formerly National Library for Health
Available at: http://www.library.nhs.uk/default.aspx
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Monday, November 29, 2010
School info at click of mouse
In an unprecedented move by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE),
parents and students may soon have the opportunity to evaluate a school’s
compliance with academic, infrastructural, safety and other CBSE byelaws — at
the click of a mouse. The board has ordered that each CBSE-affiliated school
must start its own website highlighting its levels of compliance of each norm
including details of teachers, students strength and contact details of
administrators. In a letter to all affiliated schools, CBSE chairman Vineet Joshi has said that the schools must comply with the order within six months and should prepare annual reports which can be uploaded on their websites.
Over 10,500 schools across India and in a few foreign countries are affiliated
to the CBSE.Schools must also specify timelines by when they will complete compliance with any bye laws they are at present unable to meet.
The CBSE affiliation byelaws relate to the governance structure, land area and
other physical infrastructure and facilities, salaries, teacher-to-student
ratio, admission policies and fee structures that schools are required to
follow. The move is a key component of human resource development minister Kapil Sibal’s drive aimed at ensuring greater transparency in educational institutions,
sources said. The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has already ordered technical institutions like engineering and management schools to place on their websites details of teachers, students, infrastructure, fee policy and
governance structure.“The CBSE move will take the transparency drive forward to schools,” a senior government source said.
The CBSE letter mentions that the board decided to make it mandatory for every
affiliated school to develop its own website “containing comprehensive information about the school and its management” at a governing body meeting. The Central Information Commission, in an order dated August 5, 2010 had also stated that all schools affiliated to the board must place on their websites the
status of their implementation of norms.
Source | Hindustan Times | 30 November 2010
Like wise there is a need for health administrators to see that every medical libraries profile be made available in every medical institution home page to bring clarity and transparency in their workflow.
parents and students may soon have the opportunity to evaluate a school’s
compliance with academic, infrastructural, safety and other CBSE byelaws — at
the click of a mouse. The board has ordered that each CBSE-affiliated school
must start its own website highlighting its levels of compliance of each norm
including details of teachers, students strength and contact details of
administrators. In a letter to all affiliated schools, CBSE chairman Vineet Joshi has said that the schools must comply with the order within six months and should prepare annual reports which can be uploaded on their websites.
Over 10,500 schools across India and in a few foreign countries are affiliated
to the CBSE.Schools must also specify timelines by when they will complete compliance with any bye laws they are at present unable to meet.
The CBSE affiliation byelaws relate to the governance structure, land area and
other physical infrastructure and facilities, salaries, teacher-to-student
ratio, admission policies and fee structures that schools are required to
follow. The move is a key component of human resource development minister Kapil Sibal’s drive aimed at ensuring greater transparency in educational institutions,
sources said. The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has already ordered technical institutions like engineering and management schools to place on their websites details of teachers, students, infrastructure, fee policy and
governance structure.“The CBSE move will take the transparency drive forward to schools,” a senior government source said.
The CBSE letter mentions that the board decided to make it mandatory for every
affiliated school to develop its own website “containing comprehensive information about the school and its management” at a governing body meeting. The Central Information Commission, in an order dated August 5, 2010 had also stated that all schools affiliated to the board must place on their websites the
status of their implementation of norms.
Source | Hindustan Times | 30 November 2010
Like wise there is a need for health administrators to see that every medical libraries profile be made available in every medical institution home page to bring clarity and transparency in their workflow.
Thursday, November 25, 2010
National Rural Health Mission (2005-2012)
Recognizing the importance of Health in the process of economic and social
development and improving the quality of life of our citizens, the Government of India has resolved to launch the National Rural Health Mission to carry out necessary architectural
correction in the basic health care delivery system. The Mission adopts a synergistic
approach by relating health to determinants of good health viz. segments of nutrition,sanitation, hygiene and safe drinking water. It also aims at mainstreaming the Indian systems of medicine to facilitate health care. The Plan of Action includes increasing public expenditure on health, reducing regional imbalance in health infrastructure, pooling, resources, integration of organizational structures, optimization of health manpower,decentralization and district management of health programmes, community participation and ownership of assets, induction of management and financial personnel into district health system, and operationalizing community health centers into functional hospitals meeting Indian Public Health Standards in each Block of the Country.
The Goal of the Mission is to improve the availability of and access to quality
health care by people, especially for those residing in rural areas, the poor, women and children.
Source :http://www.mohfw.nic.in/NRHM/
development and improving the quality of life of our citizens, the Government of India has resolved to launch the National Rural Health Mission to carry out necessary architectural
correction in the basic health care delivery system. The Mission adopts a synergistic
approach by relating health to determinants of good health viz. segments of nutrition,sanitation, hygiene and safe drinking water. It also aims at mainstreaming the Indian systems of medicine to facilitate health care. The Plan of Action includes increasing public expenditure on health, reducing regional imbalance in health infrastructure, pooling, resources, integration of organizational structures, optimization of health manpower,decentralization and district management of health programmes, community participation and ownership of assets, induction of management and financial personnel into district health system, and operationalizing community health centers into functional hospitals meeting Indian Public Health Standards in each Block of the Country.
The Goal of the Mission is to improve the availability of and access to quality
health care by people, especially for those residing in rural areas, the poor, women and children.
Source :http://www.mohfw.nic.in/NRHM/
Dr.Shiyali Ramamrita Ranganathan: Founder of Library Science in India
Dr. Ranganathan was born: Aug. 9, 1892 at Shiyali, Madras, His Main works were:
Five Laws of Library Science (1931)
Colon Classification (1933)
Classified Catalogue Code (1934)
Prolegomena to Library Classification (1937)
Theory of the Library Catalogue (1938)
Elements of Library Classification (1945)
Classification and International Documentation (1948)
Classification and Communication (1951)
Headings and Canons (1955)
He Died: Sept. 27,1972 at Bangalore, Mysore
Five Laws of Library Science (1931)
Colon Classification (1933)
Classified Catalogue Code (1934)
Prolegomena to Library Classification (1937)
Theory of the Library Catalogue (1938)
Elements of Library Classification (1945)
Classification and International Documentation (1948)
Classification and Communication (1951)
Headings and Canons (1955)
He Died: Sept. 27,1972 at Bangalore, Mysore
SRR was appointed as University Librarian at Madras University on 03.01.1924
WorldCat
WorldCat is the world's largest network of library content and services. WorldCat libraries are dedicated to providing access to their resources on the Web, where most people start their search for information.
Source :http://www.worldcat.org/
Source :http://www.worldcat.org/
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Intute : a portal of electronic resources
With millions of resources available on the Internet, it can be difficult to find useful material.Intute is a free online service that helps to find web resources for your studies and research.
Source :http://www.intute.ac.uk/
Source :http://www.intute.ac.uk/
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Healthcare Providers (NABH)
NABH is a constituent board of Quality Council of India, set up to establish and operate accreditation programme for healthcare organizations. the board is structured to cater to much desired needs of the consumers and to set benchmarks for progress of health industry. The board while being supported by all stakeholders including industry, consumers, government, have full functional autonomy in its operation.
Source:http://www.qcin.org/nabh/index.php
Source:http://www.qcin.org/nabh/index.php
National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories
NABL accreditation is a formal recognition of the technical competence of a testing, calibration or medical laboratory for a specific task following ISO/IEC 17025:2005, ISO 15189:2007 Standards
Source: http://www.nabl-india.org/
Source: http://www.nabl-india.org/
National Board of Examinations
The National Board of Examinations was established in 1975 with the prime objective of improving the quality of the Medical Education by elevating the level and establishing standards of post graduate examinations in modern medicine on an all India basis.
Source:http://www.natboard.edu.in/
Source:http://www.natboard.edu.in/
Monday, November 22, 2010
Goa Medical College & Hospital
The ‘Escola Medico Cirurgica da Goa’ was established in 1842 during the Portuguese rule and renamed as Goa Medical College in 1963. It is the oldest medical college in Asia. The college is under the Goa University since 1986 before which it was under the Bombay University.
Goa Medical College & Hospital which now has its headquarters in Bambolim has a long tradition of providing quality services to all sections of the society. The Institute of Psychiatry and Human Behaviour (Bambolim), the TB and Chest Disease Hospital (St. Inez), The Rural Health and Training Centre (Mandur) and the Urban Health Centre (St. Cruz) form part of the establishment.
The Medical College besides striving to achieve excellence in patient care, has been instrumental in training a large number of medical professionals who are providing yeomen services to the people in Goa and other parts of India and all over the world.
Source:http://www.gmcmec.gov.in/
Goa Medical College & Hospital which now has its headquarters in Bambolim has a long tradition of providing quality services to all sections of the society. The Institute of Psychiatry and Human Behaviour (Bambolim), the TB and Chest Disease Hospital (St. Inez), The Rural Health and Training Centre (Mandur) and the Urban Health Centre (St. Cruz) form part of the establishment.
The Medical College besides striving to achieve excellence in patient care, has been instrumental in training a large number of medical professionals who are providing yeomen services to the people in Goa and other parts of India and all over the world.
Source:http://www.gmcmec.gov.in/
Central Council of Indian Medicine
The Central Council of Indian Medicine is the statutory body constituted under the Indian Medicine Central Council Act, 1970 vide gazette notifaction extraordinary part (ii) section 3(ii) dated 10.8.71.
Since its establishment in 1971, the Central Council has been framing on and implementing various regulations including the Curricula and Syllabii in Indian Systems of Medicine viz. Ayurved, Siddha and Unani Tibb at Under-graduate and Post-graduate level
Source: http://www.ccimindia.org/
Since its establishment in 1971, the Central Council has been framing on and implementing various regulations including the Curricula and Syllabii in Indian Systems of Medicine viz. Ayurved, Siddha and Unani Tibb at Under-graduate and Post-graduate level
Source: http://www.ccimindia.org/
Indian Systems of Medicine and Homoeopathy
The Indian Systems of Medicine and Homoeopathy (External website that opens in a new window) (ISM&H) were given an independent identity in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in 1995 by creating a separate Department of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (External website that opens in a new window) (AYUSH) in November 2003. The department is entrusted with the responsibility of developing and propagating officially recognised systems, namely, Ayurveda, Yoga, Naturopathy Siddha, Unani, and Homoeopathy. This was done in explicit realisation of contributions these ancient and holistic systems can make towards the health care of the people. These systems have marked superiority in addressing chronic conditions and offer a package of promotive and preventive interventions.
Source: http://india.gov.in/sectors/health_family/ayush.php
Source: http://india.gov.in/sectors/health_family/ayush.php
Indian Systems of Medicine and Homoeopathy (ISM&H)
Department of Indian Systems of Medicine and Homoeopathy (ISM&H) was created in March,1995 and re-named as Department of Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (AYUSH) in November, 2003 with a view to providing focused attention to development of Education & Research in Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy systems. The Department continued to lay emphasis on upgradation of AYUSH educational standards, quality control and standardization of drugs, improving the availability of medicinal plant material, research and development and awareness generation about the efficacy of the systems domestically and internationally
Source :http://indianmedicine.nic.in/
Source :http://indianmedicine.nic.in/
Friday, November 19, 2010
First Medical College and Hospital In Asia
From the age of Charak and Sushruta, i.e. Indian Medicine, to the modern allopathic treatment, Medical College and Hospital Kolkata has been serving the community of West Bengal and the neighbouring states of India.It is a center of excellence for the medical studies in undergraduate and postgraduate level and also in rendering specialized hospital services to the common people. It was established in 1835
http://www.medicalcollegekolkata.org/
http://www.medicalcollegekolkata.org/
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
The CDC is one of the major operating components of the Department of Health and Human Services, USA. CDC′s Mission is to collaborate to create the expertise, information, and tools that people and communities need to protect their health – through health promotion, prevention of disease, injury and disability, and preparedness for new health threats.
Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/
Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Library Website gives the visibility
Time to learn from leading institutes' library website just like
Cushing and Whitney Medical Library of Yale University
http://www.med.yale.edu/library/
Arizona Health Sciences Library of University of Arizona
http://www.ahsl.arizona.edu/
Welch Medical Library of Johns Hopkins University
http://www.welch.jhu.edu/
Health Sciences and Human Services Library at University of Maryland,
http://www.hshsl.umaryland.edu/
Medical College of Wisconsin Libraries
http://www.mcw.edu/mcwlibraries.htm
Cushing and Whitney Medical Library of Yale University
http://www.med.yale.edu/library/
Arizona Health Sciences Library of University of Arizona
http://www.ahsl.arizona.edu/
Welch Medical Library of Johns Hopkins University
http://www.welch.jhu.edu/
Health Sciences and Human Services Library at University of Maryland,
http://www.hshsl.umaryland.edu/
Medical College of Wisconsin Libraries
http://www.mcw.edu/mcwlibraries.htm
Medical / Health Sciences Libraries on the Web
Following link gives the list of medical libraries
http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/hardin/hslibs.html
http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/hardin/hslibs.html
'Malaria vaccine in final trials'
MUMBAI: Traditionally Big Pharma has invested and relied on blockbuster drugs, and has not been too keen on research in neglected diseases. But now the scenario may be changing with some companies like GlaxoSmithKline looking at it as a possible strategy for growth in emerging markets, which are growing at a much faster rate (mostly in double digits) as against the developed regions. GlaxoSmithKline, which has blockbusters like respiratory medicines Advair and Avamys, plans to invest around £12m per year (from 2012) in its albendazole drug programme for treating children with intestinal worms in Africa and India.
Read more: 'Malaria vaccine in final trials' - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/Malaria-vaccine-in-final-trials/articleshow/6938098.cms#ixzz15VIGV7ry
Read more: 'Malaria vaccine in final trials' - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/Malaria-vaccine-in-final-trials/articleshow/6938098.cms#ixzz15VIGV7ry
Bihar, UP women have highest fertility rate
Kounteya Sinha, TNN, Nov 17, 2010, 04.20am IST
NEW DELHI: Women in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh have the highest fertility rate (TFR) in India while those in Kerala and Tamil Nadu have the lowest. While the TFR in Bihar is 3.9 and that in UP is 3.8, the number stands at 1.7 in Kerala and TN.
The other states with high TFR include MP and Rajasthan at 3.3, Jharkhand at 3.2 and Chhattisgarh at 3. Assam's TFR is 2.6, Gujarat and Haryana's 2.5, Orissa's 2.4 and Jammu and Kashmir's 2.2. States with TFR between 1-2 include Delhi, Maharashtra and Karnataka at 2 and West Bengal and Punjab at 1.9.
The total fertility rate (TFR) of a population is the average number of children that would be born to a woman over her lifetime.
According to health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, the TFR for India fell from 3.3 to 2.58 in 2008, population growth rate from 1.5% to 1.1% in 2008 and contraceptive prevalence increased to 62.3%.
India's swelling population has the health ministry seriously worried. According to Azad, unless the rapid growth of population is contained, it will be difficult to ensure quality education, healthcare, food, housing, clean drinking water, sanitation, hygiene and a healthy environment for all.
Addressing the conference of Asian Population Association on Tuesday, Azad said the sheer pressure of numbers and limited resources like land leads to widespread displacement of people forcing them to migrate in search of livelihood.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/
NEW DELHI: Women in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh have the highest fertility rate (TFR) in India while those in Kerala and Tamil Nadu have the lowest. While the TFR in Bihar is 3.9 and that in UP is 3.8, the number stands at 1.7 in Kerala and TN.
The other states with high TFR include MP and Rajasthan at 3.3, Jharkhand at 3.2 and Chhattisgarh at 3. Assam's TFR is 2.6, Gujarat and Haryana's 2.5, Orissa's 2.4 and Jammu and Kashmir's 2.2. States with TFR between 1-2 include Delhi, Maharashtra and Karnataka at 2 and West Bengal and Punjab at 1.9.
The total fertility rate (TFR) of a population is the average number of children that would be born to a woman over her lifetime.
According to health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, the TFR for India fell from 3.3 to 2.58 in 2008, population growth rate from 1.5% to 1.1% in 2008 and contraceptive prevalence increased to 62.3%.
India's swelling population has the health ministry seriously worried. According to Azad, unless the rapid growth of population is contained, it will be difficult to ensure quality education, healthcare, food, housing, clean drinking water, sanitation, hygiene and a healthy environment for all.
Addressing the conference of Asian Population Association on Tuesday, Azad said the sheer pressure of numbers and limited resources like land leads to widespread displacement of people forcing them to migrate in search of livelihood.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/
Injectables part of birth-control drive
Kounteya Sinha, TNN, Nov 17, 2010, 03.20am IST
NEW DELHI: In a bid to increase the basket of choice of contraceptives for women, India may introduce injectable contraceptives soon.
The Union health ministry has urged the Drug Technical Advisory Body (DTAB) to allow the use of DMPA injectable contraceptives as a part of the nationwide family planning programme.
Union health secretary K Sujatha Rao confirmed on Tuesday that DTAB is all set to approve use of DMPAs in the public sector.
"Earlier, sterilisation was the dominant choice for family planning. Now, spacing methods like condoms have taken over. We're also looking at introducing injectable contraceptives to increase options for women," Rao said.
In 1995, DTAB had approved the use of DMPA in the private sector. It had felt that the public sector wasn't equipped well enough to handle its use in a large-scale manner, and also manage its side effects.
"Fortunately, we now have enough manpower and infrastructure, thanks to the National Rural Health Mission," Rao said.
Presently, women who don't want to conceive can opt for condoms, oral pills, Copper T and sterilisation.
The injectables, which have to be administered every three months, have been found to be very effective. A conception rate as low as 0.3 per 100 women in the first year of use has been recorded when injections are regularly spaced three months apart.
The injection helps stop ovulation (release of eggs from ovaries). It thickens the cervical mucus, making it difficult for sperm to pass through. It, however, doesn't disrupt existing pregnancy. It is reversible and an injection can prevent pregnancy for three months.
However, there are a few disadvantages as well. Changes in menstrual bleeding are likely, including light spotting or bleeding. In fact, amenorrhea is a normal effect especially after the first year of use. These injections may also cause weight gain (average of 1-2 kilos each year).
Severe headache, nausea, abdominal cram, hair loss, lack of sex drive and acne in some women have also been recorded.
No wonder, many women's groups have been against injectable contraceptives. They claim that studies have shown that injectable contraceptives could lead to osteoporosis. This can have grave consequences for poor women with low bone density due to lack of access to nutritious diet.
In the case against the injectable Net En -- filed in the Supreme Court in 1986 against the Union of India, ICMR, DCGI and others by Saheli and other women's groups -- the government had admitted in 2000 during the closure of the case that mass use of Net En in the family planning programme was not advisable.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/
NEW DELHI: In a bid to increase the basket of choice of contraceptives for women, India may introduce injectable contraceptives soon.
The Union health ministry has urged the Drug Technical Advisory Body (DTAB) to allow the use of DMPA injectable contraceptives as a part of the nationwide family planning programme.
Union health secretary K Sujatha Rao confirmed on Tuesday that DTAB is all set to approve use of DMPAs in the public sector.
"Earlier, sterilisation was the dominant choice for family planning. Now, spacing methods like condoms have taken over. We're also looking at introducing injectable contraceptives to increase options for women," Rao said.
In 1995, DTAB had approved the use of DMPA in the private sector. It had felt that the public sector wasn't equipped well enough to handle its use in a large-scale manner, and also manage its side effects.
"Fortunately, we now have enough manpower and infrastructure, thanks to the National Rural Health Mission," Rao said.
Presently, women who don't want to conceive can opt for condoms, oral pills, Copper T and sterilisation.
The injectables, which have to be administered every three months, have been found to be very effective. A conception rate as low as 0.3 per 100 women in the first year of use has been recorded when injections are regularly spaced three months apart.
The injection helps stop ovulation (release of eggs from ovaries). It thickens the cervical mucus, making it difficult for sperm to pass through. It, however, doesn't disrupt existing pregnancy. It is reversible and an injection can prevent pregnancy for three months.
However, there are a few disadvantages as well. Changes in menstrual bleeding are likely, including light spotting or bleeding. In fact, amenorrhea is a normal effect especially after the first year of use. These injections may also cause weight gain (average of 1-2 kilos each year).
Severe headache, nausea, abdominal cram, hair loss, lack of sex drive and acne in some women have also been recorded.
No wonder, many women's groups have been against injectable contraceptives. They claim that studies have shown that injectable contraceptives could lead to osteoporosis. This can have grave consequences for poor women with low bone density due to lack of access to nutritious diet.
In the case against the injectable Net En -- filed in the Supreme Court in 1986 against the Union of India, ICMR, DCGI and others by Saheli and other women's groups -- the government had admitted in 2000 during the closure of the case that mass use of Net En in the family planning programme was not advisable.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/
New drug cheats cancer cells into dying
Pushpa Narayan, TNN, Nov 17, 2010, 04.30am IST
Article
CHENNAI: India will soon launch a new spectrum of cancer drugs that will enhance the effects of radiation therapy by weakening the ability of the cancer cells to fight back. The drugs, developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), will work on all kinds of cancer, including complicated cases such as brain tumours and soft tissue cancer.
The therapy, experts say, will not only increase the success rates of cancer treatment by three times, but also come as a big boost to Indian medical research. Similar attempts in the West are yet to see desired results.
DRDO, after several years of clinical trials, has been able to prove that a compound, 2-Deoxyglucose (2-DG), which resembles glucose but has a slightly different chemical formula and structure, can 'confuse' and 'cheat' cancer cells to become weak. (2-DG is a glucose molecule with the 2-hydroxyl group replaced by hydrogen.)
Cancer cells spend energy in sucking glucose from the body and then derive energy from these cells. When 2-DG is infused into the body, usually 30 minutes ahead of radiation, the body cells and cancer cells spend energy in sucking glucose. But unlike glucose cells, 2-DG gives them no energy.
"The cancer cells lose energy and become incapable of gaining any. At this time if we give radiation therapy, the cancer cells will not be able to fight back. So the treatment will be effective. This also brings down the intensity of radiation and minimises the side effects," said said BS Dwarakanath, head, Division of Radiation Biosciences, Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS) of DRDO.
DRDO is awaiting clearance from the Drugs Controller General of India, after which production will begin. The technology has been transferred to Dr Reddy's Laboratories.
Earlier, former scientific advisor to the defence minister and secretary M Natarajan said DRDO was also in the process of developing three bio-protectors. "These are compounds derived from berries and tulsi, which show signs of protecting normal cells when they are subjected to radiotherapy or chemotherapy in animal trials. Advanced trials will soon begin," he said.
Dwarakanath and Natarajan were talking on the sidelines of the 'International Conference on Radiation Biology — Nanotechnology, Imaging and Stem Cell Research in Radiation Oncology' at the Sri Ramachandra University. The conference is being held in association with the Indian Society for Radiation Biology.
The three-day conference will aim at minimising side-effects of radiation and enhancing the positive effects. Scientists will also discuss ways to prevent the recurrence of cancer through stem cell therapy and better drug delivery through nano technology. The programme will cover all major disciplines of radiation sciences, including physics, chemistry, biology and medicine. More than 100 experts from the US, Germany, Canada, Poland, Japan and other countries are attending the conference.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/
Article
CHENNAI: India will soon launch a new spectrum of cancer drugs that will enhance the effects of radiation therapy by weakening the ability of the cancer cells to fight back. The drugs, developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), will work on all kinds of cancer, including complicated cases such as brain tumours and soft tissue cancer.
The therapy, experts say, will not only increase the success rates of cancer treatment by three times, but also come as a big boost to Indian medical research. Similar attempts in the West are yet to see desired results.
DRDO, after several years of clinical trials, has been able to prove that a compound, 2-Deoxyglucose (2-DG), which resembles glucose but has a slightly different chemical formula and structure, can 'confuse' and 'cheat' cancer cells to become weak. (2-DG is a glucose molecule with the 2-hydroxyl group replaced by hydrogen.)
Cancer cells spend energy in sucking glucose from the body and then derive energy from these cells. When 2-DG is infused into the body, usually 30 minutes ahead of radiation, the body cells and cancer cells spend energy in sucking glucose. But unlike glucose cells, 2-DG gives them no energy.
"The cancer cells lose energy and become incapable of gaining any. At this time if we give radiation therapy, the cancer cells will not be able to fight back. So the treatment will be effective. This also brings down the intensity of radiation and minimises the side effects," said said BS Dwarakanath, head, Division of Radiation Biosciences, Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS) of DRDO.
DRDO is awaiting clearance from the Drugs Controller General of India, after which production will begin. The technology has been transferred to Dr Reddy's Laboratories.
Earlier, former scientific advisor to the defence minister and secretary M Natarajan said DRDO was also in the process of developing three bio-protectors. "These are compounds derived from berries and tulsi, which show signs of protecting normal cells when they are subjected to radiotherapy or chemotherapy in animal trials. Advanced trials will soon begin," he said.
Dwarakanath and Natarajan were talking on the sidelines of the 'International Conference on Radiation Biology — Nanotechnology, Imaging and Stem Cell Research in Radiation Oncology' at the Sri Ramachandra University. The conference is being held in association with the Indian Society for Radiation Biology.
The three-day conference will aim at minimising side-effects of radiation and enhancing the positive effects. Scientists will also discuss ways to prevent the recurrence of cancer through stem cell therapy and better drug delivery through nano technology. The programme will cover all major disciplines of radiation sciences, including physics, chemistry, biology and medicine. More than 100 experts from the US, Germany, Canada, Poland, Japan and other countries are attending the conference.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/
Respiratory infections kill 4.25m a year
Kounteya Sinha, TNN, Nov 15, 2010, 04.19am IST
Article:
NEW DELHI: Acute Respiratory Infections, a disease group that includes pneumonia, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), is causing up to 4.25 million deaths annually.
According to the first-ever ARI Atlas published by the World Lung Foundation on Thursday, ARIs are the third largest cause of mortality in the world and the top killer in low- and middle-income countries like India.
Pneumonia is one of the worst acute respiratory diseases and it alone accounted for 20% of all pediatric deaths around the world, 1.6 million in 2008. India recorded the highest number of deaths due to pneumonia — 3.7 lakh. The death rate due to pneumonia was 215 times higher in low-income countries compared to high-income countries.
Also, 97% of the 156 million new cases of pneumonia each year occur in the developing world.
Lack of trained doctors has been identified as one of the causes. India has just six physicians per 10,000 people while it is eight in Pakistan, 14 in China and six in Sri Lanka.
Interestingly, while acute respiratory diseases are a serious threat, only about 1% ($32 million) of all pharmaceutical research and development funding was spent on acute respiratory diseases in 2007, compared with $1.1 billion spent on HIV-related research.
"Yet, acute respiratory diseases take twice the toll in lives lost. Despite causing 6% of deaths, research efforts attract only 1% of pharmaceutical research funding," according to the ARI Atlas.
World Lung Foundation CEO Peter Baldini says compared to the illness and mortality they cause, ARIs receive a fraction of government, donor agency and philanthropic support.
The goal of the ARI Atlas is to demonstrate in vivid detail the scale of this problem and to kick-start a serious conversation about addressing it.
Read more: Respiratory infections kill 4.25m a year - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Respiratory-infections-kill-425m-a-year/articleshow/6927224.cms#ixzz15VD1dflu
Article:
NEW DELHI: Acute Respiratory Infections, a disease group that includes pneumonia, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), is causing up to 4.25 million deaths annually.
According to the first-ever ARI Atlas published by the World Lung Foundation on Thursday, ARIs are the third largest cause of mortality in the world and the top killer in low- and middle-income countries like India.
Pneumonia is one of the worst acute respiratory diseases and it alone accounted for 20% of all pediatric deaths around the world, 1.6 million in 2008. India recorded the highest number of deaths due to pneumonia — 3.7 lakh. The death rate due to pneumonia was 215 times higher in low-income countries compared to high-income countries.
Also, 97% of the 156 million new cases of pneumonia each year occur in the developing world.
Lack of trained doctors has been identified as one of the causes. India has just six physicians per 10,000 people while it is eight in Pakistan, 14 in China and six in Sri Lanka.
Interestingly, while acute respiratory diseases are a serious threat, only about 1% ($32 million) of all pharmaceutical research and development funding was spent on acute respiratory diseases in 2007, compared with $1.1 billion spent on HIV-related research.
"Yet, acute respiratory diseases take twice the toll in lives lost. Despite causing 6% of deaths, research efforts attract only 1% of pharmaceutical research funding," according to the ARI Atlas.
World Lung Foundation CEO Peter Baldini says compared to the illness and mortality they cause, ARIs receive a fraction of government, donor agency and philanthropic support.
The goal of the ARI Atlas is to demonstrate in vivid detail the scale of this problem and to kick-start a serious conversation about addressing it.
Read more: Respiratory infections kill 4.25m a year - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Respiratory-infections-kill-425m-a-year/articleshow/6927224.cms#ixzz15VD1dflu
2m new TB cases in India last year
Kounteya Sinha, TNN, Nov 15, 2010, 04.21am IST
Article
NEW DELHI: India is saddled with highest burden of tuberculosis — with nearly 2 million new cases recorded in 2009. Out of an estimated 1.3 million people who died of TB in 2008, the nation alone accounted for 2.8 lakh lives.
India's case detection was around 67%, while the estimated number of TB cases that had become multi-drug resistant was 99,000 in 2009.
Even though the TB mortality rate has fallen by 35% since 1990, the disease claimed 1.7 million lives last year — of which 3.8 lakh were women.
According to World Health Organisation's annual report, "Global Tuberculosis Control 2010," around 4,700 die of TB daily. An estimated 9.4 million contracted the disease in 2009 — the same number as the previous year. However, the incidence of TB was stable, or falling in all 22 countries that have the highest burden of the disease except South Africa.
Six million lives are being saved annually as compared to 1995, thanks to improved detection and treatment. "There are still 1.7 million deaths a year from a disease that is perfectly curable in 2010. At this pace, it will take millennia to get rid of TB," said Mario Raviglione, director of the WHO's Stop TB unit.
However, "the biggest challenge of all" — as per the WHO — was an estimated 4.4 lakh multi-drug resistant (MDR) strains of TB a year, which are both hard to detect and treat.
"The main issue is in Russia, China and India, where most of the global (MDR) burden lies," said Raviglione. The global detection rate for MDR TB was about 5%.
WHO estimates that the largest number of new TB cases in 2008 occurred in the Southeast Asia Region, which accounted for 34% of incident cases globally. However, the estimated incidence rate in sub-Saharan Africa is nearly twice that of the Southeast Asia Region, which has recorded over 350 cases per 100,000. Among TB patients notified in 2009, an estimated 2.5 lakh had MDR-TB. Of these, slightly more than 30,000 (12%) were diagnosed with MDR-TB and notified.
The four countries that had the largest number of estimated cases of MDR-TB in absolute terms in 2008 were China (100,000), India (99,000), Russia (38,000), and South Africa (13,000). By July 2010, 58 countries had reported at least one case of extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB).
"India is a country which has seen the most spectacular increase in doing the right things in TB control," Raviglione said, pointing to a shift from sparse detection and treatment a decade ago to nationwide coverage. "In terms of treatment, possibly in the next 2-3 years, we will have for the first time I would say since the 1970s, two or three compounds that are effective against multi-drug resistant TB. So this will give us an extra weapon," Raviglione explained.
It was estimated that in 2009, 3.3% of all new TB cases had MDR-TB. TB is among the three main causes of death among women between 15 and 44 years.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/
Article
NEW DELHI: India is saddled with highest burden of tuberculosis — with nearly 2 million new cases recorded in 2009. Out of an estimated 1.3 million people who died of TB in 2008, the nation alone accounted for 2.8 lakh lives.
India's case detection was around 67%, while the estimated number of TB cases that had become multi-drug resistant was 99,000 in 2009.
Even though the TB mortality rate has fallen by 35% since 1990, the disease claimed 1.7 million lives last year — of which 3.8 lakh were women.
According to World Health Organisation's annual report, "Global Tuberculosis Control 2010," around 4,700 die of TB daily. An estimated 9.4 million contracted the disease in 2009 — the same number as the previous year. However, the incidence of TB was stable, or falling in all 22 countries that have the highest burden of the disease except South Africa.
Six million lives are being saved annually as compared to 1995, thanks to improved detection and treatment. "There are still 1.7 million deaths a year from a disease that is perfectly curable in 2010. At this pace, it will take millennia to get rid of TB," said Mario Raviglione, director of the WHO's Stop TB unit.
However, "the biggest challenge of all" — as per the WHO — was an estimated 4.4 lakh multi-drug resistant (MDR) strains of TB a year, which are both hard to detect and treat.
"The main issue is in Russia, China and India, where most of the global (MDR) burden lies," said Raviglione. The global detection rate for MDR TB was about 5%.
WHO estimates that the largest number of new TB cases in 2008 occurred in the Southeast Asia Region, which accounted for 34% of incident cases globally. However, the estimated incidence rate in sub-Saharan Africa is nearly twice that of the Southeast Asia Region, which has recorded over 350 cases per 100,000. Among TB patients notified in 2009, an estimated 2.5 lakh had MDR-TB. Of these, slightly more than 30,000 (12%) were diagnosed with MDR-TB and notified.
The four countries that had the largest number of estimated cases of MDR-TB in absolute terms in 2008 were China (100,000), India (99,000), Russia (38,000), and South Africa (13,000). By July 2010, 58 countries had reported at least one case of extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB).
"India is a country which has seen the most spectacular increase in doing the right things in TB control," Raviglione said, pointing to a shift from sparse detection and treatment a decade ago to nationwide coverage. "In terms of treatment, possibly in the next 2-3 years, we will have for the first time I would say since the 1970s, two or three compounds that are effective against multi-drug resistant TB. So this will give us an extra weapon," Raviglione explained.
It was estimated that in 2009, 3.3% of all new TB cases had MDR-TB. TB is among the three main causes of death among women between 15 and 44 years.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/
Sunday, November 14, 2010
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Life vs death: Lab uses DNA to fight cancer
Malathy Iyer, TNN, Nov 13, 2010, 02.59am IST
Article
MUMBAI: The simplicity of Lab Surgpath's office in Mumbai Central gives no indication of the cutting-edge work being done there. The six i-Macs bunched up in a corner of the largely bare office, however, provide the answer when they are switched on: Hitherto unseen high-definition images of normal and cancer cells start flashing rapidly on the screen.
It's here that a part of the ambitious sequel to the Human Genome project — the sequencing of the complex human DNAs — is being played out. Called the Human Protein Atlas (HPA), the sequel's Mumbai chapter is being handled by surgical pathologist Dr Sanjay Navani and his 10-member team of doctors.
Headquartered in Sweden, the Atlas is envisaged as a natural progression to the Genome project. The effort is to map each protein's behaviour in normal and cancer tissues. Once the proteins and the genes on which they occur are correlated, it would be easier to spot an anomaly that causes a disease. Once the antibody for each protein is known, preparing medications would be easier — a concept gaining popularity through the term 'personalized medicine'.
On November 15, 2010, when the HPA team presents the half-mark of its project in Stockholm — the sequencing of half the human proteome — Lab Surgpath's team of pathologists will also take a bow. They have painstakingly validated and documented the profiles of over 10,000 antibodies that the Swedish team has so far produced.
''The validation is an online exercise, as India has stringent rules governing the transfer of biological samples,'' says Dr Navani, who is among the handful of pathologists in the country practising surgical pathology (the study of human tissues under a microscope) and immunohistochemistry (in which proteins in tissues are detected using antibodies). So, teams in Stockholm's Royal Institute of Technology Stockholm and Uppsala University prepare slides of normal and cancer tissues. They use various antibodies generated within the project to stain the tissue: A dark stain would mean the sample has a particular protein while a lighter one would mean poor concentration of that protein.
At the Lab Surgpath office, pathologists such as Dr Naila Khan and Dr Tushar Patil study the stained samples and grade the antibodies on high-definition computer screens — their efficacy as well as their usefulness in diagnosing a particular form of cancer such as cancer of the ovary, breast or others. ''The HPA has provided us an excellent way to educate ourselves,'' say Dr Khan and Dr Patil.
The team works in batches, and follows a system of counter-checking each other's work. ''So, a sample graded by Dr Naila could be further validated by Dr Patil or an international expert,'' says Dr Navani, who until the start of the project worked with Breach Candy Hospital.
At present, the Human Protein Atlas site (www.proteinatlas.org) hosts 11,274 antibodies and 9,103,793 images. The project leader, Prof Mathias Uhlen, has been quoted in various fora as saying, ''We are trying to map the building blocks of life.'' His colleague, Fredrik Ponten, in an email interview to TOI, points out three stages of work: Preparing antibodies, matching them with the proteins in various tissues, and utilising the information to develop diagnostic tools and therapies.
Why was an Indian team selected for the process? Ponten says, ''Our work can only be evaluated by skilled pathologists who understand the microscopical landscape.
Dr Sanjay Navani was selected, based on his knowledge of surgical pathology and immunohistochemistry, which is fundamental for interpretation of what cells and tissues actually do.''
Dr Navani admits there was scepticism initially. ''The field of immunohistochemistry expertise itself is small in India. Here, we were training pathologists for the first time in the field. Yet, in the first month itself, we more than met the standards and volumes expected of us.'' Ponten concurs: ''The volume of images that are being evaluated every day at the Indian site is unheard of in the rest of the world and, as such, adds to the uniqueness of this successful project.'' More than 8 million images have been evaluated at the Mumbai site — the largest effort made by a single group of surgical pathologists ever.
Incidentally, the Atlas has spawned a rush for research work as well. The Swedish team, on special requests from research scientists in India who work in tandem with Dr Navani, has sent several samples of validated antibodies. ''Such research in India is very expensive, but the Atlas team has been generous enough to share its samples with Indian students and researchers,'' Dr Navani adds
Read more: Life vs death: Lab uses DNA to fight cancer - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/science/Life-vs-death-Lab-uses-DNA-to-fight-cancer/articleshow/6916940.cms#ixzz15AlnV3vz
Article
MUMBAI: The simplicity of Lab Surgpath's office in Mumbai Central gives no indication of the cutting-edge work being done there. The six i-Macs bunched up in a corner of the largely bare office, however, provide the answer when they are switched on: Hitherto unseen high-definition images of normal and cancer cells start flashing rapidly on the screen.
It's here that a part of the ambitious sequel to the Human Genome project — the sequencing of the complex human DNAs — is being played out. Called the Human Protein Atlas (HPA), the sequel's Mumbai chapter is being handled by surgical pathologist Dr Sanjay Navani and his 10-member team of doctors.
Headquartered in Sweden, the Atlas is envisaged as a natural progression to the Genome project. The effort is to map each protein's behaviour in normal and cancer tissues. Once the proteins and the genes on which they occur are correlated, it would be easier to spot an anomaly that causes a disease. Once the antibody for each protein is known, preparing medications would be easier — a concept gaining popularity through the term 'personalized medicine'.
On November 15, 2010, when the HPA team presents the half-mark of its project in Stockholm — the sequencing of half the human proteome — Lab Surgpath's team of pathologists will also take a bow. They have painstakingly validated and documented the profiles of over 10,000 antibodies that the Swedish team has so far produced.
''The validation is an online exercise, as India has stringent rules governing the transfer of biological samples,'' says Dr Navani, who is among the handful of pathologists in the country practising surgical pathology (the study of human tissues under a microscope) and immunohistochemistry (in which proteins in tissues are detected using antibodies). So, teams in Stockholm's Royal Institute of Technology Stockholm and Uppsala University prepare slides of normal and cancer tissues. They use various antibodies generated within the project to stain the tissue: A dark stain would mean the sample has a particular protein while a lighter one would mean poor concentration of that protein.
At the Lab Surgpath office, pathologists such as Dr Naila Khan and Dr Tushar Patil study the stained samples and grade the antibodies on high-definition computer screens — their efficacy as well as their usefulness in diagnosing a particular form of cancer such as cancer of the ovary, breast or others. ''The HPA has provided us an excellent way to educate ourselves,'' say Dr Khan and Dr Patil.
The team works in batches, and follows a system of counter-checking each other's work. ''So, a sample graded by Dr Naila could be further validated by Dr Patil or an international expert,'' says Dr Navani, who until the start of the project worked with Breach Candy Hospital.
At present, the Human Protein Atlas site (www.proteinatlas.org) hosts 11,274 antibodies and 9,103,793 images. The project leader, Prof Mathias Uhlen, has been quoted in various fora as saying, ''We are trying to map the building blocks of life.'' His colleague, Fredrik Ponten, in an email interview to TOI, points out three stages of work: Preparing antibodies, matching them with the proteins in various tissues, and utilising the information to develop diagnostic tools and therapies.
Why was an Indian team selected for the process? Ponten says, ''Our work can only be evaluated by skilled pathologists who understand the microscopical landscape.
Dr Sanjay Navani was selected, based on his knowledge of surgical pathology and immunohistochemistry, which is fundamental for interpretation of what cells and tissues actually do.''
Dr Navani admits there was scepticism initially. ''The field of immunohistochemistry expertise itself is small in India. Here, we were training pathologists for the first time in the field. Yet, in the first month itself, we more than met the standards and volumes expected of us.'' Ponten concurs: ''The volume of images that are being evaluated every day at the Indian site is unheard of in the rest of the world and, as such, adds to the uniqueness of this successful project.'' More than 8 million images have been evaluated at the Mumbai site — the largest effort made by a single group of surgical pathologists ever.
Incidentally, the Atlas has spawned a rush for research work as well. The Swedish team, on special requests from research scientists in India who work in tandem with Dr Navani, has sent several samples of validated antibodies. ''Such research in India is very expensive, but the Atlas team has been generous enough to share its samples with Indian students and researchers,'' Dr Navani adds
Read more: Life vs death: Lab uses DNA to fight cancer - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/science/Life-vs-death-Lab-uses-DNA-to-fight-cancer/articleshow/6916940.cms#ixzz15AlnV3vz
23 lakh kids aged below 5 died in one year in India
Kounteya Sinha, TNN, Nov 13, 2010, 02.49am IST
Article
Tags: NEW DELHI: Around 23 lakh children, aged 1-59 months, died in India in 2005 alone. Of these, more than 60% were from five causes — pneumonia, prematurity and low birthweight, diarrhoeal diseases, neonatal infections and birth asphyxia and birth trauma. Two causes accounted for 50% (6.7 lakh) of all deaths at 1-59 months —pneumonia 3.7 lakhs and diarrhoeal diseases 3 lakhs. This has been revealed in a study by the Registrar General of India published in British medical journal " The Lancet" on Saturday morning.
According to its authors, each of the major causes of neonatal deaths can be prevented or treated with known, highly effective and widely practicable interventions, raising concerns that the neonatal death rate in India is not falling fast enough.
The study says that in children aged 1-59 months, girls in central India had a five times higher mortality rate (per 1000 livebirths) from pneumonia than did boys in south India and four times higher mortality rate from diarrhoeal diseases than did boys in west India.
The study makes another vital observation — social preference for boys probably affects survival for girls. States with higher mortality rates in girls than in boys aged 1-59 months were also those with lower female-to-male sex ratio for second births after a boy (a measure of selective abortion of girls).
This finding also implies that less frequent use of health services by girls than by boys occurs in the same states in which selective abortion of female fetuses is common. Professor Prabhat Jha, director of the Centre for Global Health Research in Toronto and one of the study's lead authors, says the yearly child mortality rates in India have fallen between 1.77% and 2.73% in the past two decades.
Despite this decrease, the United Nations estimates that about 23.5 lakh children died in India in 2005 — 20% of all deaths in children younger than 5 years worldwide, more than in any other country. Prof Jha said, "Large differences in overall child survival between India's diverse regions have been previously documented. However, no direct measurement of the major causes of death in neonates (less than one month) and at ages 1-59 months has been done and how these causes of death vary across India's regions is unknown."
Read more: 23 lakh kids aged below 5 died in one year in India - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/23-lakh-kids-aged-below-5-died-in-one-year-in-India/articleshow/6916912.cms#ixzz15AkiTYxE
Article
Tags: NEW DELHI: Around 23 lakh children, aged 1-59 months, died in India in 2005 alone. Of these, more than 60% were from five causes — pneumonia, prematurity and low birthweight, diarrhoeal diseases, neonatal infections and birth asphyxia and birth trauma. Two causes accounted for 50% (6.7 lakh) of all deaths at 1-59 months —pneumonia 3.7 lakhs and diarrhoeal diseases 3 lakhs. This has been revealed in a study by the Registrar General of India published in British medical journal " The Lancet" on Saturday morning.
According to its authors, each of the major causes of neonatal deaths can be prevented or treated with known, highly effective and widely practicable interventions, raising concerns that the neonatal death rate in India is not falling fast enough.
The study says that in children aged 1-59 months, girls in central India had a five times higher mortality rate (per 1000 livebirths) from pneumonia than did boys in south India and four times higher mortality rate from diarrhoeal diseases than did boys in west India.
The study makes another vital observation — social preference for boys probably affects survival for girls. States with higher mortality rates in girls than in boys aged 1-59 months were also those with lower female-to-male sex ratio for second births after a boy (a measure of selective abortion of girls).
This finding also implies that less frequent use of health services by girls than by boys occurs in the same states in which selective abortion of female fetuses is common. Professor Prabhat Jha, director of the Centre for Global Health Research in Toronto and one of the study's lead authors, says the yearly child mortality rates in India have fallen between 1.77% and 2.73% in the past two decades.
Despite this decrease, the United Nations estimates that about 23.5 lakh children died in India in 2005 — 20% of all deaths in children younger than 5 years worldwide, more than in any other country. Prof Jha said, "Large differences in overall child survival between India's diverse regions have been previously documented. However, no direct measurement of the major causes of death in neonates (less than one month) and at ages 1-59 months has been done and how these causes of death vary across India's regions is unknown."
Read more: 23 lakh kids aged below 5 died in one year in India - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/23-lakh-kids-aged-below-5-died-in-one-year-in-India/articleshow/6916912.cms#ixzz15AkiTYxE
All HIV patients to get second-line treatment free
Kounteya Sinha & Dhananjay Mahapatra, TNN, Nov 13, 2010, 02.48am IST
NEW DELHI: All HIV patients put on first line antiretroviral therapy (ART) before 2004 but who became resistant to those drugs will now receive the life saving second line treatment free of cost from the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO).
This is irrespective of whether the patients were receiving first line ART in a government centre or a private hospital. This major policy shift was finalised by NACO on Thursday night.
Till now, NACO only provided second line treatment to those HIV patients who were part of its ART centres and had become resistant to first line drugs. Those patients on first line treatment in private hospitals or clinics were not eligible.
Second line treatment is tremendously expensive and not affordable for the common man. Also, it was only available in NACO's ART centres. So, patients who did not get first line treatment in NACO's ART centres perished if they became resistant.
Solicitor general Gopal Subramaniam informed a Supreme Court Bench comprising Chief Justice S H Kapadia, Justices K S Radhakrishnan and Swatanter Kumar that the health ministry took this decision on Friday. He informed the SC that details of the decision would be intimated through an affidavit in two weeks.
So what happens to those who were put on first line ART post-2004 but have become resistant to first line drugs? Expert committees in the 10 centres of excellence presently in charge of giving second line treatment will take a call.
ART is the only known treatment that inhibits HIV. The drugs slow down the replication of HIV and immune deterioration is delayed leading to an improvement in the survival and quality of life.
While first line drugs cost NACO Rs 5,000 per patient per year, second line cost them Rs 35,000 per patient per year. Patients, however, get the treatment free of charge.
India is home to an estimated 2.3 million HIV patients of which 6 lakh would require to be on ART. At present, 3.55 lakh HIV patients are receiving first line treatment in 285 NACO ART centres.
Ten centres have rolled out second line ART to 1,701 HIV patients. Five more centres in Nagpur, Pune, Salem, Aurangabad and Surat have been trained to start second line ART while two centres in Vijayawada and Hubli are being prepared.
India rolled out second line ART for the first time on December 1, 2008 in Mumbai's J J Hospital and Chennai's Tambaram ART centre.
Resistance to first line treatment mainly happens because of poor adherence to the treatment regimen. If not put on second line immediately, most of these patients die within a few years.
A CD-4 count test is used to gauge immunity levels of an HIV-infected patient and to assess whether damage caused by the virus requires life-saving ART. The CD-4 count in healthy adults ranges from 500 to 1,500 cells per cubic millimetre of blood. In HIV infected people, it goes down by 60 cells per cubic millimetre of blood per year as HIV progresses. ART is administered when an HIV positive person registers a CD-4 count under 200.
Read more: All HIV patients to get second-line treatment free - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/All-HIV-patients-to-get-second-line-treatment-free/articleshow/6915022.cms#ixzz15AjZ6V00
NEW DELHI: All HIV patients put on first line antiretroviral therapy (ART) before 2004 but who became resistant to those drugs will now receive the life saving second line treatment free of cost from the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO).
This is irrespective of whether the patients were receiving first line ART in a government centre or a private hospital. This major policy shift was finalised by NACO on Thursday night.
Till now, NACO only provided second line treatment to those HIV patients who were part of its ART centres and had become resistant to first line drugs. Those patients on first line treatment in private hospitals or clinics were not eligible.
Second line treatment is tremendously expensive and not affordable for the common man. Also, it was only available in NACO's ART centres. So, patients who did not get first line treatment in NACO's ART centres perished if they became resistant.
Solicitor general Gopal Subramaniam informed a Supreme Court Bench comprising Chief Justice S H Kapadia, Justices K S Radhakrishnan and Swatanter Kumar that the health ministry took this decision on Friday. He informed the SC that details of the decision would be intimated through an affidavit in two weeks.
So what happens to those who were put on first line ART post-2004 but have become resistant to first line drugs? Expert committees in the 10 centres of excellence presently in charge of giving second line treatment will take a call.
ART is the only known treatment that inhibits HIV. The drugs slow down the replication of HIV and immune deterioration is delayed leading to an improvement in the survival and quality of life.
While first line drugs cost NACO Rs 5,000 per patient per year, second line cost them Rs 35,000 per patient per year. Patients, however, get the treatment free of charge.
India is home to an estimated 2.3 million HIV patients of which 6 lakh would require to be on ART. At present, 3.55 lakh HIV patients are receiving first line treatment in 285 NACO ART centres.
Ten centres have rolled out second line ART to 1,701 HIV patients. Five more centres in Nagpur, Pune, Salem, Aurangabad and Surat have been trained to start second line ART while two centres in Vijayawada and Hubli are being prepared.
India rolled out second line ART for the first time on December 1, 2008 in Mumbai's J J Hospital and Chennai's Tambaram ART centre.
Resistance to first line treatment mainly happens because of poor adherence to the treatment regimen. If not put on second line immediately, most of these patients die within a few years.
A CD-4 count test is used to gauge immunity levels of an HIV-infected patient and to assess whether damage caused by the virus requires life-saving ART. The CD-4 count in healthy adults ranges from 500 to 1,500 cells per cubic millimetre of blood. In HIV infected people, it goes down by 60 cells per cubic millimetre of blood per year as HIV progresses. ART is administered when an HIV positive person registers a CD-4 count under 200.
Read more: All HIV patients to get second-line treatment free - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/All-HIV-patients-to-get-second-line-treatment-free/articleshow/6915022.cms#ixzz15AjZ6V00
India in grip of obesity epidemic
NEW DELHI: India is now in the grip of an obesity epidemic and the trend needs to be immediately arrested by taxing junk food, restricting food ads and making food labelling clearer, according to a study.
The study that looked at the burden of overweight citizens in six countries -- Brazil, China, India, Mexico, Russia and South Africa -- has found that between 1998 and 2005, India's overweight rates increased by 20%.
Currently, almost 1 in 5 men and over 1 in 6 women are overweight. In some urban areas, the rates are as high as 40%.
Published in the Lancet on Thursday by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the study warns that low-income countries cannot cope with the health consequences of wide scale obesity.
When compared to the other five countries, the percentage of adult women and men who are overweight in India was found to be lowest -- 14% and 18%, respectively. In comparison, 23% women and 32% men are overweight in China.
"However in absolute numbers, the burden would be mammoth in India and China," experts said.
According to estimates in the study, the annual cost of broad-based prevention strategies tackling obesity and other health threats, such as alcohol consumption, smoking, high blood pressure and cholesterol, would be less than $2 per person per year in India and China, less than $3 per head in Brazil and around $4 per person in South Africa, Russia and Mexico.
Upto 4,42,000 life years could be gained through a combination of prevention programmes in India every year. The cost-effectiveness ratio of a prevention strategy would be $268 per life year gained in good health in India and $380 in China, the study said.
OECD lead author Michele Cecchini said, "The results varied across countries surveyed. Seven in 10 Mexican adults are overweight or obese, while nearly half of all Brazilians, Russians and South Africans are also in this category. China and India report lower levels of obesity, but are also rapidly moving in the wrong direction. Low- and middle-income countries have far fewer health care resources to deal with the consequences of obesity, which include higher rates of cardiac disease, cancer and diabetes."
Obesity is the root for several non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Another study in the Lancet on Thursday predicts that by 2030, nearly 70% of all global deaths will be from non-communicable diseases like cancer, diabetes, and respiratory and heart disease. Of these 70% of deaths, 80% will be in the less wealthy nations like India.
According to WHO, NCDs -- principally cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancers and chronic respiratory diseases -- caused an estimated 35 million deaths in 2005. This figure represents 60% of all deaths globally, with 80% of deaths due to noncommunicable diseases occurring in low- and middle-income countries, and approximately 16 million deaths involving people under 70 years of age.
The total deaths from NCDs are projected to increase by a further 17% over the next 10 years. The greatest increase will be seen in the African region (27%) and the Eastern Mediterranean region (25%). The highest absolute number of deaths will occur in South-East Asia.
Up to 80% of heart disease, stroke and type-2 diabetes and over a third of cancers can be prevented by eliminating shared risk factors, mainly tobacco use, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity and the harmful use of alcohol.
Read more: 'India in grip of obesity epidemic' - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/India-in-grip-of-obesity-epidemic/
The study that looked at the burden of overweight citizens in six countries -- Brazil, China, India, Mexico, Russia and South Africa -- has found that between 1998 and 2005, India's overweight rates increased by 20%.
Currently, almost 1 in 5 men and over 1 in 6 women are overweight. In some urban areas, the rates are as high as 40%.
Published in the Lancet on Thursday by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the study warns that low-income countries cannot cope with the health consequences of wide scale obesity.
When compared to the other five countries, the percentage of adult women and men who are overweight in India was found to be lowest -- 14% and 18%, respectively. In comparison, 23% women and 32% men are overweight in China.
"However in absolute numbers, the burden would be mammoth in India and China," experts said.
According to estimates in the study, the annual cost of broad-based prevention strategies tackling obesity and other health threats, such as alcohol consumption, smoking, high blood pressure and cholesterol, would be less than $2 per person per year in India and China, less than $3 per head in Brazil and around $4 per person in South Africa, Russia and Mexico.
Upto 4,42,000 life years could be gained through a combination of prevention programmes in India every year. The cost-effectiveness ratio of a prevention strategy would be $268 per life year gained in good health in India and $380 in China, the study said.
OECD lead author Michele Cecchini said, "The results varied across countries surveyed. Seven in 10 Mexican adults are overweight or obese, while nearly half of all Brazilians, Russians and South Africans are also in this category. China and India report lower levels of obesity, but are also rapidly moving in the wrong direction. Low- and middle-income countries have far fewer health care resources to deal with the consequences of obesity, which include higher rates of cardiac disease, cancer and diabetes."
Obesity is the root for several non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Another study in the Lancet on Thursday predicts that by 2030, nearly 70% of all global deaths will be from non-communicable diseases like cancer, diabetes, and respiratory and heart disease. Of these 70% of deaths, 80% will be in the less wealthy nations like India.
According to WHO, NCDs -- principally cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancers and chronic respiratory diseases -- caused an estimated 35 million deaths in 2005. This figure represents 60% of all deaths globally, with 80% of deaths due to noncommunicable diseases occurring in low- and middle-income countries, and approximately 16 million deaths involving people under 70 years of age.
The total deaths from NCDs are projected to increase by a further 17% over the next 10 years. The greatest increase will be seen in the African region (27%) and the Eastern Mediterranean region (25%). The highest absolute number of deaths will occur in South-East Asia.
Up to 80% of heart disease, stroke and type-2 diabetes and over a third of cancers can be prevented by eliminating shared risk factors, mainly tobacco use, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity and the harmful use of alcohol.
Read more: 'India in grip of obesity epidemic' - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/India-in-grip-of-obesity-epidemic/
Friday, November 12, 2010
eGovernance Standards Portal
The Government of India has launched the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP) with the intent to support the growth of e-governance within the country. The Plan envisages creation of right environments to implement G2G,G2B,G2E and G2C services.
To ensure Interoperability among e-Governance applications, Government of India has setup an Institutional mechanism for formulation of Standards through collaborative efforts of stakeholders like Department of Information Technology(DIT), National Informatics Centre (NIC), Standardization Testing and Quality Certification( STQC), other Government departments, Academia, Technology Experts, Domain Experts, Industry, BIS, NGOs etc. In this process there is a provision of formal Public review also.
The e-Governance Standards portal ( http://egovstandards.gov.in )
To ensure Interoperability among e-Governance applications, Government of India has setup an Institutional mechanism for formulation of Standards through collaborative efforts of stakeholders like Department of Information Technology(DIT), National Informatics Centre (NIC), Standardization Testing and Quality Certification( STQC), other Government departments, Academia, Technology Experts, Domain Experts, Industry, BIS, NGOs etc. In this process there is a provision of formal Public review also.
The e-Governance Standards portal ( http://egovstandards.gov.in )
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Monday, November 8, 2010
JJ hospital to start an e-library
Pratibha Masand, TNN, Nov 9, 2010, 06.27am IST
MUMBAI: All the latest medical information will now be just a click away for doctors and doctors-to-be at the JJ Hospital and Medical College as the hospital is setting up a first of its kind e-library, which will start functioning within a month.
The government has given the college permission to start the e-library in an unused computer training centre on the hospital premises. "The library will have around 2,000 medical journals for under-graduate, post-graduate and nursing students to look through. This will help them with research and in making dissertations. Also, the library will be accessible to professors, associate professors and lecturers," said Dr T P Lahane, dean of JJ Hospital.
There are 25 computers in the training centre and around 450 computers have been assigned to doctors, which will be connected to the library.
Earlier, the hospital would subscribe to a few journals, which would take a long time to arrive. The new e-library is going to make life more easy for students. "Right now, we have to manually search the library for information on topics for a project. It takes time and often, it doesn't work. The e-library will allow us to get information within seconds," said a final-year MBBS student in JJ.
According to doctors, the library is going to be a useful tool for everyone in the hospital. "Doctors like to read about latest developments in their fields. We also try to include new practices in our treatments, which we read about in foreign journals," said a senior doctor from the hospital.
SOURCE: Times of India
MUMBAI: All the latest medical information will now be just a click away for doctors and doctors-to-be at the JJ Hospital and Medical College as the hospital is setting up a first of its kind e-library, which will start functioning within a month.
The government has given the college permission to start the e-library in an unused computer training centre on the hospital premises. "The library will have around 2,000 medical journals for under-graduate, post-graduate and nursing students to look through. This will help them with research and in making dissertations. Also, the library will be accessible to professors, associate professors and lecturers," said Dr T P Lahane, dean of JJ Hospital.
There are 25 computers in the training centre and around 450 computers have been assigned to doctors, which will be connected to the library.
Earlier, the hospital would subscribe to a few journals, which would take a long time to arrive. The new e-library is going to make life more easy for students. "Right now, we have to manually search the library for information on topics for a project. It takes time and often, it doesn't work. The e-library will allow us to get information within seconds," said a final-year MBBS student in JJ.
According to doctors, the library is going to be a useful tool for everyone in the hospital. "Doctors like to read about latest developments in their fields. We also try to include new practices in our treatments, which we read about in foreign journals," said a senior doctor from the hospital.
SOURCE: Times of India
HEALTH EDUCATION LIBRARY FOR PEOPLE (HELP)
Patient education is an integral part of health care delivery across medical centers in developed countries thus encouraging active patient participation and ensuring far better compliance and patient satisfaction.
It was this very dream that inspired Dr. Aniruddha and Dr. Anjali Malpani, who founded HELP in 1997, with a dream to make each and every individual in this country aware of his rights and responsibilities as a patient, of ways people could reduce the burden of health care expenses by planning and educating themselves "before" a serious medical problem could strike their family, and how doctors and patients could join hands to achieve health for all.
What started as a resource center eleven years back, with a modest collection of material on patient education, in their day care center at Om Chambers, has grown into India's only largest patient education center housing more than 11,000 authentic books on possibly every aspect of health and diseases, along with pamphlets, health care magazines, and an exhaustive audiovisual section too.
HELP was also documented to be the world's largest Free library on consumer health information in the Limca book of records. State of the art infertility specialists to the world, Founders and visionaries for HELP, our Medical Directors have paved the path for the new "patient-centric health care"revolution in India.
SOURCE:http://www.healthlibrary.com/
It was this very dream that inspired Dr. Aniruddha and Dr. Anjali Malpani, who founded HELP in 1997, with a dream to make each and every individual in this country aware of his rights and responsibilities as a patient, of ways people could reduce the burden of health care expenses by planning and educating themselves "before" a serious medical problem could strike their family, and how doctors and patients could join hands to achieve health for all.
What started as a resource center eleven years back, with a modest collection of material on patient education, in their day care center at Om Chambers, has grown into India's only largest patient education center housing more than 11,000 authentic books on possibly every aspect of health and diseases, along with pamphlets, health care magazines, and an exhaustive audiovisual section too.
HELP was also documented to be the world's largest Free library on consumer health information in the Limca book of records. State of the art infertility specialists to the world, Founders and visionaries for HELP, our Medical Directors have paved the path for the new "patient-centric health care"revolution in India.
SOURCE:http://www.healthlibrary.com/
OLDMEDLINE is Another Year Older with the Addition of the 1946 CLML Citations.
November 01, 2010 [posted]
OLDMEDLINE is Another Year Older with the Addition of the 1946 CLML Citations
More historical journal citations are now in MEDLINE®/PubMed® with the addition of over 48,000 citations from the 1946 Current List of Medical Literature (CLML). The National Library of Medicine® (NLM®) has been converting information from older print indexes that were the precursors to Index Medicus. When the original MEDLINE database made its debut in 1971, it contained citations to journal articles published from approximately 1966 forward. The 1946 CLML represents the 20th year going back in time to enhance access to the older biomedical literature. With the addition of the 1946 CLML citations, the OLDMEDLINE subset contains over two million citations.
NLM also continues the work of mapping the original keywords assigned to these older references so that current MeSH® terms (Medical Subject Headings) are added to the records and available for searching in PubMed.
Additional information about the OLDMEDLINE data project is available.
Source: NLM Tech Bull. 2010 Nov-Dec;(377):e1.
OLDMEDLINE is Another Year Older with the Addition of the 1946 CLML Citations
More historical journal citations are now in MEDLINE®/PubMed® with the addition of over 48,000 citations from the 1946 Current List of Medical Literature (CLML). The National Library of Medicine® (NLM®) has been converting information from older print indexes that were the precursors to Index Medicus. When the original MEDLINE database made its debut in 1971, it contained citations to journal articles published from approximately 1966 forward. The 1946 CLML represents the 20th year going back in time to enhance access to the older biomedical literature. With the addition of the 1946 CLML citations, the OLDMEDLINE subset contains over two million citations.
NLM also continues the work of mapping the original keywords assigned to these older references so that current MeSH® terms (Medical Subject Headings) are added to the records and available for searching in PubMed.
Additional information about the OLDMEDLINE data project is available.
Source: NLM Tech Bull. 2010 Nov-Dec;(377):e1.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Asia’s premier health portal
Medindia.com (or .net) is Asia’s premier health portal providing a range of services to both healthcare consumers and the medical professionals. Medindia has a net presence of seven years and was started as a social mission to provide the consumers with essential health related information in simple language. Over the years it has evolved into Asian regions most comprehensive portal in the health sector in terms of content, viewer ship, technology leadership and domain expertise.
The portal is headed by eminent doctors with a team of editors, programmers and designers. The site recommends registration to fully utilize its services that are all free. The popular areas include electronic medical records, Health Info, Calculators and Interactives. Doctors, hospital administrators and conference organizers are able to create free online homepages without technology/internet expertise. The search directories have over 200,000 entries of Doctors, Dentists, Hospitals, Medical colleges, Chemists, Surgical suppliers and Pharmaceuticals from all over India.
Source:http://www.medindia.net/
The portal is headed by eminent doctors with a team of editors, programmers and designers. The site recommends registration to fully utilize its services that are all free. The popular areas include electronic medical records, Health Info, Calculators and Interactives. Doctors, hospital administrators and conference organizers are able to create free online homepages without technology/internet expertise. The search directories have over 200,000 entries of Doctors, Dentists, Hospitals, Medical colleges, Chemists, Surgical suppliers and Pharmaceuticals from all over India.
Source:http://www.medindia.net/
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