Dr. Amudha Hari

Hypoglycemia is a condition that is associated with a lower amount of glucose in the body. Since glucose is the main source of energy in the body, it creates quite a few complications in the body. In a majority of the cases, this condition is associated with diabetes. Hypoglycemia, like fever, is not a disease but a disease indicator. A quick fix to keep hypoglycemia under check is to ensure that a patient intakes high-sugar food. A long-term fix involves a doctor treating a patient for the root cause.

What are the common symptoms?

The body needs a constant supply of glucose to carry out the daily function. In a case of short supply, it presents with the following symptoms:

• Frequent heart palpitations
• Fatigue
• Irritability
• Shakiness
• Pale skin
• Sweating

As the condition worsens, the symptoms can aggravate to the following conditions:

• Frequent seizures b. Inability to complete daily work due to confusion
• Sudden loss of consciousness
• Problems related to vision such as blurred vision

People with an acute hypoglycemia can get a feeling of intoxication at times. Words get slurred while they talk.

What are the causes?

Glucose is one of the many sugar molecules that the body produces when it digests food. Glucose is one such sugar component and is the driver of energy. There are 2 reasons of diabetes. If the pancreas can’t produce enough insulin or the body is incapable of responding to the insulin. This results in a logjam of glucose in the body. To address the problem, intake of insulin is required. Too much of insulin intake can result in hypoglycemia. The latter can also befall if an adequate amount of food is not consumed while going through a medicine course of diabetes. Even too much of working out while consuming diabetic medicine can also result in hypoglycemia.

Other probable causes:

1. Alcohol consumption- A regular drinker who eats less runs a heavy risk of suffering from hypoglycemia. This blocks the liver and the latter can refrain from releasing glucose.
2. Critical illness- Hypoglycemia may occur from certain critical illnesses such as liver illness, kidney disorder, frequent starvation etc.
3. Overproduction of the insulin- A tumour of the pancreas known as the insulinoma causes the body over-produce insulin.
4. Hormonal deficiencies- Disorders related to the pituitary gland and adrenal gland runs a serious risk of suffering of hypoglycemia due to hormonal deficiencies.

What are the complications?

Some of the common complications of this conditions include loss of consciousness, seizures and at times even death. Frequent episodes of hypoglycemia can make a person go numb and speechless.

Diagnosis:

A doctor typically asks a patient to go for a fast of 12 hours in a hospital setting and then test the glucose level in the blood. It ensures that the body exhibits the correct symptoms of hypoglycemia. The doctor analyses the blood sample report and decides whether a person has this condition. The last and the final confirmation comes when the symptoms of hypoglycemia go away as soon as the blood sugar levels are increased.

Prevention:

In the case of a diabetic patient, it is necessary to ensure that a constant evaluation of the blood sugar level happens from time to time. Eating and medicine schedules need to be adhered to. Exercise too is important. All this needs to be done in consultation with the doctor.

While the complaint of being born flat chested is faced by a number of women, there are a few women who have heavy breasts. Over the time, large breasts have been linked with a number of health problems, such as backaches, neck pain, numbness in the fingers and shortness of breath. Thus it is not only for cosmetic reasons that many women choose to undergo breast reduction surgery. This involves the removal of tissues and skin from the breasts to reduce the size of the breasts and reshape them. Breast reduction is a very safe procedure,however, just like any other surgery, there is always a risk and hence the question arises, 'how safe is breast reduction surgery'.

Since the procedure involves making incisions in the skin and removing tissues, most women feel pain in the breasts for the first few days post surgery. This later transforms into a mild discomfort before which completely goes away after a few days. Pain medication and anti inflammatory drugs can help ease the pain. Swelling and bruising in the area is also a common effect of the surgery and may last for about a month or two. The patients are usually advised to wear a surgical bra all the time as it help in giving proper support which in turn helps ease the pain and reduce swelling.

Scarring is one of the most common risks associated with this surgery. To remove the tissue, a surgeon has to make an incision under the breast. This incision is usually positioned in line with the natural curves and creases of a woman's body in order to conceal them. However, it always leaves behind a scar. Scarring varies from person to person and also depends on the type of incision made. Typically, scars fade over time but for some women, they may remain noticeable for many years.

Fortunately, in most cases, the incisions can be restricted to areas covered by a bra or bikini. Some women complain loss of sensation in the breasts or nipples after such a procedure, but mainly this is a temporary side effect and resolves within a few months of the surgery. Depending on the type of procedure, some women may also find it difficult to breastfeed after the surgery.

On its own, breast reduction surgery is a fairly safe procedure as long as it is performed by a certified plastic surgeon on a healthy patient. Therefore, it is important to do plenty of research and go for a best possible surgeon. So, do not let your fear of surgery keep you from making life more comfortable for yourself!

Recurrent pregnancy loss refers to the situation when three consecutive pregnancy loss takes place. A pregnancy loss is a clinically defined pregnancy which ends before twenty weeks.

Causes of recurrent pregnancy loss

1. Major cases of pregnancy loss occur due to genetic abnormalities and chromosomal abnormalities. The abnormality may occur from the sperm, egg or the early developed embryo.
2. Recurrent pregnancy loss may occur in a woman due to ascending maternal age. This happens because of poor quality of the egg, which further leads to chromosomal abnormalities. In some cases, the pregnant mother or the father can have some gene irregularities. In such cases, the would-be-born infant is affected, and this causes pregnancy loss or miscarriage.
3. Uterus abnormalities also lead to recurrent pregnancy loss. This may happen because of poor supply of blood to the uterus. Abnormalities in the uterus are in-born in some women and in others these may develop over time.
4. Women having a poor immune system are likely to suffer pregnancy loss. Abnormalities in hormone secretion like thyroid or diabetes may also cause pregnancy loss in women.
5. If a woman suffers from abnormalities in blood clotting, the chances of miscarriage are enhanced.

Testing for recurrent pregnancy loss
Several tests and examinations should be carried out for detection of pregnancy loss. 

1. Karyotype analysis of the woman and her male partner has to be conducted. Karyotype refers to the genetic or chromosomal constituents of an individual and this test is carried out to detect abnormalities in genes and chromosomes of the parents, which cause miscarriage when passed on to the developing infant.
2. Another test includes the evaluation of the uterus and the uterine cavity. This is done by ultrasound, saline ultrasound, MRI, hysterosalpingogram X –ray or by hysteroscopy. These tests help to get information on the uterus shape, about fibroid presence, detect abnormalities within the uterus and observe the opening and closing of the tubes. Tests to detect the functioning of hormones are also carried out.

Treatment
The treatment for women with recurrent pregnancy loss depends upon the underlying causes of the pregnancy loss.

1. In case of patients with karyotypic abnormalities, genetic counselling is recommended, where a specialist is consulted to know about chromosomal abnormalities.
2. Prenatal genetic studies are carried out by some couples to know about the offspring’s genetic make-up. This is done with chorionic villus sampling or with amniocentesis. A process known as in vitro fertilization (IVF) can be carried out.
3. In case of uterine abnormalities, a surgery may be performed and medications for reducing blood clot are used if antiphospolipid syndrome is detected.

Recurrent pregnancy loss may happen due to various reasons and proper tests, and treatment procedures should be carried out for curing pregnancy loss. This phenomenon affects a woman and her partner deeply. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a gynaecologist.