Guest speaker at IMA(Indian Medical Association) Kazhakoottam branch. Jothydev spoke on "On Insulins in 2004" The chief guest for the annual meeting was Dr.Suresh Kumar.T(editor , IMA News letter) Dr.Rajendran(president,IMA Kazhakoottam) and Dr.Saravanakumar(Secretary), Dr.Ravikumar(treasurer) etc., participated.Dr.Najeeb introduced Dr.Jothydev and Dr.Bindusha offered vote of thanks.

One selected question and answer:

Will pioglitazone damage the liver?

Jothydev:The answer is no.But you should periodically check liver enzymes in the beginning of treatment.Troglitazone was the first thiozolidinedione in the market and it was banned because of reports of liver failure and death.Rosiglitazone and Pioglitazone were introduced later.TZDs should not be used if there is history of LVF due to its tendency for water retention.Patients can also gain weight.However these are very useful drugs as insulin sensitisers and can also be combined with other OHAs or with insulin depending on the individual requirements.