December 2005
MT Newsletter
SMT Faculty
Jessie Jacob
Manu Prakash
Rema Valsala 		Thought for the month: Happiness is nothing more than good health and a bad memory.
        ...Albert Schweitzer
Answers to the previous issue

FAQs

Standards

Questionnaire

     A medication that is harmless is innocuous.

     The idiom, "Curve ball" means -- Something deceptive..

     The patient had exploration of the wound with no evidence of foreign debris or material within the wound.

     She also has an ultrasound pending of her liver.

     She states that she vomits, may be once in every 3-4 hours.

     It was elected at that time to treat her parenterally.

     The muscle was checked and its fibers were intact. 



   Complacent:     overly contented, self-satisfied,  as in, "After making a string of successes, the film director grew complacent."    




   Complaisant:    eager to please, as in, "We were taken on a tour by an energetic and complaisant guide."




   Pleural:            refers to the pleura, the serous membrane lining each half of the thorax, as the "pleural cavity" or "pleural effusion."




   Plural:              more than one.



                                    
   Fascial:            Relating to the fascia, a sheet of fibrous tissue that envelops the body beneath the skin; 

                           it also encloses muscles and groups of muscles, and separates their several layers or groups.




   Facial:             Relating to the face.




FAQs

Q. What is Body Mass Index?

Body Mass Index or BMI is a tool for indicating weight status in adults. It is a measure of weight for height and correlates strongly with the total body fat content in adults. The relation between body fat content and BMI differs with age and gender. For example, women are more likely to have a higher percent of body fat than men for the same BMI. On average, older people may have more body fat than younger adults with the same BMI. Clinically, BMI is the universally accepted measure of obesity and overweight, which is measured by a person's weight in kilograms (kg) divided by the square of his/her height in meters (m).

For example, a person who is 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighs 154 pounds will have a BMI of 24.8.
To convert pounds to kilograms divide 154 by 2.2 (1 kilogram = 2.2 pounds). He/she weighs 70 kg.
Height, 66 inches converted to meters, is 1.68 meters (Inches x 2.54 = centimeters. Centimeters divided by 100 = meters). The square of this height is 2.82. His/her BMI is 70 divided by 2.82, which is 24.8.

For adults over 20 years old, BMI falls into one of these categories: 

   BMI	               Weight Status

Below 18.5 	     Underweight 

18.5 – 24.9 	     Normal 

25.0 – 29.9 	     Overweight 

30.0 and Above	     Obese
Note: Although BMI correlates with the amount of body fat, BMI does not directly measure body fat. As a result, some people, such as athletes, may have a BMI that identifies them as overweight even though they do not have excess body fat. Some very muscular people may have a high BMI without undue health risks.


The National Institutes of Health (NIH) now defines normal weight, overweight, and obesity according to the BMI rather than the traditional height/weight charts.

Overweight is defined as a BMI of 27.3 or more for women and 27.8 or more for men, according to the NIH.

Obesity is defined as a BMI of 30 and above, according to the NIH.


BMI in relation to health:

As BMI increases, the risk for some disease increases. Some common conditions related to overweight and obesity include:

· Premature death

· Coronary heart disease

· High blood pressure

· Dyslipidemia (for example, high total cholesterol or high levels of triglycerides)

· Type 2 diabetes

· Stroke

· Osteoarthritis

· Gallbladder disease

· Sleep apnea and respiratory problems

· Some cancers (endometrial, breast, and colon)


BMI in children and teens:

In children and teens, body mass index is used to assess underweight, overweight, and risk for overweight. BMI for children, also referred to as
BMI-for-age, is gender and age specific.

Children's body fat content changes over the years as they grow. Also, girls and boys differ in their body fat content as they mature. BMI-for-age is plotted on gender specific growth charts that contain a series of curved lines indicating specific percentiles. These charts are used for children and teens 2 – 20 years of age.

Healthcare professionals use the following established percentile cutoff points to identify underweight and overweight in children. 


Weight Status                   BMI-for-age

Underweight	         < 5th percentile 

Normal 	                         5th percentile to < 85th percentile

At risk of overweight 	         85th percentile to < 95th percentile

Overweight	                         > 95th percentile
Example: 

Age	    BMI	   Percentile

2 years	   19.3	      95th
4 years	   17.8	      95th
9 years	   21.0	      95th
13 years      25.1             95th
The example shows the BMI for a boy as he grows. While his BMI changes, he remains at the 95th percentile BMI-for-age.

BMI decreases during the preschool years, then increases into adulthood. The percentile curves show this pattern of growth.

If a child is in the 60th percentile it means that compared to children of the same gender and age, 60% have a lower BMI.

BMI-for-age is a useful tool because...

· BMI-for-age in children and adolescents compares well to laboratory measures of body fat.

· BMI-for-age provides a reference for adolescents that can be used beyond puberty.

· BMI-for-age can be used to track body size throughout life.


Calculating the BMI is one of the best methods for population assessment of overweight and obesity. It is low-cost and easy to use for clinicians and the general public. The use of BMI allows people to compare their own weight status to the general population.



Q. What is the 'BRAT' diet?

BRAT is an acronym for Bananas, Rice, Applesauce and Toast. This diet is easier for the intestines to digest because the elements of the BRAT diet are foods low in fiber and residue. The BRAT diet is an effective way to ease the discomfort and can be helpful in cases of gastroenteritis, cramping abdominal pain, and diarrhea.




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Standards

SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT: - continued from the last issue...

If two singular nouns refer to the same person or thing, the verb must be singular.


Examples:

My friend and benefactor has come. (implying that my friend is also my benefactor)

The orator and statesman is dead. (the orator and the statesman are the same)

Note that the article is used only once when the two nouns refer to the same person. If different persons were referred to, the article would be used before each noun, and the verb would be plural.

Example:

The orator and the statesman are dead. (the orator and the statesman are not the same).

If two subjects together express one idea, the verb may be in the singular.

Examples:

Bread and milk is his only food.

Slow and steady wins the race.

If the singular subjects are preceded by ‘each’ or ‘every’, the verb is usually singular.

Examples:

Every man, woman and child was lost.

Each day and each hour brings its duty.

Every boy and girl was ready.

Two or more singular subjects connected by ‘or’, ‘nor’, ‘either--- or’, ‘neither --- nor’ take a verb in the singular.

Examples:

No nook or corner was left unexplored.

Neither food nor water was to be found there.

Either a nursing home or a skilled nursing facility is approved to accept the patient with his insurance plan.

Some nouns, which are plural in form but singular in meaning, take a singular verb.

Examples:

The news is true.

Mathematics is a branch of study in every school.








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Questionnaire

Q. A disease that spreads in a hidden and usually injurious way is _____________.
a. innoxious
b. insidious
c. insipid


Q. The idiom, "Push the envelope" means _____________.
a. To go to the limits
b. Mail a letter
c. Remove the covering


Q. Fill in the blanks with the suitable word given in brackets:

1. He denies ______ pain or a thick nasal discharge. (facial, fascial)

2. The patient is ______ with this medication regimen. (complaint, compliant)

3. This patient has ______ chest pain with new onset consolidation of left pleural area and cardiomegaly. (pleuritic, pruritic)

4. Her extremities are warm and well ______. (profused, perfused)

5. Presenting a case of hepatic failure with known ______. (xerosis, cirrhosis)


Q. Find the meaning of these homonyms:

   urethral and ureteral

   fusion, effusion, and infusion

   extent and extend


See the answers in the next month's issue....
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