Turmeric, an established Ayurvedic Anti-Inflammatory drug was the subject of a study which threw up interesting facts.. and results.

An ancient spice, long used in traditional Asian medicine, may hold promise for the prevention of both rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis, according to a recently completed study at The University of Arizona College of Medicine.

Turmeric, the spice that flavors and gives its yellow color to many curries and other foods, has been used for centuries by practitioners of Ayurvedic medicine to treat inflammatory disorders. Turmeric extract containing the ingredient curcumin is marketed widely in the Western world as a dietary supplement for the treatment and prevention of a variety of disorders, including arthritis.

At the UA College of Medicine, Janet L. Funk, MD, working with Barbara N. Timmermann, PhD, then-director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded Arizona Center for Phytomedicine Research at the UA, set out to determine whether (and how) turmeric works as an anti-arthritic. They began by preparing their own extracts from the rhizome, or root, of the plant, providing themselves with well-characterized materials to test and to compare with commercially available products. (Dr. Timmermann since has joined the faculty of the University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kan.)

Dr. Funk and her colleagues then tested in animal models a whole extract of turmeric root, only the essential oils, and an oil-depleted extract containing the three major curcuminoids found in the rhizome. Of the three extracts, the one containing the major curcuminoids was most similar in chemical composition to commercially available turmeric dietary supplements. It also was the most effective, completely inhibiting the onset of rheumatoid arthritis.

Dr. Funk, an endocrinologist in the UA Department of Medicine, says this study provides several noteworthy "firsts." Completed with the researchers' own prepared, well-defined extracts, the study represents the first documentation of the chemical composition of a curcumin-containing extract tested in a living organism, in vivo, for anti-arthritic efficacy. It also provides the first evidence of anti-arthritic efficacy of a complex turmeric extract that is analogous in composition to turmeric dietary supplements.

The significance, she explains, is that translating the results of trials such as these to clinical use depends on accurate information about the chemical content and biological activity of the botanical supplements available for use. This work paves the way for the preclinical and clinical trials needed before turmeric supplements can be recommended for medicinal use in preventing or suppressing rheumatoid arthritis.

However, as many of Indian indegeneous herbs and traditional remedies are being studied with added interest, the chances of Indian traditional medical system being absorbed and ultimately done with, looms large.
If our experiences with Basmati and Neem are any indications, this overt take over of Traditional Indian Knowledgebase will go unchallenged, while Indian Government will spend its attention over ways to talk to Pakistan amidst continued terror attacks and retrograde minority appleasement policies.

In this regard, the pioneering work by Mr. Rajiv Malhotra of Infinity Foundation needs mention.
Rajiv Malhotra is single handledly fighting a long drawn process by Westerners taking over Indian tradions and lore, assimilating it and then claiming them as their own..

Westerners appropriate Indic ideas through a process which Rajiv Malhotra has called the U-Turn. In its basic form the U-Turn Theory states that a member of the dominant Western culture first whole-heartedly learns the Indic tradition. He or she, for a variety of reasons, then repackages it and projects the knowledge gained from India from within his/her own culture. The next thing you know is that s/he claims these ideas were always an integral part of Western culture. Some, but not all, also start demonizing the source Indic traditions using a lot of pretexts, such as calling them “world negating” or accusing them of “human rights” abuses. As an example, Malhotra has examined on how Jung appropriated much from Indic thought – including key ideas of collective unconscious, archetypes, and synchronicity – but did the classical U-Turn from Indic thought. In all, Malhotra has done 50+ case studies of such U-Turns, and each has its own story as to why and how it was done. U-Turns have played animportant role in shaping Western ideas, literature and popular culture; yet they are typically ignored in discussions on the history of ideas. The U-Turn Theory also explains that many Indians internalize the Western adaptations of Indian culture and re-import them into India: For instance, Tantric healing is more fashionable as “energy healing” or as reiki; yoga’s return to India’s Westernized middle class owes a lot to the West’s adoption of it; and Western research on cognitive science and neuroscience includes yogis who are mere “subjects.”

From: Science Daily

CLOSTRIDIUM DIFFICILE, Clostridium difficile (C.difficile), a toxin producing, spore forming anaerobic bacillus causes both sporadic and epidemic nosocomial diarrhea. Illness may range from mild watery diarrhea to life-threatening colitis. An antecedent disruption of the normal colonic flora followed by exposure to a toxigenic strain of C. difficile are necessary first steps in the pathogenesis of disease. Diagnosis is based primarily on the detection of C. difficile toxin A or toxin B. First-line treatment is with oral metronidazole therapy. Treatment with oral vancomycin therapy should be reserved for patients who have contraindications or intolerance to metronidazole or who fail to respond to first-line therapy.

Earlier we were accousted with 'Two Studies Report New, Resistant Strain of Clostridium difficile'.

Two studies published in the December 8 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine report on a new, resistant strain of Clostridium difficile.

"C. difficile is a gram-positive, anaerobic, spore-forming bacillus that can cause pseudomembranous colitis and other C. difficile–associated diseases," write L. Clifford McDonald, MD, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia, and colleagues. "Recent reports suggest that the rate and severity of C. difficile–associated disease in the United States are increasing and that the increase may be associated with the emergence of a new strain of C. difficile with increased virulence, resistance, or both."

"A previously uncommon strain of C. difficile with variations in toxin genes has become more resistant to fluoroquinolones and has emerged as a cause of geographically dispersed outbreaks of C. difficile–associated disease," the authors write. "The increasing use of fluoroquinolones in US health care facilities may have provided a selective advantage for this epidemic strain and promoted its widespread emergence.... If this epidemic strain continues to spread and to contribute to increased morbidity and mortality, it will be important either to reconsider the use of fluoroquinolones or to develop other innovative measures for controlling C. difficile–associated disease.

Recently, the genome of this super-bug has been decoded. It is anticipated that this decoding will help us understand the methods by which the bug derives its genetic variation that lends it its capacity to resist antibiotics.

How hospital bug can evade attack

Scientists have decoded the genetic make-up of a bacterium responsible for many hospital-acquired infections - and shown why it is so difficult to tackle.

Clostridium difficile caused more than 44,000 infections in the UK in 2004 - mostly among the elderly.

Researchers found it can chop and change its genetic structure very easily - maximising its ability to neutralise attack by antibiotics.

The Sanger Institute study is published in Nature Genetics.

Prof. T. J. Cherian, the grand old man of Indian Cardio-thoracic surgery has apparently committed suicide at his residence. He was 86.

This is truely a shocking news. What drove Cherian to this extreme step at this advanced age isn't known clearly yet. But it does throw focus on the stress that medical professionals are subjected to by the profession as well as the society.

He will be remembered for a long time.

He chose to die by hurling himself from his apartment comes as a mystery too. He could have injected himself... maybe police investigations would not pre-conclude this as a closed case suicide and explore other alternatives too.

His death was reported in the Indian Express today on page 3.

I am sad that his death was not important enough for the media people to merit a front page single line mention.

On the other hand, if a bollywood actress or someone similiar had died, it would be front page matter for sure.

Such is our society which does not tire of navel-gazing!

RiP.

Russian Federation. A 35-year-old tractor operator, Igor Namyatov, has undergone surgery to be relieved of what had initially been diagnosed as a tumor, but turned out to be the embryo of his unborn twin brother, the Komsomolskaya Pravda daily reported Monday.

Doctors said the embryo belonged to Namyatov’s unborn brother who had spent 35 years in the body of the patient.
Namyatov’s fellow villagers doubted the explanation given by the doctors. Some even surmised the object removed from Namyatov’s body was an extraterrestrial organism. “It is a pity they have removed it. They should have waited to see what would become of it later on. That would have been a great scientific find,” one of the villagers said.

The “little brother” first made himself known when Igor was 15. At that time the boy complained about pains in his back, but doctors played down his complaints saying it was only a harmless fatty tumor.

Twenty years later the pains came back. The doctors decided to operate at once. They were genuinely surprised to see that the tumor was in fact an embryo with little legs and hands.

A forensic expert summoned to the village to investigate refused to probe the incident saying it was clear anyway that the object was an underdeveloped embryo.

Igor Namyatov refused to leave the embryo at the hospital for further research.

http://mosnews.com/news/2006/01/16/brother.shtml

If you had watched the film, '50 First Dates' and wondered if it can be true, read this article from NY Times. [printable read easy version]
Quote:

It also says the Alzheimers disease can bestow skills of an seasoned modern art critic even though you never ever had as much as a second look at anything even remotely resembling a painting.

As of today, about 86% of Indian medical graduates appear for PLAB and USMLE among others to try for a affluent lifestyle overseas. The domestic scenario in many ways forces fresh as well as post- graduates to hunt for oppurtunities overseas. New England Journal of Medicine reports on this phenomenon

Fatal Flows — Doctors on the Move

The movement of physicians from poor to rich countries is a growing obstacle to global health. Ghana, with 0.09 physician per thousand population, sends doctors to the United Kingdom, which has 18 times as many physicians per capita. The United States, with 5 percent of the world's population, employs 11 percent of the globe's physicians, and its demand is growing.1 As underscored in the article by Mullan in this issue of the Journal,2 today, 25 percent of U.S. physicians are international medical graduates, and the number is even higher in the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia. Many of these graduates come from poor countries with high disease burdens — precisely those nations that can least afford to lose their professionals.

The plain truth is that medical systems in the United States and other wealthy countries are heavily dependent on imported workers — for hospital staffing, coverage of underserved areas, and meeting gaps in skill levels. U.S. medical schools turn out a relatively stable 17,000 graduates annually, but the demand for residency staffing exceeds this number by 30 percent.3 This gap is filled by international medical graduates, most of whom will attain citizenship or permanent residence and remain in the United States to practice medicine. Medical coverage of disadvantaged Americans also depends on U.S. federal waivers for international medical graduates to enter primary care practice in underserved areas. The dependence is not confined to doctors, since nurses and other medically skilled workers are in equally high demand.

Craniopagus twins, Sabah and Farah are on the threshold being operated upon by a 20 member team headed by Dr. Benjamin Carson of John Hopkins at Indraprastha Hospital in New Delhi. The Telegraph reports.. The BBC has an article on "Ethics of seperating twins"

1. Dr. Benjamin Carson is a Black American devout Christian and has written a number of positive thinking books. 'Gifted Hands' and 'Think Big' are two of those. He has amassed a fortune in millions of dollars from his motivation lectures to Fortune 100 companies. His life story will soon be portayed on the silver screen, his role played by Don Cheadle.
   Here is his biography at Academy of Achievement. In 1987, He successful lead a 70 member team to separate a pair of seven month old german male twins. The success story was repeated in 1997 when Dr. Carson and a 50 doctor team seperated a Zambian male twin pair. However, recently in 2003, an attempt to separate the 29 year old Laleh and Ladan Bijani twins from Iran was unsuccessful owing to massive hemorrhage.


2. Abu Dhabi's crown prince, Sheik Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan has offered to fund the surgery after hearing about the plight of the Muslim girls from an news article. He has already donated for the feasibility studies.

Telegraph reports: "Prescription ready for rural medics" New Delhi, Oct. 2: The Medical Council of India is ready with an alternative undergraduate medical education programme which, if implemented, will radically change the face of the rural health system. "The MCI sub-committee set up for putting together an alternative framework is finally ready with the draft. It will now be put up before the Union health ministry," K.M. Shyamprasad, member of the rural task force set up by health minister Anbumani Ramadoss, said. The alternative curriculum will not come in place of the present MBBS course but will co-exist with it. Its objective is to impart integrated medical training to students willing to work in badly-equipped primary rural health centres.

This is a welcome move. So lets see, we now have MBBS for Allopathy, BAMS for Ayurveda, BSMS for Siddha, BHMS for Homeopathy, BUMS for Unani and the upcoming Rural Medical course (I wonder what they will name it). Ahh.. not to forget the Bachelor of Electropathy Medicine and Surgery! - don't even dare to ask me what the heck it is!

University of Southwestern is reporting that a research team has " identified mechanisms causing a potentially deadly type of hypertension that results from liver damage - findings that could lead to its prevention."

Dr. Don Rockey, the new chief of the digestive and liver diseases division at UT Southwestern, identified the cellular activity that results in portal hypertension. He and his colleagues then took the research a step further, showing that if the process can be interrupted, the hypertension subsides.