Presence of Concurrent Derangements of Liver Function Tests in Type 2 Diabetes and Their Relationship with Glycemic Status: A Retrospective Observational Study from Meghalaya.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The liver plays a pivotal role in carbohydrate metabolism. Therefore, functional state of the liver in patients with diabetes is of interest. The objectives of the current study were to (i) identify co-existent biochemical derangements of liver function tests (LFTs) in type 2 diabetes and (ii) determine the association between liver function parameters and glycemic status in type 2 diabetics from Shillong, Meghalaya. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data from 320 type 2 diabetes patients were screened retrospectively for abnormalities in LFTs. Relationship of fasting serum glucose was assessed with the following tests in the LFT panel: Total bilirubin, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and albumin. Correlation coefficient was computed between individual LFT and fasting glucose status. These bivariate analyses were supplemented by multivariate linear regression analyses. RESULTS: 71.25% subjects had an abnormality in at least one LFT. Elevated ALT (46.8%) and elevated ALP (48.5%) were the most common abnormality in males and females, respectively. ALP correlated positively with fasting glucose in both sexes. AST, ALT, and ALP were found to be independent determinants of glycemic status. CONCLUSION: Derangements in liver function are widely co-existent in type 2 diabetics from Shillong. Deranged liver enzymes are associated with glycemic status. Screening for liver dysfunction in diabetics and subsequent workup may lead to the identification of hepatic co-morbidities and better management.

Association of Serum Calcium Levels with Infarct Size in Acute Ischemic Stroke: Observations from Northeast India.

BACKGROUND: Calcium is known to be major mediator in ischemic neuronal cell death. Recent studies have shown that elevated serum calcium levels at admission in patients with stroke have been associated with less severe clinical deficits and with better outcomes. AIM: The aim of this to determine the correlation between serum calcium (total, corrected, and ionized) and infarct size (IS) in patients with acute ischemic stroke. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data were collected from 61 patients presenting with acute ischemic stroke from May 2015 to April 2016 at a tertiary care institute in Northeast India. Only patients aged ≥40 years and diagnosed as having acute ischemic cerebrovascular stroke with clinical examination and confirmed by a computed tomography scan were included in the study. Serum calcium levels (total, albumin corrected, and ionized) were collapsed into quartiles, and these quartile versions were used for calculating correlation. Pearson's correlation coefficient was used for comparing calcium levels with IS. RESULTS: Total calcium, albumin-corrected calcium, and ionized calcium had a statistically significant negative correlation with IS with r = -0.578, -0.5396, and -0.5335, respectively. Total and ionized calcium showed a significant negative correlation with IS across all four quartiles. Albumin-corrected calcium levels showed a significant negative correlation with IS only across the lowest and highest quartiles. CONCLUSION: The findings in our study suggest that serum calcium can be used as a prognostic indicator in ischemic stroke as its levels directly correlates with the IS.