Diverticulitis 📊🔬💊: Patterns, Pitfalls, and Practice
Dr. Baliga's 'Podkasts for Curious Docs'
📘 New Insights on Diverticulitis 📊🔬💊 Did you know that while 1–4% of people with diverticulosis develop diverticulitis, it still accounts for ~200,000 hospitalizations annually in the US and >$6.3B in healthcare costs? 🚑💰 ✅ CT scan remains the gold standard for diagnosis 🖼️ ✅ Observation & pain control are first-line for uncomplicated cases 💊 ✅ Antibiotics reserved for high-risk groups (elderly, immunocompromised, pregnant, systemic illness) ⚠️ ✅ Surgery indicated for recurrent or complicated cases (fistula, stricture, perforation) ✂️...
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Hypertension: Old Foe 🥊, Novel Therapies 🛡️, Brighter Outcomes 🌈
Dr. Baliga's 'Podkasts for Curious Docs'
🚨 Hypertension remains the world’s #1 killer — yet fewer than 1 in 4 patients achieve control. 💊 Exciting innovations are reshaping the field: ✔️ Aprocitentan (endothelin receptor antagonist) – first new class in decades ✔️ siRNA (zilebesiran) – 6-monthly dosing, tackling adherence ✔️ Aldosterone synthase inhibitors – overcoming “aldosterone escape” ✔️ Non-steroidal MRAs & neprilysin inhibitors – precision targeting with broader benefits ✔️ Single-pill & quadpill combos – simplifying therapy, boosting adherence 🌍 Together,...
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Dr RR Baliga's Philosophical Discourses: Ramanuja (India, 1017–1137 CE) – Vishishtadvaita Vedanta
Dr. Baliga's 'Podkasts for Curious Docs'
🌟 Ramanuja (1017–1137 CE), one of India’s greatest theologians, shaped Vishishtadvaita Vedanta (Qualified Non-Dualism). His vision of Atman (self) and Brahman (supreme reality), united through bhakti (devotion), transformed Hindu theology and inspired generations. 🕉️📖 💡 His commentaries on the Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, and Brahma Sutras laid the foundation of Sri Vaishnavism and emphasized a path of devotion, grace, and liberation (moksha). ✨ 🙏 A reminder for today’s healthcare providers and leaders: true service blends knowledge, humility, and...
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👥 Risk, Representation, Reality: Rethinking CVD Research for 2 Billion South Asian Lives
Dr. Baliga's 'Podkasts for Curious Docs'
🧬 South Asians make up 25% of the world—yet just 3% of major cardiovascular trials. A new systematic review (310 RCTs, 1M+ participants) reveals stark underrepresentation, especially outside India. No South Asians in trials for heart failure, cardiac arrest, or valvular disease. 📉 The data gap is real—and it’s limiting care. 🔍 We need global trial designs that are inclusive, disaggregated, and powered for equity. Let’s change the research playbook. 💡 #CardioTrials #SouthAsianHealth #DiversityInResearch #PrecisionMedicine #GlobalHealth 🌏🫀📊
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🏙️ Steps, Cities, Change: How Urban Design Boosts Activity 🚶♂️📈
Dr. Baliga's 'Podkasts for Curious Docs'
🚶♀️📲 New research alert! A massive natural experiment tracking 7,447 relocations across 1,609 US cities reveals that urban walkability directly boosts physical activity 🏙️💪 📈 Moving to more walkable cities increased daily steps by ~1,100 and doubled compliance with MVPA guidelines! 🎯 A powerful case for urban design as preventive medicine. 🔗 A must-read for public health advocates, city planners, and digital health innovators! #Walkability #UrbanHealth #DigitalEpidemiology #MVPA #SmartCities #BuiltEnvironment #PublicHealth 🏃♂️🌆
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ENaC ⚙️ RAAS ⚡ Immunity 🧬: The Gender Divide in Hypertension
Dr. Baliga's 'Podkasts for Curious Docs'
🧂 Salt sensitivity of blood pressure (SSBP) is an independent risk factor for CVD. 🚹🚺 Women are more salt-sensitive than men, especially after menopause. ⚙️ Key drivers: RAAS, ENaC, natriuresis, and immune pathways. 💉 Estrogen protects, testosterone raises pressure, menopause tips the balance. 🐀 From Dahl’s rats to Conn’s syndrome, SSBP research shows why sex-specific, personalized therapy is the future of hypertension care. 🔗 Nature Reviews Cardiology
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Fatty Liver, Failing Heart, Future Risks 🍔🫀⚠️
Dr. Baliga's 'Podkasts for Curious Docs'
Liver, Lipids, and the Left Ventricle 🩸🫀🧬 The NEJM review reminds us that fatty liver isn’t just a liver problem. MASLD drives risk for heart disease, diabetes, kidney dysfunction, and even cancers. 🚨 Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death in MASLD—outpacing cirrhosis and cancer. 🫀💔 With new tools like FIB-4, VCTE, ELF, and promising drugs such as resmetirom and GLP-1/GIP agonists, we’re entering an era where treating the liver can protect the heart. 💊🌱 #MASLD #LiverHeartConnection #NEJM #CardiometabolicHealth
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⚖️ Switch or Stay? DOACs vs Warfarin in Frail AF Patients
Dr. Baliga's 'Podkasts for Curious Docs'
🧓💊 The COMBINE-AF substudy offers important guidance for managing frail, elderly, VKA-experienced patients with atrial fibrillation. Switching to standard-dose DOACs reduced stroke/systemic embolism risk and cut intracranial & fatal bleeding 🧠🛡️, but raised gastrointestinal bleeding rates 🍽️🩸—especially with certain agents. Sensitivity analyses show apixaban & edoxaban may offer a safer bleeding profile. These findings highlight the need for shared decision-making ⚖️ and integrated ABC pathway care ❤️ to balance prevention, safety, and patient...
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SuperAgers 💪, Super Brains 🧠, Super Insights 🔍
Dr. Baliga's 'Podkasts for Curious Docs'
🧠 Meet the Northwestern SuperAgers—individuals 80+ with memory scores rivaling those decades younger! 📚 They show thicker cortices, more von Economo neurons, fewer neurofibrillary tangles, and remarkable social engagement. 🏆 Their brains offer clues to resisting age-related decline—reshaping how we view aging potential. ✨ #SuperAgers #HealthyLongevity #BrainHealth
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High Blood Pressure 2025 ACC/AHA Guideline: Measure. Manage. Maintain. 📏💊💖
Dr. Baliga's 'Podkasts for Curious Docs'
🚨 Hot off the press! The 2025 ACC/AHA High Blood Pressure Guidelines are here 🩺📊 — bringing sharper strategies to detect, treat & prevent hypertension. From HBPM 🏠 to PREVENT risk scoring 🎯 and protecting against end-organ damage 🫀🧠, these updates empower clinicians & patients alike. Measure it. Manage it. Maintain it. 💪🌟 #Hypertension #Cardiology #Guidelines
info_outlineCOVID MATH for the Physician| Dr RR Baliga's 'Got Knowledge Doc' PodKasts for Physicians | Not Medical Advice or Opinion
Determining How Public Health Measures Might Be Slowing COVID-19 Using the Reproduction Number (Rt)