Effect of taurine on carotid intima media thickness in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Background : Carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) has been proposed as a surrogate marker to identify diabetic patients at higher risk for CAD. Oxidative stress has been postulated to be involved in the development of atherosclerosis. Objective: The present study was to evaluate the effect of taurine on serum lipids, lipid peroxidation and RBC antioxidant status and vessel changes in type 2diabetes. Design :Twenty individuals T2DM, aged 35 -50 were enrolled. Twenty age and sex-matched healthy individuals served as controls. Taurine was given to both controls and diabetics at a dose of 500mg / day for a period of 30 days. Blood glucose, serum lipids, TBARS in plasma,RBC, antioxidant status in RBC were estimated before and after taurine supplementation. Intima media thickness in both common carotid arteries were assessed by using Doppler B mode ultrsonograghy. Results: Taurine significantly reduced the serum lipids, lipid peroxidation and improved the antioxidant enzymes in diabetics. Intima media thickness was significantly high in type 2 diabetics.Taurine significantly reduced the intima media thickness in both common carotid arteries in type 2 diabetics. Conclusion: Taurine by its antioxidant effect could be useful in retarding atherosclerosis in diabetics and thereby preventing the complications.

A concurrent comparison of a WHO-recommended 30-cluster survey and a modified version of it under Indian conditions in the estimation of immunization coverages.

A concurrent comparison of the WHO 30-cluster sample survey method for estimating immunization coverages (DPT, Polio, BCG, Measles) and an Indian modification of (GOI) was undertaken in five districts in South India. The essential difference between the two methods is the manner in which the first household is selected in the chosen clusters. With the WHO method, it is chosen clusters. With the WHO method, it is chosen at random, whereas with the GOI method it is often close to the village centre. Estimates with the required degree of precision, i.e., 95% confidence limits of +/- 10 percentage points, were provided in 18 (90%) of 20 instances by the WHO method and in 19 (95%) by the GOI method, findings which are in accordance with expectation. The estimated coverages were, however, higher by the GOI method than by the WHO method in two districts, lower in one district, and in the remaining two districts there was no clear pattern. On the average, there was a suggestion that the GOI method yielded slightly higher coverages, but the differences were not statistically significant.

A comparison of a 30-cluster survey method used in India and a purposive method in the estimation of immunization coverages in Tamil Nadu.

A 30-cluster survey method that is employed for estimating immunization coverages by the Government of India (GOI) was compared with a Purposive method, to investigate whether the likely omission of SC/ST and backward classes in the former would lead to the reporting of higher coverages. The essential difference between the two methods is in the manner in which the first household is selected in the chosen first stage sampling units (villages). With the GOI method, it is often close to the village centre, whereas with the Purposive method it is always in the periphery or in a pocket consisting of SC/ST or backward classes. A concurrent comparison of the two methods in three districts in Tamil Nadu showed no real differences in the coverage with DPT and BCG vaccines. However, the coverage was consistently higher by the GOI method in the case of the Polio vaccine (by 1.5%, 3.1% and 5.3% in the 3 districts), and the Measles vaccine (by 4.8%, 13.3% and 13.9%); the average difference was 3.3% for Polio vaccine (p = 0.08) and 7.3% for Measles vaccine (p = 0.01).