Morning MEDtalks with Dr KK Aggarwal 4th November 2018

India’s MBBS curriculum acknowledges the importance of ethics, responsiveness to needs of patients and families and fine communication skills to engage the ailing. The new MBBS curriculum has a course called Attitude, Ethics and Communication (AETCOM) which will run across years. Students will be assessed for how they communicate with patients; how they counsel people for organ donations or other challenging procedures; how sensitively do they offer care and obtain consent. All these things will count along with competencies and skills.

Ketamine became a potent pain reliever for soldiers in Vietnam. The drug then became known as a date rape drug, and most recently, the psychedelic club drug, Special K. Ketamine is used for those suffering from severe depression.

People with type 2 diabetes who follow plant-based or vegan diets could not only experience greater weight loss and improvements in glucose and symptom control but also have improved wellbeing and quality of life, the results of a UK systematic review suggest. Anastasios Toumpanakis, a doctoral candidate in health psychology at the School of Health Sciences, University of London, and colleagues examined 11 studies. The research was published online by BMJ Open Diabetes Research & Care on October 30th.

The US FDA recently announced that the "authorized use" of the food packaging compound bisphenol A (BPA) continues to be safe for consumers despite study findings to the contrary, scientists with the Endocrine Society say. Regulatory agency dismissed results from its own research findings in the Consortium Linking Academic and Regulatory Insights on BPA Toxicity (CLARITY-BPA) study. Results from the FDAs investigation revealed significant low-dose effects in more than 20% of animals exposed to BPA compared with controls.

Higher serum cortisol levels in midlife are associated with impaired memory and structural brain changes, including lower brain volume in women, new findings from the Framingham Heart Study show. Women who had higher serum cortisol levels fared significantly worse than men on the measured outcomes. Higher serum cortisol was associated with lower brain volumes and impaired memory in asymptomatic younger to middle-aged adults, with the association being evident particularly in women.

Sweet potatoes are higher in beta carotene than many other vegetables and are a good source of potassium, fiber, and vitamins A and C.

Adolescents should be screened for hypertension; obesity and eating disorders; hyperlipidemia (if indicated); tuberculosis (if at risk); physical, sexual, and emotional abuse; learning or school problems; substance use; depression and suicide; sexual behavior that may result in unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases; sexually transmitted diseases, including human immunodeficiency virus infection; and cervical cancer (as indicated).

Global Task Force on Cholera Control marks a year of progress toward ending cholera worldwide since the launch of “Ending Cholera: A Global Roadmap to 2030”, which targets a 90% reduction in cholera deaths by 2030 and the elimination of cholera in at least 20 countries out of the 47 currently affected. At least 10 countries are now taking active measures towards cholera control plans in alignment with the Global Roadmap: Bangladesh, Haiti, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, South Sudan, Uganda, Zambia, the United Republic of Tanzania, and Zimbabwe. In addition, 47 African countries adopted the Regional Framework for the Implementation of the Global Strategy for Cholera Prevention and Control on 28 August at the 68th session of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa.

New research being presented at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) 2018 National Conference & Exhibition shows that caregivers who step up to raise their grandchildren are overcoming unique challenges to manage just as well as biological and adoptive parent caregivers. The study abstract, “Grandparents Raising Grandchildren: Are They Up to the Job?” will be presented on Monday, Nov. 5, at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Fla. 

Survey shows that at least some physicians are not always open or honest with patients. In a survey of nearly 1900 physicians from across the United States, more than 10% of physicians revealed that in the past year, they had told an adult patient or a childs guardian something that was not true (Health Aff (Millwood).  2012; 31(2):383-91).

“Health is a human right, and it is governments’ responsibility to ensure that right”, said the Director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), Dr. Carissa F. Etienne, during the closing session of the Global Conference on Primary Health Care in Astana, Kazakhstan. “Health is not a privilege, nor a commodity. It is a fundamental human right,” said Etienne, adding that “national governments must lead and own national processes towards universal health, in coordination with partners.” (PAHO/WHO). 

Video to watch: TEDx Video: Doctor-patient relationship www.youtube(dot)com/ watch?v=i9ml1vKK2DQ

Dr KK Aggarwal

Padma Shri Awardee

President Elect CMAAO

President Heart Care Foundation of India