Assessment of Blood Glucose and Calcium Concentrations Among healthy female volunteers Blood glucose & calcium in females

Abstract: Hypoglycemia and Hyperglycemia are associated with a number of complications including kidney damage, neurological damage, cardiovascular damage,  damage to the retina or damage to feet and legs,  lethargy, impaired mental functioning and irritability. The most abundant mineral in the body is calcium. Its abnormal levels also associated with multiple disorders. Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the blood glucose and calcium levels in healthy female volunteersMethods: A cross sectional study was conducted at the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, Lahore, over a period of 6 months, after obtaining the ethical approval from the The University of Lahore. A total number of 60 females were enrolled through consecutive sampling technique. Females of all age groups were included. All of the females had gone through routine history taking and lab investigations for the assessment of blood glucose an calcium concentrations. Results: In this study out 60 female participants, 33.3% were between ages of 15-30 years, 33.3% were between age of 31-50 years and remaining 33.3% were above 50 years old. All females of age group 15-30 years had normal glucose levels while single case of age group 15-30 years had abnormal calcium level. The results indicated that females of above age 50 years had low calcium and high glucose levels due to poor nutrition and less physical activity. Conclusions: The results of the current study showed that females with increasing age should intake food enriched in calcium and low glucose and adopt a physically active life style to manage normal blood glucose levels.

Diagnostic Value of Complementary Strain Elastography in the Classification of Breast Masses

Background: Breast cancer is the commonest cancer in women. Ultrasound has a high sensitivity but low specificity in the classification of benign and malignant breast masses. Strain elastography has the potential of increasing the specificity of breast ultrasound in classifying malignant and benign breast masses and reducing the number of benign breast biopsies performed. The diagnostic value of breast elastography in African women is not known. Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the additive diagnostic value of strain elastography to conventional ultrasound in the classification of malignant and benign breast masses in an African population. Materials and Methods: This prospective study was carried out between August and December 2016 in the Radiology Department, Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi. Conventional ultrasound and strain elastography were carried out in 74 breast masses. Histology was used as the refence standard. Mean elasticity scores were compared for malignant and benign masses using the two-sample t test. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) for conventional ultrasound, elasticity score, length ratio and combined method were calculated. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was also performed. Results: The mean elasticity score of malignant and benign masses was 4.29 (±0.750) and 2.05 (±0.916) respectively. The difference in the mean values was statistically significant (P<0.0001). The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) were 97.1%, 71.8%, 75.6% and 96.6% respectively, for conventional ultrasound and 97.1%, 92.3%, 91.9% and 97.3% respectively, for combined method. Combining elasticity score with conventional ultrasound resulted in a significant increase in the specificity (P value = 0.0012) and PPV (P value = 0.0074) compared to conventional ultrasound alone. The sensitivity and specificity of length ratio was 94.3% and 92.3% respectively compared to 94.3% and 89.7% respectively for elasticity score. Conclusion: Adding strain elastography to conventional ultrasound significantly improves the specificity and positive predictive value in classifying malignant and benign breast masses in the African population. There was no significant difference between elasticity score and the length ratio.