The number of lives lost due to viral hepatitis infections is increasing and already accounts for 3,500 deaths daily, according to this report by the World Health Organization (WHO). This is the first consolidated WHO report on viral hepatitis epidemiology, service coverage and product access, with improved data for action. …
AT the time of independence, India faced the twin problems of acute and chronic undernutrition of its children. This was essentially a result of low dietary intake because of poverty and low purchasing power, high prevalence of infection because of poor access to safe drinking water, sanitation and health care …
Children in western Uttar Pradesh (UP) will now be vaccinated every month against polio. This was recommended by the India Expert Advisory Group (IEAG), at a meeting held between December 11-12, 2006, to stem the rise of polio cases. IEAG emphasises that the programme is not a failure. They attribute …
function map() { var popurl="image/20061231/25-map.jpg" winpops=window.open(popurl,"","width=550,height=600,scrollbars=yes") } Cripple effect Moradabad district in western Uttar Pradesh (up) holds a dubious distinction: this year it has registered the highest number of polio cases of any district in the country. When this magazine went to press, officials there were gearing up for a …
IF only paucity of funds was the only problem. But it is not. Amar Singh, Moradabad’s immunisation officer, has a simple explanation for the recent spurt: “This is the epidemic year.” He might be right; the disease has been seen to follow a cyclic pattern. Every fourth year sees a …
as the Simlipal National Park in Orissa's Mayurbhanj district closes during monsoon to protect wildlife, it turns into a graveyard for its human inhabitants, reports an independent working group on protected areas. In June, an infant's death inside the sanctuary sparked off an investigation by this group of local ngos …
The Assam health department has sounded a health alert after 74 people died of Japanese encephalitis. At least 254 have been affected by the mosquito-borne disease in the past two weeks. The worst affected districts in the state are Dibrugarh, Sibsagar, Lakhimpur and Golaghat, says J M Bora, joint director …
the inclusion of Hepatitis b vaccine in India's universal immunisation programme (uip) could be stayed till there is adequate data on the vaccine's efficacy. Following a meeting on March 3 in New Delhi, between who officials and Indian paediatricians, the un body said it would look into the doctors' concerns …
This revised version of the operational field guide on pulse polio immunization will provide practical guidelines to health administrators and planners at the state, district and sub district levels for performing NID/SNID operations. This includes recognizing gaps identified in the earlier IPPI rounds and undertaking corrective actions. It is essential …
function table() { var popurl="image/20060131/37-graph.jpg" winpops=window.open(popurl,"","width=385,height=350,scrollbars=yes") } spaced out South stuck between rock and hard place A good example of how manouevring space for developing countries is being constrained is the case of the vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella (mmr). A generation ago, in Delhi you could get vaccinated …
The technology for developing new vaccines and the research that goes into it is becoming increasingly sophisticated and dependent upon an enormous corpus of funds to get off the blocks. This is raising important issues relating to pricing, access and international equity. Take the flu vaccine
It has long been known that 20 gene regulators control the development of blood cells from blood stem cells in the bone marrow. All these regulators have a common genetic element, called PU.1, which plays a crucial role in regulating blood cell formation. PU.1 guides the development of two major …
The National Population Policy (2000) aims at complete protection of all children against vaccine preventable diseases by 2010. Urban poor, many residing in slums, comprise about one-fourth of India’s 285 million urban population. 60% of the children aged 12-23 months in urban India are fully immunized; coverage among urban poor …
research has shown that if an Indian gets infected with the human immuno virus (hiv), the chances are that it will quickly develop into a case of full-blown aids ( acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). The problem seems to be that Indians have a preponderance of susceptible genes, which increases the rate …
The department of health and family welfare introduced the pulse polio immunisation programme in 1995. Since then, many rounds of national and sub-national anti-polio days have been observed and numerous children aged up to five administered the oral polio vaccine (opv). However, polio continues to afflict. And, what is more …
the strongest acid: The world's strongest acid, at least a million times more potent than concentrated sulphuric acid, has been made in a lab in California. It is also one of the least corrosive. Called carborane acid, is the first
Star-studded campaigns, millions spent and 20 new cases of polio to show for it. The reason being offered by Uttar Pradesh (up) is lack of adequate routine immunisation. The affected districts are Badaun, Moradabad, Muzaffarnagar, Mau and Bulandshahar. While it is a fact that routine immunisation in the state is …
