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Showing posts from July, 2014

Cancerous and Benign Causes of Elevated CEA 125 Level

CEA 125 is an antigen that is expressed in the epithelial linings of the female genital tract, respiratory tract, cornea and conjunctiva. It is encoded by the MUC 16 gene (Mucin 16 Gene). MUC 16 protein (CEA), is a complex molecule, heavily glycosylated and easily water soluble, which allows it to keep the epithelial surfaces wet and lubricated. This creates a lubricated barrier against foreign bodies and pathogens. CEA 125 is a tumour marker, it is found to be elevated in dangerous conditions like numerous cancer s. But if it's level comes higher in a patient it doesn’t mean that she or he is definitely suffering from cancer, This is because there are several non-cancerous or benign conditions that may raise the CEA 125 level in blood. Dangerous (Cancerous) causes of elevated CEA 125 level: Dangerous or cancerous causes are those that have the tendency to decrease the life expectancy of a patient unless they are eliminated or controlled. These include numerous cancers including,

FGSH Polyclinic-Biggest Merit Violation in House Officers Appointments

Federal Government Services Hospital Polyclinic Islamabad, eats a large share of Federal Health Budget. It is situated near the parliament house of Pakistan. The Executive Director of polyclinic hospital Dr Zahid and Deputy Executive Director Dr Shahid Hanif are involved in the worst merit violation of house officer’s recruitment and dis-honoured this high-budgeted government institute. They had conducted the exam of medical graduates on the 18th of June, 2014. The result was declared on the same day. Dr Adil Ramzan, who stood 5th in the merit list, was very happy that at last he had got a place on merit, in Pakistan. But yet he had to appear in the interview. In every medical institute, in the interview for house officer recruitment, only one question is asked from the successful candidates, ie, in which department they want to go, either medical or surgery. But here, the scenario was different, they asked some illogical questions from the candidates. 1. From where you are graduated.

Types of Insulin–Rapid, Short, Intermediate and long acting insulin.

Insulin is the final choice of therapy for a type 2 diabetic patients. Usually, a type two diabetic patient is shifted to insulin therapy when oral hypoglycemic drugs fail to control the Diabetes . There are various types of insulin that can be used. Each type has its own time on the onset of action, the Peak time of action and duration of action. These types are named after, onset and duration of action. According to this, insulin has the following 4 types. Rapid-acting Insulin Short-acting insulin Intermediate-acting insulin Long-acting insulin There is a 5th type of insulin which is called “ Premixed insulin ”. In this type a short acting and intermediate acting insulin is mixed in different proportion (eg. 70:30, 50:50, 75:25). Usually Regular insulin and NPH are mixed. 1. Rapid-acting insulin. This is called rapid acting because it’s action starts within 10-30 minutes of injection. Insulin lispro, aspart and glulisine are included in this category. Their peak action starts

Emergency Contraception, Which is Best? Ella, Plan B or IUD?

Emergency Contraception is used when a woman has had an unprotected sex and she wasn’t on birth control pills. Unprotected sex may result in pregnancy. But it is not a rule that an unprotected sex will always cause pregnancy. It depends on various factors. These are described elsewhere. If you are a woman and you have had unprotected sex and you don’t want pregnancy then still you have several choices. Following things can be done: Emergency Contraception Pills. Emergency insertion of an IUD (intra-uterine device). Unprotected sex doesn’t always result in pregnancy. There are 30-50 % chances of pregnancy after unprotected sex even near ovulation. If Emergency contraception or IUD is not available or you can’t have it then, you may hope that you will not be pregnant 1. Emergency Contraception Pills: Plan B contains levonorgestrel which is a progesterone. It is taken as one pill any time after unprotected sex. It is effective only if taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex.

USMLE/PLAB/AMC Clinical Case Quiz - 18

An 11-year-old boy comes to the out-patient department complaining of recurrent headaches, palpitations and episodic sweating for the last 3 months. The problem is becoming more severe. The doctor checks his blood pressure, which is 180/100 mm of Hg. Which is very high. His heart rate was 100 beats per minutes. His family history is unremarkable. His full blood count, renal function tests, coagulation profile, and liver function tests are normal. His eyesight is also normal but fundoscopy shows grade 1 hypertensive changes in the retina. His Heart, lung, abdominal and CNS examination was normal. His thyroid examination was normal, and there were no signs of hyperthyroidism. Now answer the following questions. In the end, you will get your score. You may review the quiz after completion to check the correct answers and reasons.

Calculate Alvarado Score Online

Alvarado score if frequently used to assess the probability of the presence of acute appendicitis in a patient. In an emergency, patients may present to you with abdominal pain and tenderness that is confined to right iliac fossa. But these aren’t the definite signs of acute appendicitis. Many other conditions may also cause these signs. In order to evaluate the probability of acute appendicitis in an emergency, this score is used. The Component of Alvarado Score. Tenderness at right iliac fossa: When you touch (or press) the right iliac fossa, the patient feels pain. Rebound Tenderness : When you apply pressure on right iliac fossa with your fingers, and suddenly remove it. Patient feels more pain when you remove the pressure. This is called rebound tenderness. Elevated temperature: Temperature more than 99 F Migration of Pain to the right lower quadrant: When you ask the patient how your pain started. He may answer you that pain was first started around the umbilicus and t

Needle stick injury from Hepatitis C positive patient-Risk and Management

Health workers have a great risk of having a needle stick injury and Management of Needlestick Injuries in the Health Care Setting is a challenge. Needlestick injuries are a major cause of transmission of pathogens from patient to health care professional. HIV, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C are the most feared infections that are transmitted through needlestick injuries. In this article, we will discuss the possibility of transmission of hepatitis C after getting a needle stick injury from a hepatitis C positive patient and what should be done after getting a needle stick injury from a hepatitis C positive patient. 1. Possibility of transmission of hepatitis C after a needle stick injury Many research studies have been conducted to answer this question. These studies demonstrate that the risk of transmission of hepatitis C is greatly lesser than that of hepatitis B after having a needle stick injury. For hepatitis C, this risk varies from 0 – 4 % in different studies. In an older stu

Latest Vaccination Schedule for New Born Baby in Pakistan

Latest Vaccination Schedule Click here Old article: the schedule given below is out-dated.  Latest Vaccination Schedule Click here In Pakistan, vaccination of new-born babies is a major problem. The main factors responsible for poor vaccination are; lack of education, in-accessibility, poverty, wrong beliefs and lack of contraception. But the good news is, the government has been taking a keen interest in new-born vaccination since last few years and introduced some major changes. Also, Government has allocated separate funds for the New-born vaccination program. Now around 70% of new-born are vaccinated (data of 2013) against, Polio , measles, tuberculosis, diphtheria , tetanus and pertussis. Hepatitis B vaccination has now also included in EPI schedule. Now in the latest schedule, vaccines against meningitis and pneumonia have also been introduced. Vaccination Schedule for New Born Latest: Birth – 15 days BCG (Tuberculosis) + OPV (For Polio) Age: 6 Weeks OPV + DPT1