Page 66 - Health Medical Pharma
AI can detect anxiety, depression in child's speech
Researchers have developed an artificial intelligence (AI)-based system that can detect signs of anxiety and depression in the speech patterns of young children.
Oxxy aims to set up India's largest hospital chain
Leading healthcare network Oxxy plans to set up the country's largest hospital chain and expand its presence in key cities. In a statement, it said 'ByGod Hospitals' has aggregated over 20 hospitals in the national capital region and plans to expand into Mumbai and Bengaluru. The company's founder Pankaj Gupta said, "The vision is to become India's largest hospital chain by end of this year." Hospitals linked by the network have 50-500 beds with multi-specialty and range of qualified doctors. According to co-founder Sheetal Kapoor, a patient will always find certain standardisation at ByGod Hospitals such as a personal guide, clean toilets, and bedsheets, transparency of rates and free parking. ByGod Hospitals are different as they give patients accessibility to search across different medical streams and look for doctors with the right qualification and experience. Patients, she said, can make an appointment online and can access records from anywhere in the country. To make the ...
Food additives could harden arteries: Study
Researchers have claimed that food additives and other cooking ingredients could lead to hardened arteries.Hardening arteries, or arterial stiffness, is an independent risk factor for heart disease and death, and the mechanisms that contribute to arterial stiffening are not well understood, according to the study published in the Journal of Hypertension."Metabolomics can accurately measure the amount of exposures entering the body," said Changwei Li, an author of the study.Metabolomics is the study of metabolites, which are created each time there is a transfer of energy in the body. Metabolites play a key role in maintaining the body's normal function, and changes in metabolite levels can reflect how environmental factors, like smoking, diet or pollutants, influence health."In this study, we identified many metabolites related to coffee drinking, alcohol drinking, Southern foods, dietary supplements, and even pesticides," said Li.Using the most up-to-date panel of metabolites, Li and
Soy protein lowers cholesterol: Study
As the food authority is planning to remove soy from list of heart-healthy food, researchers through a study evaluated and determined soy protein has the ability to lower cholesterol by a small but significant amount.According to the study published in the Journal of Nutrition, forty-one trials examined the protein's effects on low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, which is often referred to as the "bad cholesterol" because a high amount of it leads to a build-up of cholesterol in arteries.All 43 studies provided data about "total cholesterol," which reflects the overall amount of cholesterol in the blood.Researchers found that soy protein reduced LDL cholesterol by three to four per cent in adults, a small but significant amount, noted Dr David Jenkins, the lead author of the study."When one adds the displacement of high saturated fat and cholesterol-rich meats to a diet that includes soy, the reduction of cholesterol could be greater. The existing data and our analysis of it ...
Saudi Ministry of Health Makes Access to Health Services Easier With New Online Appointment App "MAWID"
/ -- Worldwide, e-Health is playing a significant role in driving healthcare evolution. According to the World Health Organization, healthcare costs globally are increasing by nearly 5% annually and health systems see e-Health as contributing significantly to closing the gap between a decreasing financial envelope and growing demand. However, it is not just financial impact that is driving the digital revolution. Health systems are also keen to tap into changing patient behavior by capturing patient-generated data thus having a positive impact on streamlining health systems. In line with other health systems, digital technology is also playing a significant part in transforming the health system in Saudi Arabia. The Saudi Ministry of Health (MOH) is committed to e-Health; its transformation program positions digital technology as the key enabler in delivering its vision of a fully integrated healthcare system. The MOH is taking a measured approach to have a marked impact on patients ..
Pokemon characters activate specific brain region: Study
People who spent countless hours playing Pokemon videogames in their childhood have a specific brain region that activate when they see images of their favourites characters such as Pikachu or Charizard, Stanford scientists have found. The findings, published in the journal Nature Human Behaviour, help shed light on two related mysteries about our visual system. "It's been an open question in the field why we have brain regions that respond to words and faces but not to, say, cars," said Jesse Gomez, a graduate student at Stanford University in the US. "It's also been a mystery why they appear in the same place in everyone's brain," said Gomez. A partial answer comes from recent studies in monkeys at Harvard Medical School. Researchers there found that in order for regions dedicated to a new category of objects to develop in the visual cortex -- the part of the brain that processes what we see -- then exposure to those objects must start young when the brain is particularly malleable .
Study explains why depression is often accompanied by moody gut
People who suffer from depression are also likely to face gastrointestinal distress as a study has pointed out that for some, both the conditions are triggered by the same glitch in neuron chemistry-low serotonin.The study published in the journal Gastroenterology was conducted in mice.The study showed that a shortage of serotonin in the neurons of the gut can cause constipation, just as a serotonin shortage in the brain can lead to depression.The study also found that a treatment that raises serotonin in the gut and the brain may alleviate both conditions.Up to a third of people with depression have chronic constipation, and a few studies reported that people with depression, rate their accompanying bowel difficulties as one of the biggest factors reducing their quality of life.Severe constipation can obstruct the gastrointestinal (GI) tract and cause serious pain. The condition leads to 2.5 million physician visits and 100,000 hospitalisations each year."Ultimately, many patients ...
AI can detect depression in child's speech
Scientists have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) system that can detect signs of anxiety and depression in the speech patterns of young children. According to the research published in the Journal of Biomedical and Health Informatics, the tool potentially provides a fast and easy way of diagnosing conditions that are difficult to spot and often overlooked in young people. Around one in five children suffer from anxiety and depression, collectively known as "internalising disorders." However, since children under the age of eight can not reliably articulate their emotional suffering, adults need to be able to infer their mental state, and recognise potential mental health problems. Waiting lists for appointments with psychologists, insurance issues, and failure to recognise the symptoms by parents all contribute to children missing out on vital treatment. "We need quick, objective tests to catch kids when they are suffering," said Ellen McGinnis, a clinical psychologist at the
Vivimed recalls hypertensive drug from US market due to
Vivimed Life Sciences Pvt Ltd, a city-based pharma company has started recalling 19 lots of Losartan Potassium Tablets USP 25 mg, 50 mg, and 100 mg to consumer level in US, as the product was found to have impurities that may cause cancer, a US Food and Drug Administration said. The product is made by Vivimed at its Plant in Alathur, Chennai and distributed by Heritage Pharmaceuticals Inc, East Brunswick NJ in the US. To date, neither Vivimed nor Heritage has received any reports of adverse events related to this recall, it said. "Vivimed Life Sciences Pvt Ltd (Vivimed) is recalling 19 lots of Losartan Potassium Tablets USP 25 mg, 50 mg, and 100 mg to consumer level due to detection of an impurity N-Nitroso-N-methyl-4-aminobutyric acid (NMBA) that is above the US Food and Drug Administration's interim acceptable exposure limit of 9.82 ppm. Based on the available information, the risk of developing cancer in a few patients following long-term use of the product ...
Scientists develop device to detect bacteria in minutes, not days
The era of doctors prescribing patients powerful antibiotics while they wait for lab reports could soon be numbered, with a new device returning results within minutes instead of days. It was invented by a team at Penn State university and described in a paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on Monday. Co-developed by Pak Kin Wong, a professor of biomedical engineering and mechanical engineering, the device uses microtechnology to trap single bacteria cells that can then be viewed under an electron microscope. The approach allows clinicians to determine in as little as 30 minutes whether bacteria is present and its susceptibility to drug treatment -- as opposed to the three-to-five days such lab work currently takes. "We currently prescribe antibiotics even when there is no bacteria present," Wong told AFP. "That is over prescription. That is one of things we tried to express. Can we quickly determine the existence of bacterial infection?" The ...
Diabetes patients need to manage risks while fasting during Ramzan: Experts
Ramzan, the month of fasting in Islam, will begin from Tuesday and health experts have warned those with diabetes to manage risks while fasting as it can complicate the condition. Diabetes patients need to manage risks while fasting as it adds up to potential health hazards that include dehydration and acute metabolic complications among others, experts said. Dr Satish Koul, senior consultant and director at Narayna Hospital, Gurgaon, said when diabetic patients decide to fast, the importance of practical diabetes and spiritual fasting guidance becomes evident. Potential health hazards include hypoglycaemia, hyperglycaemia, dehydration and acute metabolic complications such as diabetic ketoacidosis. "During fasting our body's system goes through a lot and that depends on the length of the continuous fasting. When we fast our body initially uses stored sources of glucose and then later it breaks down body fat as the next source of energy," Dr Koul said. The severity of diabetes can be .
Pakistani police holding doctor for allegedly spreading HIV
Pakistani police say a court will allow a doctor with HIV and AIDS to remain in police custody for two more days to determine whether he knowingly spread HIV to over 150 people, mostly children, by using contaminated syringes. Local police chief Wasim Raja Soomro said Monday that Dr Muzaffar Ghangharo was detained last week, and has denied the charges. Soomro said the initial investigation indicates the doctor had intentionally spread HIV since early April while treating patients for the common cold, diarrhea and other diseases. He said the outbreak was detected when patients with HIV symptoms began coming to a state-run hospital in the southern town of Larkana. Pakistan's Health Ministry has registered over 23,000 HIV cases.
H1N1 virus has claimed 135 lives in Maha since Jan 1
The H1N1 virus infection has claimed 135 lives so far in Maharashtra in 2019 with 25 people, including two from Mumbai, succumbing to it in the last 10 days, a state Health department official said Monday. He said Pune had the maximum 36 deaths followed by Nashik and Nagpur at 29 and 23 respectively. "The viral infection has been confirmed in 1,441 people in the state. Nagpur has reported 333 positive cases of H1N1 infection, which is highest in the state followed by Nashik with 256 cases. There are 140 cases found in Mumbai as well," the official said. As per the World Health Organisation, it is an acute respiratory infection of varying severity, ranging from asymptomatic infection to fatal disease. The H1N1 virus is similar to seasonal influenza but is characterised by higher activity during the northern summer season, higher fatality rates among healthy young adults and higher incidence of viral pneumonia.
AAP's Sankalp Patra for Chandni Chowk promises start-up hub, 40K CCTV cameras
Development of parks to turn them into Delhi's lungs, opening a start-up hub, 125 mohalla clinics, widening of roads and installation of 40,000 CCTV cameras were among the promises AAP candidate Pankaj Gupta has made in his election manifesto for Chandni Chowk constituency. He also promised to enhance penetration of education development initiatives in the constituency, including planned expansion and rapid modernisation of schools, and making a third language available for studying in Delhi schools. For job creation, the 'Sankalp Patra' said a start-up hub would be established. For traffic management, the manifesto promised to decongest major roads around Jama Masjid, Chawri Bazar, Hauz Khas among other areas. In health sector, the manifesto promised to build 125 new mohalla clinics, dialysis centres and emergency rooms in polyclinics in congested areas to save time during emergencies. Gupta said his aim is to turn parks into lungs of the national capital. The manifesto mentions that
#BerokZindagi to winners against Asthma
With the aim to dispel myths and fears regarding asthma and encourage those affected by this condition to live a life without limits, with World Asthma Day, let's eliminate the stigma around inhalation therapy and make it more socially acceptable and help foster further dialogue between patients and their physicians.Asthma is a chronic (long term) disease usually characterized by airway inflammation and narrowing of the airways, which can vary over time. It is estimated that in at local doctors on a daily basis see an average of around 40 patients suffering from asthma/respiratory diseases. Out of these a majority are men (60 per cent) with the paediatric asthma segment has seen a significant increase on a year on year basis (doctors reckon they see an estimated 25-30 new cases of children with asthma every month). On average until the date in 2018, there has seen a 5 per cent increase in the number of people suffering from asthma as compared to last year. Meanwhile, the number of ...
Physical fitness may help cut cancer risk: Study
Staying physically fit may help reduce the risk of developing lung and colorectal cancer, according to a study. The researchers from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in the US studied 49,143 adults who underwent exercise stress testing from 1991-2009 and were followed for about 7.7 years. The research, published in the journal Cancer, showed that adults who were the most fit had the lowest risk of developing lung and colorectal cancer. Among those who developed lung or colorectal cancer, people who had high fitness levels before their cancer diagnosis were less likely to die compared with those who had low fitness levels. There is limited data on the relationship between cardiorespiratory fitness and lung and colorectal cancer risk and mortality. The study represents the largest of its kind, as well as the first of its kind to involve women and a large percentage of non-white individuals. Participants in the highest fitness category had a 77 per cent decreased risk of developing lung .
Improving fitness can help you cut cancer risk
While a high fitness level is already known to have a positive impact on conditions like heart disease, a new study suggests that adults who are more fit have the lowest risk of developing lung and colorectal cancer compared with those who have low fitness levels.
Radar system can monitor body's vital signs wirelessly
Scientists have developed a radar system that can wirelessly monitor the vital signs of patients, eliminating the need to hook them up to any machines. Housed in a device smaller than a cellphone, the new technology records heart and breathing rates using sensitive radar waves that are analysed by sophisticated algorithms embedded in an onboard digital signal processing unit. Researchers at the University of Waterloo in Canada developed the system to monitor sleep apnea patients by detecting subtle chest movements instead of connecting them to equipment in labs via numerous cumbersome wires. "We take the whole complex process and make it completely wireless," said George Shaker, an engineering professor at Waterloo. "And instead of a clinic, it could be done in the comfort of your own bed and run daily for continuous monitoring," Shaker said in a statement. The radar unit was mounted to the ceiling over the bed of more than 50 volunteers as they slept normally in a model long-term ...