Feature
Research Conduct
No correction, no retraction, no apology, no comment: paroxetine trial reanalysis raises questions about institutional responsibility
BMJ 2015; 351 doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmj.h4629 (Published 16 September 2015)
Cite this as: BMJ 2015;351:h4629
Rapid responses
Re: No correction, no retraction, no apology, no comment: paroxetine trial reanalysis raises questions about institutional responsibility
It's Against Medical Ethics
Research results manipulated to promote a molecule at the expense of patient 's health are unethical. Paroxetine, a molecule used for depression, produced suicidal problems and self harming tendencies in teenagers; the fact that these results were hid and the molecule was promoted against medical ethics is to be highly condemned.
Competing interests: No competing interests
29 September 2015
M A Aleem
Neurologist
ABC Hospital
Annamalainagar Trichy 620018 Tamilnadu India
Tuesday, September 29, 2015
Monday, September 28, 2015
World Heart Day 29th september 2015: Heart-Healthy Environments
World Heart Day 29th september 2015: Heart-Healthy Environments
World Heart Day was founded in 2000 to inform people around the globe that heart disease and stroke are the world’s leading causes of death, claiming 17.3 million lives each year.
World Heart Day is an annual event which takes place on 29 September every year. Each year’s celebrations have a different theme, reflecting key issues and topics relating to heart health.
This year our theme is creating heart-healthy environments
The places in which we live, work and play should not increase our risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). But individuals frequently cannot make heart-healthy choices due to environmental factors, such as the availability of healthy food or smoke-free zones.
Please spreads the news that at least 80% of premature deaths from cardiovascular disease (CVD) could be avoided if four main risk factors – tobacco use, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity and harmful use of alcohol – are controlled.
World Heart Day was founded in 2000 to inform people around the globe that heart disease and stroke are the world’s leading causes of death, claiming 17.3 million lives each year.
World Heart Day is an annual event which takes place on 29 September every year. Each year’s celebrations have a different theme, reflecting key issues and topics relating to heart health.
This year our theme is creating heart-healthy environments
The places in which we live, work and play should not increase our risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). But individuals frequently cannot make heart-healthy choices due to environmental factors, such as the availability of healthy food or smoke-free zones.
Please spreads the news that at least 80% of premature deaths from cardiovascular disease (CVD) could be avoided if four main risk factors – tobacco use, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity and harmful use of alcohol – are controlled.
World Heart Day 29th september 2015: Heart-Healthy Environments
World Heart Day 29th september 2015: Heart-Healthy Environments
World Heart Day was founded in 2000 to inform people around the globe that heart disease and stroke are the world’s leading causes of death, claiming 17.3 million lives each year.
World Heart Day is an annual event which takes place on 29 September every year. Each year’s celebrations have a different theme, reflecting key issues and topics relating to heart health.
This year our theme is creating heart-healthy environments
The places in which we live, work and play should not increase our risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). But individuals frequently cannot make heart-healthy choices due to environmental factors, such as the availability of healthy food or smoke-free zones.
Please spreads the news that at least 80% of premature deaths from cardiovascular disease (CVD) could be avoided if four main risk factors – tobacco use, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity and harmful use of alcohol – are controlled.
World Heart Day was founded in 2000 to inform people around the globe that heart disease and stroke are the world’s leading causes of death, claiming 17.3 million lives each year.
World Heart Day is an annual event which takes place on 29 September every year. Each year’s celebrations have a different theme, reflecting key issues and topics relating to heart health.
This year our theme is creating heart-healthy environments
The places in which we live, work and play should not increase our risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). But individuals frequently cannot make heart-healthy choices due to environmental factors, such as the availability of healthy food or smoke-free zones.
Please spreads the news that at least 80% of premature deaths from cardiovascular disease (CVD) could be avoided if four main risk factors – tobacco use, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity and harmful use of alcohol – are controlled.
Monday, September 21, 2015
World Alzheimer’s Day ( 2015 September 21) Article in The Hindu Trichy
TIRUCHI, September 21, 2015 The Hindu
“Keep the brain active”
Nahla Nainar
Alzheimer’s disease affects not just the individual but family members also

Greater acceptance of those living with age-related dementia and learning to spot the signs of memory loss are among the goals of this year’s World Alzheimer’s Day (September 21), which is themed around the slogan ‘Remember Me.’
The most common type of dementia reported among people over the age of 60 years, Alzheimer’s disease affects not just the individual, but also family members who become caregivers and have the unenviable task of watching the slow decline of their loved one.
The UK-based advocacy group Alzheimer’s Disease International has reported this year that with its tally of 4.1 million, India is the third among the top 10 countries (behind China and United States) with over a million people living with dementia. According to a 2010 study by Alzheimer’s and Related Disorders Society of India, nearly 20,000 to 40,000 people are expected to be diagnosed with dementia in Tamil Nadu in the next 20 years.
“Many people refuse to acknowledge a diagnosis of mental illness,” M. A. Aleem, neurologist and epileptologist told The Hindu. “As our life expectancy improves due to the advances in technology and lifestyle, we will definitely be seeing an increase in the elderly population. So it is better to learn how to deal with the health problems common to this age group.”
There is no cure for Alzheimer’s, but its symptoms, such as memory loss can be managed with medication. Drugs that curb the breakdown of the acetylcholine chemical in the brain, which is crucial for memory and learning, are usually prescribed to manage the disease.
“It is possible for senior citizens to reduce the chance of getting the disease by avoiding brain injury, and controlling lifestyle ailments like diabetes and high blood pressure with regular medication,” said Dr. Aleem. “Keeping the brain active, with word games and puzzles; regular physical exercise is also important as you grow older,” he added.
Role reversal
For the past six years, Arun*, a resident of B. Mettur who works as a secondary school teacher in the city, has watched his septuagenarian father’s life change dramatically ever since the senior citizen slipped and hurt his head after his customary dip in the village river.
“We didn’t realise it was serious until a year later,” said Arun over the phone. “He would get fits, and we’d control it with an injection from the local doctor or give him an iron object to hold as is the practice.”
As his father began to show signs of memory loss, he became incontinent and aggressive. “It was terribly embarrassing for all of us, and at times, he would start crying at what he had become,” said Arun.
The family did the rounds of several doctors until a Tiruchi-based neurologist diagnosed vascular dementia as the root cause of the sudden behaviour change.
“My father would not be able to recognise me as recently as two years ago,” said Arun. “Today, he can spot the four generations of students he had taught at the village school because he is taking seven tablets to manage his disease. There were days when I lost all hope because my father initially refused to accept that something was wrong with him. I’m happy today that he is not suffering anymore.”
Compassion fatigue
The care of dementia patients usually becomes the responsibility of family members, mainly due to cost constraints, especially in close-knit societies.
However, care giving is a stressful experience, especially when the effort of the caregiver is neither acknowledged nor appreciated.
A study by Bishop Heber College Social Work research scholar G.S. Sangeeth and assistant professor M. Daniel Solomon on the psycho-social problems faced by those caring for dementia patients (published in ‘Indian Journal of Applied Research’, May 2014) states that caregivers suffer from body fatigue and anxiety, besides having to deal with inter-personal conflicts within the family.
“A balance between caring effort and caring capacity is critical for the future sustainability of informal care,” said Dr. Solomon.
*Name changed on request
Sunday, September 20, 2015
Keep rodents at bay to prevent leptospirosis, says TANUVAS
Keep rodents at bay to prevent leptospirosis, says TANUVAS
Gokul Rajendran,TNN | Sep 20, 2015, 02.52 PM IST
TRICHY: The Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (TANUVAS), Chennai cautioned people on the dangers of leptospirosis, an infectious bacterial disease transmitted from the urine of rodents, on Saturday on the occasion of Livestock and Poultry Farmers' Day and the Foundation day of the university.
An assistant professor from TANUVAS Dr Selvaraju explained to the visitors that disease was caused by bacteria in the urine of rats.
A person affected with leptospirosis will have symptoms like headache, severe fever, shivering, muscle cramp, vomiting, jaundice, reddish eyes, diarrhea and reddish skin.
"Such symptoms should not be taken lightly. You should test for the disease and get necessary treatment so that further damage can be prevented," he said. The next level of symptoms will be extreme fatigue, deafness, respiratory problem and dysfunction of kidneys and liver, which may ultimately lead to death. The disease can be diagnosed through Dark Field Microscope (DFM), MAT, IgM-ELISA and PCR tests.
Water polluted by rat urine has the biggest chance of reaching humans during monsoon and floods. The bacteria can also affect animals, through which it can enter the human body.
"Cases of leptospirosis were previously reported from some parts of Trichy . The decrease in the number of farms and grain warehouses in houses caused rodents to disappear from the rural parts. Even then, people should be more cautious and keep rodents at bay," said former vice principal of KAP Viswanatham Government Medical College Dr M A Aleem, while also assuring that it was an easily treatable disease if diagnosed at the right time.
TANUVAS advised people to create hygienic conditions, drink boiled water, take immediate treatment in case of symptoms, vaccinate pet animals, prevent sewage from mixing with drinking water supply and avoid wading through the stagnant water.
The public health and preventive medicine department expected doctors to take a serious note of such symptoms and provide appropriate treatment.
"The primary health centres (PHCs) in the rural areas witnessed sporadic cases of leptospirosis. If fever persists for more than a week, the patient will put through a series of tests to check for dengue, chikungunya and leptospirosis," said deputy director of health services (DDHS) Dr I Raveendran in Trichy.

Gokul Rajendran,TNN | Sep 20, 2015, 02.52 PM IST
TRICHY: The Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (TANUVAS), Chennai cautioned people on the dangers of leptospirosis, an infectious bacterial disease transmitted from the urine of rodents, on Saturday on the occasion of Livestock and Poultry Farmers' Day and the Foundation day of the university.
An assistant professor from TANUVAS Dr Selvaraju explained to the visitors that disease was caused by bacteria in the urine of rats.
A person affected with leptospirosis will have symptoms like headache, severe fever, shivering, muscle cramp, vomiting, jaundice, reddish eyes, diarrhea and reddish skin.
"Such symptoms should not be taken lightly. You should test for the disease and get necessary treatment so that further damage can be prevented," he said. The next level of symptoms will be extreme fatigue, deafness, respiratory problem and dysfunction of kidneys and liver, which may ultimately lead to death. The disease can be diagnosed through Dark Field Microscope (DFM), MAT, IgM-ELISA and PCR tests.
Water polluted by rat urine has the biggest chance of reaching humans during monsoon and floods. The bacteria can also affect animals, through which it can enter the human body.
"Cases of leptospirosis were previously reported from some parts of Trichy . The decrease in the number of farms and grain warehouses in houses caused rodents to disappear from the rural parts. Even then, people should be more cautious and keep rodents at bay," said former vice principal of KAP Viswanatham Government Medical College Dr M A Aleem, while also assuring that it was an easily treatable disease if diagnosed at the right time.
TANUVAS advised people to create hygienic conditions, drink boiled water, take immediate treatment in case of symptoms, vaccinate pet animals, prevent sewage from mixing with drinking water supply and avoid wading through the stagnant water.
The public health and preventive medicine department expected doctors to take a serious note of such symptoms and provide appropriate treatment.
"The primary health centres (PHCs) in the rural areas witnessed sporadic cases of leptospirosis. If fever persists for more than a week, the patient will put through a series of tests to check for dengue, chikungunya and leptospirosis," said deputy director of health services (DDHS) Dr I Raveendran in Trichy.

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