What To Do When Blood Sugar Levels Drop

An experienced clinical researcher, Hanid Audish, DO has overseen clinical trials and managed the staff at Encompass Clinical Research since 2010. The owner and principal investigator at the research facility, Dr. Hanid Audish, and his team have completed clinical trials relating to a vast range of medical conditions, including diabetes. In this population of patients, it is very important to understand what happens if their sugars drop too low which is called hypoglycemia.

Hypoglycemia, or low blood sugar, is used to reference blood sugar levels below 70 mg/dL. People taking insulin, tolazamide, glipizide, or many other diabetes medications are at a particular risk of developing the condition. The same is true of individuals who have previously had issues with hypoglycemia.

While the only way to be sure that blood sugar levels are low is to check blood sugar, it is associated with several possible symptoms. These include blurred or impaired vision, feeling shaky, sweating, and confusion. If it’s determined that someone has hypoglycemia, they must treat the issue right away.

This is best done according to the 15-15 rule. According to this rule, people experiencing a drop in blood sugar should have something with 15 grams of carbohydrates, such as pretzels or granola bars. People can also take glucose tablets, but it’s important that these tablets only contain about 15 to 20 grams of carbs each.

After eating the 15 grams of carbs, people should wait 15 minutes. After this amount of time, they can check their blood sugar levels again. If the levels are still below 70 mg/dL, they should have another serving of something with 15 grams of carbs and repeat the process until blood sugar levels reach 70 mg/dL or more.

Differences Between Osteoarthritis and Rheumatoid Arthritis

Certified by the American Osteopathic Board of Family Physicians, Dr. Hanid Audish is a physician and principal investigator of clinical research at Encompass Clinical Research. Hanid Audish, DO, has organized and documented progressions of various clinical studies to assess new treatments for various diseases, including arthritis and obesity.

Although they are different conditions entirely, osteoarthritis (OA) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are sometimes difficult to distinguish from one another. Osteoarthritis is a degenerative disease where the cartilage surrounding a joint degrades, thus leading to direct contact of the bones at the joint, while rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease which causes inflammation and pain of joints throughout the body. Osteoarthritis can be caused by joint dislocation, injuries to ligaments, or torn cartilage. On the other hand, rheumatoid arthritis occurs when a person's immune system produces excess antibodies due to misinterpretation of the soft lining around the joints as infection sites. Both conditions are characterized by joint inflammation, and they exhibit the same symptoms, which include joint pain and joint stiffness. Both conditions can range from mild to severe, and each can result in gradual loss of joint function.

Unlike osteoarthritis, which is localized, rheumatoid arthritis may affect the same joints at both sides of the body. For example, if the joint affected is located in a person's arm, the same joint will probably be affected in the other arm as well. In osteoarthritis, however, only a particular joint is often affected. Anti-CCP, a test that assesses the body for an antibody that is linked to rheumatoid arthritis, confirms RA when a person tests positive.

Purpose of the Informed Consent Form Process

Clinical lab
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After working as a family doctor, Dr. Hanid Audish became a principal investigator for Encompass Research. As an investigator, Dr. Hanid Audish performs clinical trials in areas including osteoarthritis, ADHD, diabetes, and testosterone, among other conditions. Informed consent is an important part of the clinical trial process performed at the research site.

Informed consent is a crucial aspect of clinical trials because it provides participants with the autonomy to make sound, informed decisions regarding their care. This form usually explains the clinical procedure (clinical plan), what will happen to them, and the risks and possible side effects (discomfort). The form will also ask the participant to acknowledge their consent to participate in the trial.

To protect the integrity of clinical trials, the FDA believes this process is very important to a clinical trial. Signing the document, providing information, and giving the participant enough time to decide whether they want to participate (given all of the factors) are central to informed consent. Before receiving a signature from the participant, the investigator and participant usually will discuss any questions or concerns regarding the trial.

Placebos - What They Are and How They Are Used in Clinical Trials

Dr. Hanid Audish serves as the principal investigator at Encompass Clinical Research. Based in Spring Valley, California, the company completes a range of clinical research projects relating to such things as diabetes, osteoarthritis, and low testosterone. For many of these studies, Dr. Hanid Audish and his team use placebos.

Also known as dummy pills, placebos are inactive substances that are administered via a capsule, tablet, or other method that is the same as the actual treatment. Usually, a placebo contains sugar, starch, or saline, but it does not contain any active medication. Since placebos are designed to look and taste like medication, without actually administering anything to patients, they are common parts of clinical trials. They serve as a control and help researchers better measure the effectiveness of the experimental drug or treatment being studied since placebos do not directly affect the illness.

Interestingly, about one-third of people receiving placebos report a change in their symptoms due to the “treatment.” This is referred to as the placebo effect. Usually, these reported changes last for a short time, but they can affect the idea of how effective new treatments are. For this reason, experimental drug results are usually compared to placebo results to determine if they are statistically significant or not.