When two great medical minds meet

On Monday 27 July 2026, the Castle Hill headquarters of Foot Balance Technology became the setting for a reunion that was as warm as it was professionally significant – when Dr Sayed Ahmed, holder of Australia’s first PhD in Pedorthics, welcomed his long-time colleague and friend Professor Arup Ratan Choudhury, one of Bangladesh’s most celebrated medical figures.

The two men have known one another since 2012. 

“I have kept in touch by following Professor Choudhury on social media – being a man of so many great talents – reading his articles and through meeting at international health conferences,” says Dr Ahmed. 

It’s a friendship built on mutual admiration, shared values and a common commitment to improving health outcomes for the communities they serve.

Professor Choudhury is no ordinary visitor. 

Head and senior consultant of the Department of Dentistry at the Bangladesh Institute of Research and Rehabilitation for Diabetes, Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders – the renowned BIRDEM hospital in Dhaka – he is also a media personality, a published author of 11 books and, perhaps less widely known outside Bangladesh, a celebrated singer!

He has presented 38 scientific papers at international seminars, holds fellowships from London University and the State University of New York and has visited Australia on numerous occasions for medical conferences in major cities, as well as to spend time with his son, who has built a successful life and career as a builder in Sydney.

His honours are formidable. 

“I have won the highest civil award in Bangladesh for my social work,” Professor Choudhury says – a reference to the Ekushe Padak, the country’s second highest national honour. 

He is also the recipient of the World Health Organisation’s prestigious “Tobacco or Health” Medal, recognition for an anti-smoking campaign he began more than 40 years ago and pursues with undiminished passion today. 

“It is particularly important to alert children to the dangers of smoking and these days, vaping – and the danger of passive smoking,” he says. 

Working alongside the Bangladesh Government, he has helped implement tobacco control legislation that prohibits smoking in public places, bans tobacco advertising and carries financial penalties for breaches.

 “But the tobacco companies are always looking for ways to circumvent the law by going to social media,” he warns.

At the heart of Professor Choudhury’s ongoing research is the critical and still underappreciated link between oral health and diabetes. 

“Once upon a time the link between oral health and diabetes was neglected, but research has shown that if your dental health is poor, your diabetes will never be under control,” he says. 

At BIRDEM – where three thousand patients present every single day for check-ups and treatment – a remarkable integrated care model is in operation. 

Patients are screened across every discipline: cardiology, endocrinology, dental, dermatology, ophthalmology, nutrition and gynaecology. 

Each patient receives a personalised Diabetic Guide Book in which every result is recorded, creating a living health record that travels with them across every return visit – be it monthly or quarterly, for life. 

“Every diabetic patient should take special care with their dental health,” Professor Choudhury says.

“Put simply, if your dental health isn’t good, then the problems start from there.”

It is a message that resonates deeply with Foot BalanceTechnology and OrthoGenix founder Dr Ahmed, whose own research into diabetic foot care has long placed prevention and personalised management at its centre. 

A clinician, researcher and entrepreneur with a deep sense of duty to his community, this recent meeting with a colleague he greatly admires has already sparked plans for future collaboration between the pair.

“There needs to be more awareness about dental care and how important it is, especially for diabetics,” Dr Ahmed says. 

“As a diabetic foot specialist I see every day how systemic disease manifests in the lower limb – and the connections between oral health, diabetes and foot complications are profound.”

“I am looking forward to collaborating with the Professor on his next visit for the benefit of the community – perhaps a one-day workshop bringing together dental, podiatric, cardio, endocrine and other areas of health under one roof.” 

Regular AMUST readers will know Dr Ahmed’s own story well – from a small village in Bangladesh to global recognition, including the Top 100 Healthcare Leaders Award in Las Vegas and the Outstanding Leadership Award in Dubai, with his PhD completion attracting front-page coverage in Prothom Alo, Bangladesh’s most widely read daily newspaper.

Bangladesh (population 175 million in 2025) has every reason to be proud of both men. 

And with their ongoing collaboration assured, Australian communities will be all the richer for their friendship.