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Insulin antibody syndrome (IAS), also known as Hirata disease, is a rare condition characterized by spontaneous hypoglycemic episodes unrelated to exogenous insulin exposure. It is caused by elevated serum levels of insulin autoantibodies (IAA). IAS typically occurs when a triggering factor, such as medication or viral infection, interacts with a predisposing genetic background. Diagnosing IAS is challenging due to its rarity and the presence of multiple potential causes for hyperinsulinemic hypoglycemia. The presence of Whipple triad-symptoms of hypoglycemia, low plasma glucose concentration, and relief of symptoms after raising plasma glucose-strongly supports the diagnosis of IAS. However, the detection of IAA is considered the most reliable test. Timely diagnosis can facilitate appropriate treatment and prevent unnecessary imaging studies and invasive procedures, thereby reducing costs. Currently, no definitive guidelines exist for managing IAS. Most management strategies involve supportive measures due to the high rate of spontaneous remission, with hypoglycemia often managed through dietary interventions. However, a few medications have shown benefit. Although predominantly observed in the Japanese population, IAS cases have been reported in other ethnicities, including Caucasians. This report presents a unique case of IAS in an African American male.
RESUMEN
Recent advancements in drug delivery systems for endocrine disorders have significantly improved patient outcomes by addressing the limitations of traditional methods such as oral tablets and injections. These innovations include non-invasive alternatives like inhaled insulin, which provides rapid absorption and better patient compliance, and robotic pills that deliver drugs directly to specific gastrointestinal sites, enhancing absorption and reducing side effects. Wearable artificial pancreas systems have revolutionized diabetes management by integrating continuous glucose monitoring with insulin pumps to automate blood glucose control. These systems demonstrate superior glycemic control and reduce hypoglycemic events. Additionally, smart insulin pens enhance diabetes care through dose tracking and real-time data sharing, improving accuracy and adherence. Microneedle patches offer a minimally invasive method for transdermal drug delivery, effectively administering hormones and therapeutic peptides without the pain and inconvenience of injections. These patches dissolve after use, eliminating biohazardous waste. Implantable devices provide long-term, controlled release of medications, significantly improving adherence and glycemic control of patients with diabetes. Hydrogels also offer new drug delivery options. This review examines these technologies' clinical efficacy, safety, advantages, and limitations, highlighting their potential to transform endocrine disorder management. Integrating advanced delivery systems marks a significant step towards personalized medicine, tailoring treatments to individual patient needs for better health outcomes.
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Thyrotoxicosis, also known as hyperthyroidism, is a condition characterized by the excessive production of thyroid hormones by the thyroid gland. Besides Graves' disease, other common causes of thyrotoxicosis include toxic multinodular goiter, toxic adenoma, and subacute thyroiditis. The treatment of thyrotoxicosis depends on the underlying cause and may include medications (e.g., antithyroid drugs, beta-blockers), radioactive iodine therapy, or surgical removal of the thyroid gland (thyroidectomy). In this report, we present two instances of thyrotoxicosis where conventional high doses of antithyroid treatment failed to control the condition effectively. This failure prompted the exploration of alternative therapeutic interventions. These cases highlight the intricacies involved in managing thyrotoxic crises that do not respond to methimazole (MMI), emphasizing the necessity for innovative approaches such as plasmapheresis and thyroidectomy. Understanding such scenarios is vital for enhancing the care provided to patients encountering resistance to standard treatments. The distinct clinical pathways and treatment strategies adopted in these cases offer valuable insights into this disease management, particularly concerning resistance to MMI.
RESUMEN
We report a case of a 72-year-old male who presented to the hospital with a chief complaint of diplopia in the setting of a recent onset of urinary incontinence and right-sided back pain. He was subsequently diagnosed with prostate cancer, notably metastasizing to the right sphenoid bone, causing impingement of the oculomotor nerve. Our case is unique in that the patient's initial presentation of prostate cancer was oculomotor nerve palsy with subsequent histologic analysis of the primary tumor showing both small cell neuroendocrine carcinoma along with adenocarcinoma. Also, the initial routine stroke protocol MRI and computed tomography angiography (CTA) missed the lesion, while gadolinium-enhanced targeted MRI revealed lesions in both the spine and the orbit. This case emphasizes the need for enhanced contrast as well as focused imaging in patients presenting with diplopia with a negative initial workup for stroke. Ptosis can be a sign of metastasis from other cancers and it is important to have a broad differential including metastatic disease in patients' presenting with similar symptoms and negative initial workup who may otherwise be at risk of cancer.
RESUMEN
Parkinson's disease (PD) is one of the most common neurodegenerative diseases with a high rate of morbidity. It is associated with dopaminergic neuron loss and is fairly common in the elderly population. Recently, there has been a growing interest in the role of the gut microbiome in the pathogenesis of PD and thus studies addressing the methods to modulate the microbiota are becoming increasingly popular. Fecal microbiota transplant (FMT) is one of these methods and is effective in certain intestinal and extraintestinal conditions. This review aims to talk about gastrointestinal dysbiosis and how the reconstruction of this microbiome via FMT could potentially be used as a treatment modality in the future. We went through various studies and collected data relevant to our topic from the previous five years. The studies selected include reviews, observational studies, animal studies, case reports, and some grey literature. We concluded that although it has great potential as a therapeutic modality in the future, it is limited by several factors such as variability among the results of most clinical studies and the lack of large sample sizes. Therefore, there is a need for high-quality clinical trials with larger sample sizes to gather enough clinical evidence so that FMT can qualify as a widely recommended therapeutic measure.
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Latest advancements in science lead to drastic improvements in patient health care. Techniques and technology evolved in surgery over the years have resulted in the improvement of patient outcomes by leaps and bounds. Open surgeries previously done for procedures like appendectomy and cholecystectomy evolved into laparoscopic minimally invasive procedures. Such procedures pose few challenges to the surgeons, like lack of tissue feedback and fulcrum effect of the abdominal wall. But training surgeons for such an advanced skill is still following conventional methods. These procedures can be effectively trained using Virtual Reality (VR), which can simulate operations outside the operating room (OR). To maximize the outcomes of VR training, knowledge on various strategies affecting the skills acquisition and retention in VR training is essential. This review collected information from PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library (CENTRAL) databases. Data from the previous ten years are included in the review. This included documents, clinical trials, meta-analysis, randomized controlled trials, reviews, systematic reviews, letters to editors, and grey literature. After an advanced Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) search, we got 59,532 results, and after the application of filters, 189 results showed up. Out of these, studies that were not exclusively relevant to the use of VR in laparoscopic surgery were manually excluded, and a total of 35 articles were included in the study. VR is found to be an excellent training modality with promising outcomes. It helps the surgeons perform the surgery accurately at a faster pace and improves confidence and multitasking ability in OR. Instructor feedback from mentors and deliberate practice of trainees, and early introduction of haptics in VR resulted in the most effective outcomes of the VR training. Box trainers are also compared with VR trainers as they are the cheaper modalities of training. However, this area needs more research to conclude if box trainers can act as a cheaper alternative to VR training providing similar outcomes.
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BACKGROUND: Nations across the globe are investing enormous resources to contain the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Assessing community knowledge and behavior could help in designing effective health-care policies tailored to the need of target population. AIMS: We aimed to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) about COVID-19 among Kashmiri population and to determine the association of KAP scores with the sociodemographic variables. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: This was a cross-sectional study conducted via various online platforms. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A structured questionnaire was formulated which was divided into three scoring sections assessing KAP about COVID-19 and a nonscoring section assessing individual reactions. A link to the survey was disseminated through social media platforms. A total of 1051 individuals participated. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Descriptive statistics were used for assessing the demographic characteristics of participants. Inferential statistics (Mann-Whitney U-test and Kruskal-Wallis test) were used for comparison. RESULTS: Majority of the participants belonged to the age group of 20-39 years (75.4%), were unmarried (66.6%), were from urban background (54.9%), and had education of above high school (96.3%). In general, scores suggested that participants possessed adequate knowledge (mean ± standard deviation: 10.07 ± 1.134), had good attitudes (11.85 ± 1.42), and followed good practices (12.26 ± 1.42) regarding COVID-19. However, we found the correlations between KAP scores to be weak. CONCLUSIONS: A knowledge-praxis gap was highlighted in the studied population which was especially true for the vulnerable age group of > 60 years. The findings call for attention of health-care policymakers to design need-based, locally adaptable, and practicable interventional strategies for target population.
RESUMEN
The role of vitamin D receptor (VDR) has been well established and extensively studied in the hair cycle. Its deficiency is also closely linked to several types of alopecia, including alopecia areata, telogen effluvium, and androgenetic alopecia (AGA). Since there is limited research on the correlation between androgenetic alopecia and low serum vitamin D levels, our review aims to find relevant articles and comprehensively present them. A review of the literature was performed to gain insight into AGA. Specifically, PubMed and Google Scholar databases were searched to identify any relevant articles with a focus on androgenetic alopecia, male pattern baldness, and serum vitamin D levels. References within the included articles were also reviewed and taken into the study if found appropriate. All articles that met the inclusion criteria were analyzed for demographics, clinical, laboratory, radiographic, treatment, and outcomes data. We found 13 relevant studies that elucidated the relationship between low serum vitamin D levels and androgenetic alopecia and included them in the review. We concluded that serum vitamin D might be a possible parameter for diagnosing the onset and severity of AGA. Vitamin D supplementation has proven to be useful in the regrowth of hair in non-human subjects. Vitamin D could be a valid therapeutic approach, such as topical vitamin D (calcipotriol) seems to be a good treatment option to regrow hair follicles and prevent miniaturization of follicles due to androgenetic alopecia.
