Monthly Archives: January 2020

Blood Donation: Significance

Awareness Day/Month, , , , ,

The gift of blood is the gift of life. There is no other substitute for human blood. According to statistics, every two seconds someone is in dire need for blood. And only one pint of blood can save up to three lives. Data collected over a span of many years suggests that the blood type most often requested by hospitals is Type O.

Sickle cell patients are required to have frequent blood transfusions throughout their lives. And for cancer patients (with an estimate of more than 1 million new patients every year), many of them require blood, sometimes on a regular basis, during their chemotherapy treatment.

FYI: A single car accident victim can require up to 100 units of blood to survive.

Things to know about the blood donation process:

  • Blood donation is safe! Hospitals/doctors/nurses make sure that a sterile needle is used only once for each individual donor and then discarded/destroyed.
  • The process is simple. Mainly consisting of four steps:
  1. Registration
  2. Physical & Medical history
  3. Donation
  4. Refreshments
  • A mini-physical is done for every donor, checking his/her temperature, blood pressure, pulse and hemoglobin count. Basically, to ensure that the donor is fit for donating, and if whether it is safe.
  • The real process takes around 10-12 minutes. It is crucial for you to stay calm if it is your first time donating.
  • The average human adult has approximately 10 units of blood in their body. At the time of donation, roughly one unit is given (don’t worry you still have enough).
  • Red blood cells can be donated every 56 days (by a healthy person).
  • Platelets can be donated every 7 days apart (a maximum of 24 times a year).
  • All blood donations are tested for HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B & C, syphilis and other diseases, before it is transfused.

General FYI:

  • Type O- red cells can be transfused to patients of all blood types.
  • Type AB+ plasma can be transfused to patients of all other blood types.

Top Ten Reasons Why You Should Donate Blood (there is no denying these):

  1. First of all, it saves lives! What else is there to know?
  2. It is one of your civic duties as a responsible citizen.
  3. Not everyone can donate blood, it’s a blessing to have the ability to save people.
  4. If one day you need blood, you won’t hesitate to take it, so why hesitate to give it?
  5. It gives the donors a free medical checkup.
  6. It helps maintain an adequate blood supply in the community for secure blood transfusions.
  7. The feeling of satisfaction of helping others is unreal.
  8. Even though the cure for cancer is not discovered, yet! But donating blood helps keep someone alive while they wait for the cure.
  9. The real question is, why not give blood?
  10. Excuses are always vague, there is no logical reason as to why a healthy person should not donate blood.

Advantages of donating blood:

Donating blood is not only beneficial for the person receiving it, but it is also highly beneficial for the donor’s health.

  • Lowers iron levels: The body needs iron to produce red blood cells. But too much iron in the blood can be harmful. Too much iron in one’s blood can lead to it being deposited in different organs of the body, such as the heart and the liver, and this could lead to a malfunction in the way those organs function. Donating blood can help control the level of iron in your system.
  • Checks your system: Each and every person who donates blood undergoes a simple physical examination and a blood test before they can move on to donating their blood. Through these tests, hospitals can assess a person’s internal fitness and health. It is highly possible that a person could identify unknown health issues as a part of the blood donation process. The donor is tested for HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B & C, and/or any other blood-borne diseases.
  • Burns calories: According to the University of California, San Diego, donating blood has been proven to burn around 650 calories per donation. Its like getting ripped without going to gym. But on a more serious note, donating blood cannot be considered as an alternative to exercise. Also, after donating blood try to hold off on going to the gym the very same day, take some rest.

Disadvantages of donating blood:

  • Dizziness
  • Feeling faint
  • Lightheadedness
  • Nausea

Note: These symptoms usually subside within 3 days of donating blood.

Turacoz Healthcare Solutions aims to spread awareness about the benefits and advantages of donating blood. We urge the people to take part in this noble act of saving lives. We wish that people would actively contribute in this ‘gift of life’ and are working hard towards achieving a healthier future for the masses.

If you wish to contact us, click here.

How to Prevent HIV/AIDS?

Disease and Treatment, , , , , ,

The world’s leading public health challenge is the HIV virus that leads to AIDS. In 2018, around 37.9 million people were infected with HIV/AIDS and approximately 1.7 million more joined the club worldwide. Only 79% of the affected numbers were aware of their HIV status and the remaining 21% did not even have access to HIV testing services. The death rate associated with AIDS has reduced from 1.7 million in 2004 to 770,000 in 2018 [1,2,3].

A brief summary on the HIV epidemic is presented in the Figure 1 [2]

Figure 1: Global HIV Epidemic [2]

Despite the advances in our healthcare sector and availability of a wide range of effective prevention tools, a large number of individuals with HIV or at risk of HIV do not have access to the prevention, care, and treatment [1]. A study reported that majority of the current HIV transmission is done via people who inject drugs, occurring in the majority of low and middle-income countries [4].

The advances in science have provided many tools to prevent HIV these days. However, to protect oneself from a disease one should be aware about the cause of the disease, with an understanding of how the virus spreads. HIV virus can be passed in the following ways [5]:

  • Having sexual intercourse with an HIV infected person
  • By sharing contaminated needles such as through blood transfusion or drug use
  • From an HIV infected mother to the foetus during pregnancy, or through breast feeding

Anyone and everyone is vulnerable to the HIV virus, but preventive measures can help one to reduce the risk of getting infected. Key approaches for the prevention of HIV are listed below:

HIV Prevention Medication [6,7]

Pre-exposure prophylaxis (prEP) and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) can greatly reduce the risk of contracting the HIV infection. According to the federal guidelines, prEP is considered for HIV-negative or people at a very high risk of HIV. It consists of daily medication and regular visits to a healthcare professional. This includes:

  1. Anyone who is in sexual contact with a HIV positive person
  2. A man who has sex with both women and men
  3. A heterosexual man or woman who have had sexual intercourse with partners of unknown HIV status.

PEP can prevent you from becoming infected with the virus once you are exposed to it. For this medication to work, it must be started within 72 hours after a possible exposure. It should be taken once or twice daily for 28 days. Use of condoms and safe injection practices is recommended during the medication.

An HIV-negative person has the following ways to protect himself/herself from getting infected:

Figure 2: Steps of Prevention for HIV-negative person

Treatment as Prevention [7]

This refers to the use of HIV medication to prevent transmission of the infection to others. An HIV infected person taking the medications as prescribed and has regular follow-ups to keep an undetectable viral load are at no risk of transmitting HIV to their HIV-negative partners. Antiretroviral therapy (ART) to suppress the virus should be taken regularly as it prevents the virus from growing in our body that keeps us healthy and prevents illness. Women infected with the virus are recommended to take the treatment to minimize the risk of transmission to the foetus during pregnancy or delivery. After conception, the new-born receives HIV medications for 4 to 6 weeks. Figure 2 shows the actions to be taken to prevent HIV from passing to others.

Figure 3: Steps for Prevention for HIV-positive person

The United Nations organized the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) with an ambitious target to treat HIV with a 90-90-90 goal. By 2020, 90% of the people living with HIV will be aware of their HIV Status. 90% of the people diagnosed with HIV will receive a proper antiretroviral therapy (ART). 90% of people on ART will have viral suppression [1,7].

Turacoz Healthcare Solutions aims to spread awareness about HIV/AIDS. We urge the people to be aware about the condition. Following the preventive measures and seeking counseling is the best way to avoid this condition. However, for the HIV infected individuals it is best to continue with the ART and maintain a healthy diet. Nevertheless, with love and support from family and friends they can lead a happy and long life.

If you wish to contact us, click here.

References

  1. Retrieved from: https://www.hiv.gov/hiv-basics/overview/data-and-trends/global-statistics [Accessed on 26th December 2019]
  2. Retrieved from: https://www.who.int/hiv/data/en/ [Accessed on 26th December 2019]
  3. Retrieved from: https://www.unaids.org/en [Accessed on 26th December 2019]
  4. Mathers BM, Degenhardt L, Phillips B, Wiessing L, Hickman M, Strathdee SA, Wodak A, Panda S, Tyndall M, Toufik A, Mattick RP. Global epidemiology of injecting drug use and HIV among people who inject drugs: a systematic review. The Lancet. 2008 Nov 15;372(9651):1733-45
  5. Retrieved from: https://stanfordhealthcare.org/medical-conditions/sexual-and-reproductive-health/hiv-aids/treatments/prevention.html [Accessed on 26th December 2019]
  6. Retrieved from: https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/basics/prevention.html [Accessed on 27th December 2019]
  7. Retrieved from: https://www.hiv.gov/hiv-basics/hiv-prevention/reducing-sexual-risk/preventing-sexual-transmission-of-hiv [Accessed on 27th December 2019]
  8. Retrieved from: https://www.unaids.org/en/resources/909090 [Accessed on 26th December 2019]
  9. Retrieved from: https://www.hiv.gov/hiv-basics/hiv-prevention/using-hiv-medication-to-reduce-risk/hiv-treatment-as-prevention [Accessed on 27th December 2019]