Metformin: Past, Present, and Future.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: This review provides the most recent update of metformin, a biguanide oral antihyperglycemic drug used as a first-line treatment in type 2 diabetes mellitus. RECENT FINDINGS: Metformin continues to dominate in the world of antidiabetics, and its use will continue to rise because of its high efficiency and easy availability. Apart from type 2 diabetes, research is exploring its potential in other conditions such as cancer, memory loss, bone disorders, immunological diseases, and aging. Metformin is the most prescribed oral antidiabetic worldwide. It has been in practical use for the last six decades and continues to be the preferred drug for newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus. It reduces glucose levels by decreasing hepatic glucose production, reducing intestinal glucose absorption, and increasing insulin sensitivity. It can be used as monotherapy or combined with other antidiabetics like sulfonylureas, DPP-4 inhibitors, SGLT-2 inhibitors, or insulin, improving its efficacy. Metformin can be used once or twice daily, depending on requirements. Prolonged usage of metformin may lead to abdominal discomfort, deficiency of Vitamin B12, or lactic acidosis. It should be used carefully in patients with renal impairment. Recent studies have explored additional benefits of metformin in polycystic ovarian disease, gestational diabetes mellitus, cognitive disorders, and immunological diseases. However, more extensive studies are needed to confirm these additional benefits.

Timely Hemodialysis for Successful Treatment of Acute Salicylate Overdose in a Young Adult Female - A Case Report.

Salicylates are often used in clinical practice as antiplatelets as well as analgesics. Its overdose is not uncommon due to its easy availability over the counter. Mortality is high in severe cases when a lethal dose is consumed. Treatment of overdose is difficult due to the non-availability of an antidote. Hemodialysis is an underutilized treatment modality in such cases. We discuss here a case of a young female who presented to us 2.5 h after the consumption of a lethal dose of salicylate with symptoms of only tinnitus. She was successfully treated with two sessions of hemodialysis. Her drug levels on admission were remarkably high, and early hemodialysis was justified in view of high-dose consumption with minimal symptoms.

Thrombotic Microangiopathy Causing Acute Kidney Injury in a COVID-19 Patient.

Acute Kidney Injury (AKI) in COVID-19 patients is common and independently associated with higher mortality. The pathophysiology of AKI is multifactorial and may be either direct viral trophism or immune mediated injury and hypercoagulability. This case highlights AKI in a young female with severe COVID-19 due to complement-3 mediated thrombotic microangiopathy with pre-existing chronic kidney disease likely because of IgA nephropathy.

Central Diabetes Insipidus in an Off-pump Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting Surgery.

Polyuria in perioperative coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) surgery is common and mostly benign. Diabetes insipidus (DI) post-CABG is however very rare and mostly have been related with use of cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) pump. The patient recovered completely with transient requirement of exogenous vasopressin. The central DI may be considered as a differential diagnosis in case of polyuria in the perioperative period of CABG surgery. HOW TO CITE THIS ARTICLE: Nasa P, Varma G, Kulkarni A, Chaudhary S, Sagar P. Central Diabetes Insipidus in an Off-pump Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting Surgery. IJCCM 2019;23(11):523-525.

Early plasmapheresis in patients with severe hypertriglyceridemia induced acute pancreatitis.

Hypertriglyceridemia can cause severe diseases such as acute pancreatitis (AP) and coronary artery disease. The routine management of hypertriglyceridemia is dietary restriction of fat and lipid-lowering medications to manage the secondary or precipitating causes of hypertriglyceridemia. However, in cases of AP with severe hypertriglyceridemia (SHTG) (triglycerides [TG] >1000 mg/dl) rapid reduction of TG levels to well below 1000 mg/dl can improve outcome and prevent further episodes of pancreatitis. Plasmapheresis is a therapeutic option in such medical emergencies. We discussed 2 cases of severe AP with SHTG where we used early plsmapheresis along with other supportive management.