Its been a long time since i posted my last blog. Well, here i am ready to make all of you cry. Cry in the sense not to make anyone break out emotionally but to be able to get the tears out of you.

So what am i going to do with your tears? Good question because imthiaz(my elder brother) always believed that medical laboratory students process only urine and stool samples. Thank God Imthi you are wrong !!! My first ever project is related to tears.

The project is about Tear antioxidant levels in Dry Eye Syndrome patients and contact lens wearers. I would be using HPLC – ECD (High Performance liquid Chromatography- Electrochemical Detection) to detect the levels. It is really hard to explain everything in a single go. So i would be posting often as i update myself about the disease, techniques etc.,

And this is called peak of Fowji’s madness!!!  I was trying mirror writing and surprize, i was doing good at it! Mirror writing is a form of writing, written from left to right which looks normal when it is reflected in a mirror. Try writing in this way, its fun! So if you perfectly plan how to write neatly you can prevent poor pefrormance You might not be nobody! Who knows?

Tuberculosis is a disease caused by the Bacteria Mycobacterium tuberculosis , is an airbone infectious but curable disease. It primarily affects the lungs disseminates into the cardiovascular and lymphatic systems. It can also affect the central nervous system, the genitourinary system, the gastrointestinal system, bones, joints, and even the skin.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis : 

Aerobic organism, slender Bacilli (rods), Gram positive, Acid fast bacilli (Zeihl Neelson stain), Generation Time – 20 hours or longer, transmission through aerosal droplets.

MDR TB – Multi Drug Resistant Tuberculosis – Strains of M.tuberculosis resistant to first line of  TB drugs mainly Rifampicin and Isoniazid.

XDR TB – Extremely Drug Resistant Tuberculosis – Strains of M.tuberculosis resistant to most effective anti-TB drugs, emerged from the mismanagement of MDR TB.

Commom symptoms of tuberculosis :

• Cough for three weeks or more, sometimes with blood-streaked sputum
• Fever, especially at night
• Weight loss
• Loss of appetite

Treatment:

Tuberculosis is treated with first line of anti-TB drugs

• Rifampicin
• Streptomycin
• Isoniazid
• Pyrazinamide
• Ethambutol

Treament can be successful when the patient takes his/her medication regularly and completely. But if  he/she stops the medication, it ends up in drug resistant strains of M.tuberculosis.

Drug resistant Tuberculosis:

MDR-TB can be transmitted directly or may be acquired due to improper medications.

Why do pepole stop their medications? The reasons are as follows :

1. People feel better and assume they are cured of the disease even before the medication period is over.
2. Side effects of these drugs are so complicated that the patients stop their medication.
3. Acess to the hospital for a long period of time, makes it difficult for them to follow.
4. Immigration of patients to a different place, breaks the continuity.

TB and HIV:

Anyone can be affected with TB. But People infected with HIV are at greater risks of acquiring TB. TB is the most likely cause of death for HIV pateients.

DOTS Directly Observed Treatment Short Course :

The WHO recommended treatment strategy for detection and cure of TB is DOTS. DOTS combines five elements :

1. Political / management commitment.
2. TB diagnosis through sputum examination (microscopy). X-ray – secondary diagnostic tool.
3. Availability of complete and quality anti-TB medications.
4. Supervised treatment ( a responsible person making sure that the patient takes the anti-TB medication everyday).
5. Recording and reporting of cases and outcomes.

Outcomes of DOTS:

1. DOTS produces cure rates of upto 95% even in the poorest countries.
2. DOTS prevents new infections by curing infectious patients.
3. DOTS prevents the development of MDR-TB by ensuring the full course of treatment is followed.
4. The World Bank has ranked the DOTS strategy as one of the ” most cost-effective of all health interventions.”

Our Contribution To World Tuberculosis Day?

Get to know about the basic knowledge about the disease : understanding the nature of the disease, modes of transmission, steps to prevent the disease, disease management, prognosis etc. Spread awareness about TB that it is highly contagious disease but curable if one takes the medicines regularly and completely. Educate common man about Tuberculosis – the disease, acess available to the medical care etc. If not to many people atleast to a handful of them,  your friends/colleagues/relatives.

So talking about our new lifestyle, i definately ought to mention about people who skip their breakfast.

We work hard all day, party harder at night. We end up waking up late in the morning ultimately run out of time. The fear of getting late to office/college/school we often skip our breakfast in the morning.

Breakfast refers to the act of breaking our fast (not eaten since the night before).

Skipping breakfast does not end in deleterious manifestations but still there is a lot of difference. Breakfast skippers feel tired, restless or irritable in the morning. 

The biochemistry behind having breakfast (:P) :

1. Breakfast is the first chance of the body to refuel its glucose levels, also known as blood sugar, after eight to 12 hours without a meal or snack.
2. Glucose is essential for the brain and is the main energy source.
3.  Blood glucose also helps fuel the muscles, needed for physical activity throughout the day.
4. Breakfast is also very important for weight loss and weight management.
5. It helps curb your hunger and prevent binge eating later in the day. Breakfast is important to manage your weight and potentially lose weight by eating less calories throughout the day.

Breakfast is very essential for those who:

1. Go to school/college/office.
2. Want to be active throughout the day.
3. Have to do heavy work.
4. Take good care of their health.
5. Have BRAINS and wants to use them.

It is not a hard fast rule that we should eat our daily breakfast. But we should take care that skipping our breakfast does not become a habit.

P.S: My mom still complains that i don’t eat my breakfast regularly on time. lol. It is all in the game

Hand washing though the most simple way of preventing infection, it is rarely practiced. We hear it most of the time from our parents to wash our hands before eating. Why are they so obsessed with this act?

The main purpose of washing hands is to clean our hands from dirt, chemicals, germs etc. It is very important for peolpe who handle food and work in the medical field. As I am related to the medical field, I realized the importance of washing hands. At least now i wash my hands regularly. So what do i have to say about it?

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has stated: “It is well-documented that the most important measure for preventing the spread of pathogens is effective handwashing.” 

One should wash hands regularly throughout the day and especially at these times:

Before: 

• Preparing food
• Eating
• Caring for the sick; changing dressings, giving medicines
• Looking after babies or the elderly
• Starting work; especially if you are a food handler or health professional
• Putting in contact lenses

Between: 

• Handling raw foods (meat, fish, poultry and eggs) and touching any other food or kitchen utensils

After: 

• Handling raw foods, particularly meat, fish and poultry
• Going to the toilet
• Touching rubbish/waste bins
• Changing nappies
• Caring for the sick, especially those with gastro-intestinal disorders
• Coughing or sneezing, especially if you are sick
• Handling and stroking pets or farm animals
• Gardening – even if you wear gloves
• Cleaning pet litter boxes

Do we wash our hands effectively? I am afraid we do not. This picture clearly shows the areas we miss during washing.

The most effective way of washing our hands:

1. Wash hands with warm running water, apply soap and lather well.

2. Rub each area together for at least 15 seconds.

3. Rinse hands and dry thoroughly with dry towel.

It does make a lot of difference when one washes their hands effectively. So no matter in what field you are in, wash your hands regularly. Remember, proper and frequent hand washing is the key way to prevent the spread of many common infections. 

GLOBAL HANDWASHING DAY: October 15. Does not mean that you have to wash your hands only on that day. Lol.

HAPPY WASHING!

Was my first donation on my first birthday?
No, I donated only after i was 18 years old.

Was I too fat when I donated blood?
No, i was not fat. I just weighed 45 kg, I guess it is more than enough.

Did I personally spend on any tests before donating blood?
No, I did not. A few basic tests were done in the blood camp/hospital itself e.g. Hemoglobin (Hb) level, blood pressure, weight.

Was I afraid of acquiring a disease/infection (like HIV) if I donated blood?
No, why should I be. I just made sure they used new disposable needle.

Did i feel pain while donating ?
No, I didn’t feel any pain during the process. Even the needle prick pain was only a matter of few seconds.

Did I get weak or sick after donating blood?
No, i did not get sick. I was perfectly alright after donating blood. I was asked to take rest for few minutes and then leave.

Did I run out of blood after donating?
No, I was not running short of any. They just took about 350 ml of blood from me and I was told that new blood would be produced within 48 hours inside my body. (Decrease in blood level induces the bone marrow to replenish new cells)

Did I spend the whole day in the blood camp?
No, i did not waste my whole day. It just took about 10-15 minutes to donate, less than an hour to travel to the destination. I think it is worth spending time for a good cause.

Did anyone invite me to donate blood?
No, nobody invited me. I volunteered myself to donate blood.

What did I gain by donating blood?

• Basic tests were done e.g. Hb level, blood pressure..
• My body weight was checked.
• Five basic tests were done for Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, HIV, Syphilis and malaria. Donor is immediately informed if any of these test found to be positive. Thank God, I was not informed of any.
• I burnt 650 calories just by donating, good way to diet/remain fit
• Because my iron deposits in my blood are removed when I donate regularly I reduce the chances of me getting a heart attack.
• Got something to eat – a biscuit pack and an apple juice

I enjoyed donating blood. The feeling that I save 3 people every time i donate, is simply amazing. Neither me nor did the person who got my blood knew about each other. We did not know of each other’s age, sex, color, race, nationality, religion etc. All I knew was that I was doing the right thing!

WHY SHOULD ANYONE DONATE BLOOD?

1. Human beings cannot be transfused with animal blood.
2. Though science and technology has developed so much, man cannot even synthesize one drop of blood from scratch.

So, do not think twice whether to donate blood or not. Just take an hour break from your busy schedule and get into action.

Thank you ladies and gentlemen for wasting your precious time reading my first blog! Many more to come, get ready.