The Journal of the Association of Physicians of India最新文献

A 72-year-old female experienced severe hyponatremia, leading to a serum sodium level of 102.5 mEq/L. Sodium levels were rapidly increased, resulting in osmotic demyelination syndrome (ODS). Magnetic resonance imaging is the most appropriate diagnostic tool for ODS, with the classic trident-shaped appearance formed by the hyperintense central pontine signal. Patients with ODS often require intensive supportive care and relowering of sodium levels.

The Hutchinson-Gilford syndrome, or progeria, is a rare genetic syndrome characterized by dwarfism, premature aging,and premature affection of the circulatory system (cardiovascular and cerebrovascular). Diagnosis is based on typical clinical and radiological features and confirmed by demonstration of mutation in the Lamin A gene. Our patient presented with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction secondary to degenerative valvular heart disease. He developed in-hospital bilateral anterior circulation watershed infarct and eventually succumbed to the illness. The present case is reported due to its rarity. It also intends to describe the pattern of cerebrovascular arteriopathy.

Background: Congenital bronchial atresia (CBA) is a relatively benign and uncommon pulmonary anomaly that is usually an incidental radiological finding. Bronchial atresia may also be acquired. Its association with pulmonary vascular anomalies and congenital heart disease (CHD) has been described in literature as a handful of case reports only.

Case description: We report a case of a 26-year-old female having a rare coexistence of bronchial atresia with a large patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) and a small atrial septal defect (ASD), and had Eisenmenger syndrome (ES) at the time of presentation. PDA itself causes pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) if not corrected early within a few months of infancy. On the contrary, CBA can also lead to PAH and along with PDA may have contributed to the development of ES in our case.

Conclusion: Timely diagnosis and treatment of CBA and its associated CHD may prevent or delay the complications occurring later on.

Background and objective: Post-coronavirus disease (COVID) persistence of symptoms and the development of complications have become frequently encountered clinical problems due to multiple waves of the pandemic over the past 3 years across the world. Identifying risk factors would enable us to direct our limited resources toward the subgroups requiring long-term follow-up and treatment. With this prospective observational study, we aim to establish a statistical correlation between the persistence of symptoms and four of the most attributed risk factors for prolonged recovery: severity of acute illness, elderly age, presence of multiple comorbidities, and female gender in the Indian population.

Materials and methods: Three hundred patients with positive COVID reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RTPCR) or antigen tests were enrolled over 10 months (from December 2020, after obtaining ethical clearance, to October 2021). Symptoms were recorded at baseline and followed up with a predesigned questionnaire to assess their persistence at 1-, 2-, and 4-month intervals post-COVID recovery. Appropriate statistical analysis [Pearson's correlation/analysis of variance (ANOVA) test] was used to establish the correlation between the persistence of symptoms and their severity with the presence of risk factors.

Results: Severity of acute illness was the single most important determining factor of persistence of symptoms as well as their severity in our study (p < 0.001) at each follow-up interval. The correlation observed between average number or severity of persistent symptoms increased with female gender, increasing age-group and presence of multiple comorbidities was not significant statistically (p > 0.05) with exception of persistent fatigue in females at 2-month interval.

Interpretation and conclusion: Persistent symptoms and its prevalence recorded so far represents tip of the iceberg of patients suffering with long COVID. Patients with history of severe acute illness should be followed up closely for prompt identification and rehabilitation of these cases as it had maximum bearing on the outcome of these patients.

Background: Management of essential hypertension (HTN) remains challenging, with contemporary control being achieved in <1/10 of the cases, especially when aligned with the recently updated guidelines of American College of Cardiology (ACC) or International Society of Hypertension (ISH). The place and positioning of beta-blockers have been evolving, with recent focused updates, such as the European Society of Hypertension (ESH) 2023 guidelines, that may hold relevance for the Indian phenotypic traits of premature cardiovascular disease (CVD), fragile coronary architecture, and/or high resting heart rate. To further develop consensus on the clinical role and relevance of beta-blockers, including nebivolol, an Indian consensus was evolved with graded recommendations on their clinical role in HTN, HTN with additional cardiovascular (CV) risk, or type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

Methodology: An expert review panel was constituted, comprising interventional and clinical cardiologists as experts, to synthesize the literature for the development of a validated knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) survey questionnaire. Research databases, including Cochrane Systematic Reviews, PubMed, and Google Scholar, were accessed for contemporary information and guidelines on beta-blockers updated until Dec 2023. Delphi rounds were conducted to develop graded recommendations based on the strength, quality of evidence, and the agreement among the panelists (n = 9). Consensus was achieved on the graded recommendations, with ≥70% of national panelists in agreement.

Results: Ninety-six percent of respondents opined that the new ESH HTN guidelines (2023) help gain confidence in using beta-blockers, which are considered first-line drugs for the treatment of HTN. Beta-blockers, including nebivolol, can be recommended in patients with HTN with high resting heart rates, including young hypertensive patients under 40 years of age. For people under 60 years old with HTN, regardless of whether they have comorbid diseases, beta-blockers are the recommended drug choice. Ninety-five percent of respondents opined that nebivolol is the preferred beta-blocker in hypertensive patients with T2DM, followed by bisoprolol and metoprolol. More than 90% of respondents opined that the three most commonly preferred beta-blockers by experts in patients with angina were nebivolol, metoprolol, and bisoprolol.

Conclusion: Beta-blockers, including nebivolol, can be considered initial-line therapy for HTN management in real-life settings in India and nebivolol is preferred because of its two important properties: highest beta-1 selectivity and endothelial-dependent vasodilation.

Many individuals who develop hypertension are usually diagnosed with primary hypertension, but not all are screened for secondary hypertension. Primary hyperaldosteronism is often a leading cause of secondary hypertension, particularly in individuals who develop hypertension at an early age. The sudden onset of hypokalemia in a hypertensive patient warrants evaluation for underlying etiologies. Primary hyperaldosteronism [primary aldosteronism (PA)] leads to greater end-organ damage and is linked with increased cardiovascular complications such as left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH), heart failure (HF), cerebrovascular accident (CVA), nonfatal myocardial infarction, and atrial fibrillation (AF) when compared to primary hypertension. Primary hyperaldosteronism is an underdiagnosed condition as it does not have any specific, easily identifiable features, and physicians can overlook the disease.

Recently, I came across a few discussions and write-ups on the dying art of clinical medicine caused by rapid advances in technology, which is replacing previously indispensable instruments such as stethoscope. Fred has interestingly termed it "Hyposkillia."¹ Multiple editorials have decried the loss of clinical skills, and medical educators justify not only teaching but also using basic history-taking and physical examination skills in routine patient care.^2-4 However, some skeptics suggest that emphasis on clinical skills is from a bygone era and that the availability of advanced imaging techniques and laboratory tests has supplanted ambiguous history and physical findings.^5,6 Here is what I think.

Background and purpose: The association between blood pressure (BP) at admission and clinical outcomes in patients with acute stroke has been investigated; however, results from these studies are contradictory. Hence, we designed this study to monitor circadian variation of BP in acute stroke and study its correlation with neurological outcome.

Materials and methods: A total of 108 cases of acute stroke (both ischemic and hemorrhagic) admitted within 24 hours were included in the study. On admission, three casual supine BP measurements were taken at 5-minute intervals, and the mean value was recorded. Ambulatory BP monitoring (ABPM) was done on day 1, and all the BP variables were recorded. On the day of admission, the functional status of all the cases was assessed using the Modified Rankin Scale (MRS 0-6). On day 6, again, three casual BP measurements were taken, and MRS was done. The 24-hour BP profile and neurological outcome were correlated on day 1 and day 6. On follow-up at 1 month, all the patients were thoroughly examined, and MRS was done to reassess the functional status post stroke.

Results and observations: Circadian variation of BP shows that the majority of our cases were nondippers, followed by reverse dippers and dippers. It was seen that a higher mean 24-hour systolic BP (SBP), daytime SBP, as well as nighttime SBP, were all significantly associated with a poorer MRS score (4-6) both at day 6 and 1 month. Similarly, a higher mean value of the casual SBP, as well as diastolic BP (DBP) readings obtained on day 1 of stroke, adversely affected the outcome in terms of MRS scores both at day 6 and 1 month. It was also seen that the higher mean values of both the casual SBP and DBP readings obtained on day 6 of stroke adversely affected the outcome in terms of MRS scores at 1 month.

Conclusion: A higher mean 24-hour SBP, mean daytime SBP, and mean nighttime SBP were associated with poor neurological outcomes at day 6 and 1 month.

Background: Assessment of diabetes health takes into account metabolic, nonmetabolic, and self-care measures like diet, exercise, follow-up, and habits. On the other hand, the index of complications includes the macro- and microvascular complications of diabetes along with foot complications. The Blue Index (BI) is a composite assessment of both diabetic health-related parameters and systemic complications stemming from diabetes. The present study aimed to evaluate the diabetes control status of the patients as a single index.

Methods: A prospective, observational study included a total of 100 adult diabetic patients in whom diabetic health status (DHS) and Komplications Score (KS) were assessed for cardiovascular/macrovascular, microvascular, and foot complications. The BI was calculated as a composite ratio, and measures were obtained at baseline, after 3 months, and at 6 months. Data were statistically analyzed.

Results: Diabetic health status significantly increased at the 3rd month and the 6th month, respectively, compared to baseline (p = 0.000). KS significantly decreased at the 3rd month and the 6th month, respectively, compared to baseline measures (p = 0.000). The composite BI scores showed a steady increase of 9.62 at the 3rd month and 13.14 at the 6th month, respectively, compared to baseline. Assessing based on the duration of diabetes detection, the scores of DHS, KS, and BI showed similar changes. Assessing based on patients' gender, DHS was significantly higher in females at baseline compared to males, with gradual improvement in scores over time for both genders. Contrastingly, KS was significantly lower in males compared to females, with scores showing gradual decrement over the time frame, signifying improvement in complications. DHS was significantly correlated with the duration of diabetes detection (p = 0.001) and age (p = 0.01).

Conclusion: The BI is a simple tool that incorporates various parameters covering different aspects of diabetes care, including complications. It may be used not only by endocrinologists but also by all physicians as a tool to monitor and improve diabetic care.

Addison's disease (AD), or primary adrenal insufficiency, was first described by Thomas Addison in patients with adrenal tuberculosis (TB). Over the past several decades, along with the introduction of antituberculous treatment (ATT), the incidence of both has declined. The most common symptoms are nonspecific, leading to delayed diagnosis; patients may first present with a life-threatening crisis. Here, we report a case of AD that, upon further workup, was found to be due to one of the most common infections in India-TB.