Everyday TOXIC!

Whenever I hear people saying, "TOOOOOOOOOOXIC", maybe pointing to their studies, work, and even to their moms, I simply think of the word 'poison' or ‘deadly matter’.

Is it true that our assignments, tasks at work and the scolding of our mothers DEADLY? Well, there is a deadlier substance I can think of: ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES.

One Saturday evening, while everybody’s having fun at a birthday party, a man had collapsed. His co-drinkers said that he was just drunk and sleepy. But when we checked his body, he was not breathing. Others said that he had vomit so much and cannot speak well. When we brought him to the hospital, the doctor said that the man is at the stage of coma.

Alcohol intoxication – that is the main problem of the story and it is scarier than everybody thinks. Beers, wines and liquors have the same composition of Ethyl Alcohol. The by-products of the breakdown of ethanol are commonly seen in body tissues. And so, intoxication is not seen when the ingestion of ethanol is small or moderate enough.

Actually, the alcoholic tolerance varies from person to person. When one is seen with the symptoms such as vomiting, cannot speak clearly, cannot normally breath, the nails are getting blue and confusion, must already stop or else a more severe situation will happen: DEATH.

As I have said before, the by-products are normally found in the body. However, the synthesis of ethanol is too slow. If the body had ingest more than what it needs, it will go out to the bloodstream and may lead to many side effects. Approximately, the synthesis of an ounce of ethanol takes 90 minutes.

Ethyl alcohol is considered as one of the most effective CNS depressants. Because of this, as one person ingests more ethanol, he/she becomes sleepy and later on, unconscious. The most dangerous part is when the breathing is low and eventually stops because the respiratory system will become depressed. And this can lead to death. Coma resulted from a plug in the lungs. When a drunken person vomits, he/she tries stop and backflow it, bringing it through the lungs which can cause of difficulty of breathing or ‘drowning’. The effects of ethyl alcohol varies depending on its amount of ingestion.

So whenever your friends plan to ‘shot’, make sure that all of you know how to drink moderately. It is because beers are more toxic than your studies, work and your mom!

REFERENCE:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethanol#Pharmacology
http://www.emedicinehealth.com/alcohol_intoxication/article_em.htm

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THE PARATHYROID HORMONE TEST

There will come a time that you will sense that the world had just taken you for granted… that there are so many goals but you don’t have the vigour to reach… that everything you seem to like feels so unlikeable… that you feel like you want to stretch out on your bed during the day, but can’t sleep during the night… and the hardest part is you don’t understand why such sensation exist!

These are some of the symptoms of hyperparathyroidism. Hyperparathyroidism is a disorder in our four parathyroid glands, specifically its function of secreting hormone called parathormone. In this condition, there is an elevated secretion of parathormone, which can lead to high serum calcium which is then called hypercalcemia. Other than calcium levels, abnormalities in parathormone levels in the bloodstream affects the phosphate levels, bone matrix formation, vitamin D activation, kidneys and intestines.

Well, symptoms do not merely diagnose such disease. God made the man knowledgeable; man made the interventions. Nowadays, there are several tests in which we can definitely screen and confirm diseases. One of which is the PARATHYROID HORMONE TEST.

Ever wonder if what is this test all about?

Parathyroid hormone test is, simply put, a quantitative test that determine the parathyroid hormone levels in the bloodstream. Its method of measurement are radioimmunoassay (RIA), intact molecule assay and middle molecule assay.

Its clinical implications, as I have mentioned earlier, are hyperparathyroidism, abnormal calcium and phosphate levels, problems in the bones, kidneys and intestines, and vitamin D deficiency.

The preparation for this test is basically be a patient and be patient. Being a patient doesn’t mean you have to wait for your doctor or a medical technologist to give you instructions on how to prepare before the test. You have to be aware of what you will undergo and what reminders you should take in considerations. You have to be patient and follow the rules before taking the test.

Basically, eating or drinking (except for water) is prohibited for about eight to ten hours (some laboratories require ten to twelve hours) before performing the test. It is preferred to be done right after the patient wakes up. This is because parathyroid glands secret hormones promptly after getting up.

Venous blood is the specimen of choice. Venipuncture will be done so expect to be uncomfortable during the extraction of blood. The medical technologist should be aware of patient before-and after-care.

Normal values are variable because every laboratory has its own standards. For normal values, click here. Sometimes, results are released after 1 to 2 days.

So what does your test results mean?

Elevation in parathormone level is caused by many factors: hyperplasia in parathyroid gland, intestinal and kidney cancer, decreased calcium levels in the bloodstream, intestinal malfunction and vitamin D deficiency.

On the other hand, decreased level of parathormone happens when there is destruction in the parathyroid glands, or when vitamin D or calcium levels are in the blood so high.

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There is a continuous and nonstop discovery and modification in the measurement of parathormone. See how man made answers to every questions, but don't forget to seek God. Because sometimes the magnificent answers do not come from man, but from God. :)

REFERENCES:
Clinical Chemistry: A Fundamental Textbook by Donald Calbreath, pages 390-391
http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/parathyroid-hormone?page=3

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Parathyroid Hormone

Comic strip made by BHIE-LOGGER

Bones are not only helpful in wooing girls, but also in every activity that we do. Calcium is always associated when we talk about bones. We often heard the word ‘calcium' in many milk product commercials. It is one of the minerals that help in the bone matrix formation. But how is the calcium absorbed by the body? What is the principal hormone that is responsible for regulating such minerals?

The endocrine gland in focus is the PARATHYROID GLAND. Better watch this video clip to have a glimpse on this gland's role in our body.

Video made by dizzo95 and shared by youtube.com

Parathyroid gland is located behind of our thyroid gland. It is considered to be the ‘small but terrible' gland because it secretes the hormone that makes our bones stronger and maintains certain minerals inside our body. This hormone is called the parathyroid hormone (also called as PTH, parathormone or parathyrin) that is considered to be a polypeptide, consisting of 84 amino acids.

There are many job descriptions of PTH. All of which is connected to the bone matrix formation and regulation of mineral levels in the blood.

1. Monitoring of Serum Calcium Levels. Bones, kidneys and intestines are the target tissues of the PTH in relation to the regulation of serum calcium.

Photo by Wikipedia.org

In the bones, calcium is released by the PTH by indirect stimulation. The process involved is called bone resorption. It is the bone destruction by the osteoclast, in which it is indirectly enhanced by the PTH.

In kidneys, it is an opposite way. Calcium is reabsorbed from the distal tubules and ascending limb. It is reabsorbed together with the magnesium.

There is also absorption of calcium in the intestines. PTH absorbed calcium by elevating the activated Vitamin D. PTH stimulates enzyme that converts Vitamin D into its activated form in the kidneys. This enzyme will eventually increase the calcium reabsorption in the intestine with the help of a protein called calbindin.

2. Monitoring the Serum Phosphate. Oppose to that of calcium, the PTH reduces the phosphate reabsorption in the kidneys, specifically at the proximal tubules. The release of phosphate from the bone is slightly lower than the calcium. Activated vitamin D also helps in the phosphate reabsorption, though calcium is more dependent on vitamin D compared to the phosphate.

3. Vitamin D activation. As I have said earlier, vitamin D has an important role in the calcium and phosphate reabsorption. The question is, how is PTH activates the vitamin D in our body? PTH controls the 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 1-alpha-hydroxylase, which is the enzyme that converts vitamin D into its activated form. The activated form of vitamin D is called 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol, also called as calcitriol.

The parathyroid gland releases PTH in accordance with the low concentration of calcium. There will be a sudden elevation of PTH if the serum calcium is below normal. But even if the serum calcium is high, still there is a low secretion of PTH.

See how those 'small but terrible' glands are helpful in our lives. At first, we don't mind if these glands exist or not, but now we already know its functions. We should appreciate and be thankful for every glands that God had given to us.

REFERENCES:
Clinical Chemistry: A Fundamental Textbook by Donald Calbreath
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parathyroid_hormone
http://parathyroid.com/parathyroid-function.htm

Clinical Chemistry 3: An Introduction

Similar to movies and bestseller books, Clinical Chemistry is a TRILOGY subject. CC 01 is all about Routine Clinical Chemistry; CC 02 is about Special Chemistry; and lastly, CC 03 is about Endocrinology, Toxicology and Drug Testing. As they always say, the LAST part is the BEST but the BLOODIEST.

This blog is all about Clinical Chemistry 3. And for a jump start, lets define the aforementioned terms that are included in the subject.

ENDOCRINOLOGY

When people hear the word endocrinologist, they simply say that they are doctors which specialize with hormonal imbalances. Endocrinology is basically the study endocrine system, which is composed of glands that secretes hormones. It includes processes of production, their functions, and also their correlated diseases. Hormones are the principal area under discussion of this field of science.

TOXICOLOGY

Our generation is now surrounded by chemicals which can be either helpful or harmful. Chemicals are always associated with health threats. That’s why chemical hazard sign is labelled with a skull signifying danger or death. Toxicology is simply the study of the chemicals which have adverse effects to human beings. This field of science measures the risks and circumstances of these harmful chemical ranging from short to long term results.

DRUG TESTING

Cocaine, marijuana and heroin – these are some of the abused substances that had gain many issues and law-related violations in our generation. These had caused many individuals to lose their track in life, destroyed many families, and even brought disarray to our community. Usually, drug testing is very helpful to combat drug usage. Drug testing is a way to determine people who had taken specified drugs or substances. It can even quantify the amount of taken substances. This test usually includes many biological specimens like blood, urine, saliva, sweat and even hair.

REFERENCES:
Clinical Chemistry: A Fundamental Textbook by Donald Calbreath