News Digest

National Eligibility cum-Entrance Test to roll out from 2013
The first ever single eligibility-cum-entrance examination for MBBS and post-graduate medical courses, will now be rolled out from 2013. This was indicated by the Union health ministry in a meeting with the Medical Council of India on Friday.

Fewer women having kids in 30s: Study
An analysis of forty years of global marriage and fertility data shows that the real effect of the decline in fertility in India has been a massive decrease in the number of women in their thirties having children. In western and northern Europe, on the other hand, women are more likely to have their first child at 30.

The United Nations Department of Economics and Social Affairs' World Fertility Report released last week presents 40 years of marriage and fertility data for 196 countries. The data illustrates the progress of India's fertility transition, and shows where it stands with respect to the rest of the world.

Robotic surgery to make cataract removal a five-minute affair
NEW DELHI: Cataract surgeries are soon going to be faster and hassle-free. A new technology, which uses laser machines, to operate on cataract patients is being acquired by a select few hospitals.
In this robotic surgery, a femto-second laser machine is docked on to the eye and images of the eye are captured by an imaging system attached to it. The incision of the cornea, opening of the lens capsule and fragmentation of the lens is done robotically. And the process takes less than five minutes.

Drinking water in all govt schools
NEW DELHI: India on Monday crossed a major milestone by being able to provide drinking water in all government run schools, though it took 65 years since independence and a lot of persuasion followed by coercion from the Supreme Court.The bench also said, "It is imperative that all schools must provide toilet facilities. Wherever separate toilets are not provided, parents are reluctant to send their daughters to schools. It clearly violates the girl child's right to education guaranteed under Article 21A of the Constitution."

Source: TOI

Growing population demands, greater access

RGUHS to dole out e-books for students

Now, accessing information is going to be as simple as a click of the mouse for the students of Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS) and its affiliate colleges. The university will be offering a plethora of e-resources to its students and faculty.

“RGUHS already has an online bank for e-journals. But it is used by postgraduate students. Now, undergraduate students will be able to access e-books online. They may have to pay a minimal subscription fee, but now, they will be able to access important textbooks that were not available earlier,” said vice-chancellor KS Sriprakash.

Sriprakash also added that it will be a part of the university’s HELINET (Health Science Library and Information Network) system.

Students will also gain access to other applications such as virtual audio-visual 3D anatomy models.

“Through these models, you can peel away layers of the human anatomy virtually. You can learn about specific regions of the body and rotate the models at 360 degrees,” said

Dr R Rama Raj Urs, university librarian and consortium coordinator of HELINET.

“What’s great about taking things online is that you get speed and accuracy, and it’s also economical. Moreover, you can access information round-the-clock,” added Urs.

Currently, there are over 600 universities that are affiliated to RGUHS in Karnataka, and this will be made available for them as well.

The online resources, which also include a database of international pharmaceutical abstracts as well as an electronic tool called five-minute consult, provides information on the diagnosis and treatment and follow-up procedures for over 2,000 medical conditions.

“Students will be given IDs and passwords to log in to the system. They can also come to their respective libraries and access e-books and other multimedia products,” said Urs.

Currently, the university is conducting an orientation programme for students and faculty members for colleges affiliated to RGUHS.

“After the orientation is over, we are looking to getting this up and running in January,” said Urs.

News Digest

Alcohol among major global killers

NEW DELHI: Alcohol globally has become a major killer. The WHO says globally, 6.2% of all male deaths are alcohol-related, compared to 1.1% of female deaths. Around 3.2 lakh young people aged 15-29 years die annually from drinking, resulting in 9% of all deaths in that age group.
Experts say liquor raises the risk of as many as 60 diseases. What's most worrying for India is that the country is home to one of the largest alcoholic beverage industries in the world, producing 65% of the alcohol in south-east Asia.

India contributes to about 7% of the total alcohol beverage imports into the region. India was among the first countries to raise an alarm against alcohol.

Since then, it has not been able to put in place an effective anti-alcohol policy.

Stem cell study: Govt wants to draw ethical line

NEW DELHI: Should gamete donation be allowed in India? What about couples undergoing In-vitro Fertilization (IVF) donating spare embryos for research? These are some of the contentious issues on which the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), in collaboration with Department of Biotechnology ( DBT), is looking to the public for answers and suggestions. Towards this end, the health research wing of the government has organised a public consultation programme in the Capital on Saturday.

According to Dr V M Katoch, director general of ICMR, the aim is to develop a consensus among scientists, pharmacists and the public. "The ICMR-DBT guidelines on stem cell research and therapy were prepared in 2007. We are revising it and the public consultation programme is an attempt to seek suggestions on the same," said Katoch. He added that the 'Biomedical Research Human Subjects Promotion and Regulation Bill,' to regulate and monitor research on the human subjects including use of stem cells for experimental and therapeutic purposes, is also being finalized.

All in family: Women take lead as kidney donors
Statistics show that it's women who are in the lead as donors. And this has much to do with saving their families. Figures from major city hospitals that conduct kidney transplant show that in over 70% cases, women - mostly the wife or the mother - donate their organs.

Cabinet nod for NRI doctors to practice, teach in India

NEW DELHI: NRI doctors are a step closer to be able to practice or teach medicine in India.The Cabinet on Tuesday cleared the National Council of Human Resources in Health (NCHRH) Bill that allows doctors who hold the Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) status to work in India. They can also join medical college as faculty.


Wake-up call on sleep apnea
Kounteya Sinha, TNN | Dec 15, 2011, 02.38AM IST
NEW DELHI: Those suffering from Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) are four times more prone to suffer from cardiovascular risk factors and metabolic syndrome (MS) such as obesity, hypertension, dyslipidaemia and insulin resistance. Delhi has 9.3% prevalence of OSA which is a highly prevalent but an under-recognized clinical problem. In an urban setting in northern India, the occurrence of OSA is 13.7% and 3.8% in men and women.

However, patients with moderate-to-severe OSA can reverse metabolic abnormalities and lower blood pressure by undergoing three months of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy.

These are the findings of two separate studies - one published in the Indian Journal of Medical Research (IJMR) and the other in New England Journal of Medicine - carried out by Dr S K Sharma, who heads the department of medicine at AIIMS.


Govt hospitals have to renew fire clearance
TNN | Dec 13, 2011, 01.20AM IST
NEW DELHI: All government hospitals will have to renew their fire clearance certificates within a month, said Delhi health minister A K Walia.

He held a meeting on fire-safety measures in government hospitals with officials and PWD engineers. This comes in the wake of the blaze in AMRI in Kolkata that has claimed 93 lives so far.

"I have asked medical superintendents of all hospitals to review the fire-safety measures in consultation with PWD engineers and prepare a list of steps needed. They have been instructed to renew their fire clearance certificates in a month's time," said Walia.

Samsung flags off ‘Wheels Of Hope’ Programme
The Samsung Wheels of Hope bus, which is a converted computer lab with Samsung Notebooks /netbooks and tablets, gives these children their first exposure to the world of computers and the power of the internet.The Company’s endeavor to spread knowledge on new age technology products and the world of the internet to students from the lesser privileged sections of society.The bus started it journey to reach out to students studying in around 35 MCD and government-aided schools in Delhi/ NCR region.

Researchers to preserve city’s oral history

NEW DELHI: Museums have for long recorded the tangible heritage of a city ; the bricks and mortar with which the city was built. But can a museum capture the idea of a city , or its memories ? Can a museum capture the life of a city in transition ? This is precisely what an ambitious new project sets out to do.

In a possible first for India , a group of scholars , academicians and researchers from the Centre for Community Knowledge (CCK) at Ambedkar University Delhi have embarked on the Citizen's Memory Project , a digital archive of the lives of the people of Delhi and the oral history of the capital.

The project will tie up with the Delhi Museum, which will be housed in the Dara Shikoh Library, a historical monument that lies within the campus of Ambedkar University. While the project will focus solely on the capital , it has drawn on researchers from across the country and has ramifications for the rest of India as well.

Read More: TOI

UNESCO’s Information for All Programme (IFAP)

Objectives:

• promote international reflection and debate on the ethical, legal and societal challenges of the information society;
• promote and widen access to information in the public domain through the organization, digitization and preservation of information;
• support training, continuing education and lifelong learning in the fields of communication, information and informatics;
•support the production of local content and foster the availability of indigenous knowledge through basic literacy and ICT literacy training;
• promote the use of international standards and best practices in communication, information and informatics in UNESCO's fields of competence; and
• promote information and knowledge networking at local, national, regional and international levels
See more:UNESCO's IFAP

International Day of Persons with Disabilities is 3 December

UN Theme for 2011: “Together for a better world for all:
Including persons with disabilities in development”

Read more:http://www.un.org/disabilities/default.asp?id=1561


Screen kids for disabilities at birth: Activists

CHENNAI: Hospitals should be made to screen newborns to detect disabilities early, activists and teachers said at a national workshop on communication options to teach the deaf held in the city of Monday. "Early detection and intervention can ensure that the child is able to participate in an inclusive society," said Kannagi Packianathan, secretary, Welfare of the Differently Abled department. "All 32 districts in the state have facilities for screening and early intervention, but children are screened only when doctors suspect some impairment," she added.

The Medical Council of India should ensure that all doctors are trained in disability, said Major General Ian Cardozo, chairman of the Rehabilitation Council of India .....

World AIDS Day is celebrated on December 1 each year around the world.It is an opportunity for people worldwide to unite in the fight against HIV.
In India, National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO)envisions that every person living with HIV has access to quality care and is treated with dignity. Effective prevention, care and support for HIV/AIDS is possible in an environment where human rights are respected and where those infected or affected by HIV/AIDS live a life without stigma and discrimination.
NACO has taken measures to ensure that people living with HIV have equal access to quality health services. By fostering close collaboration with NGOs, women’s self-help groups, faith-based organisations, positive people’s networks and communities, NACO hopes to improve access and accountability of the services. It stands committed to building an enabling environment wherein those infected and affected by HIV play a central role in all responses to the epidemic – at state, district and grassroot level.
Read more:http://www.nacoonline.org/NACO/

Also, a new report by UNAIDS released on 21 November shows that 2011 was a game changing year for the AIDS response with unprecedented progress in science, political leadership and results

UNAIDS World AIDS Day report 2011 is available at:http://www.unaids.org/en/

RGUHS’ giant step to overhaul med education
In what may be a major step to overhaul the medical education scenario in the State, the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS) has become the first university in the country to tie up with Quality Council of India (QCI) and apply for the NABH accreditation.
Read more:http://www.deccanherald.com/content/206541/rguhs-giant-step-overhaul-med.html

Pained by neglect, physiotherapists protest
NEW DELHI: In the absence of a regulatory body and a framework for curriculum, the number of institutes teaching physiotherapy is fast declining. Angered by the neglect and below par service conditions , more than 1,000 physiotherapists went on a two-day hunger strike in the city, demanding a regulatory body on the lines of the Medical Council of India on Tuesday . Over 67,000 physiotherapists are planning a nationwide campaign for the passage of the bill for a Central Physiotherapy Council.

US tries to curb headphone menace, India gets wake-up call

Walking on the road with earphones, listening to music or simply talking can be dangerous. There are countless close calls every day but the issue hasn't drawn the attention it deserves.

Dr M C Misra, chief of AIIMS Trauma Centre, points out that 50% of road accident deaths in the city are that of pedestrians and use of hand-held devices while crossing the road or walking in the carriageway was definitely a contributing factor.

"Listening to music or talking on the phone while crossing the road is dangerous. It diverts attention and causes a hearing deficit. The pedestrian is often not able to comprehend warning signals like honking or someone simply crying out," he says. He adds that in the capital where pavements are encroached upon or are simply not there, people are forced to walk on the road and distraction for even a second can put one's life at risk.

"The Motor Vehicle Act does not have any provision to prosecute the pedestrian,'' says Rohit Baluja, president, Institute of Road Traffic Education. "There are no statistics that tell you when a pedestrian is at fault and most often the vehicle owner is booked. But no one can deny that the increased use of cellphones to call up, text or mail while crossing the road is one of the causes of these accidents. Dr J D Mukherjee, neurologist at Max Hospital, Saket, says people who are talking on the phone while walking or listening to music are not able to respond to an emergency situation appropriately.

A study published in the April 2011 issue of the Journal of Safety Research in the US on the use of cellphone by pedestrians highlighted the problem. It showed that people busy on the phone did look both ways before crossing but didn't seem to be any safer. Compared with people who crossed without any distraction, people on the phone were delayed and incurred risks. In a simulation, some even got hit by a virtual car. Adults were as much to blame as teenagers, some other studies showed.

But Satyendra Garg, joint commissioner of traffic police, says prosecution is not the way out. "The number of pedestrians is huge. It's not practical to catch every violator and prosecute. In my view, awareness campaigns to promote judicious use of cellphones and other devices is needed. The traffic police is working on these lines," he claims.

Read more : TOI

Foreign aid to fight HIV, TB and malaria dries up
NEW DELHI: India might have to bear the burden of funding expensive treatments like second-line drugs for HIV patients and DOTS plus for those suffering from multi-drug resistant TB.

Global Fund, one of India's biggest financers of its drive against the three killer diseases - AIDS, TB and malaria - has run out of money to pay for new programes for the next two years due to global economic downturn.

India, which has received over $1.7 billion from the Global Fund to run several of its HIV, malaria and TB projects, has no choice but to look at its domestic budget to finance the initiatives.
Read more ; TOI

Directory of Indian Health Research Institutions DHRI 2011

It lists Indian Health Research Institutions based on areas they cover. It provides various search options like: simple,advance and conditional searches.

Antisynthetase syndrome is a chronic autoimmune disease of unknown cause. It is a subgroup of the idiopathic (unknown cause) inflammatory muscle diseases and is characterized by myositis, interstitial lung disease, arthritis, and Raynaud's phenomenon.
Read more:http://rarediseases.info.nih.gov/GARD/Condition/735/Antisynthetase_syndrome.aspx


Interstitial lung disease is a term used to refer to a particular type of inflammation of the interstitium of the lungs. The interstitium is the tissue that surrounds and separates the tiny air sacs (alveolae) in the lungs. Interstitial lung disease involves an inflammation of this supportive tissue between the air sacs rather than inflammation in the air sacs themselves. Interstitial inflammation is typically a diffuse process that occurs all over the lungs and is not confined to one location.

Read more:MedicineNet.com

Spending boost for health, education in 12th Plan
NEW DELHI: With the 12th Five Year Plan targeting to step up spending in four sectors - health, education, skill development and infrastructure - support for other schemes will see slower growth given the budgetary constraints. On Thursday, Planning Commission admitted that health, education, skill development and infrastructure, including irrigation, needed special focus during the 12th Five Year Plan (April 2012 to March 2017) given the slow progress during the current plan that ends next March.

However, the plan panel has set steep targets. For instance, the plan is to target 100% adult literacy, universalise secondary education and increase in gross enrollment ratio in higher education to 20% by March 2017. As a proportion of GDP, the spending on health is proposed to be doubled from around 1.3% at present to at least 2-2.5% by the end of the next plan.

Health spend set to double in 12th Plan
NEW DELHI: India's allocation for health is all set to double. The Planning Commission has decided to increase its spending on health to 2.5% of the GDP in the 12th Five Year Plan that starts next year.

This is in accordance with the recommendation made by the High Level Expert Group on universal health coverage that was constituted by the Commission. Syeda Hamid, member of the Planning Commission, said, "Nearly 2.5% of the GDP will be used in health sector during the next plan period. This will be a big jump."

Read more: TOI

Scientists plan to unveil hand-held e-nose to detect TB
NEW DELHI: Now, breathalyzer is being used to test your breath for alcohol. Soon, it will help detect tuberculosis (TB), one of the most infectious air-borne diseases.

By 2013, Indian scientists plan to unveil an electronic nose - a hand-held battery-powered device - much like a personal breathalyzer that is being developed to diagnose TB by detecting changes that is typical in the breath of those suffering from the ailment.

A normal human breath is believed to have over 3, 500 molecules. The scientists from Delhi's International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) have discovered seven molecules that is typical in the breath of TB patients, known as biomarkers.
The project received a grant of $9,50,000 from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Grand Challenges Programme last week for the two-year development period.

Read more:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Scientists-plan-to-unveil-hand-held-e-nose-to-detect-TB/articleshow/10748066.cms

Construction Versus Destruction
Construction is labor intensive while destruction is running a bulldozer.

Decline in Nosocomial Infections:
At AIIMS, infections claiming fewer lives
NEW DELHI: A recent report by AIIMS Trauma Centre shows that there has been a fall in the number of fatalities due to infection contracted in the hospital. Nevertheless, 43 patients died in September due to infection contracted in the hospital. Twenty-eight of them were admitted in neurosurgery department while 15 were admitted in the general surgery unit. The most common cause of death was ventilator-associated pneumonia. Chief of the centre Dr M C Misra said that those who died were critically ill patients.
Read more:http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-11-14/delhi/30397104_1_hospital-infections-mortality-rate-icu

Chikungunya is a viral disease spread by mosquitoes. Chikungunya symptoms include severe and persistent joint pain, body rash, headache and fever. Initial symptoms are similar to dengue fever. It is usually NOT life threatening. But the joint pains can last for a long time and full recovery may take months. Usually patient gets life long immunity from infection and hence re-infection is very rare.
Read more:http://www.chikungunya.in/

World Diabetes Day - 14th November

World Diabetes Day raises global awareness of diabetes - its escalating rates around the world and how to prevent the illness in most cases. Started by the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) and WHO, the Day is celebrated on 14 November to mark the birthday of Frederick Banting who, along with Charles Best, was instrumental in the discovery of insulin in 1922, a life-saving treatment for diabetes patients.

WHO estimates that more than 346 million people worldwide have diabetes. This number is likely to more than double by 2030 without intervention. Almost 80% of diabetes deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries.

Read more at:http://www.who.int/mediacentre/events/annual/world_diabetes_day/en/index.html

India yet to introduce pneumonia shots
NEW DELHI: India records the highest number of child pneumonia deaths globally, but is among the only four of the 15 countries with the highest child pneumonia death toll that is yet to introduce the newest generation of pneumoccal vaccines.

A Pneumonia progress report, 2011, released by the International Access Vaccine Centre ( IVAC) and John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health last week shows that India recorded 3.71 lakh child pneumonia deaths in 2008, but till 2010 had "not introduced" the HIB vaccine against pneumonia.

ICMR urges govt to make cancer a notifiable disease

India recorded 9.8 lakh new cases of cancer last year, an increase of about 80,000 new cases as compared to 2009.

Top cancer scientists from across the country along with Union health ministry officials and experts from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) met at the annual review meeting of the National Cancer Registry Programme in Guwahati last week to discuss the worrying trend. This figure was reached at after tabulating the results from over 27 cancer registries. However, the ministry is yet to make these findings public.

Directory of Indian Periodicals (DIP 2010) is a Directory of Journals and Periodicals published in India on the areas of Science, Technology and Medicine, a project conceived and executed by Indian Council of Medical Research, India and funded by National Science and Technology Management Information System (NSTMIS) Division of Department of Science and Technology, Government of India.
Visit:http://www.nstmis-dst.org/dip/index.asp

New technique removes fibroids without surgery
NEW DELHI: One in five women suffers from uterine fibroids - the growth of non-cancerous tumour in the womb. And a majority has to undergo surgery. But doctors say there are new techniques like MRI-guided high-intensity ultrasound beam used to burn the fibroids, which can treat the ailment without any surgery. The procedure does not require hospital stay and it does not even leave any scar.

Sulphas : a sucide pill
GHAZIABAD: The poisonous substance that had allegedly been consumed by the wife and daughters of the electrical engineer in Ghaziabad is suspected to be aluminium phosphide, an agricultural fumigant. The chemical is reported to be used in over 70% cases of suicide through poisoning in Ghaziabad.

District hospital chief medical superintendent Dr A K Verma said, "Aluminium phosphide called sulphas in common parlance should be banned. It is being commonly used for committing suicide as it is inexpensive and easily available. By no means is it the only effective fumigant. Its ill-effects merit much more attention than the urea fertilizers used by terrorists in making bombs. It kills more people in northwest India than any other poison or explosive . We see one or two suicides using this substance every other day in the mortuary

Read more at : TOI

One in five Indians hit by diabetes and high blood pressure: Report
MUMBAI: One in every five Indian adults living in urban cities suffers not only from hypertension but also diabetes. In Maharashtra, more disturbingly, one in three persons is struck by the twin epidemic. These are some of the highlights of India's largest clinic-based survey to assess the prevalence of diabetes and hypertension. The findings of the study, called Screening India's Twin Epidemic (SITE), were announced on Monday in Mumbai.

Read more: TOI

Gender bias: Only Afghanistan fares worse than India in South Asia
Rukmini Shrinivasan, TNN Nov 3, 2011, 04.22AM IST
NEW DELHI: India's abysmal gender inequality statistics seem to have taken a turn for the worse. New data shows the country's Gender Inequality Index (GII) worsened between 2008 and 2011, and India now ranks 129 out of 146 countries on the GII, better only than Afghanistan in south Asia.

On the Human Development Index (HDI), India ranks 134 out of 187 countries. When inequality is factored in, it experiences a 30% drop in its human development values, ranking 129 out of 146 nations.

Jayalalithaa's decision to shift Anna Centenary Library stayed by court
A Subramani, TNN Nov 4, 2011, 03.02PM IST

(The Madras high court has stayed the Tamil Nadu government's controversial proposal to shift the recently-constructed Anna Centenary Library to DPI campus in Nungambakkam. (TOI Photo))

CHENNAI: The Madras high court on Friday stayed the Tamil Nadu government's controversial proposal to shift the recently-constructed Anna Centenary Library to DPI campus in Nungambakkam.

Chief minister Jayalalithaa had on Wednesday announced that the library, set up by the previous M Karunanidhi government at Rs 230 crore, would be converted into a children's specialty hospital.

Prevention, innovation keys to heart care
Pallavee Dhaundiyal Panthry
Indians are different and more prone to coronary artery heart diseases; and it's a genetic fact. In fact, 50% of all heart diseases in the world are happening in India. So it's important to know how to save oneself," said Dr Ashok Seth, President Elect, Cardiological Society of India. The epidemic of CVDs is increasing rapidly in India, especially coronary heart disease and stroke resulting in epidemiological health transition in the country. Though CVDs are the world's number one killer, it can be prevented. Responding to the need of the hour, The Times of India organised a conclave in association with Cardiological Society of India, on October 20, in the Capital, to offer a platform to various stakeholders of the healthcare fraternity to deliberate upon effective healthcare solutions for growing concerns of health threats. Titled as 'India Heart Conclave', the health forum was spread over various sessions, namely, 'Public awareness on preventive measure before life threatening event strikes'; 'Prevention-A multi pronged strategy'; Hard hitting facts on CVDs - Millennium development goals'; 'Clinical insights: Cutting edge treatments and technologies'; and 'Making advanced care affordable to the man: Where are the road blocks and the solution'.

"In India, communicable diseases have become less burdensome, but non communicable ones are more problematic now. Longevity and fast lifestyle have landed us into this challenging situation," said Dr Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission, Govt of India, while addressing the audience at the inaugural session. He added, "Besides, we should have more curative centres in the country and follow a systematic approach to prevention. Role of public and private sector together is important and government must help to promote and encourage the partnership."

The forum started with training session on 'Public awareness on preventive measure before life threatening event strikes' which was followed by discussion on prevention and role of diet, food habits and lifestyle interventions.

Find more at : TOI

Indians' growing healthcare expenses concern WHO
NEW DELHI: The World Health Organization (WHO) is worried about Indians' high out-of-pocket (OOP) expenses to buy medicines.
WHO says, 3.2% Indians will fall below the poverty line because of high medical bills. About 70% of Indians spend their entire income on healthcare and purchasing drugs, WHO suggests.
Dr Kathleen A Holloway, regional adviser of WHO, said, "About 70% Indians are spending their out-of-pocket income on medicines and healthcare services in comparison to 30%-40% in other Asian countries like Sri Lanka, and are still suffering from infected diseases due to lack of best quality drugs and healthcare facilities."

India on verge of eliminating syphilis
NEW DELHI: India is on the verge of eliminating syphilis, one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases (STD) in the country.
According to the National Aids Control Organization (NACO), syphilis, which earlier used to affect about 8% of pregnant women, has been reduced to less than 1%. Among female sex workers, it affects about 4% as against 30% till a few years ago.

Read more: TOI

World's population reaches 7 billion
LUCKNOW, India, Oct. 31 (UPI) -- India marked the arrival Monday of girl named Nargis as the world's symbolic 7 billionth citizen, the Plan India child rights group said.
The United Nations had estimated that Oct. 31 would mark the day when the world population reached 7 billion.
Nargis was born as the first child to Ajay and Vinita Yadav in Mall village near Lucknow, capital of the northern Uttar Pradesh State, the Times of India reported.

The state is the most populous state in India, which has the world's second highest population after China. The baby weighed 6.6 pounds, the Times of India reported.

Read more: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2011/10/31/Worlds-population-reaches-7-billion/UPI-89821320059305/#ixzz1cQn8PEGd

Silent killer arsenic poisons lives in Ballia
The UP government has invested Rs 1,700 crore in mitigation measures but a recent report by a national-level monitor (NLM) has drilled holes in these efforts to contain the problem. Of the 873 UP districts that have alarmingly high arsenic content in groundwater, Ballia alone has 310 affected villages. This is just the tip of the iceberg since several areas have not even been surveyed yet, Chakraborty says. "The source of arsenic is the Himalayas and arsenic will be found in all those areas, in varying quantities, where Himalaya-fed rivers flow. My team recently lifted 10 water samples from Ballia district in which arsenic content was more than 1,000 ppm. There are about 500 million people at risk across UP, Bihar, West Bengal and Bangladesh," he warn
Read more:The TOI

OCLC Online Computer Library Center
Founded in 1967, OCLC Online Computer Library Center is a nonprofit, membership, computer library service and research organization dedicated to the public purposes of furthering access to the world's information and reducing the rate of rise of library costs. More than 72,000 libraries in 170 countries and territories around the world have used OCLC services to locate, acquire, catalog, lend and preserve library materials.OCLC and its member libraries cooperatively produce and maintain WorldCat—the OCLC Online Union Catalog.
WorldCat is a global network of library-management and user-facing services built upon cooperatively-maintained databases of bibliographic and institutional metadata. WorldCat enhances productivity across the full range of library workflows—from cataloging to resource sharing to discovery and delivery—by intelligently reusing contributed data, and makes library resources more visible on the Internet by distributing data across a growing number of partner services and Web technologies.
To know more log in to;http://www.oclc.org/

living books about life
Funded by the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC), and published by Open Humanities Press (OHP) (http://openhumanitiespress.org), Living Books About Life is a series of curated, open access books about life -- with life understood both philosophically and biologically -- which provide a bridge between the humanities and the sciences. Produced by a globally-distributed network of writers and editors, the books in the series repackage existing open access science research by clustering it around selected topics whose unifying theme is life: e.g., air, agriculture, bioethics, cosmetic surgery, electronic waste, energy, neurology and pharmacology.
Visit:http://www.livingbooksaboutlife.org/

World Stroke Day is observed on October 29

Every six seconds, regardless of age or gender – someone somewhere will die from stroke.
The “1 in 6” campaign celebrates the fact that not only can stroke be prevented, but that stroke survivors can fully recover and regain their quality of life with the appropriate long-term care and support. The two-year campaign aims to reduce the burden of stroke by acting on six easy challenges:

1. Know your personal risk factors: high blood pressure, diabetes, and high blood cholesterol.

2. Be physically active and exercise regularly.

3. Avoid obesity by keeping to a healthy diet.

4. Limit alcohol consumption.

5. Avoid cigarette smoke. If you smoke, seek help to stop now.

6. Learn to recognize the warning signs of a stroke and how to take action.

Read more:www.worldstrokecampaign.org/

News Digest

Aspirin can be handy for Lynch Syndrome carriers often called hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC)
NEW DELHI: Aspirin, the drug used by millions of people to protect their heart, has been found to drastically reduce colorectal cancer rates among those, who have an increased hereditary risk.

The first randomized controlled trial ( RCT) to assess aspirin's effect on cancer prevention has shown a reduction in colorectal cancer incidence of over 60% in patients at genetically increased risk who use aspirin for long.

The findings of the study, involving 43 centres in 16 countries that followed about 1,000 patients in some cases for over 10 years, have been published in "The Lancet" on Friday.


Off-the-mark health policies make killer diseases a ritual
The encephalitis dance of death in eastern Uttar Pradesh and Bihar's bordering districts looks set to cross all previous records this year. With 2-3 weeks still left in the 'season', the country-wide death toll is nearing the 1,000-mark, of which UP itself has a staggering toll of nearly 500. More than 80% of those killed are children below 10 years belonging to poor families from the rural hinterland.

This is a tragedy in itself. But what will you call it if it was almost foretold, a scenario already predestined by past actions? Neglect? Indifference? Ignorance?

Q&A'The 1000 Genomes Project can`t become a basis for discrimination'
Eric Green , director of the US National Human Genome Research Institute, has played a key role in research aimed at decoding the human genome. He is now involved in the '1000 Genomes' research project which collects, studies and profiles the genetic maps of several diverse population groups, this complex data's destination being the public domain.


Misleading drug ads to come under scanner
New Delhi: Tall claims made by drug advertisements in India are under scrutiny.

The Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) has called all state drug controllers and the Indian Medical Association (IMA) to address this "serious menace of misleading medical ads" in the next Drug Consultative Committee (DCC) meeting to be held on November 14.

The DCGI intends to discuss ways to curb ads that make unsubstantiated claims that take "the gullible public for a ride". Union health ministry officials said such ads could prove lethal, if patients take drugs being influenced by publicity campaig
Read more : TOI

British scientists create blood in the laboratory that could be used in transfusions in just two years

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2053829/Artificial-blood-stem-cells-used-transfusions-just-years.html#ixzz1c3pJF1sJ

Pillbox-beta Pill Identification System

Pillbox was developed to aid in the identification of unknown solid dosage pharmaceuticals. The system combines high-resolution images of tablets and capsules with appearance information (imprint, shape, color, etc.) to enable users to visually search for and identify an unknown solid dosage pharmaceutical.

This system is designed for use by emergency physicians, first responders, other health care providers, Poison Control Center staff, and concerned citizens.

The system enables users to identify solid dosage forms based on physical criteria: imprint (characters or number printed on a medication), shape, color, size, and scoring. Users are shown thumbnail images of possible matches. These images are continually updated as the user enters additional information.

Once a solid dosage form has been identified, additional information is provided, including brand/generic name, ingredients, and the National Drug File identification number. Links are provided to NLM drug information resources, such as drug labels (DailyMed) and the Drug Information Portal, which searches all NLM drug information resources.
Pillbox is currently under development and is not intended for clinical use.

Read more at:http://pillbox.nlm.nih.gov/index.html

Don’t mix lauki with other vegetable juices

NEW DELHI: The verdict on yoga guru Baba Ramdev's weight loss drink, lauki juice, is out.First, slice a piece from lauki (bottle gourd), taste if it's better. If it's bitter, discard it immediately, says an expert panel commissioned by the Indian Council of Medical Research ( ICMR).

The panel - headed by professor S K Sharma, who is the head of department of medicine at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences - warns against a common practice of mixing juices of other vegetables with lauki. The new recommendation says "Lauki juice should not be mixed with any other juice".

It adds "A small piece of lauki should be tasted before extracting the juice to ensure that it's not bitter. After consumption of lauki juice, if there is any discomfort like nausea, vomiting, the person should immediately be rushed to the nearest hospital."

Read more at: The Times of India

Human Development Report 2011: Gujarat fares poorly on malnutrition levels

New Delhi: After coming in for some lavish praise from a US think tank report for his state on the path of growth and development, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi should have reasons to worry, going by the findings of the India Human Development Report 2011.

The report, released by the Centre yesterday, finds Gujarat performing poorly on two key social indicators. 44.6% of children below the age of five suffer from malnutrition whereas nearly 70% of the children in the state suffer from anaemia. The results are bad enough considering states like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have fared better than Gujarat on malnutrition levels.

Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/human-development-report-2011-gujarat-fares-poorly-on-various-indicators-143405&cp

World Osteoporosis Day: October 20,2011

Wake-up call on weak bones
NEW DELHI: Here is something that should send couch potatoes among girls to the running track. A study has established the link between loss of bone density and a sedentary life. The study conducted on 186 girls from Delhi University - including those who are into sports - shows that only 1% of non-sportswomen meet the recommended dietary allowance for calcium, a major factor for bone strength.

Their exposure to sunlight is also less than required, putting them at higher risk for bone loss after they turn 50. On World Osteoporosis Day, being observed on Thursday, doctors advise that girls should exercise more and eat healthy during adolescence because that is the time when bones develop. Decline in bone strength starts after age 30. "Approximately 40% of bone acquisition takes place during adolescence, which protects against post-menopausal osteoporosis or bone loss. Our study highlights the need for girls to indulge in physical activity and focus on a healthy diet during this period so that they develop strong bones.

Fragility fractures in women and bone loss is common these days," said Dr Nikhil Tandon, professor endocrinology and metabolism at AIIMS, who headed the study. Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences, and Institute of Home Economics, DU, also participated in the study.

Source: Extract from TOI

News Digest

MCD downplaying dengue spread?
NEW DELHI: If the numbers shared with TOI by six private hospitals (including a hospital chain) are any indicator, the dengue outbreak in the capital this season is far more serious than what MCD is willing to admit. These hospitals alone have reported 1,284 cases while the civic body's tally is 463 cases, including four deaths.

This when MCD admits that more than 500 out of the 600 registered nursing homes and hospitals in the capital are not reporting cases to it - indicating that the reporting system for dengue is totally dysfunctional. Proper reporting of dengue cases is crucial for initiating targeted fogging operations.

Risk of breast cancer in younger women on rise
The risk increases with age. Most cases are found in women over 40, though the number of younger women developing breast cancer is currently on the rise .

Nip in the air, but don't let virus catch you
NEW DELHI: The cases of viral fever, upper respiratory infection and allergy due to change in weather are on the rise in the national capital. With the onset of winter, there is wide variation in the day and the night temperature which, doctors say, is most suitable for bacterial growth and transmission of viral infection. The elderly and the children are more at risk of getting infected. The doctors said people should avoid crowded places, frequently wash their hands and consult a physician if fever and sore throat last for more than 48 hours.

Malaria vaccine almost here
NEW DELHI: An effective vaccine against malaria - the first for any parasitic disease, is a step closer to reality.The first ever widescale trial of the candidate vaccine RTS,S prevented clinical malaria in 56% of five- to 17-month-old children it was tried on over a period of one year. It also prevented severe malaria in 47% of cases after three doses of RTS,S.

The trial was conducted at 11 trial sites in seven countries across sub-Saharan Africa. This data comes out of the first 6,000 children aged 5 to 17 months, over a 12-month period following vaccination. This is one of the final stages in evaluating the efficacy and safety of the vaccine candidate in infants and young children on a large scale before regulatory file submission.
Bill Gates called this discovery a "huge milestone" in the fight against malaria.

Malaria wanes globally, not in India
NEW DELHI: About one-third of all malaria-affected countries are expected to eliminate the vector-borne disease in the next 10 years.However, for the South-East Asia region the future isn't that bright.
Maldives is the only country among the 11 nations in the region that has eliminated malaria, while Sri Lanka and Korea are in the pre-elimination stage. The remaining eight countries, including India, are trying to control regular outbreaks.

To know more read my favorite The Times of India

Global Mental Health

Published October 17, 2011
The Lancet Series on Global Mental Health 2011 follows up on the pioneering set of papers published by the journal in 2007. It tracks progress over the past four years, and adds information to provide an indispensible resource for health workers and policymakers. The subjects of the papers were chosen after consultation with the Movement for Global Mental Health, an international coalition of professionals and the public that is committed to improving access to mental health care and promoting the human rights of people affected by mental illness worldwide.
Read more:http://www.thelancet.com/series/global-mental-health-2011

World Mental Health Day (October 10), is a day for global mental health education, awareness and advocacy.

Country's first robotic liver surgery on donor saves kid
TNN Oct 16, 2011, 02.58AM IST
NEW DELHI: For the first time in India, a robot (Da-Vinci) was used successfully for liver transplant. Doctors at Medanta Medicity Hospital in Gurgaon have performed the robotic surgery to take out a portion of the liver of the donor to be transplanted in a four-year-old child suffering from liver cancer.

Indian Academy of Sciences:open access repository
Indian Academy of Sciences has build up an Open Access Repository of publications of Fellows of the Academy. It attempts to collect, preserve and disseminate the intellectual output available as publications by its Fellows in peer-reviewed journals.Under the subject category "medicine" it reveals 3409 records.

To find more click: Indian Academy of Sciences repository

The final version of World Development Report 2011: Conflict, Security, and Development is now available online.

Women's participation in workforce lowest in South Asia: WB
NEW DELHI: With one million girls 'missing' in India, a World Bank report has cautioned that this continued economic gap between men and women could spell disaster for the country. Female labour force participation is South Asia (including India) is among the lowest in the developing world.

Source : TOI

Number of people affected by TB dropped in 2010
NEW DELHI: First the good news -- the number of people who fell ill with tuberculosis globally dropped to 8.8 million in 2010, after peaking at nine million in 2005. However, in India, the disease still wreaked havoc. It infected over 15 lakh people in 2010 and killed over three lakh.

According to new data, published on Wednesday in the WHO 2011 global tuberculosis control report, India's case detection rate in 2010 was just about 60%. What's most worrying is that 73,000 of the notified new TB cases were already multi drug resistant. Of this less than 3,000 were detected.

World Arthritis Day :12th September

In 2003, the European League Against Rheumatism, in collaboration with worldwide organizations representing persons with arthritis and other rheumatic diseases, created World Arthritis Day. This observance aims to increase awareness of arthritis and to influence policies that can reduce the burden of arthritis.

The theme of this year's World Arthritis Day (October 12, 2011) is Move to Improve. Physical activity is a key self-management strategy for persons with arthritis and is proven to reduce pain and improve function and quality of life . The 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans recommends that adults, including those with arthritis, engage in 150 minutes or more per week of at least moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity and do muscle-strengthening exercises at least 2 days per week. Adults with arthritis who cannot meet these recommendations are encouraged to do what physical activity they can, because some is better than none.

Read more at : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Clinical Trials Registry-India (CTRI)

The Clinical Trials Registry- India (CTRI), hosted at the ICMR's National Institute of Medical Statistics (NIMS), is a free and online public record system for registration of clinical trials being conducted in India.
Source: http://ctri.nic.in/Clinicaltrials/login.php

GB Pants emergency block to be restarted
New Delhi: Delhi government has decided to restart G B Pant Hospital's state-ofthe-art emergency block,which was commissioned before Commonwealth Games but was not functioning due to shortage of staff.Delhi Health Minister AK Walia has said that they have cleared new recruitments as shortage of manpower there had led to the closure of the hospital.
Source: TOI

Work overload at AIIMS
According to Dr Gupta, things will speed up once six AIIMS-like institutes come up as promised and medical colleges are upgraded. "It will take another two years for these new institutes to come up. They will have excellent infrastructure and equipment."
Read more at TOI

Steinman's immunotherapy key to prolong life span of pancreatic cancer patients
NEW DELHI: The world may soon find a way to prolong the life span of patients suffering from the lethal adeno carcinoma of the pancreas.

And the answer may come from the work of none other than Canadian cell biologist Ralph Steinman, who was diagnosed with the disease four years ago and died of it on September 30.Steinman discovered dendritic cells in 1973 that regulate and adapt the immune system's defence mechanisms. This had laid the foundation for immunotherapy.

Adeno carcinoma is an aggressive form of pancreatic cancer. Those diagnosed with it live for only about 12 months because most of them are diagnosed in the final stages. Four years ago, Steinman started a clinical trial of his dendritic-cell based immunotherapy in which he was the only patient.

"It didn't cure him, but it may have prolonged his life which is a big enough step. Dendritic cells are being tried on several types of cancer and works by increasing the immunity of cells in our body that kills the tumour cells," said professor Vinod Raina, who heads the medical oncology department at AIIMS.

In these cases, patients can live for even upto 20 years, thanks to the latest drugs and if the pancreas is removed.

"The biggest problem with pancreatic cancer is that there are hardly any tests for early diagnosis. Most patients come to us in the last stage. The survival rate is lower for patients diagnosed at later stages - less than 2% of patients diagnosed once their cancer has spread to other parts of the body," Dr Raina said.

PubMed Health — A Growing Resource for Clinical Effectiveness Information

PubMed Health specializes in reviews of clinical effectiveness research, with easy-to-read summaries for consumers as well as full technical reports. Clinical effectiveness research finds answers to the question “What works?” in medical and health care.
PubMed Health is a service provided by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) at the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM).
The U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM) is the world's largest medical library. It has millions of books and journals about all aspects of medicine and health care on its shelves. Its electronic services deliver trillions of bytes of data to millions of users every day.The NLM was founded in 1836 and is part of the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland.The National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) is a division of the NLM. It creates resources for researchers, particularly large-scale research in human genetics.The NCBI also provides public access to information through resources like PubMed. PubMed includes abstracts—short technical summaries—of more than 20 million scientific articles in medicine and health.
PubMed Health is based on systematic reviews of clinical trials. These clinical effectiveness reviews can show what treatments and prevention methods have been proven to work—and what remains unknown.
PubMed Health provides summaries and full texts of selected systematic reviews in one place. The reviews were generally published or updated from 2003. There is also information for consumers and clinicians based on those reviews.

Search at:PubMed Health

News Digest

Helpline launched on World Heart Day
NEW DELHI: Feeling that piercing pain in your chest? Don't panic. Now you can dial a special helpline number - 01123282328 - and get professional guidance on ECG and other tests to assess cardiovascular risk. Health minister A K Walia launched the helpline on Thursday- World Heart Day.

Dr Prem Aggarwal, senior cardiologist and president of the National Medical Forum - who has started this service - says that 105 hospitals and nursing homes are linked to the helpline.

Kids to break silence with chip implant ;children didn't have cochlea,now audio-verbal therapy will be a vital cure ..

Living on the edge
MUMBAI: As many as 72 per cent of sexually active young people across the country have had sex with new partners without any protection, an international survey says.
At least 40 per cent of the youth polled in India say they had problems accessing contraceptives when they needed, while 36 per cent said they knew a close friend/ family member who has had an unplanned pregnancy.Nearly a one-third got wrong information about contraception from friends...

India will roll out world's largest drive against NCDs
NEW DELHI: As many as 26 "mini interventions" will make up the world's largest programme to combat Non Communicable diseases (NCDs) that will be launched by India soon...

How to switch your health insurer
With health insurance portability you can shift to a new insurer without losing the benefits of the existing policy. Here's what you should know
Most people tolerate bad service from their health insurers because they don't want to lose out on the benefits of the existing policy if they move to another insurer. So far, switching insurers has meant that you are considered a new customer and have to go through the requisite waiting period of one to four years after buying the policy to cover your pre-existing diseases. However, from 1 October, health insurance portability has come into effect, which allows you to switch insurers without losing the benefits of your existing policy.
Plan panel mulls 2 nurses for every doctor
NEW DELHI: India plans to fix the acute shortage of nurse by 2025. The Planning Commission's high-level expert group on health has set a target to have a minimum of two nurses and one auxiliary nurse midwife (ANM) for every available allopathic doctor.
Now, the nurse: doctor ratio in India is 1.05:1, and that of nurses and midwives to a doctor is 1.53:1.
The group, headed by Dr K Srinath Reddy, in its latest report on universal health coverage has recommended opening of 382 new nursing schools and 58 nursing colleges in 216 underserved districts across 15 states.

Soon, a jab that can help grow a new knee
LONDON: Coming soon, jab that will let arthritis sufferers grow a new knee or hip joints, say British scientists.

A team, led by Newcastle University , claims the injection will "revolutionize" the treatment of osteoarthritis, the most common form of the condition -- in fact, given in a person's 40s or 50s, just as arthritis begins, the jab could remove the need for hip or knee replacements in some cases.

Andrew McCaskie at Newcastle University said, "Every patient has their own 'repair kit' . Whereas joint replacement uses metal and plastic to replace the severely damaged joint, we're trying to treat at an earlier stage and assist the body to repair itself."

Arthritis is caused by wear and tear of cartilage that helps our joints take the strain of bending , lifting, gripping and kneeling . With no cure, painkillers and physiotherapy are the main forms of treatment. Joint replacement surgery can help, but it is a complicated and not successful in all cases.

The new technique, which could be in use within five years, will harness the power of stem cells -- "master cells" that can turn into other cell types --in patients who are still in their prime.

Superbug threat haunts again

Although the health ministry has denied any threat by superbug NDM-1 alleged to be found in Delhi's sewage and drinking water, former Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) chief N.K. Ganguly recently said that the superbug's presence and ill-effects have been confirmed.

"Do not underestimate the superbug," Ganguly said at the first forum on bacterial infections in the capital. He added: "Considering the hospital waste that goes into Delhi's sewage water, many studies have confirmed that the multi-drug resistant superbug is present in Delhi's environment. It is the most deadliest bug roaming around."

Reports from a British Medical journal had earlier alleged the presence of a bacteria with multi-drug resistant gene -- New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase-1 (NDM-1) -- that was resistant to almost all antibiotics.

Read more at: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/superbug-threat-haunts-again/1/153779.html

Bone donation
New Delhi: Bone donation is yet to catch up among Indians.Though globally,bone is the second most commonly transplanted tissue after blood,not many Indians have come forward to pledge their bones.This is taking a toll on the country's only fullfledged bone bank at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences.
Since its inception in 1999,the bank has recorded just about 13 cadaver donations.This year,till September,the bank has received just two donations while in 2010,it received one and in 2009,none.
According to Dr Malhotra,professor of orthopedics at AIIMS,in the last five years,the bank has received just nine donations.He told TOI: We are facing an acute shortage of bones.Lack of awareness is a major problem...
Read More@Times of India

The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2011
Bruce A. Beutler, Jules A. Hoffmann, Ralph M. Steinman
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2011 was divided, one half jointly to Bruce A. Beutler and Jules A. Hoffmann "for their discoveries concerning the activation of innate immunity" and the other half to Ralph M. Steinman "for his discovery of the dendritic cell and its role in adaptive immunity".
The discoveries of the three Nobel Laureates have revealed how the innate and adaptive phases of the immune response are activated and thereby provided novel insights into disease mechanisms. Their work has opened up new avenues for the development of prevention and therapy against infections, cancer, and inflammatory diseases.
Source:nobelprize.org

Total Sanitation Campaign
NEW DELHI: With India facing the slur of topping the global list in open defecation, the Centre is keen to put the sanitation programme back on the centrestage by sensitizing the population about public hygiene.

The Union rural development ministry along with states will organize a month-long campaign from October 2, the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, to create awareness for its flagship scheme of Total Sanitation Campaign.

According to a UNICEF survey, 58% of the world's population practicing open defecation lives in India while China and Indonesia come a distant second by accounting for just 5% of the world numbers. Pakistan is down to third with 4.5%, tied with Ethiopia.

The numbers are astounding as the prosperity of liberalized India does not seem to translate into better sanitation.
Read more @ Times of India

'Prenatal chemo safe for babies'
NEW DELHI: Now, would-be mothers undergoing chemotherapy can rest easy.
A study has confirmed that chemotherapy during pregnancy does not cause developmental problems in children born later.

A new research - to be presented at the ongoing 2011 European Multidisciplinary Cancer Congress - says children born after their mothers were treated with chemotherapy during pregnancy appear to be unaffected by the experience in terms of development of their mental processes and the normal functioning of their hearts.

Professor Frederic Amant will tell the Congress, "This is the first time children of 18 months and older have been examined after chemotherapy during pregnancy and the news is reassuring in respect of the effects of chemotherapy on cognitive and cardiac outcomes." However, he will say that a significant number (47) of the 70 children born from 68 pregnancies were delivered pre-term and the researchers found that prematurity but not chemotherapy affect these children's cognitive development significantly.

AIIMS opens geriatric OPD
NEW DELHI: Elderly people visiting AIIMS for medical help won't have to move around from one department to another any more. They can now go to the new geriatric OPD, which will have a multi-disciplinary team of doctors.
The geriatric OPD at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) - the first service being introduced under the National Programme for Health Care of the Elderly (NPHCE) - was inaugurated by Union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on Saturday.

3-level underground parking at AIIMS
NEW DELHI: Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad laid the foundation stone of a three-level underground parking at AIIMS campus on Saturday. The parking will have space for 450 cars and is expected to provide some respite to the thousands of patients and visitors who have to jostle for space now. According to hospital authorities, the parking project costing Rs 50 crore (approx) is likely to be completed by October next year. Another proposal to build a brand new private ward with a separate underground parking facility has also been approved by the ministry, said hospital sources.

Six AIIMS-like medical institutes
NEW DELHI: The government intends to set up six AIIMS-like medical institutions in different states and Rs 847 crores have been released so far for them.
Stating this in the Rajya Sabha in reply to a written question, health and family welfare minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said the government has set a deadline to make medical colleges at six sites functional from academic year 2012-13 and hospitals by the year 2013-14.He said the government had approved the setting up of six AIIMS-like institutions in Bihar (Patna), Chhattisgarh (Raipur), Madhya Pradesh (Bhopal), Orissa (Bhubaneswar), Rajasthan (Jodhpur) and Uttarakhand (Rishikesh) under the first phase of Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY).

Construction of medical colleges and hospital complexes at all the six AIIMS-like institutions in first phase has started and is in full swing, he said the Rajya Sabha. Residential complex at Jodhpur and Raipur has been completed and work is in progress at remaining sites, he said.

Azad said the sites for setting up AIIMS-like institutions have been identified on the basis of various socio-economic indicators like human development index, literacy rate, population living below poverty line, per capita income and health indicators like population-to-bed ratio, prevalence rate of serious communicable diseases, infant mortality rate etc.

Vaccination just got painless with needle-free kit
BRISBANE: Good news for the needle-phobic. Australian scientists have developed a cheap and painless 'needlefree' vaccination device that can be self-administered.
To know more read: needlefree' vaccine

World Heart Day:29 September 2011

Cardiovascular diseases are the world’s largest killers, claiming 17.3 million lives a year. Risk factors for heart disease and stroke include raised blood pressure, cholesterol and glucose levels, smoking, inadequate intake of fruit and vegetables, overweight, obesity and physical inactivity.

In partnership with WHO, the World Heart Federation organizes awareness events in more than 100 countries - including health checks, organized walks, runs and fitness sessions, public talks, stage shows, scientific forums, exhibitions, concerts, carnivals and sports tournaments.

Source: World Health Organization

Michael Hart

Michael Hart, father of e-books and founder of Project Gutenberg, died on September 6th, aged 64;
He posted works that were safe in the public domain, but chafed at being unable to give away books that were new, and fought all copyright extensions like a tiger. “Unlimited distribution” was his mantra. Give everyone everything! Break the bars of ignorance down!
Read more;The Economist

HEALTHCARE

1 doc for 1,000 people not before 2028

NEW DELHI: India will take at least 17 more years before it can reach the World Health Organization's (WHO) recommended norm of one doctor per 1,000 people.

The Planning Commission's high-level expert group (HLEG) on universal health coverage (UHC) - headed by Dr K Srinath Reddy - has predicted the availability of one allopathic doctor per 1,000 people by 2028. It has suggested setting up 187 medical colleges in 17 high-focus states during the 12and 13five-year Plan to achieve the target.

HLEG estimates that the number of allopathic doctors registered with the Medical Council of India (MCI) has increased since 1974 to 6.12 lakhs in 2011 - a ratio of one doctor for 1,953 people or a density of 0.5 doctors per 1,000 people . The nation has a density of one medical college per 38.41 lakhs. There are 315 medical colleges that are located in 188 of 642 districts.

There is only one medical college for a population of 115 lakhs in Bihar, UP (95 lakhs), MP (73 lakhs) and Rajasthan (68 lakhs). Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu each have one medical college for a population of 15 lakhs, 16 lakhs and 19 lakhs, respectively.

The HLEG has proposed a phased addition of 187 colleges. It expects that by 2015, under phase A, 59 new medical colleges will admit students in 15 states like Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana , J&K , Jharkhand, MP, Maharashtra , Meghalaya, Orissa, Punjab, Rajasthan, UP and West Bengal. By 2017, 13 of these states will have an additional 70 medical colleges, and by 2022, another 58 institutes will be built in two additional phases (2017-2020 and 2020-2022 ). By 2022, India will have one medical college per 25 lakh population in all states except Bihar, UP and West Bengal.
Read more:1 doc for 1,000 people not before 2028

Rural development projects

PRADAN is one of the pioneers in the promotion of Self-Help Groups (SHG) in India, having formed its first SHG in Alwar, Rajasthan, in 1987. A savings and credit SHG is a simple yet effective way of reaching out and connecting with rural poor women.
Visit: PRADAN

A healthy and successful Burundi,Africa where conditions of human misery are eradicated and where all of the country’s citizens have the tools they need to build productive and successful lives that include access to high quality healthcare, economic development and education opportunities.
Visit:villagehealthworks

Japanese encephalitis hits city for the first time, 4 infected
NEW DELHI: Four cases of Japanese encephalitis, a mosquito-borne disease that affects the meninges of the brain, have been confirmed in the city for the first time
To read more about causes and prevention visit:MedlinePlus

Planning Commission backs shortened medical degree for rural areas
NEW DELHI: The controversial three-and-a-half year long medical degree -Bachelor of Rural Medicine and Surgery (BRMS) -- has now got the backing of Planning Commission's all powerful high level expert group on universal health coverage.

The panel has in its report (finalized on Sunday and available with TOI) "endorsed" the all new BRMS cadre and said that as a career progression incentive, they should be promoted to the level of public health officers after 10 years of service.

According to the panel, by 2022, India should actually have BRMS colleges in all districts with populations of over 5 lakh.

The course should focus on "high quality of competence in preventive, promotive and rehabilitative services required for rural populations with focus on primary health care."

A successful model

The Comprehensive Rural Health Project, Jamkhed,Maharashtra has been working among the rural poor and marginalized for over 40 years. By partnering with village communities and expanding upon local knowledge and resources the project aims to effectively meet the immediate and long term needs of these groups, especially women. With values of compassion, justice, respect and trust, CRHP works to empower people, families and communities, regardless of caste, race or religion, through integrated efforts in health and development.

Lung cancer linked to risk of stroke
(Reuters Health) - People recently diagnosed with lung cancer are at higher risk of having a stroke than those without lung tumors, suggests a large new study from Taiwan.
Researchers looking at data covering more than 150,000 adults found that among those with lung cancer, 26 in every 1000 experienced a stroke each year, compared with 17 in 1000 who did not have cancer.
SOURCE: Stroke, September 13, 2011.

Longevity gene under cloud of doubts
A trans-Atlantic dispute has opened up between two camps of researchers pursuing a gene that could lead to drugs that enhance longevity.
British scientists say the longevity gene is "nearing the end of its life," but the Americans whose work is under attack say the approach remains as promising as ever. The dispute concerns genes that make sirtuins, proteins involved in controlling cells' metabolism.

Girls face bias in heart surgery too
NEW DELHI: A study conducted by doctors at the AIIMS has found that among children who require heart surgery, boys have a much better chance of undergoing the procedure than girls.
Even when faced with life-threatening ailments, girls are discriminated against in India. A study conducted by doctors at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences has found that among children who require heart surgery, boys have a much better chance of undergoing the procedure.
Published in the medical journal Heart, the study interviewed parents of 405 children aged up to 12 years who had been advised to undergo elective pediatric cardiac surgery at AIIMS. When their status was reviewed after a year, doctors found 44% (59/134) of the girls had undergone surgery against 70% (189/271) of boys.

Bionic boon for the blind
NEW DELHI: For millions of Indians who suffer from loss of vision due to retina damage and age-related macular degeneration , there is now hope. A bionic eye which would help them see is going to be developed indigenously .

The visual device would use eyeglasses fitted with digital cameras and a retinal implant and has been successfully tried on patients abroad. The co-inventor of the global project, Dr Rajat N Agrawal , says he wants to make the implant affordable here and will work to bring down the cost of the implant to Rs 5 lakh from its present cost of Rs 45 lakh (approx).

"We are collaborating with experts from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences and several IITs to indigenously develop a cheaper variant of the eye implant so that people here can afford it. We are also trying to get the central government to fund the research project," said Agrawal, an assistant professor of clinical ophthalmology at the University of Southern California.

Metro elders most prone to cancer risk
NEW DELHI: One in 13 men and one in 11 women in the national Capital run the risk of developing cancer by the time they turn 64. The probability is more acute by the time they reach 74, when one in seven men and one in eight women become susceptible to the disease.

In other metros like Mumbai and Kolkata, one in 19 men and one in 14 women run a similar risk before their 64th birthday. However, while one in 10 men and one in nine women in Mumbai face the possibility of suffering from cancer by the time they are 74 years, the risk is faced by one in 10 men and women in Kolkata.

Read more@ TOI

Online gamers crack AIDS enzyme puzzle
Online gamers have achieved a feat beyond the realm of Second Life or Dungeons and Dragons: they have deciphered the structure of an enzyme of an AIDS-like virus that had thwarted scientists for a decade.

The exploit is published on Sunday in the journal Nature Structural & Molecular Biology, where -- exceptionally in scientific publishing -- both gamers and researchers are honoured as co-authors.

Their target was a monomeric protease enzyme, a cutting agent in the complex molecular tailoring of retroviruses, a family that includes HIV.

Use social media to strengthen health systems - SciDev.Net

Use social media to strengthen health systems - SciDev.Net

POLIO ERADICATION IN INDIA AND THE NATIONAL POLIO SURVEILLANCE PROJECT
The goal of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative is to ensure that no child will ever again know the crippling effects of polio. Polio is a highly infectious disease caused by a virus poliovirus. It invades the nervous system and can cause total paralysis in a matter of hours. It can strike at any age, but affects mainly children under three. Polio is mainly passed through person-to-person (i.e., fecal-oral) contact, and infects persons who do not have immunity against the disease. There is no cure for polio, but the disease can be prevented by immunization with polio vaccine. Oral polio vaccine (OPV) was developed in 1961 by Dr Albert Sabin; OPV is a highly effective, safe and inexpensive vaccine, and has been used in all countries of the world to achieve polio eradication.
NEWS
It's cross-border terror of a different kind. India is on high alert against the deadly polio virus coming into the country from Pakistan and the health ministry has asked the Punjab government to mandatory vaccinate all children aged 0-5 years coming to India from Pakistan.
India raised the alarm after China confirmed that polio had re-entered its territory after a gap of 10 years. Genetic analysis showed that four infants in China's Xinjiang province were infected with polio virus imported from Pakistan.

Bid to make pvt hospitals keep cancer patients' count

NEW DELHI: Every hospital in India — private or public — may soon be bound to inform government on the number of cancer cases they treat.The push is in the offing since the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has recommended to the Union health ministry to make cancer a "notifiable disease".
At present, highly infectious diseases like plague, polio, H5N1 bird flu or the H1N1 swine flu figure in the list. Cancer will become the first non-communicable disease (NCD) to be bracketed in the same category.

Govt leaves kids with HIV in the lurch: Study
Neha PushkarnaNeha Pushkarna, TNN | Sep 18, 2011, 05.18AM IST

NEW DELHI: They live the nightmare everyday, suffering the stigma of being HIV carriers. Little hearts, but sunk by an overwhelming thought that death may strike early. They live in the shadows and prefer anonymity for fear of discrimination. And those who go to school are often ostracized. Nor do they get specialized treatment despite massive funds being pumped for HIV care. What's shocking is that their numbers are in thousands in Delhi. The city has at least 11,333 children infected with HIV. Most of them, nearly 2000, are concentrated in south Delhi and around 1,700 in the New Delhi area. Others are scattered across the city.
Source; TOI


The plight of these children has been highlighted in a study commissioned by the Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR). The report states that the nine anti-retroviral treatment (ART) centres are not wellequipped and HIV-infected kids are yet to receive benefits of any government scheme. DCPCR has now sent its recommendations to the Delhi government for rehabilitation of these children. A potent anti-retroviral regimen helps suppress the HIV virus and preserves normal immune response in children.

51% rise in new breast cancer cases in developing nations
NEW DELHI: Breast cancer cases are surging across the globe.
The maiden global analysis that factored in the trend over the past three decades shows the number of new breast cancer cases diagnosed worldwide has increased dramatically from about 6.4 lakhs in 1980 to 16 lakhs in 2010.

On the contrary, the rise in deaths from breast cancer globally has been slower, increasing from about 2.5 lakhs in 1980 to 4.25 lakhs in 2010, possibly reflecting the effectiveness of early detection and advances in treatment in developed countries. The study, published in the British medical journal " The Lancet" on Thursday, says that 51% of these new cases of breast cancer occurred in developing countries like India.

Give HIV+ve insurance cover, says IRDA

NEW DELHI: HIV positive ( AIDS) patients should not be denied insurance cover for other diseases they have, Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) chief, J Hari Narayan said on Thursday.

"Insurance cover will not be given for HIV disease but for other ailments, which are not directly related to that disease and this inclusion of HIV patients in insurance cover will happen," Narayan said. He urged insurance companies to reconsider the reasons for excluding of HIV+ patients from getting cover

National Institute of Malaria Research (NIMR) was established in 1977 as 'Malaria Research Centre', which was renamed as 'National Institute of Malaria Research' in November 2005. NIMR is one of the institutes of the Indian Council of Medical Research (an autonomous body under Department of Health Research, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Govt. of India). The primary task of the Institute is to find short term as well as long term solutions to the problems of malaria through basic, applied and operational field research. The Institute also plays a key role in man power resource development through trainings/workshops and transfer of technology.
To read more visit their website:National Institute of Malaria Research

Medical Libraries and Problem Based Learning

Problem Based Learning(PBL) is a student-centered pedagogy in which students learn about a subject in the context of complex, multifaceted, and realistic problems. Working in groups, students identify what they already know, what they need to know, and how and where to access new information that may lead to resolution of the problem. The role of the instructor is that of facilitator of learning who provides appropriate scaffolding of that process by (for example), asking probing questions, providing appropriate resources, and leading class discussions, as well as designing student assessments.Librarians collaborate with the instructors in the areas of curriculum design, communications and library user education and facilitate active learning amongst students.
Read More as to how librarians are involved in PBL in the following article:
http://jlis.lis.ntu.edu.tw/article/v2-1-3.pdf

Govt panel suggests regulatory mechanism for healthcare sector

NEW DELHI: A government panel has suggested path-breaking reforms to revamp the country's healthcare system, including regulatory mechanism for the heath sector- both public and private -to ensure affordable and quality healthcare for all the citizens.

The expert group of the Planning Commission aims to set up the National Health Regulatory and Development Authority, an apex body to keep an eye on both public and private healthcare providers.

A system of universal healthcare was suggested by the expert group to ensure all the citizens can access promotive, preventive, curative and rehabilitative heath services at an affordable cost so that they do not suffer financial hardship in pursuit of good health.

The authority will enjoy power of enforcement and redressal along with overseeing accreditation of healthcare providers, development of ethical standards and a patient's charter of rights.

It will be empowered to take any measures to control entry, quality, quantity and price.

The committee recommended, "regulation of public and private sector to ensure provision of assured quality and rational pricing of healthcare services essential for implementation of universal healthcare.

The authority was advised to be set up to regulate pharmaceuticals and medical devices.

Registration of all clinics has to be made mandatory along with the accreditation of all healthcare providers, including both allopathic and traditional (ayurvedic).

The proposed National Health and Medical Facilities Accreditation Authority (NHMFA) will define standards of healthcare facilities. Similar accreditation agencies under the supervision of NHMFA will be set up in states to oversee the operations and administrative protocol of healthcare facilities.

An autonomous office - Health System Evaluation Office - will be established to independently appraise the performance of both public and private health services at all levels.

Aiming to provide free healthcare for all, the panel, headed by Dr K Srinath Reddy, argued for a national health entitlement card (NHEC) for every citizen that will guarantee access to a package of essential primary, secondary and tertiary healthcare fully funded by the Centre.

The plan is of ensuring coverage of both in-patient and OPD services free of cost with cashless facility. The health package will focus on most common and high-impact healthcare requirements.

Patients will be free to choose between public sector facilities and private providers that enter into contract with the government.

Spice up your plate, get heartburn

NEW DELHI: A cup of tea with spicy snacks makes a rainy day perfect, while many cannot get through the day without a tall glass of iced cola. But new health studies reveal that the excessive intake of aerated drinks, caffeine and spicy food causes acid reflux or heartburn cases to rise significantly. Teenager are the worst-affected due to their poor food habits.

Doctors at AIIMS say that about 50 per cent of the patients who arrive at the ENT department complain of problems such as a recurrent chest infection, sore throat and difficulty in swallowing food, itching in ears, nose congestion and nasal discharge - all symptoms of acid reflux.

"The excessive intake of coffee, cold drinks and spicy snacks like pizza, burger and chips aggravates heartburn problems in children. They come with all kinds of serious health ailments related to the disease. In older people, poor eating habits, which include late night dinners and a sedentary lifestyle, is the main problem," said Dr S C Sharma, head of the ENT department at AIIMS. He said that up to 50 per cent cases that the ENT department at AIIMS sees in a month includes patients complaining about acid reflux-related health complications which are caused, and in some cases aggravated by an excessive intake of aerated drinks and caffeine. Some of the most common symptoms of the disease are a recurrent sore throat, changes in the voice, fatigue and difficulty swallowing.

"Acid reflux is a chronic digestive disease that occurs when stomach acid or bile flows back (refluxes) into the food pipe (esophagus).

The backwash irritates the lining of the oesophagus and causes a burning sensation in the chest, sometimes spreading to the throat, and leaving a sour taste in mouth. Obese, diabetic patients, pregnant women, children, hiatal hernia patients and smokers are at risk.

Usually oral medications are prescribed but there are some extreme cases in which surgery may be required to create a barrier preventing the backup of stomach acid or to tighten the lower oesophageal sphincter," said Sharma.

Dr V K Paul, head of the pediatrics department at AIIMS, said that heartburn in children is caused due to a variety of factors which include a congenital defect or the presence of helicobacter bacteria. "Poor lifestyle and bad food habits increases the problem," said Paul. Experts say that because AIIMS is a referral center the cases of acid reflux being reported here is often higher as compared to other medical centres.

Dr Anoop Misra, director, department of diabetes and metabolic diseases at Fortis Hospital says that a few precautionary measures are all it takes to help check the disease. "Maintain a healthy weight, avoiding fatty or fried foods, energy drinks, alcohol, chocolate, mint, garlic, onion, and caffeine.

Those suffering from acid reflux should not smoke because it decreases the lower oesophageal sphincter's ability to function properly," said Misra.

GNU Health is a free Health and Hospital Information System
with the following functionality :

* Electronic Medical Record (EMR)
* Hospital Information System (HIS)
* Health Information System

Their goal is to contribute with health professionals around the world to improve the lives of the underprivileged,providing a free system that optimizes health promotion and disease prevention.
Read More:GNU Health

Evidence based librarianship

Scientific decisions are based on the quality evidence from the exhaustive & comprehensive scientific literature. Evidence-Based Librarianship, or EBL, is a way of practicing librarianship. It combines a conceptual framework with practical tools that enables librarians to do their jobs more effectively and in a more informed fashion. There are always decisions to be made in a library setting: policy decisions, digitization, service, and staffing decisions. Often, decision making is based on anecdotal evidence, past practice, and even best guess. EBL is a way of systematizing the process in order to achieve more reliable results.It involves :
Step 1: Formulate a Question
Step 2: Find the Evidence
Step 3: Appraise the Evidence
Step 4: Apply the Evidence
Step 5: Evaluate the Results
Step 6: Disseminate Research

A paper worth reading :Evidence-based librarianship: an overview

Research needs proper attention in our educational culture
Dr KK Talwar, Chairman, Medical Council of India is working towards strengthening and providing high quality medical education, which is meaningful to the growth of medical services in the country. In an interaction with Dhirendra Pratap Singh, he shares insights about the medical education scenario in India

What is the role of MCI in enhancing and streamlining medical education in India?

The Medical Council of India was established in 1934 under the Indian Medical Council Act, 1933, now repealed, with the main function of establishing uniform standards of higher qualifications in medicine and recognition of medical qualifications in India and abroad. The objectives of the Council are maintenance of uniform standards of medical education, both undergraduate and postgraduate, recommendation for recognition/de-recognition of medical qualifications of medical institutions of India or foreign countries and permanent registration or provisional registration of doctors with recognised medical qualifications.....

News Digest

Treat poor for free: SC to private hospitals
NEW DELHI: Poor patients will get free treatment in 40 private, state-of-the-art multi-specialty hospitals in Delhi without any exception and for any disease or ailment, the Supreme Court said on Thursday.

A bench of Justices R V Raveendran and A K Patnaik asked these private hospitals, which had got land at concessional rates from the government, to reserve 10% of their inpatient department (IPD) capacity and 25% of OPD for free treatment of poor patients.

Though 27 private hospitals had fallen in line, 10 hospitals had challenged a Delhi High Court order asking them to provide free treatment to poor patients. The court dismissed all the petitions.

Seven fresh dengue cases reported in city
NEW DELHI: Seven new cases of dengue were reported in the city on Thursday, taking the total number of cases of the disease to 73 this season. According to MCD officials, maximum number of cases are being reported from Civil Lines and Karol Bagh zones.


Discrimination keeps poor patients away
NEW DELHI: A High Court order that made it mandatory for private hospitals to provide free treatment to poor patients has made little difference to those for whose benefit it was passed.

Hospitals invariably charge patients for diagnostics , medicines and consumables and the attitude of the doctors is often discouraging enough to dissuade poor patients from approaching highend medical facilities.

Instead they prefer to wait endless hours outside government hospitals where atleast they know what to expect. It is no wonder then that the free beds in private hospitals generally remain vacant.


Half of urban women have hypertension
NEW DELHI: Hypertension, which is directly responsible for 57% of deaths due to stroke and 24% of fatalities caused by heart attack, has been found to be rampant in Indian women.

A multi-centre three-year study, spearheaded by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and published in the "Journal of Human Hypertension" on Thursday, said almost one in two women in urban study sites and one in three women in rural sites, were suffering from hypertension. Worryingly, overall, only one in five hypertensive women were on treatment, and less than 4% are controlled.

Read More: Times of India