24 April, 2013

Indian hip fracture patients at high mortality risk

An Indian study has found that 30.4 per cent of hip fracture patients died within one year, with the majority of deaths occurring within the first six months after fracture, and survivors had high rates of functional impairment.

In various studies across different countries the reported one year mortality risks after hip fracture can vary anywhere from 5 to 50 per cent. In India, however, there has been little research on the risk of mortality and functional impairment following hip fracture.

In an oral presentation held during the European Congress on Osteoporosis and Osteoarthritis in Rome, Italy, held from April 17 to 20 in Rome, Italy, researchers from Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi, India presented findings from a prospective study which found that patients had a high rate of one-year mortality and functional impairment.

The study included 188 patients (mean age 64.67, 60 per cent women) with fragility hip fracture admitted to the hospital over a three and half-year period.

The follow up on 174 of these patients showed that 30.4 per cent had died within one year, with the majority of deaths occurring within the first six months after fracture.

Only around one-fifth of the patients were able to return to normal motor function. The remaining needed assistance for their daily life activities: 13.7 per cent were bed ridden, 14.9 per cent could only walk with a cane, and 19.5 per cent required a walker (zimmer frame).

The findings have been published in `Osteoporosis International.

Source: www.timesofindia.com

24.04.2013

Mushrooms superior than Vitamin D

Mushrooms are a good source of vitamin D2 and is as effective as taking vitamin D supplements.

Vitamin D intake is crucial to the process of calcium absorption and maintaining healthy bones.

Vitamin D helps the body in maintaining bone density thus reducing the risk of fracture, osteomalacia, osteoarthritis and osteoporosis. The nutrient also plays an integral role in modulating the immune system to help fight infections like the flu and reduces the risk of many common diseases including cancer, cardiovascular disease, depression and diabetes.

For the study, researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) studied the data obtained from 30 healthy adult participants who were asked to take vitamin D supplements or vitamin D2 mushroom powder. The participants were randomly selected to take either vitamin D2, vitamin D3 or the mushroom powder for 12 weeks. At the end of the study, there was no difference in the amount of vitmamin D found among the paricipants.

"These results provide evidence that ingesting mushrooms which have been exposed to ultraviolet light and contain vitamin D2, are a good source of vitamin D that can improve the vitamin D status of healthy adults. Furthermore we found ingesting mushrooms containing vitamin D2 was as effective in raising and maintaining a healthy adult''s vitamin D status as ingesting a supplement that contained either vitamin D2 or vitamin D3," said Michael F. Holick, PhD, MD, the principal investigator of the abstract.

According to Holick and his coauthors, ingesting mushrooms containing vitamin D2 can be an effective strategy to enhance a persons'' vitamin D status. "The observation that some mushrooms when exposed to UVB light also produce vitamin D3 and vitamin D4 can also provide the consumer with at least two additional vitamin Ds," he added.

In a second poster presentation, the researchers were able to determine how mushrooms make vitamin D2 and found that the process is similar to what occurs in humanskin after sun exposure. They were also able to show that mushrooms not only produce vitamin D2, but can produce vitamin D3 and vitamin D4.

"Although it has been previously reported that mushrooms have the ability to produce both vitamin D2 and vitamin D4, through our own research we were able to detect several types of vitamin Ds and provitamin Ds in mushroom samples including vitamin D3 which is also made in human skin," added Holick.

The study will be presented at the American Society for Biochemistry and Microbiology annual meeting in Boston.

Source: www.timesofindia.com

24.04.2013

The loss of enemies does not compensate for the loss of friends

Abraham Lincoln