In this study we propose to use a drug called colchicine to reduce inflammation. To do this, we propose to ask patients with diabetes mellitus who have had a recent heart attack or a stroke to give blood for markers of inflammation. We will also take pictures of the neck arteries of these patients with a special technique that shows inflammation in the vessel wall. After 6 months treatment with colchicine, we will repeat the blood tests and will take pictures of the arteries again to see if there is less inflammation in the whole body and in the arteries.

We are testing head-mounted computer glasses that integrates the actual visual environment with additional digital images to potentially help patients with: 1) Peripheral vision loss after stroke or visual pathway injury 2) Double vision that does not respond to surgery or prisms 3) Wrinkled retinas (epiretinal membrane) with visual distortion that cannot be fixed by surgery 4) Incessant eye movements (nystagmus) that can cause visual loss, or the perception the visual environment is constantly moving when it is not. Participants will navigate a short obstacle course on level ground with soft objects and read a few paragraphs of English text. The testing can be completed in one or two hospital visits and requires 60-90 minutes.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is common, In Canada, approximately 4 million individuals have CKD, and 43,000 have progressed to kidney failure. Most of the 6000 Canadians who develop kidney failure annually start in-center hemodialysis. HD treatments are associated with poor quality of life and adverse outcomes. The HD procedure itself causes repetitive episodes of transient heart muscle injury (called stunning) and is associated with worsening functional status, increased heart failure rates, and sudden cardiac deaths. The study will assess if participation in a 12-week aerobic exercise program during hemodialysis(HD) decreases HD-induced heart muscle injury (cardiac stunning).