New rules for bio-medical waste management in India |  |
- New rules for bio-medical waste management in India
- Court terms MBBS admission criteria irrational
- Amar Singh may discharged in 3 days: Doctors
- Foam injections for varicose veins better for patients and cheaper, study finds
- Bone-strengthening drug gives pain relief in prostate cancer bone metastases
- New diagnostic imaging for lung cancer could prevent unnecessary surgery
- Zoledronic acid reduces the recurrence of breast cancer in post-menopausal women
- Aromatase inhibitor letrozole guards against breast cancer relapse for up to 8 years
- Most cardiac deaths in India preventable: Expert
- India committed to eradicate polio: Azad
| New rules for bio-medical waste management in India Posted: 26 Sep 2011 02:19 PM PDT ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) To ensure safe and proper management of bio-medical waste, the environment ministry has proposed new rules under which all health institutions are required to obtain authorisation of medical waste treatment facility. The Draft Bio-Medical Waste Management and Handling Rules 2011 put in the public domain by the ministry seeking suggestions will replace the Bio-Medical Waste Rules 1998. According to ministry, the new rules are comprehensive, strict and several new provisions are added in it. Under the new rules, it has been stipulated that irrespective of the quantum of bio-medical waste generation, every occupier - hospital, nursing home, clinic, dispensary, veterinary institution, animal house, pathological laboratory and blood banks - shall apply for grant of authorisation. 'Earlier, authorisation of medical waste treatment facility was not required by an institution providing service to less than 1000 patients per month. But now the condition on quantity of patient has been removed,' said a ministry official. India faces a massive problem of bio-medical waste disposal as several hospitals collect the medical waste and dump them in open grounds rather than treating them. The draft rules make hospital and owner of medical waste treatment facility liable for all damages caused due to improper handling of waste. http://www.rxpgnews.com    |
| Court terms MBBS admission criteria irrational Posted: 25 Sep 2011 08:20 PM PDT ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) Agartala, Sep 25 - The Gauhati High Court has found the Medical Council of India - eligibility criterion for MBBS aspirants from the scheduled castes and tribes 'irrational and in violation of Article 14 of the Indian Constitution', officials said Sunday. According to MCI regulations, MBBS aspirants from these categories must secure at least 40 percent marks in the combined competitive examinations or joint entrance examinations. The union health ministry and the MCI had earlier refused to further relax the criterion for northeastern tribes and scheduled caste students. A senior Tripura health department official said around 31 MBBS seats were lying vacant in the government-run medical college in Agartala and in the Tripura quota in other states because no student secured the minimum in the JEE this year in the state. Some students and guardians have filed a writ petition in the Gauhati High Court against the MCI regulations. 'The High Court has asked the authorities to admit those students in the MBBS courses within a week against their respective quota of seats,' the official said, quoting the court order passed Friday in Guwahati. 'The division bench of the court, comprising I.A. Ansari and C.R. Sarma, said in their ruling that state secondary board examination results were sufficient,' the official said. 'Though the MCI regulations had been upheld by the Supreme Court in its various verdicts, the fact of the matter remains that in the decisions, cited and relied upon, the constitutionality of the regulation have been put to challenge,' the court is reported as saying. 'When the issue has not specifically been raised and has not been decided, the constitutionality of the MCI's regulation remains open for challenge on the ground of its irrationality,' the high court said. Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, responding to a letter of Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar, has communicated the centre's decision to follow... http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
| Amar Singh may discharged in 3 days: Doctors Posted: 25 Sep 2011 07:21 PM PDT ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) New Delhi, Sep 25 - Arrested Rajya Sabha MP Amar Singh, currently admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences - for a kidney-related ailment, could be discharged in three days, doctors said here Sunday. 'He has shown signs of improvement in the last two days. His creatinine levels - are down to 1.45 mg/dl. Considering his medical condition, he may be relieved in 3 days,' a senior doctor from AIIMS said, on condition of anonymity. According to doctors, Amar Singh's medical history created the complications. 'The main problem was due to urinary tract infection and diabetes. Being a transplant patient, these factors added to his worsened condition,' said another doctor from the panel examining him Singh. Medical reports submitted to the high court stated that the 55-year old, suffering from diabetes, underwent a renal transplant in September 2009 and intestinal surgery 10 years ago. Amar Singh, arrested in the cash-for-votes scam, is on an extended interim bail till Sep 27. He was put under medical observation Sep 13 after he complained of ill-health. He and two former Bharatiya Janata Party - MPs, Faggan Singh Kulaste and Mahavir Singh Bhagora, were arrested Sep 6 for their alleged involvement in an attempt to bribe MPs ahead of the July 2008 parliament trust vote. http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
| Foam injections for varicose veins better for patients and cheaper, study finds Posted: 25 Sep 2011 05:00 AM PDT ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) Under embargo until9am UK timeSunday 25 September 2011 Foam injections to treat varicose veins cause less pain for patients and could save NHS money compared with a popular alternative treatment, according to researchers at Imperial College London. The study found that foam therapy was over four times more cost-effective than laser treatment and allowed patients to resume normal activity sooner. The findings were presented today at the annual meeting of the European Vascular Society in Athens. Varicose veins develop when the valves in veins stop working properly, causing the veins to swell. About one in three people have varicose veins when they reach retiring age, with women affected more than men. In most people, they do not present a serious health problem, but in severe cases they can cause aching, itching, swelling or leg ulcers. Patients requiring treatment often undergo surgery to strip out the affected vein. Under general anaesthetic, the vein is tied off through a cut in the groin and pulled out by a wire passed through a cut lower in the leg. 36,209 varicose vein procedures are carried out in the NHS each year. In the last decade, new non-surgical treatments have been introduced that cause less scarring and do not require general anaesthetic. Endovenous Laser Ablation (EVLA) involves a laser wire, inserted into the vein through a catheter, which delivers short bursts of energy that seal the vein closed. It is usually carried out under local anaesthetic. Foam sclerotherapy involves injecting foam into the vein that inflames the lining of the wall and seals the vessel. The new study compared these two treatments in terms of benefit to the patient and cost. One hundred patients were randomly assigned to laser or foam treatment. The two treatments were found to be equally successful at closing off varicose veins. However, foam therapy procedures were more than twice as quick and cost over four times less than laser... http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
| Bone-strengthening drug gives pain relief in prostate cancer bone metastases Posted: 25 Sep 2011 05:00 AM PDT ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) Stockholm, Sweden: Many prostate cancer patients develop bone metastases, and controlling the pain these cause can be difficult. Now the first large randomised Phase III trial of a bisphosphonate drug in these patients has shown that a single dose of the drug is as good for pain relief as single dose radiotherapy, the standard treatment for bone metastases. Results of the trial were presented today (Sunday) at the 2011 European Multidisciplinary Cancer Congress [1]. Professor Peter Hoskin, consultant clinical oncologist at the Mount Vernon Cancer Centre, Northwood, UK, and Professor of Clinical Oncology at University College, London, and colleagues, randomised 470 patients with primary prostate cancer and painful bone metastases to receive either a single dose of radiation or a single intravenous infusion of the bisphosphonate ibandronate (IB). Patients reported their primary site of pain at entry into the trial, and then at four, eight, twelve, 26 and 52 weeks after treatment. Those who had not responded to the first treatment at four weeks crossed over to the alternative therapy and received their second treatment no later than week eight. Pain levels were measured at four and twelve weeks by examining analgesic use, using a combination of scoring via the WHO pain ladder [2] and the Mercadante method, which defines analgesic use in morphine equivalents. We found that using IB was as good as single dose radiotherapy in controlling pain, said Prof Hoskin. Although there were more patients in the IB group with worse Mercadante scores at four weeks who needed re-treatment, at six and twelve months there was no long-term difference in pain relief between the two groups. Side effects were few; short-lived nausea and stomach upsets if radiotherapy passes through the abdomen and flu-like symptoms with IB. The patients in the trial were well balanced as to age, site of pain, prior treatment and performance status. The median survival... http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
| New diagnostic imaging for lung cancer could prevent unnecessary surgery Posted: 25 Sep 2011 05:00 AM PDT ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) Amsterdam, The Netherlands: A new type of diagnostic imaging - which can better differentiate benign lung lesions from those which are cancerous - could be used to prevent unnecessary surgery by enabling more accurate diagnosis of the disease. A study by Belgian researchers, which will be presented today (25 September 2011) at the European Respiratory Society's Annual Congress in Amsterdam, found that the new technique can more accurately determine whether people have the disease when compared with the current method of PET-CT scans. PET-CT scans are currently used by a doctor to determine what stage the cancer is at and whether the detected lung lesions are cancerous. This test involves a CT scan taking pictures from around your body and a PET scan which uses a small amount of an injected radioactive drug to show uptake within structures in your body. Whilst this is the current gold-standard for treatment, this new research has shown that a type of MRI scan, known as diffusion-weighted MRI, is more accurate. This technique measures water movement in the tissue of the lungs and can detect the structural changes that lung cancer causes, even in the early stages of the disease. The new technique also has the advantage of being non-invasive and does not require any radiation exposure. The research analysed 50 people who were due to be operated on and had been diagnosed with lung cancer or suspected lung cancer assessed by PET-CT scan. One day before their operation, the same group also underwent a diffusion-weighted MRI scan. The results showed that with PET-CT scans, 33 patients were diagnosed correctly, 7 incorrectly and 10 were undetermined. With diffusion-weighted MRI scans, 45 patients were diagnosed correctly and 5 incorrectly. The 10 undetermined cases with PET-CT were correctly diagnosed using diffusion-weighted MRI scan. Dr Johan Coolen, from University Hospitals Leuven in Belgium, said: Our study has shown that... http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
| Zoledronic acid reduces the recurrence of breast cancer in post-menopausal women Posted: 25 Sep 2011 05:00 AM PDT ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) Stockholm, Sweden: A trial investigating the use of zoledronic acid to aid chemotherapy for breast cancer has found a significant benefit for post-menopausal women, according to results presented at the 2011 European Multidisciplinary Cancer Congress [1] today (Sunday). Researchers think it could be the key for a greater understanding of the mechanisms of breast cancer recurrence as well as offering new options for patient care. Zoledronic acid is one of the bisphosphonates, a group of drugs mainly used to treat osteoporosis. However they are also given to cancer patients to protect against the effects of secondary bone cancer, such as pain and weakness in the bones. Laboratory studies have suggested that zoledronic acid might also have direct anti-tumour effects and enhance other chemotherapy treatments, so the multi-centre AZURE trial was set up to investigate further. Led by Professor Robert Coleman at the Weston Park Hospital in Sheffield, UK, the trial recruited 3,360 patients with stage II/III breast cancer from 174 centres. They were randomised to receive chemotherapy and/or endocrine therapy, with or without zoledronic acid. An interim analysis of the trial's progress indicated that patients were seeing no clinical benefit from the treatment, so the data were released for more detailed scrutiny. This confirmed the drug's lack of impact, apart from in a sub-set of women who had undergone menopause five or more years previously. Here, the overall survival rate was 85% compared to 79% for women who did not receive zoledronic acid. The effect was independent of the characteristics of the disease as shown by the stage of the tumour, oestrogen receptor status, and lymph node involvement. This is a small but significant increase, Prof Coleman explains. The finding is not sufficient to be taken up on its own but in the context of other studies and additional data anticipated later in the year, it is likely to change... http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
| Aromatase inhibitor letrozole guards against breast cancer relapse for up to 8 years Posted: 25 Sep 2011 05:00 AM PDT ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) Stockholm, Sweden: Results from the longest-running trial comparing tamoxifen with the aromatase inhibitor letrozole show unequivocally that letrozole has withstood the test of time and continues to prevent breast cancer recurrences and reduce the risk of death in post-menopausal women with hormone receptor-positive early breast cancer. Professor Richard Gelber told delegates at the 2011 European Multidisciplinary Cancer Congress [1], in Stockholm today (Monday 26 September) that a 12-year update of results from the Breast International Group (BIG) 1-98 [2] trial showed that if women with early breast cancer (cancer that has not spread from the breast) were given letrozole after surgery for at least five years, they continued to do better and have fewer recurrences of the disease than those who were given tamoxifen. Over a median of eight years of follow-up, women who were assigned to receive five years of letrozole after surgery had an 18% reduced risk of relapse and a 21% reduced risk of death compared with those assigned to receive tamoxifen, said Prof Gelber, Director of the International Breast Cancer Study Group (IBCSG) Statistical and Data Management Center at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA. The current 12-year update is the longest follow-up to date and includes much more information than we had after ten years. For instance, there have been 32% more relapses and 39% more deaths since the ten-year update, which increases substantially the reliability of the results and provides reassurance regarding the long-term value of letrozole. This additional follow-up and accumulation of information on relapses and deaths show that the overall survival advantage for adjuvant letrozole compared to tamoxifen continues to be statistically significant. Adjuvant therapy (treatment that is given after surgery), using drugs that target hormones such as oestrogen, is given to patients with early breast cancer who have... http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
| Most cardiac deaths in India preventable: Expert Posted: 24 Sep 2011 08:52 PM PDT ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) New Delhi, Sep 24 - Around 80 percent of cardiac deaths in the country can be prevented if people are made aware about heart diseases, Medanta Heart Institute said Saturday. 'Correct information and awareness amongst people can prevent 80 percent cardiac deaths as 60 percent population in India has wrong or incomplete information about heart diseases,' said Rajneesh Kapoor, director of division of interventional cardilogy at the institute. According to Kapoor, people tend to link chest pains with heart attacks whereas the discomfort may spread to neck, left arm or even throat. 'Some people think that only overweight people get heart attacks, which is not true. Heart attacks are not related to weight, it's related to cholesterol level,' added Kapoor. 'Misconceptions can lead to deaths.' As per Medanta, cardiovascular diseases cause 29 percent of all deaths globally each year, making it the world's number one killer. Every year, 17.1 million lives are claimed by cardiovascular diseases, with 82 per cent of deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries like India. However, a healthy diet, not smoking and being physically active are key to building a healthy heart, advised Kapoor. http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
| India committed to eradicate polio: Azad Posted: 24 Sep 2011 08:06 PM PDT ( From http://www.rxpgnews.com ) New Delhi, Sep 24 - India is committed to eradicating polio from the country and several initiatives are being taken to prevent the highly infectious disease from spreading, union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said. Azad made the comments Friday at a function in Chicago where he was presented with the Polio Champion Award by Rotary International in recognition of efforts towards the eradication of polio. Azad was conferred this award last year too. 'I want to re-affirm India's commitment towards polio eradication,' said a statement by Azad, issued here Saturday. This year, only one polio case has been reported in the country so far, compared to 741 cases in 2009 and 42 in 2010. Azad said vaccination is one of the most cost effective public health interventions as it provides direct and effective protection against preventable morbidity and mortality. India runs one of the world's largest immunisation programmes in which around 26 million children born every year are covered, he said. While India has been able to eliminate type 2 strain of polio, it has yet to wipe out the type 1 and 3 strains. Azad said they have introduced bivalent vaccine since January 2010 and which has resulted in significant success. He also said they have prepared an emergency preparedness and response plan, which will be put in action in case more cases are reported. 'It will be treated as a public health emergency,' he added. India has spent approximately $240 million for the polio programme since the beginning of the 11th plan -, Azad added. The award is given by Rotary International since 1995 to recognize governments and world leaders who have made outstanding contribution toward the goal of eradicating polio. The award is in recognition of the efforts made by India and Azad's role in particular towards eradicating the debilitating disease. http://www.rxpgnews.com   |
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