Page 6 - World Health Organization

Bangladesh PM's daughter nominated as WHO's South-East Asia director

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's daughter Saima Wazed, a mental health expert, has been nominated as the next regional director of the World Health Organization's South-East Asia region. Dr Shambhu Prasad Acharya, a senior WHO official, was the other candidate. He was nominated by Nepal. The member states voted to nominate Wazed to the post during a closed meeting at the 76th session of the WHO Regional Committee for the South-East Asia Region. The nomination will be submitted to the WHO Executive Board during its 154th session which will take place from January 22 to 27 in Geneva, Switzerland, according to a statement from the world health body. Wazed will take office on February 1, 2024.

In India, we follow holistic, inclusive approach, says Mansukh Mandaviya

Mandaviya was addressing the 76th session of the WHO Regional Committee for SEARO in New Delhi

WHO pleads for reversal of Gaza evacuation order to reduce suffering

The WHO has "joined the wider United Nations in appealing to Israel to immediately rescind orders for the evacuation of over 1 million people living north of Wadi Gaza," it said

UN authorises 2nd malaria vaccine, experts say not enough to stop spread

The World Health Organization has authorised a second malaria vaccine, a decision that could offer countries a cheaper and more readily available option than the world's first shot against the parasitic disease. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the UN health agency was approving the new malaria vaccine based on the advice of two expert groups, recommending its use in children at risk of the disease. As a malaria researcher, I used to dream of the day we would have a safe and effective vaccine against malaria. Now we have two, Tedros said. Oxford University developed the new three-dose vaccine with help from the Serum Institute of India. Research suggests it is more than 75 per cent effective and that protection is maintained for at least another year with a booster. Tedros said the shot would cost about USD 2 to USD 4 and could be available in some countries next year if funders agree to buy it. Earlier this year, regulatory authorities in Ghana and Burkina Faso

Triple jeopardy in health

This is not all. Not only are we not conserving the existing stock of medicines, the drug pipeline for new antibiotics is drying up, or has done so already

'One Health' surveillance tool vital in rapid response to rabies outbreak

The use of an animal rescue system proved to be a vital "One Health" surveillance tool as part of a rapid response to a potentially deadly rabies outbreak in Pune city, a study has found. The research, published in the journal CABI One Health to coincide with World Rabies Day on September 28, highlights how toolssuch as Hawk Data Procan be "modified or adapted to other areas" and help eradicate rabies around the world. Robust and widely implementable "One Health" surveillance systems are needed to detect and control the spread of zoonotic infectious diseases including rabies, said Abi Tamim Vanak, lead author of the research from the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), in Bengaluru. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the true burden of rabies in India is not fully known but the researchers said disease is believed to cause up to 20,000 deaths every year. Dogs are the source of the vast majority of human rabies deaths, contributing up to

Pressure points

Indians need better diagnosis and treatment of hypertension

WHO's good manufacturing norms to be made compulsory for all drug firms

Only 2,000 of the 10,500 manufacturing units in the country have the World Health Organization's GMP certification

Health ministry plans drug licensing changes to ensure drug safety

Proposals aim to standardise drug manufacturing practices after a few Indian medicines were flagged as 'substandard' by the WHO

WHO warns of a spurious rare disease drug Defitelio floating in India

The WHO said that the genuine manufacturer of Defitelio has confirmed that the product referenced in the alert is falsified

WHO extends travel restrictions on Pak for 3 months amid polio breakout

It stressed that the ongoing risk of a polio epidemic in Pakistan is underscored by recent favourable environmental tests from Peshawar and Karachi

Highly mutated Covid-19 variant BA.2.86 detected in two more countries

BA.2.86 was first spotted in Denmark on July 24 when it infected a patient at risk of severe illness. Subsequently, it has been detected in symptomatic patients and wastewater samples

Nearly 1 bn people globally will have osteoarthritis by 2050: Lancet study

Nearly one billion people globally will be living with osteoarthritis by 2050, according to a study which found that 15 per cent of individuals aged 30 and older currently experience the most common form of arthritis. The study, published recently in The Lancet Rheumatology journal, analysed 30 years of osteoarthritis data (19902020) covering more than 200 countries. The team, led by researchers at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) in the US, as part of the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021 found that cases increased rapidly over the past three decades because of three main factors: ageing, population growth, and obesity. Arthritis literally means joint inflammation. Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis, affecting millions of people worldwide. It occurs when the protective cartilage that cushions the ends of the bones wears down over time. In 1990, 256 million people had osteoarthritis. By 2020, this number rose to 595 million people, which was

WHO South-East Asia region commits to enhancing efforts to end TB

The WHO South-East Asia Region, which bears a disproportionate burden of nearly half of the global TB cases and deaths, on Thursday committed to further accelerate efforts to end tuberculosis by 2030 with its member countries adopting the Gandhinagar Declaration. "Today urgent action is needed more than ever to achieve our goal of a region free of tuberculosis, that has been menacing millions of people with disease and death, poverty, and despair," Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, Regional Director WHO South-East Asia, said in her address to a ministerial meeting on "Sustain, Accelerate, and Innovate to end TB in the South-East Asia Region". The Gandhinagar Declaration was adopted at the end of the two-day meeting held to follow-up on the progress made to end TB, a flagship priority in the region, and in the run-up to the UN High Level Meeting on TB on September 22 in New York. The declaration calls for establishing high-level multisectoral commission reporting to the highest political ..

PM Modi greets WHO DG ahead of global summit on traditional medicine

World Health Organisation's Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus arrived in Gujarat on Wednesday to attend a global summit on traditional medicine and was accorded a warm welcome. The Ayush Ministry shared a video of him joining a 'dandia' event which was held to greet him. Reacting to the video, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, "My good friend Tulsi Bhai is clearly well prepared for Navratri! Welcome to India, @DrTedros." Dandia, a traditional dance form, is held during Navratri celebrations in Gujarat. Modi had on an earlier occasion addressed him endearingly with 'Tulsi Bhai'. "Delighted to be in India for the WHO Traditional Medicine Global Summit, the Ministerial Meeting on Ending TB in WHO South East Asia and the G20 Health Ministers Meeting. Namaste India," the director general posted on X.

WHO-organised global summit on traditional medicines in Guj on Aug 17-18

A first-of-its-kind global summit on traditional medicines, organised by the WHO in Gujarat on August 17-18, will serve as a platform for experts to delve into the latest scientific advancements in the sector with the ultimate goal of ensuring health for all, a minister said on Monday. The summit at the Mahatma Mandir Convention Centre in Gandhinagar is co-hosted by the Ministry of Ayush. Union Minister of State for Ayush Munjpara Mahendrabhai Kalubhai said the meet will take into account the vast experience and expertise of the country and serve as a platform for experts and practitioners to delve into the latest scientific advancements and evidence-based knowledge in the sector, with the ultimate goal of ensuring health and well-being for all. Speaking about the event at a press conference jointly organised by the Ministry of Ayush and the World Health Organization (WHO), the minister said the summit's outcome will be a declaration, which will assist WHO in shaping the future of i

WHO issues alert over another India-made syrup, flags' substandard' quality

Deaths due to toxic cough syrups first made headlines in October when the WHO issued a global alert for four such medicines manufactured in India

WHO raises alert on 'contaminated' India-made cough syrup in Iraq

WHO referred to one batch of substandard or contaminated syrup - Cold Out (Paracetamol and Chlorpheniramine Maleate) - in Iraq which was reported to the WHO on July 10

CDSCO orders Riemann Labs to stop making cough syrup linked to deaths

The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) in coordination with State Drug Controllers of Madhya Pradesh has directed pharma firm Riemann Labs to halt manufacturing of its cough syrup that was linked to deaths of children in Cameroon. "In the case of Cameroon, a joint inspection was conducted by CDSCO, sub-zone Indore with SLA, Madhya Pradesh at M/s Riemann Labs, Indore and based on the findings the State Drugs Controller MP has directed the firm to stop the manufacturing activities," Minister of State (MoS) for Health Bharati Pravin Pawar said in a written reply in Rajya Sabha on Tuesday. The World Health Organization (WHO) had on July 19 issued an alert regarding cough syrup supplied in Cameroon stating an analysis has found that the product contained "unacceptable amounts of diethylene glycol as contaminants." The makers of Naturcold listed paracetamol, phenylephrine hydrochloride, and chlorpheniramine maleate as active ingredients, and a combination of these three i

India-made cold syrup sent to Iraq tainted with toxic chemicals, shows test

A bottle of Cold Out purchased at a pharmacy in Baghdad in March contains 2.1 per cent ethylene glycol, according to Valisure LLC, an independent US laboratory