Page 599 - Health Medical Pharma
46 infected with HIV as quack uses common syringe: CMO
At least 46 people have become infected with HIV in a tehsil in the last 10 months, allegedly after a quack used a common syringe to administer injection, prompting the state government to intensify its efforts to nab the culprit, an official said today. A case has been registered against the quack at Bangarmau police station, the CMO said. "During a routine screening from April to July, 12 HIV positive cases were reported from Bangarmau tehsil alone. During another screening in November, another 13 cases were reported from the same place," Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr S P Chaudhary said. "After noticing the high number of cases, the health department constituted a two-member committee which visited various hamlets of Bangarmau to investigate the reasons behind the spurt," he said. Dr Chaudhary said the team visited Premganj and Chakmirpur areas of Bangarmau and filed a report, based on which screening camps were held at three places on January 24, 25 and 27. "In ...
Regular exercise may lead to better lung function in smokers
Vigorous physical activity is associated with better lung function among current smokers, a study has found. Researchers from Barcelona Institute of Global Health (ISGlobal) in Spain used information collected from a long- standing collaboration between 25 European research centres in 11 countries. Over a 10-year period, 3,912 adults, aged 27-57 years at the start of the study, were considered as being active if they exercised with a frequency of two or more times a week and a duration of one hour a week or more. Associations between physical activity and lung function were only apparent among current smokers, suggesting the existence of an inflammation-related biological mechanism. "This result highlights the importance of physical activity among current smokers specifically, which are a group at higher risk of poor lung function," said Elaine Fuertes from ISGlobal. The research also found that participants who were active at the end of the study, either by becoming ...
Hot tea ups esophageal cancer risk in smokers, drinkers
Drinking tea when it is too hot may increase the risk of esophageal cancer in those who smoke cigarettes and consume alcohol daily, a new study warns.
Volumes spurt at Procter & Gamble Hygiene and Health Care Ltd counter
Procter & Gamble Hygiene and Health Care Ltd registered volume of 0.413 lakh shares by 14:19 IST on NSE, a 10.67 fold spurt over two-week average daily volume of 0.039 lakh shares.
Nara Lokesh invites Cerner to become Andhra's technology partner
Andhra Pradesh Information Technology and Communications Minister Nara Lokesh has invited health-tech firm Cerner to become a key technology partner in state's health programmes.He extended the invitation during a meeting with Cerner's leadership at Cerner's Innovations campus, in Kansas City, Missouri. During the event, the leaders discussed long-term collaboration opportunities between Cerner and the state of Andhra Pradesh."The state of Andhra Pradesh has always been at the forefront when it comes to IT adoption across sectors. This has been key for us to realize the chief minister's vision of near real-time governance," Lokesh said."A deeper and longer-term relationship with Cerner will allow us to leverage their deep global expertise in healthcare and realize our vision faster. We invite Cerner to set-up operations in the state and become a key technology partner in our health programmes," Lokesh added.Mike Nill, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Cerner, said .
New two-minute questionnaire may detect autism in toddlers
Researchers have developed a two-minute questionnaire for parents that could help pediatricians and other primary care providers detect autism in toddlers, at a time when intervention might be crucial.
To baldly grow: Japan scientists regrow hair at record rate
Polished pates and thinning thatches may one day be a thing of the past, thanks to Japanese scientists who have developed a way to grow hair follicles at a record rate. The study used two kinds of cells placed in silicone containers to cultivate "hair follicle germs" -- the sources of the tiny organs that grow and sustain hair. Led by professor Junji Fukuda at the Yokohama National University, the team managed to cultivate 5,000 within just a few days, enough to replenish hair. The method is a massive step up from existing laborious techniques that can create just 50 or so "germs" at once. While human tests might not be on the cards for another five years, ultimately researchers believe the technique could be used to generate luscious new locks. The technology could also help cancer patients and others with medical conditions that cause hair loss, said Fukuda, whose research was published in the journal Biomaterials. "Beauty clinics currently often use hair from the ...
Diabetics at double the risk of developing cataract
People with diabetes are at double the risk of developing cataract as the general population and the relative risk is highest in those aged between 45 and 54, a study says.
Spending long hours in dim light may affect learning ability
Do you use dim lights at home? If yes, then you should stop doing it as researchers have found that too much dim light in our surrounding might impair learning ability.
New fibre optic sensors can dissolve inside body
Scientists have created fibre optic sensors which dissolve completely inside the body, and could be used for in-body monitoring of bone fracture healing and safer exploration of sensitive organs such as the brain. A fibre Bragg grating is an optical element inscribed in an optical fibre, which is widely used as a sensing instrument. The new glass fibres should be safe for patients even if they accidentally break, according to the study published in the journal Optics Letters. "Our work paves the way towards optical fibre sensors that can be safely inserted into the human body," said Maria Konstantaki from the Institute of Electronic Structure and Laser (IESL) of the Foundation of Research and Technology - Hellas (FORTH), Greece. "Because they dissolve, these sensors do not need to be removed after use and would enable new ways to perform efficient treatments and diagnoses in the body," said Konstantaki. The researchers show that gratings etched into the bioresorbable ...
Experts discover genetic cause of rare high blood pressure syndrome
A new study has discovered the genetic cause of a rare high blood pressure syndrome.Professor Ute Scholl and a team of scientists from the United States and Australia have now identified a new hypertension disease gene. The study focused on a particular and very rare form of high blood pressure, known as familial hyper aldosteronism type II.This inherited disease causes the adrenal gland to produce high level of aldosterone - a hormone that regulates the water and salt conservation in the kidneys. Excess of this hormone in the body shoots up the blood pressure.According to the research, more than a billion people worldwide suffer from hypertension or high blood pressure. Such a condition, if prolonged, damages blood vessels, which can result in damage to the heart, the kidneys, and the brain.Possible consequences may include heart attack, kidney failure and stroke. Besides obesity, salt consumption and alcohol intake, genetic factors play an important role in the development of ...
Dim lights may hamper your ability to learn: study
Spending too much time in dimly lit rooms and offices may change the brain's structure and reduce people's ability to remember and learn, a study has found. Researchers from Michigan State University (MSU) in the US studied the brains of Nile grass rats after exposing them to dim and bright light for four weeks. The rodents exposed to dim light lost about 30 per cent of capacity in the hippocampus, a critical brain region for learning and memory, and performed poorly on a spatial task they had trained on previously. The rats exposed to bright light, on the other hand, showed significant improvement on the spatial task. Further, when the rodents that had been exposed to dim light were then exposed to bright light for four weeks (after a month-long break), their brain capacity - and performance on the task - recovered fully. The study, published in the journal Hippocampus, is the first to show that changes in environmental light, in a range normally experienced by humans, .
Uttarakhand government spends Rs 68.59 lakh on tea, snacks: RTI
An RTI has revealed that the BJP government in Uttarakhand led by Trivendra Singh Rawat has spent a whopping Rs 68.59 lakh in nine months on tea and snacks.
Merck Foundation marks 'World Cancer Day 2018'
Merck Foundation, a non-profit company and a subsidiary of Merck KGaA Germany marks 'World Cancer Day 2018' to create awareness around cancer and build cancer care capacity with the aim to increase the limited number of oncologists across Africa and developing countries.The CEO of Merck Foundation Dr Rasha Kelej recently visited Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Science, Tanzania to meet the alumni of 'Merck Oncology Fellowship Program' with the aim to evaluate the impact of the one and two-year medical oncology fellowship programs conducted in Tata memorial center in India.Through 'Merck Oncology Fellowship Program' foundation has trained the first medical oncologist in Tanzania, Dr Christina V. Malichewe.During her visit to Tanzania Dr Rasha Kelej emphasized, "We strongly believe that building professional capacity is the right strategy to improve access to quality and equitable cancer care in the continent. Dr Christina is one of the 59 future oncologists, Merck Foundation .
Can dim light make us dumber?
Did you know dim light could make you dumber?According to a study, spending too much time in dimly lit rooms and offices may actually change the brain's structure and hurt one's ability to remember and learn.The Michigan State University researchers studied the brains of Nile grass rats (which, like humans, are diurnal and sleep at night) after exposing them to dim and bright light for four weeks.The rodents exposed to dim light lost about 30 percent of capacity in the hippocampus, a critical brain region for learning and memory, and performed poorly on a spatial task they had trained on previously.The rats exposed to bright light, on the other hand, showed significant improvement on the spatial task. Further, when the rodents that had been exposed to dim light were then exposed to bright light for four weeks (after a month-long break), their brain capacity - and performance on the task - recovered fully.The study is the first to show that changes in environmental light, in a range ...
Diabetics twice as likely to develop cataract
Diabetes doubles the chance of developing cataract, with the relative risk highest in those aged between 45 and 54, according to a study.Researchers analysed medical records from 56,510 UK-based diabetes patients aged 40 or over and found that cataract was diagnosed at an overall rate of 20.4 per 1,000 people.Diabetics aged between 45 and 54 were considerably more likely than non-sufferers to develop cataract. Those diabetic patients aged between 45 and 49 were 4.6 times more likely to, and diabetics aged between 50 and 54 were 5.7 times more at risk than their healthy counterparts.Cataract is one of the main causes of global sight loss. In a previous study by the Vision Loss Expert Group, it was revealed that the condition accounted for significant vision loss or blindness in 65 million people worldwide.Co-author Rupert Bourne said: "The report has shown that having diabetes doubles your risk of being diagnosed with a cataract, and that this risk is six times higher if a diabetic ...
Opioid cessation successful when depression is cured
Opioid cessation may be more successful when depression is treated, according to a study.Jeffrey Scherrer, Ph.D., professor of family and community medicine at Saint Louis University and his co-authors have found depression is a consequence of chronic opioid use.In the current study, they find that patients with chronic prescription opioid use and depression who adhered to anti-depressant medications were more likely to stop opioids.Exploratory analysis found that patients who adhered to anti-depression medications and stopped taking opioids experienced a rapid and greater decline in depression symptoms compared with patients who did not stop taking opioids."We can't be sure that a decrease in depression led to patients' choosing to stop opioid use and we know prospective studies are needed," Scherrer said."Depression can worsen pain and is common in patients who remain long-term prescription opioid users. Our study should encourage clinicians to determine if their non-cancer pain ...
Trump slams Britain's health service; UK hits back
US President Donald Trump has attacked Britain's National Health Service (NHS), claiming it is "going broke and not working."
Add hues of black to your plate for healthy living
From detoxification, a healthy heart to improving digestion, eating black meals comes with its advantages, say experts.