Saturday, 3 October 2015

3 October, 2015

Study claims that 550 million people in India have vision problems

Nearly 550 million people – almost half of India’s population – have vision problems, and so doctors must be trained in latest techniques for correcting vision problems, an official said on Thursday. Mahipal Sachdev, chairman-scientific committee, Intra Ocular Implant and Refractive Society of India (IIRSI) and chairman of Centre for Sight group of eye hospitals (CFS), said Ophthalmology is an ever-evolving field and that doctors need to keep themselves up to date.

‘In India, as many as 550 million people – almost half of India’s population – are estimated to be suffering from vision problems and correction. Therefore, it is important that doctors adopt latest vision correction techniques like replacing of cloudy lens in the case of cataract – the most common eye problem in people above 60 years of age – with Intra Ocular Lens (IOL) using blade-free femtosecond laser technology,’ said Sachdev.

He said that ‘femtosecond laser technique is the most advanced technology for correction of cataract and refractive errors’. The IIRSI in collaboration with CFS will organise a two-day conference here in the national capital from Friday to discuss eye treatment in hospitals. Ritika Sachdev, additional director-clinical cervices, CFS, said: ‘People wanting to get rid of eyeglasses can immensely benefit from the technology without having to experience any side-effect or discomfort.’ 


03.10.2015



Study finds insulin pumps to be safe for up to five years

Insulin pumps are safe for up to five years in patients with type 2 diabetes and could be a useful option for those who have failed to control their blood glucose levels through insulin injections, according to a new study. ‘Insulin pumps can act as a valuable new treatment option, especially for those individuals failing on current injections regimens,’ said study author Priyamvada Singh, MD, St. Vincent Hospital, Worcester, Massachusetts. She added that around 30 percent of type 2 diabetes patients who require insulin injections fail to gain control over their blood glucose levels through daily multiple injections of basal and bolus insulin. In such cases, ‘insulin pumps can act as a valuable new treatment option.’

The study involved only 13 participants, but it was the longest ever trial concerning insulin pumps and type 2 diabetes, diabetes.co.uk reported on Wednesday. A lack of long-term data has led to a reluctance to provide insulin pump therapy to people with type 2 diabetes. ‘This patient population [had been] very frustrated because they had tried everything…Most of them were very happy,’ Singh said. All participants in the study had HbA1c levels higher than seven percent and all were on either an insulin regimen or insulin plus metformin. After five years, the average HbA1c level had dropped from 8.9 percent to 7.7 percent. One participant’s HbA1c dropped from 10.5 percent to 6.6 percent. There was a small amount of weight gain and three participants experienced mild episodes of hypoglycemia. According to Singh, much larger studies are needed to confirm the findings, which were presented on September 17 at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) 2015 Meeting in Stockholm, Sweden



03.10.2015










An error does not become truth by reason of multiplied propagation, nor does truth become error because nobody sees it

Mahatma Gandhi


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