Page 8 - Health Medical Pharma

Governor leads Yoga Day celebrations in TN

The 5th International Yoga Day was observed in Tamil Nadu Friday, with Governor Banwarilal Purohit leading from the front. Among those who performed various Yoga asanas coinciding with the day were Tamil Nadu Ministers for School Education and Health, KA Senkottaiyan and Dr C Vijayabaskar, respectively and state BJP chief Tamilisai Soundararajan. Naval personnel at INS Adyar also joined the International Yoga Day. At the Raj Bhavan here, Purohit was joined by a number of volunteers including students from Madras University, Anna University, Sports University and Medical University. In the hour-long event held this morning, Central Reserve Police personnel, those from the state police department and other employees of the Raj Bhavan performed various asanas, a Raj Bhavan release said. "These asanas are beneficial for physical fitness, musculoskeletal functioning and cardio-vascular health, the management of diabetes, respiratory disorder, hypertension, hypotension and ...

Novel system uses turmeric to stop cancer cell growth

A new drug delivery system using curcumin -- the main ingredient in turmeric -- successfully inhibits the growth of bone cancer cells, say scientists, including those of Indian origin. The system developed by researchers at the Washington State University in the US also promotes the growth of healthy bone cells. It could lead to better post-operative treatments for people with osteosarcoma, the second most prevalent cause of cancer death in children, according to the research published in the journal ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces. Young patients with bone cancer are often treated with high doses of chemotherapy before and after surgery, many of which have harmful side effects. Turmeric has been used in cooking and as medicine for centuries in Asian countries, and its active ingredient, curcumin has been shown to have anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and bone-building capabilities. It has also been shown to prevent various forms of cancers, researchers said. "I want people to ...

Aurobindo Pharma gets USFDA warning letter for Andhra unit, shares drop 6%

The drug firm, however, did not provide any details of the contents of the warning letter received from the regulator

Researchers draw link between processed foods and rise in autism

According to a recent study, processed foods may hold key to rise in autism.With the number of children diagnosed with autism on the rise, the need to find what causes the disorder becomes more urgent every day. With the findings of this study, researchers suggest that they are now a step closer to showing the link between the food pregnant women consume and the effects on a fetus' developing brain.As part of the study, a team of researchers identified the molecular changes that happen when neuro stem cells are exposed to high levels of an acid commonly found in processed foods.In the study published June 19 in Scientific Reports, a Nature journal, the scientists discovered how high levels of Propionic Acid (PPA), used to increase the shelf life of packaged foods and inhibit mold in commercially processed cheese and bread, reduce the development of neurons in fetal brains.Saleh Naser, who specializes in gastroenterology research at the College of Medicine's Burnett School of ...

AES outbreak: BJP's CP Thakur writes to PM, suggests setting up of biochemical lab

BJP leader Dr CP Thakur has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the deaths of children due to Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) in Muzaffarpur, suggesting that a biochemical laboratory could be set up to soothe public ire."A decision to set up a biochemical lab could be announced like any central government institution with a multi-speciality facility in Muzzafarpur to soothe public ire," he said in a letter to the Prime Minister on Friday."It can be merged with upcoming AIIMS like hospitals which could be opened at Muzaffarpur," Thakur added.The BJP leader asserted that people of the state could not resist venting out their anger when Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had recently visited Muzaffarpur in the wake of the encephalitis outbreak, adding "he (Nitish) was forced to leave in a hurry since he was heckled by the public."Urging Modi to make a visit to to the crisis-hit district soon, Thakur said, "In the present scenario, if you can make a visit to Muzaffarpur, it ..

Turmeric can prevent cancer cell growth

Researchers developed a new drug delivery system with the help of curcumin, the main ingredient in the spice turmeric, that successfully prevents bone cancer cells to spread and promote the growth of healthy bone cells.The work could lead to better post-operative treatments for people with osteosarcoma, the second most prevalent cause of cancer death in children, reported the Journal of Applied Materials and Interfaces.Young patients with bone cancer are often treated with high doses of chemotherapy before and after surgery, many of which have harmful side effects. Researchers would like to develop gentler treatment options, especially after surgery when patients are trying to recover from bone damage at the same time that they are taking harsh drugs to suppress tumour growth.Turmeric has been used in cooking and as medicine for centuries in Asian countries, and its active ingredient, curcumin has been shown to have anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and bone-building capabilities. It ...

Ways of treating PTSD by disrupting traumatic memories

It may be possible to disarm the emotional and disturbing memories that drive Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms. Doing this might lead to a faster recovery from the trauma, recent findings suggest.Our brains are wired to ensure we respond instantly to fear. While that fear response may save our lives in dangerous moments, at times people stay on high alert long after the threat has passed, and develop post-traumatic stress disorder.As part of the recent study, a team of researchers identified a key molecule elevated within the brain's emotional memory processor - the amygdale. Experiments suggest that suppressing that molecule enables faster recovery from trauma. The molecule may also offer a novel biomarker for treatment.According to the researchers, they discovered that trauma elevates a specific microRNA in an area of the brain where long-term memories of fear reside, the basolateral amygdala complex. They found the microRNA, called mir-135b-5p, altered in both ...

Encephalitis: Death toll in Muzaffarpur reaches 121

The death toll due to Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) touched 121 in Bihar's Muzaffarpur district on Thursday.As per the data, a total of 101 deaths were reported at government-run Sri Krishna Medical College and Hospital while 20 children died at Kejriwal hospital in the district due to the vector-borne disease today.Following the public outcry over lack of facilities in the government-run Shri Krishna Medical College and Hospital (SKMCH), the hospital management has converted a prisoners' ward into an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) to accommodate the rising number of encephalitis patients.The decision came after Chief Minister Nitish Kumar passed instructions to convert the prisoners' ward into ICU for children to meet the acute crisis of beds.Meanwhile, the State Health Society on Tuesday ordered delegation of more doctors from Darbhanga, Supaul, Madhubani, Samastipur and Sitamarhi districts to Muzaffarpur.Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had earlier visited SKMCH to take stock of the ...

8 additional Advanced Life Support ambulances deployed in districts affected by AES: Harsh Vardhan

Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Thursday said that eight additional Advanced Life Support (ALS) ambulances have been deployed to transport the patients in the districts affected with Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) and Japanese Encephalitis (JE).Vardhan also said that an ICMR team of experts has been deployed at SKMCH hospital in Muzaffarpur for making the virology lab operational at the earliest. He also said that a multi-disciplinary team deployed earlier is reviewing all the case records of AES patients, admitted and treated in 2019.A press release issued by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare today stated, "In view of the situation arising due to the AES/JE cases in Muzaffarpur and other adjoining districts in Bihar, Dr Harsh Vardhan, Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare has instructed for deployment of eight advanced life support ambulances (ALS) in the affected districts. Accordingly, eight additional advanced life support ambulances (ALS) have been pressed ...

Researcher develops mind-controlled robotic arm

A collaborative team of researchers has developed the first-ever successful mind-controlled robotic arm, which can help people with disability.Being able to noninvasively control robotic devices using only thoughts will have broad applications, in particular benefiting the lives of paralysed patients and those with movement disorders, says a recent study published in the Journal of 'Science Robotics.'Using a noninvasive brain-computer interface (BCI) has been shown to achieve good performance for controlling robotic devices using only the signals sensed from brain implants. When robotic devices can be controlled with high precision, they can be used to complete a variety of daily tasks.Until now, however, BCIs is successfully controlling robotic arms through invasive brain implants. These implants require a substantial amount of medical and surgical expertise to correctly install and operate, not to mention the cost and potential risks to subjects, and as such, their use has been ...

New test can eliminate need for surgery to diagnose ovarian cancer

Researchers have developed a novel blood test called biomarker test that offers the possibility of more precise diagnostics of ovarian cancer without the need for surgery.Biomarker test is based on analysis of 11 proteins and is performed on a blood sample where ultrasound indicates abnormalities to identify women without cancer.As majority of women who undergo surgery for suspected ovarian cancer do not have cancer, this research could lead to a reduction in unnecessary surgery and in earlier detection and treatment for affected women.Ovarian cancer is often discovered at a late stage and has a high mortality rate. Out of 10 patients, only 3-4 survive 5 years after treatment, and there has been no test specific enough to justify screening, reported the study published in the Journal of Communications Biology.Women with accidental findings of an ovarian cyst or with symptoms instead undergo an ultrasound and if abnormalities are seen, surgery is the only way to make sure all cancers ..

People with multiple diseases have faster brain decline: Study

A new research has found that multimorbidity scores can help doctors understand their patients' overall prognosis and can help researchers identify risks faced by people with multiple chronic illnesses such as arthritis, diabetes, or heart disease.In fact, the study published in the Journals of Gerontology shows that people with higher multimorbidity weighted index or MWI scores had a much faster decline in their thinking and memory abilities than those with lower scores.Even though most of the chronic conditions included in the index have no direct relationship to brain health, the higher a person's score, the faster they declined over a 14-year period in their ability to recall words and do simple math.Also, the study revealed that people with higher scores were more than twice as likely to die by suicide as those with lower scores and that they had the worse mental health-related quality of life in general.Assessing the total impact of a person's health conditions is important ...

Piramal Pharma Solutions invests USD 10 mn to expand its API capability in US

Piramal Pharma Solutions Thursday said it has invested USD 10 million (around Rs 69 crore) to expand its high-potency active pharmaceutical ingredients (HPAPIs) capability in its Riverview facility in the US. The new wing at the Riverview site is dedicated to the production of HPAPIs with low occupational exposure levels (OELs), Piramal Pharma Solutions said in a statement. Piramal Pharma Solutions Chief Executive Officer Vivek Sharma said: "We are one of only a few companies in the contract development and manufacturing market that have the capability to produce HPAPIs at such low OELs." The expansion enhances the company's ability to serve the growing antibody drug conjugate market, the statement said.

Child deaths in Bihar: Advanced life-support ambulances pressed into service

In view of the rising incidents of deaths due to AES/JE in Muzaffarpur and adjoining areas in Bihar, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan has issued instructions for deployment of eight advanced life-support (ALS) ambulances in the affected districts. Accordingly, eight additional ALS ambulances were pressed into service for transportation of critical patients under the National Health Mission (NHM), a statement issued by the health ministry said. The central teams comprising 10 pediatricians and five paramedics each had started working on the ground, in coordination with the state government, it added. The teams were sent to Bihar on Wednesday. Vardhan further informed that 16 senior district officials and medical personnel were sent to the vulnerable blocks for monitoring and early identification of cases and ensuring daily reporting. Their headquarters were also shifted to these blocks, he said, adding that the district collector was involved in the process now and was personally ...

Cardiovascular outcomes similar for generic and brand-name drugs for hypothyroidism

Cardiovascular event rates were similar for generic and brand-name levothyroxine drug used to treat hypothyroidism, with lower pharmacy costs for the generic drug, finds a study.The study to be published in the journal 'Mayo Clinic Proceedings' suggests that generic or brand-name levothyroxine may be used to treat hypothyroidism due to benign thyroid disorders. The average 30-day cost of the generic drug was about half the cost of brand-name medication for patients and insurers."More than 90 per cent of thyroid prescriptions are for levothyroxine, and there has been disagreement as to whether generic levothyroxine and branded thyroxine preparations are equivalent," said Robert Smallridge, the study's principal investigator."These findings suggest that generic and brand levothyroxine therapy are similar as related to cardiovascular events risk," said Dr Smallridge.Dr Smallridge said the findings require confirmation with longer-term follow-up and study of subsets of patients, such as ..

Biovet plans mega FMD, brocellosis vaccine facilities

: Biovet, a veterinary vaccine research, development and manufacturing company, Thursday announced that it has embarked on a major expansion plan to create worlds largest foot and mouth disease (FMD) and brocellosis vaccine facilities at Malur in Kolar district of Karnataka. "Expansion of our FMD vaccine facilities to deliver 200 million doses is an important step to increase our contribution to meet the shortage of this vaccine in the country. We are also excited to announce construction of a new state-of-the-art brucella vaccine production facility at the Malur site is underway to produce 100 million doses of Brucella vaccine per year," companys founder Dr Krishna Ella said. The company said that Indias foot and mouth disease control programme requires 1,000 million doses each year, whereas the current production capacity manufactured in the country is around 500 million doses. There is an unmet need for 500 million doses, andBiovetaims to fulfill this gap through ..

Encephalitis outbreak: RJD to skip PM Modi's dinner

The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leaders will not be attending the dinner called by Prime Minister Narendra Modi because of the deaths of children in Bihar's Muzaffarpur district due to Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES), said party leader Misa Bharti on Thursday.The death toll due to encephalitis touched 117 on Thursday morning in the district.Talking to ANI, Bharti suggested that the amount spent in organising the dinner could be used in procuring medicines and live equipment for treating the children."Medicines and live equipment can be procured from the amount that is being spent in organising this dinner," she said.The dinner is scheduled to take place at the Ashoka Hotel in the national capital. It will be the first time that the Prime Minister will be meeting all the MPs after the new government was formed last month.As per official data, a total of 98 deaths were reported at government-run Sri Krishna Medical College and Hospital (SKMCH), while 19 children died at Kejriwal ...

Long work hours linked to higher risk of stroke

Are you among those who clock in more than 10 hours at work? Take note! people who work long hours have an increased risk of stroke, especially if they work those hours for 10 years or more, finds a recent study.The study published in the 'Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association' reviewed data from CONSTANCES, a French population-based study group started in 2012, for information on age (18-69), sex, smoking and work hours derived from questionnaires from 143,592 participants. Cardiovascular risk factors and previous stroke occurrences were noted from separate medical interviews.The researchers found that overall 1,224 of the participants suffered strokes; 29 per cent or 42,542, reported working long hours; 10 per cent or 14,481, reported working long hours for 10 years or more; and participants working long hours had a 29 per cent greater risk of stroke, and those working long hours for 10 years or more had a 45 per cent greater risk of stroke.Long work hours were defined ..

Study suggests pain-free exercise for patients with clogged leg arteries

People suffering from the peripheral arterial disease should be given the option of pain-free exercise, suggests a new study, which has been published in the 'European Journal of Preventive Cardiology.'Around 200 million people worldwide have peripheral arterial disease (PAD), where arteries in the legs are clogged, restricting blood flow to the legs and raising the chances of stroke and heart attack. Smoking, diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol all increase the risk of PAD.Around 30 per cent of patients have pain and cramping in their legs when they walk, referred to as intermittent claudication.Exercise is a cornerstone of PAD management, together with smoking cessation, healthy diet, and weight loss. It improves symptoms, mobility, and quality of life."For many years the standard exercise prescription for patients with PAD has been to walk towards, and push past moderate to severe pain," said study author Edward Lin of the University of Toronto."Research has shown ..

Synthetic joint lubricant could potentially treat osteoarthritis

Treating osteoarthritis with synthetic joint lubricant may become a reality. The lubricant, currently in canine clinical trials, shows promise for eventual use in humans, claims a study.The treatment, developed by Cornell University biomedical engineers, is a synthetic version of a naturally occurring joint lubricant that binds to the surface of cartilage in joints and acts as a cushion during high-impact activities, such as running."When the production of that specific lubricant goes down, it creates higher contact between the surfaces of the joint and, over time, it leads to osteoarthritis," said David Putnam, a professor in the College of Engineering.The study published in 'Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences' focuses on a naturally occurring joint lubricant called lubricin, the production of which declines following traumatic injuries to a joint, such as a ligament tear in a knee.The knee is lubricated in two ways - hydrodynamic mode and boundary mode.Hydrodynamic mode