can happen. Most of the CHD’s have no known cause and the scientists are still searching to find out what exactly causes CHD in infants. Scientists think there is a genetic and environmental link to some of the heart defects. Most experts believe there is a link between the congenital heart defects and maternal alcohol consumption and smoking. According to the researchers, the maternal smoking was strongly linked to the pulmonary valve and pulmonary artery anomalies and the atrial septal defects. Children with CHD may continue to have emotional and developmental difficulties even after the treatment. As parents, you should talk to your child’s doctor about how you can help your child to cope up with his/her heart problems.

Treatment for Congenital Heart Diseases:

Most of the heart abnormalities can be corrected with a single operation during early infancy. Most complex abnormalities may require a series of two or three operations that start in the newborn period and are completed at the age of about three years. The children having most complex abnormalities spend the majority of their time in the care of their parents at home and require occasional visits to the paediatric cardiologist as well as the child’s primary care doctor.

Your child will require less invasive procedures that are done in the cardiac catheterization laboratory instead of the operating room. Treatments include balloon angioplasty or valvuloplasty for relieving the obstruction of a blood vessel or a valve obstruction. During these procedures, a paediatric cardiologist will insert a catheter into a blood vessel and then the balloon will be inserted to stretch open the narrow areas of the blood vessels or the heart valve.

A transcatheter device occlusion will be used to close the abnormal openings or the holes within the heart or the blood vessels without requiring surgery. Some abnormalities such as a small or moderate sized ventricular septal defects can be closed or decreased in relative size as the child grows. While waiting for the hole to close, the child will have to take medications and some of them need to take them after the surgery. Whether the treatment is done surgically or medically, the child will need to visit a paediatric cardiologist regularly. At first, these appointments may be fairly frequent but after treatment, you will need to visit sometimes just once a year.



Thursday 15 September 2016

Gallbladder sludge may lead to gallstones in elderly – causes and treatments

Gallbladder sludge can lead a number of issues including the gallstone in the elderly people. The gallbladder sludge is also called as the biliary sludge including the gel like bile, which come along with the potential precursor and cholesterol. In most of the cases, the sludge doesn’t really form stones that can be easily dissolved inside the gallbladder. The biliary sludge may be called as a normal phenomenon though yet it can comprise of sediments of calcium bilirubinate granules, mucus and cholesterol.Generally, the gallbladder sludge is simply not an issue unless it is offered for the extended duration of time; it can contribute for forming of gallstones.

Causes and symptoms of sludge in gallbladder

Bile is often seen constantly concentrating inside the gallbladder. When the water is seen removed, the cholesterol sediments and bilirubinate granules remain. The mucus that come along with gallbladder are seen lining that mixes that come along with sediments and that end up bodily processes that end up clearing out over the sludge. The gallbladder sludge is seen more rampant among the women who are pregnant. Gallbladder sludge has no symptoms unless the cholesterol stones that are formed. At times, the gallbladder sludge can lead to issues like inflammation regarding gallbladder even when you find the stones that are not found.

Gallbladder sludge risk factors

The women are found with greater amount of risk for gallbladder sludge as compared to the women. As per reports, the native US citizens are known to have issues like the gallbladder sludge more often as compared to other ethnicities. The other risk factors like type II diabetes, pregnancy, critical sickness that are being overweight and thus are seen losing the tangible amount of weight and thus have undergone to the organ transplant.

Gallstones and sludge in gallbladder

Majority of the people suffering from the same end up getting into the sludge over the gallbladder at the current scenario but with symptoms seen along, many of us are not aware of the same. The sediments found in the gallbladder right from the sludge can end up contributing to the formation of gallstones that end up resulting to a number of symptoms like pain and other issues. If the stones are among the small enough, these can simply pass via the body with either can be seen with a number of symptoms or end up giving without any symptoms.The only best way for knowingcan be provided you have issue like the gallbladder sludge that can be found out with the seeking the machines like ultrasound or X-ray. In most of the cases, there is no treatment option thatcan be can be needed but the doctor can help in informing you all possible risk of developing the gallstones in the future

Treatment options for gallbladder sludge

The gallbladder sludge simply doesn’t really need the treatment option unless it is seen progressing over the gallstones. In order to prevent the issue of gallbladder sludge, you can simply avoid losing excess amount of weight quickly in order to avoid crash along with avoiding the fad diets and thus consume loads of fiber. When it comes to treatment options for gallstone, there are several options. These simply include a number of options that end up taking pain relieving medication, inducing polyuria, surgery, lithotripsy and other treatment options.

Final Verdict

The gallbladder sludge can be fixed with options like medication and other non-surgical options, yet if nothing really works, then surgery comes into picture. Nevertheless, the option is yours, all you need to do is to check the things right. Take your time to investigate things right and then you are all set to do get rid of the same.


Thursday 8 September 2016

Advantages and Disadvantages of Dental Implants

Dental implant is the latest and the most successful dental prosthesis to replace the missing teeth in the oral cavity. A prosthetic device or alloplastic material implanted into the oral tissue beneath the musosal and/or the periosteal layer and within the bone to provide retention and support to fixed or a removable prosthesis is called a denal implant.
But the dental implants has it own advantages and disadvantages and therefore consider certain points before deciding the type of prosthesis and treatment plan for the patients.


Advantages of Dental Implants

  1. Better strength
Dental implants are known to have the best strength of all the dental prosthesis available at the moment. Due to their superior property, they can be used in the Anterior tooth as well as the posterior tooth.

  1. Better aesthetics
    Dental implants are the best dental prosthesis available in the market if the aesthetics are to be considered. They give you natural tooth like appearance due to the feature of being embedded into the alveolar bone such as a natural tooth that has roots for the same purpose. For aesthetic reasons, the dental implants can be used in place of the anterior central incisors and also for strength it can be used in the posterior region of Molars due to their property of sustaining sufficient forces seen in the posterior region of the mouth.
  1. Best support and stability and retention
It provides support, stability and retention which are the three main mechanical aspects of a successful dental implant surgery. Better support will help to maintain the implant in position to the horizontal forces in the oral cavity while better stability will prevent the harmful effects of the vertical forces during chewing and better retention because the implant becomes a part of the aleveolar bone with the help of osseointegration.

  1. Preservation of alveolar bone
By placing the dental implant, we will be preserving the alveolar bone as we insert the implant into the bone with the help of osseintegration of the implants which becomes part of the alveolar bone. This will prevent the disintegration of the bone and loss of the alveolar arch height.

  1. Best prosthetics for long duration
In young adults, who have lost their tooth or teeth due to any reason, the dental implant is best prosthesis for replacing the missing ones. Due to its strength, aesthetics and longevity, this is best suited prosthesis for young adults as they have a good alveolar bone support.

Disadvantages of Dental Implants

  1. Complex clinical procedure
Dental implants placement is a complex procedure compared to either the bridges or the fixed partial dentures. These are technique sensitive procedures which need proper skill to diagnose the decide the treatment plan and need multiple visits.

  1. Costlier than other prosthesis
Dental implants are costlier than any other tooth replacement dental prosthesis in use. The cost is high due to many reasons and better quality and aesthetics. But cost of dental implants will always be a matter of concern for every patient.

  1. Anatomical limitations
The dental implant placement requires the presence of a proper alveolar bone height for supporting the implant prosthesis. In old age, the lack of bone support will be a major hurdle in the dental implant prosthesis procedure.

  1. Contra indicated in medically compromised patients
Medically compromised patients with problems such as uncontrolled diabetes, various cardio vascular diseases, uncontrolled hypertension, respiratory diseases, etc. are a strict contraindication for the dental implant surgery. In the end, it is up to the dentist to decide the pros and cons associated with the patients and decide their eligibility to undergo the procedure.

  1. Prolonged procedure time
The procedure time for dental implants is very prolonged. There are many steps in the procedure and after placement of the implant prosthesis in the bone, we have to wait for at least 15-30 days for proper osseointegration to occur which is a must for the success of the dental implant in the long run. These steps will make it a very prolonged procedure which is a disadvantage as compared to other techniques.

  1. Patient compliance
In any dental treatment, patient compliance has a major role in the prognosis of the treatment which holds the same for the dental implants as well. The better patient compliance will increase the success rate of the dental implant. Patient should attend the appointment dates regularly and maintain good oral hygiene. Smoking cigarettes is a contraindication during the dental implant surgery, so patient has to follow these for getting better prognosis.

  1. Costly equipment required
The equipments required is quite costly which in turn will increase the rate of the implant procedure. The use of the CT scan and specialized radiographic procedures for diagnosis and the treatment plan will considerably increase the treatment cost many fold as compared to the other dental prosthesis techniques.


Considering the advantages and disadvantages in every dental procedure, the effect of the prognosis of the treatment will provide the need for experienced and skilled dentists in India to decide the best treatment options for your specific condition.


Saturday 3 September 2016

Gallstone Disease may Increase Heart Disease



As per a number of research reports, people suffering from the issue of gallstone are more likely to get to have the risk of developing the heart diseases. In a group of more than one quarter millions of US citizens, the researchers have found the history of having the gallstones to around 17 percent more likely to get developed the heart ailments over the coming decades. Both the gallstones and heart ailments go hand in hand and have some amount of risk factors in common like obesity, Type II diabetes and the presence of unhealthy levels of cholesterol in the body. However, a number of such risk factors cannot completely unable to define the required findings. As per leading cardiologist Dr. Richard Stein (Director urban community cardiology program at NY University School of Medicine) the presence of gallstone alone has the risk factor cardiac issues. He claimed that the people having the history of gallstones may require additional amount of attention to certain cardiovascular health.

Gallstones and heart disease

Both the heart ailments and gallstones share similar kind of risk factors as said above, however, the two may fail to have the right amount of risk factors, which may not be able to explain the right amount of findings claims the researchers. Well, talking about the gallstones, these are hard particles, which are developed inside the gallbladder (a small organ, which is responsible in storing the bile fluids that help the body to digest good amount of fat soluble vitamins and digest fat). Talking about the gallstones, these are often formed due to the imbalances that are found in the substances, which make up the bile like having excess amount of cholesterol that remains the usual suspect claims the reports of the US National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive & Kidney Diseases. For a number of people gallstones may not have any symptoms, but if they are seen blocking the bile duct they end up causing the abdominal pain, which is often caused after having a heavy meal. Thus all you need at this juncture is the surgical removal of gallbladder. As per some studies, the people having the problem of gallstones can have huge risk of having heart diseases; however, some of the experts do not feel the same and refute the claim with their own argument.

Why are gallstones linked to heart disease?

Though as per a number of studies, didn’t prove the cause and effect relationship between the gallstones & heart problems, the experts feel that there are certain changes found in the microbiome of gut that play a vital role in it. This simply refers to the trillions of bacteria & a number of other microbes, which usually are found in the digestive system that causes the problem. The gallstones can easily hamper the balance found in the microbes found in the gut claims the recent studies that are linked with disturbances of the risk found in the heart diseases. As per the other expert called Stein, he has another reason for the risk of heart ailment with gallstone. He claims that the low levels of inflammation found in our body are responsible in creating the development in the heart diseases. Many feel that the chronic and low grade inflammation that is linked with the heart ailment is also responsible for the heart problems. Regardless of the reasons you have for the link, the experts often vouch for the connection one can have in between the gastrointestinal & cardiovascular systems.

The bottom Line

A number of research studies have claimed that more and more cases of gallstones are linked with the cardiac issues. Many studies carried out under the same have claimed for the relationship found in between the gallstone diseases and heart ailments.

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