Published: February 13, 2008 09:11 pm         

Mini Medical School offering ‘Sweet Heart’ session

Second presentation in 12th annual series looks at effects of diabetes

TERRE HAUTE — The second presentation in the 12th annual Mini Medical School series, “Sweet Heart — The Effects of Diabetes on You,” will be presented from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Landsbaum Center for Health Education. All sessions in the series are free and open to the public; however, reservations are suggested due to limited seating.

Two health screenings will be available; beginning at 5:30 p.m., Ivy Tech nursing students will offer blood pressure screenings while the Union Hospital Diabetic Center will conduct glucose screenings.

According to the American Diabetes Association, two out of three people with diabetes die from heart disease and stroke. Diabetes management is more than control of blood glucose. You must also manage blood pressure and cholesterol. In this session, two physicians and a certified nutrition specialist will present information on how diabetes affects your heart and how you can prevent heart attacks and stroke.

Panelists for the discussion are George Bittar, M.D.; Isaiah Pittman IV, M.D., and Rao Ivaturi, Ph.D.

Bittar completed medical school at Aleppo University in Syria, and an internship at St. Michael’s Medical Center, Newark, N.J. He did his residency at Brooklyn Hospital, N.Y., and fellowships at Brooklyn Hospital and Marshall University School of Medicine, Huntington, W.Va. Dr. Bittar is with the Providence Medical Group and is board certified in cardiovascular diseases, interventional cardiology and internal medicine.

Pittman practices endocrinology at Providence Medical Group. His clinical interests are diabetes, obesity, thyroid disease, pituitary disorders and metabolic bone disease. He has spent significant time doing basic research and continues to have an interest in metabolic syndrome and preventing its spread in modern society. He is also interested in the prevention of osteoporosis and osteoporotic fractures via early prevention.

Pittman received his doctorate from the University of Chicago and his medical degree from the University of Chicago, Pritzker School of Medicine. He did a residency in internal medicine at the University of Illinois at Chicago and research and clinical fellowships in endocrinology at the University of Chicago Hospitals.

Ivaturi holds a bachelor of science degree from Andhra Pradesh Agriculture University in India, a master of science degree from Kansas State University, and a doctoral degree from the University of Nebraska.

He teaches in the Family and Consumer Sciences Department at Indiana State University. His specialization is in the field of nutrition and world hunger. Recognized as an outstanding researcher, Ivaturi’s works in nutrition and world hunger have been published in such professional journals as Ecology of Food and Nutrition and the Journal of Nutrition Education. He is the recipient of numerous grants which involve the study of nutrition in Brazil, India, African-Americans, and the elderly.

The Mini Medical School is sponsored by the Indiana University School of Medicine — Terre Haute, Affinity Stress Center, AP&S Clinic, Hamilton Center, Indiana State University, Ivy Tech Community College, Minority Health Coalition of Vigo County, Providence Medical Group, Terre Haute Regional Hospital, and Union Hospital Health Group.

To make your reservation for the Mini-Med School series, contact ISU’s Community and Professional Programs at (812) 237-4011 or 1-800-234-1639.