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Background: Deliberate self-harm is a complex behavior of maladaptive response to acute and chronic stress, and likely to be suffering from mental health problems as well as co-morbid general medical conditions, including several non-suicidal intentions to suicide. Deliberate self-harm was previously included in suicide. Sir Thomas Browne first used the word ‘Suicide’ in 1642 in his religion Medici. The word suicide originated from SUI (of oneself) & CAEDES (murder). According to WHO ‘Suicide’ refers to the act of killing oneself intentionally, performed by the person with full knowledge or expectation of the fatal outcome. This study aimed to analyze the pattern of psychiatric disorders among patients with deliberate self-harm. This study aimed to analyze the socio-demographic correlation among patients with deliberate self-harm. Material & Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted at the Department of Medicine; emergency & OPD, Rangpur Medical College, Rangpur, Bangladesh. The study duration was 1 year; July 2012- June 2013. A total of 116 deliberate self-harm cases were included in this study as per the inclusion criteria. A convenience sampling technique was undertaken in this study. Results: The correlation of age, sex, economic status, religion, educational status, occupation, marital status, family history of mental illness, previous H/O mental illness, previous H/O physical illness, nature of stress factors, and the total number of DSH was significant between psychiatric disorder and co-morbid general medical condition. Conclusion: There was a significant correlation between sociodemographic parameters among the patients with deliberate self-harm. Bangladesh is a country with a cultural heritage of thousands of years. Traditional values, and social and family bonding are the characteristics of the culture. Traditional value systems are being declined gradually due to the influence of western culture. The social structure is in a period of transition that is characterized by the waning of family ties and social support as well as an increase in urbanization and modernization. This factor together with psychiatric and co-morbid general medical conditions plays an important role in deliberate self-harm
ABSTRACT
The most widely used investigation of renal function and GFR is the measurement of serum creatinine and creatinine clearance rate. This has been extremely popular in clinical medicine despite formidable difficulties associated with its quantification and interpretation. The main pathophysiological difficulties include variations in the rates of creatinine generation and its secretion by the renal tubules. Concentration of serum creatinine is now recognized as an unreliable measure of kidney function as it is affected by age, body weight, muscle mass, race and various medications. Several equations have been developed to improve the accuracy of serum creatinine level as a measure of GFR. The most widely used in adult populations are the Cockroft-Gault equation and the abbreviated Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) equation. Even with these equations, measurement of GFR is difficult because the equations are less accurate with higher levels of kidney function and are affected by interlaboratory variation in measuring creatinine level. In the above perspective, cystatin C concentration has become a promising marker for kidney function in both native and transplanted kidneys. Because of the possible potentiality of cystatin C to be an emerging endogenous marker for quick and accurate assessment of renal function, we have decided to review elaborately on cystatin C as a marker of renal function and to review the sensitivity and specificity of cystatin C as an endogenous marker compared to serum creatinine. Results of our review study suggest that cystatin C is a better marker of renal function compared to serum creatinine and other endogenous markers irrespective of age, sex and clinical condition.
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Background: Hypothyroidism is associated with many biochemical abnormalities including increased serum creatinine and uric acid levels. Many studies were done abroad regarding serum creatinine and uric acid levels in hypothyroid patients. We designed this study in our population for evaluation of serum creatinine and uric acid levels in hypothyroid patients. Objective: To assess serum creatinine and uric acid levels in hypothyroid patients and to find out relationship of creatinine and uric acid levels with severity of hypothyroidism. Materials and Methods: This retrospective cross sectional study to evaluate the serum creatinine and uric acid levels of hypothyroid patients and to find out relationship of hyperuricemia and hypercreatininemia with severity of hypothyroidism was done in the department of Biochemistry, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Dhaka. Results were compared with that of age and sex matched healthy euthyroid controls. Statistical analyses were performed by using SPSS for Windows version 10.0. ANOVA and unpaired ‘t’ tests were done to see the significance among the groups and between groups respectively. Pearson’s correlation coefficient test was done to see the correlation of serum creatinine and uric acid levels with the severity of hypothyroidism. Results: Mean serum creatinine and uric acid levels in cases were 1.38 ± 0.53 and 7.00 ± 2.54 mg/dL respectively compared to 1.01 ± 0.17 and 5.21 ± 1.35 mg/dL in controls. Conclusion: Mean serum creatinine and uric acid levels were found significantly higher in hypothyroid patients compared to controls. These findings suggest that hyperuricemia and hypercreatininemia are associated with hypothyroidism. Therefore, patients presenting with these biochemical abnormalities are recommended to be investigated to explore hypothyroidism.
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Background: Diabetic retinopathy is the commonest complication that occurs from the very beginning in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM). DM itself leads to increased homocysteine (Hcy) level. It is postulated that hyperhomocysteinaemia causes retinal vascular damage as Hcy is an established vasculotoxic agent and auto-oxidation of Hcy leads to oxidative stress, endothelial dysfunction, platelet activation and thrombus formation. Objective: The aim of the study was to evaluate the serum Hcy in newly diagnosed type 2 diabetic subjects with diabetic retinopathy. Materials and method: A case control study was carried out in the department of Biochemistry, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Dhaka, during the period of January 2006 to December 2007. Total 85 newly diagnosed type 2 diabetic subjects were included in this study, 40 were case having retinopathy and 45 were age and sex matched control without retinopathy. Serum Hcy was measured and compared between case and control. Results: Serum Hcy level in cases was significantly higher (p<0.05) compared to that of control (15.11±5.49 μmol/L vs. 12.59±4.01 μmol/L). Odds ratio was also determined for hyperhomocysteinemia (OR=2.23; CI 0.9-5.45). Conclusion: Hyperhomocysteinaemia is associated with diabetic retinopathy in newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes.
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Background: Following menopause there are changes in values of lipid profile parameters. Abdominal obesity has also been linked to significant metabolic abnormalities including changes in lipid parameter values. So, we designed this study to observe the pattern of lipid profile parameters in postmenopausal central obese women. Objective: To assess the lipid profile status of postmenopausal women with central obesity. Materials and Methods: This cross sectional study was carried out in the department of Biochemistry, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Dhaka, Bangladesh during the period of January 2005 to December 2005. Seventy four postmenopausal women with central obesity and age matched 56 nonobese postmenopausal women were included in the study. Central obesity was defined having waist hip ratio more than 0.8. All statistical analyses were done by SPSS 12.0. p values <0.05 were considered significant. Results: Statistically no significant difference was observed between the central obese women and nonobese women in total cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol levels. But HDL-cholesterol was found lower and triacylglycerol was found higher in postmenopausal central obese women. Conclusion: Dyslipidaemia is a feature of postmenopausal women with central obesity.
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Background: Diabetic retinopathy is the commonest and usually the first observable vascular complication of diabetes mellitus. Along with hyperglycaemia, dyslipidaemia is a contributing factor for the occurrence of diabetic retinopathy. It is postulated that dyslipidaemia results in formation of hard exudate by increasing blood viscosity and altering the fibrinolytic system. A case control study was carried out in the department of Biochemistry, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Dhaka during the period of January 2006 to December 2007 to evaluate the serum lipid profile in newly diagnosed type 2 diabetic subjects with diabetic retinopathy. Materials and Methods: Total 85 newly diagnosed type 2 diabetic subjects were included in this study, 40 were cases having retinopathy and 45 were age and sex matched controls without retinopathy. Serum triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) were compared between cases and controls. Unpaired t-test and chi-square test were done between groups as tests of significance. Results: All the parameters of lipid profile showed dyslipidaemic trend both in cases and controls. In the cases TG was significantly higher and HDL-C was significantly lower than that of controls (p < 0.05) whereas no significant difference was found between cases and controls with respect to serum TC and LDL-C. Conclusion: It can be concluded that high TG and low HDL-C are associated with diabetic retinopathy in newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes.
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Pre-eclampsia and eclampsia are common obstetrical problem causing adverse effects on pregnancy outcome. Large bodies of evidences suggest that hyperhomocysteinemia is a causal factor of pre-eclampsia/eclampsia. This study designed to explore the association between hyperhomocysteinemia and pre-eclampsia/eclampsia, the knowledge of which expected to be used for prevention of pre-eclampsia and eclampsia. In a case-control study serum homocysteine was measured in 136 controls (healthy pregnant), 84 pre-eclamptic and 120 eclamptic pregnant women. Serum homocysteine in patients with pre-eclampsia (9.54 +/- 3.21 micromol/L) and eclampsia (10.57 +/- 3.39 micromol/L) found to be significantly increased compared to controls (6.86 +/- 2.47 micromol/L) (p < 0.001). Between pre-eclampsia and eclampsia, homocysteine found to be raised more in eclampsia compared to pre-eclampsia (p < 0.03). In conclusion, hyperhomocysteinemia is associated with pre-eclampsia as well as eclampsia, but in eclampsia the severity of homocysteine elevation is more compared to that in pre-eclampsia.