Diabetes, according to the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), is a chronic metabolic disease characterized by high levels of glucose or sugar in the blood, which over time leads to serious damage to the body. There are several types of diabetes, but the most common is type 2 diabetes, which usually occurs in adults, although it appears more frequently in children, and is the result of excess body weight and physical inactivity.

Likewise, there is type 1 diabetes, which is autoimmune in nature and occurs between the first or second decade of life. Its characteristic is that the immune system does not recognize the cells that produce insulin and a rejection response arises as if it were a transplant. Type 1 diabetes is not reversible, however, type 2 when associated with obesity and in its state of hyperglycemia (high blood sugar levels), can be reversible.

There are studies that say that weight loss, especially when achieved after bariatric surgeries where 20 kg or more are lost, can cause the glucose system to normalize, but this does not mean that diabetes has been cured. What really happens is that the conditions of diabetes have disappeared, but if the person gains weight again, their disease may reappear.

In the country, type 2 diabetes is the most frequent and affects men and women in equal proportion, and especially people with obesity and the elderly, causing serious damage to the retina, kidney, nerves, accelerates cardiovascular atherosclerosis, which leads to heart attack and amputations of the lower limbs, although less frequently.

Proper diabetes control, in addition to blood pressure and cholesterol control, ensures that the patient does not have complications. Exercising, quitting smoking and losing weight contributes to the comprehensive management of the disease, increasing the chances of extending your life.

The woman with cancer is a warrior, extremely brave who fights every day against her own fears and overcomes them. On October 19, World Breast Cancer Day is celebrated and it is important to know that there are multiple risk factors for this disease and not all of them must be met for breast cancer to appear.

A woman who has had her mother, sister or grandmother with this type of cancer has up to three times the risk than the rest of the general population. Among other factors, there is obesity, inadequate management of hormones in perimenopause (menopausal transition) and menopause, the use of contraceptives without medical consultation for a long period, nulliparity, that is, a woman not having children and as a consequence the absence of breastfeeding, which reduces the probability of the appearance of cancer.

Women with advanced stages of breast cancer can have a remission, that is, the disease disappears or stops and they lead a good quality of life with treatments. However, the incidence of its appearance is high, becoming the first cause of cancer diagnosis, especially in the city of Quito, according to the annual reports of the National Tumor Registry.

To prevent breast cancer, the first thing to do is identify if you have risk factors and, secondly, to have an annual check-up. Self-examination outside of what you think is not always the best option, because when a nodule is palpated, it can be at least a centimeter or larger, which means there is no early detection.

If the woman is under 38 years old and has no factors, an annual gynecological check-up will probably be enough. However, if there are risk factors, it is important to have ultrasounds from the ages of 18 to 38 to evaluate the mammary glands and from the age of 38 mammograms should be included.

The emotional support of family and friends is important in these patients. Relief is the first thing to work on so that later, you can motivate, accompany and give hope to help them move forward.

Hospital Metropolitano together with the Ecuadorian Society of Cardiology invites you to a tribute cocktail for World Heart Day, on Friday, September 29 at 12:00 pm in the Hospital Auditorium, to discuss topics on prevention and diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases. In addition, a single day of blood pressure control will be carried out.

The cocktail will be attended by Dr. Daniel Piñeiro, president of the World Heart Federation; Dr. Bolívar Sáenz, president of the Ecuadorian Society of Cardiology; and Dr. Raúl Jervis, medical director of the Metropolitan Hospital and its authorities. As well as the presence of the elected president of the Inter-American Society of Cardiology, Dr. Ana Munera, and the president of the South American Society of Cardiology, Dr. Daniel Berrocal.

It is highlighted that, for the first time, Ecuador becomes the first Latin American country to host this special date. This distinction was obtained because we have worked together with the Ecuadorian Society of Cardiology and the different health actors in the public and private sectors, and at all levels of the population on cardiovascular prevention.

Other reasons for this choice are the diversity that the country has, the physical activities in favor of the population and the good results in the Hearts program of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), which involves all levels of medical care ( primary, community, general practitioners and specialists), which seeks early detection, adequate treatment of all cardiovascular diseases and a reduction in mortality.

Topics concerning the dissemination of healthy eating styles, the promotion of exercise from childhood, cessation of tobacco, individualization and early detection of degenerative cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia (excessively high levels) will be addressed. cholesterol or fats in the blood) and obesity. Likewise, pollution and pollution become new risk factors for cardiovascular health.

This opening event joins the global agenda of the World Heart Federation that seeks to reduce cerebrovascular infarctions, cardiac infarctions and the mortality rate caused by these diseases by 2030, thanks to early diagnosis, detection of factors risk and timely control of chronic-degenerative diseases. Likewise, it wants to raise awareness about how vulnerable or even middle-income populations, who live in rural areas, are the most exposed to developing these diseases.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that some people develop after experiencing or seeing a traumatic event in which their own or others' lives are in danger, or for other reasons such as the unexpected death of a loved one.

For some time now, we have been saturated with messages of insecurity that we see on television, the Internet or social networks, including some close personal experience or that of a family member. These events have triggered feelings of fear and in response to this, "fight or flight" is generated.

Thus, the person seeks to protect themselves from possible dangers and causes changes in the body, such as the release of hormones that increase alertness, blood pressure, heart rate and breathing. Over time, most people recover well, but there are people who feel stressed and scared long after the trauma ends.

There are certain factors that can help reduce the risk of developing post-traumatic stress disorder and there are several symptoms that warn of PTSD and include frightening thoughts, flashbacks, nightmares, continuous scares, difficulty sleeping, angry outbursts, problems concentrating, etc.

PTSD affects people differently, so a treatment that works for someone may not work for another. A mental health professional can help with tools to identify if these symptoms require professional intervention or only provide preventive methods to act in a timely manner.