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Morning MEDtalks with Dr K K Aggarwal
August 16 , 2018 :
Government extends celing price of knee implants till August 2019
The government has extended for a year the cap on prices for knee implants, ranging from Rs 54,000 to Rs 1.14 lakh. Providing relief to patients going for knee implants, the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) has extended the ceiling prices till August 2019.
“The Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers, NPPA, hereby decided that applicability of the ceiling prices fixed for orthopaedic knee implants dated 16-Aug-2017 shall be extended for a period of another one year,” said a notification… (ET Health/PTI, August 15, 2018)
What is A2 milk, and why is it important?
Beta-casein is the major source of protein in milk. Around 8000 years ago, however, the characteristics of beta-casein began to change, with a lone mutation occurring at one of the 209 amino acids in its genetic profile. Breeding practices and random acts of history made A1-producing cows the norm in Europe and, subsequently, the majority of the Western world.
The difference is potentially important because digesting A1, but not A2, beta-casein can cause the release of the opioid beta-casomorphin (BCM-7) in the small intestine. BCM-7 is linked to impaired gastrointestinal function like decreased intestinal contractions and suppressed lymphocyte proliferation.
There is a link between A1 milk consumption and an elevated risk for type 1 diabetes, coronary heart disease and, perhaps further afield, autism and schizophrenia.
Best hospitals in the US
The Cleveland Clinic for the third straight year took the second place spot on the US News & World Report’s Best Hospitals rankings, bolstered by top rankings in both urology and cardiology. For the 24th consecutive year, U.S. News ranked the Clinic the No. 1 hospital for cardiology and heart surgery.
Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota beat out the Clinic for the top spot for the third year in a row. Johns Hopkins in Baltimore took the No. 3 ranking, while Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston took the No. 4 spot. University of Michigan Hospitals-Michigan Medicine in Ann Arbor, Michigan ranked No. 5.
Individuals who exercise regularly have superior mental health
Investigators studied data for 1.2 million US adults and found that those who exercised had 1.5 fewer days of poor mental health during the past month than their physically inactive matched counterparts.
The regimen associated with the greatest benefits was exercising for 45 minutes 3 to 5 times a week.
(Adam Chekroud, assistant professor of psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut)
Premenstrual psychosis and murder
Last week, the Jaipur bench of the Rajasthan High Court overturned the sentence of a woman convicted of murdering a child after she pleaded insanity due to severe premenstrual stress syndrome. They cited Section 84, which designates “unsoundness of mind” as a pardonable mitigating factor: the offence that she committed was an involuntary act on her part, inasmuch owing to this fact, she was labouring under the defect of reason or was suffering from psychological disorder or unsoundness of mind.
Criticism: Premenstrual syndrome does not cause insanity. No PMS symptom, however severe, is recognized as a legitimate excuse for murder.
Menstrual psychosis is a very rare phenomenon that can occur between three days prior to three days after a period. During this time, an acute onset of impaired thought and emotion, to the point connection with reality is lost, is followed by a full recovery to normalcy. (Ira Gupta, Advocate)
Video to watch: What is endothelial dysfunction? https://www.
Dr KK Aggarwal
Padma Shri Awardee
Vice President CMAAO
President HCFI
