Thank you Chikungunya

You might be thinking that I am thanking Chikungunya virus for increasing my work and thereby my income.

No you are wrong.

Most people never care to visit a doctor, or check their blood sugar and blood pressure until they get some disease. I am thanking the virus because it helped in detection of type 2 Diabetes in many patients. Also, it helped a few who had undetected high blood pressure.

I know, the patients themselves may not have the same opinion. The pain and suffering they have to endure in Chikungunya fever is enormous. Still there is this compensation of detecting a chronic but manageable disease like Diabetes early before it can produce any serious organ damage.

I am amazed to find that most children of Type 2 Diabetics have not checked their blood sugar even once disregarding the strong family trait for Diabetes. India is now considered as the Diabetic capital of the World with about 40.9 million people estimated to be affected with type 2 Diabetes.Every fifth Diabetic in the World is an Indian.I feel everyone in India should check their blood sugar once every year after the age of 20.If the child is obese or have some other endocrine problem it is better to test even earlier.

Let me end with a happy note. The old lady who stopped insulin on her own and got admitted at 3 am with a blood sugar of 800[DKA ] came for review with her 2 hr after meal Blood sugar value of 170.She is on 30/70 premix Insulin.She promised me never to do that stupidity again.