Health Bulletin 17/February/2024

Here are the top health stories for the day:

Ganga Ram Hospital cleared by Medical Council, questions Consumer Court’s compensation demand

Defending itself against the recent order by the State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, which ordered it to pay compensation for medical negligence while treating a patient who underwent splenectomy, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital has now issued a Press Release regarding the matter.

The hospital claimed in the release that no negligence was found on its part or the part of its doctors by the Delhi Medical Council and the erstwhile Medical Council of India. Therefore, referring to the State Commission order dated 09.02.2024, the Council termed it to be “surprising” and mentioned that the order is being studied in detail for further course of action.

For the full story, check out the link given below:

No Negligence Was Found In Medical Council Order, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital Calls Delhi Consumer Court Compensation Order “Surprising”


MP Doctor’s outburst towards guard in Chhatarpur caught on video

In Chhatarpur, Madhya Pradesh, a heated altercation between a doctor and a home guard, who was assisting an accident victim, escalated quickly and was captured on video, sparking widespread outrage on social media. The incident occurred when the home guard, in his duty to ensure proper care for the injured, requested a CT scan and X-ray for the patient from Dr.Arunendra Shukla.

The situation took a turn for the worse when the doctor reacted negatively after the home guard mentioned the district collector’s name, leading Dr. Shukla to angrily toss aside the documents and refuse to continue his work.

Pharmacist gets life sentence for Triple Murder in 2014

In a significant legal decision nearly a decade after a tragic incident, Sneha Swakhyar Samal, a 52-year-old pharmacist, has been sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of three individuals. This verdict was delivered by Justice Debasis Rout of the first additional sessions court in Bhubaneswar.

The victims of this heinous crime were orthopaedic surgeon Atulya Chandra Meher, aged 55, his caretaker Prasant Behera, aged 42, and Behera’s son Minu, aged 14. The attack, which occurred on October 14, 2014, at Dr. Meher’s residence in Khandagiri, also left Prasant’s wife, Runu, aged 35, and their other 6-year-old son severely injured.

New Utah research suggests menopause might be postponed forever

At birth, ovaries in girls can contain about a million tiny structures called primordial follicles, each of which contains an egg cell. As girls grow and experience adulthood, most of these follicles will die while only one follicle will survive each month to ovulate a mature egg. When the loss of primordial follicles is nearly complete, and only hundreds remain, women experience menopause, a time when menstrual cycles have ceased for 12 months.

Johnson J, Lawley SD, Emerson JW, Oktay KH. Modeling delay of age at natural menopause with planned tissue cryopreservation and autologous transplantation. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2024 Jan 4:S0002-9378(24)00003-6. doi: 10.1016/j.ajog.2023.12.037. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38184290.

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2 MBBS students of MKCG Medical College suspended for ragging junior

Berhampur: Taking serious cognizance of a ragging incident against a junior medical student, the anti-ragging committee of the MKCG Medical College, here suspended two fourth-year MBBS students for two months.

Speaking to PTI, the college’s dean-cum-principal, Santosh Kumar Mishra, confirmed the suspension of the students.

“Based on the recommendation of the anti-ragging committee, the two students have been suspended from attending classes and from staying in the hostel for two months,” Santosh Kumar Mishra, dean-cum-principal of the medical college, informed TOI.

The matter came to light after the father of the MBBS student complained before the anti-ragging cell accusing two of his son’s seniors of beating him up inside the campus late evening last week.

After noticing the victim’s injuries, his father complained to the anti-ragging cell, alleging that the duo had assaulted his son. The victim, staying in Gents Hostel No. 2, claimed that while he was returning to his hostel on his motorcycle on the night of February 9, two seniors asked for a ride to Gents Hostel No. 1.

“After they disembarked from my vehicle, they attacked me without reason,” the victim claimed.

Following his complaint, police filed a case against the duo, and the medical college authorities referred the matter to the anti-ragging committee. The committee collected statements from the victim, the accused students, and a few others before recommending the suspension of the four students

Police have also taken statements from both parties, and the investigation is ongoing.

The dean mentioned that they have implemented necessary measures in accordance with guidelines to prevent ragging on campus. 

Also read- Ragging At Gandhi Medical College: 10 Senior MBBS Students Suspended For One Year

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Roche Xolair gets USFDA nod for children, adults with one or more food allergies

Basel: Roche has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Xolair (omalizumab) for the reduction of allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis, that may occur with accidental exposure to one or more foods in adult and paediatric patients aged 1 year and older with IgE-mediated food allergy. People taking Xolair for food allergies should continue to avoid all foods they are allergic to (commonly referred to as “food allergen avoidance”). Xolair should not be used for the emergency treatment of any allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis. Immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated food allergies are the most common type and are typically characterised by the rapid onset of symptoms following exposure to certain food allergens. Xolair is the first and only FDA-approved medicine to reduce allergic reactions in people with one or more food allergies. Xolair is widely available and can now be prescribed for appropriate patients with IgE-mediated food allergy in the U.S.

“Xolair offers patients and families an important new treatment option that can help redefine the way food allergies are managed and reduce the often-serious allergic reactions that can result from exposure to food allergens,” said Levi Garraway, M.D., Ph.D., Roche’s Chief Medical Officer and Head of Global Product Development. “The approval builds on 20 years of patient experience and an established efficacy and safety profile since Xolair was first approved in allergic asthma. We look forward to bringing this treatment to the food allergy community who have long awaited an advancement.”

The FDA approval is based on positive data from the Phase III OUtMATCH study, which evaluated Xolair in patients aged 1 to 55 years allergic to peanuts and at least two other food allergens, including milk, egg, wheat, cashew, hazelnut and walnut. The OUtMATCH study is sponsored and funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and is being conducted by the NIAID-funded Consortium for Food Allergy Research (CoFAR) at 10 clinical sites across the U.S. led by Johns Hopkins Children’s Center and co-led by Stanford School of Medicine. Detailed results from the study will be featured in a late-breaking symposium at the 2024 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI) Annual Meeting on Sunday, 25 February.

“As more and more people are affected by food allergies, the need for a new approach to help prevent serious and often life-threatening allergic reactions and emergencies is critical,” said Sung Poblete, R.N., Ph.D., CEO of FARE (Food Allergy Research and Education). “As someone with food allergies, I know firsthand the significant impact they can have on people and their loved ones, and I share in the community’s excitement for this approval.”

“The stress of living with food allergies can weigh heavily on people and their families, particularly when navigating events like children’s birthday parties, school lunches, and holiday dinners with friends and family,” said Kenneth Mendez, president and CEO of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA). “Given the growing prevalence of food allergies, this news offers hope to the many children and adults who may benefit from a new way to help manage their food allergies.”

Patients entered the OUtMATCH study unable to tolerate up to 100 mg of peanut protein (equivalent to about one third of a peanut), and up to 300 mg each of milk, egg and cashew protein. After 16 to 20 weeks of treatment with Xolair or placebo, each participant completed four food challenges, receiving gradually increasing amounts of foods they are allergic to (and a placebo ingredient), in order to assess their ability to consume a single dose of at least 600 mg of peanut protein (primary endpoint), and a single dose of at least 1,000 mg of milk, egg or cashew protein (secondary endpoints) without experiencing moderate to severe allergic symptoms.

Study results showed a statistically significant higher proportion of patients (68%) treated with Xolair for 16 to 20 weeks tolerated at least 600 mg of peanut protein without moderate to severe allergic symptoms, compared to 5% of those treated with placebo (p<0.0001). This amount is equivalent to approximately two and a half peanuts or half a teaspoon of regular peanut butter.

In addition, a statistically significant higher proportion of patients treated with Xolair compared to placebo tolerated at least 1,000 mg of protein from milk (66% vs. 11%; p<0.0001), egg (67% vs. 0%; p<0.0001) or cashew (42% vs. 3%; p<0.0001) without moderate to severe allergic symptoms. This amount is equivalent to approximately two tablespoons of 1% milk, one-quarter of an egg or three and a half cashews. While patients in the study tolerated these amounts of food, treatment with Xolair should be used with continued food allergen avoidance.

Safety findings were consistent with the known safety profile of Xolair across its additional indications and in previous clinical trials. The most common adverse events (≥3% of patients) in Xolair-treated patients in the study were injection site reaction (15.5% vs. 10.9% with placebo) and fever (6.4% vs. 3.6% with placebo).

About 3.4 million children and 13.6 million adults in the U.S. have been diagnosed with IgE-mediated food allergies, based on estimates for 2024. Food allergy prevalence has been on the rise for the past 20 years. There are 160 different foods that cause IgE-mediated food allergy. Allergic reactions can range from mild to moderate, including hives and swelling, to severe and life-threatening, such as anaphylaxis. More than 40% of children and more than half of adults with food allergies have experienced a severe reaction at least once, and it is estimated that food-related anaphylaxis results in 30,000 medical events treated in emergency rooms in the U.S. each year.

This marks the fourth FDA-approved indication for Xolair across allergic and inflammatory conditions, including moderate to severe persistent allergic asthma, chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) and chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP). Since its initial approval in 2003, more than 700,000 patients have been treated with Xolair in the U.S.

Xolair is a prescription biologic medicine that is given as an injection under the skin (subcutaneous). It is the only FDA-approved antibody designed to target and block IgE — an underlying driver of food allergy reactions. The recommended Xolair dosage for treatment of food allergy is 75 mg to 600 mg once every 2 or 4 weeks. Xolair dose and dosing frequency is determined by total serum IgE level and body weight. Injections can be given by a healthcare provider in a healthcare setting or at home through self-injection after initiating in a healthcare setting. Healthcare providers will determine appropriate candidates for self-injection.

In the U.S., Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, and Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation work together to develop and co-promote Xolair.

Read also: CDSCO Panel Approves Roche’s Protocol Amendment Proposal for Anticancer Drug Giredestrant

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MP Doctor angrily snaps at home guard, video goes viral

Chhatarpur: After a video of a government doctor showing him purportedly misbehaving with the home guard at a district hospital in Chhatarpur went viral on social media, the Madhya Pradesh government transferred the doctor on Friday.

In the video, the doctor was purportedly misbehaving with the jawan who had gone with an injured patient to the hospital and can be seen asking the guard to stay within his limits.

“I am not afraid of the collector. If you threaten me, I will make you dance to my tunes. First of all, don’t come to the hospital chewing gutka and don’t forget your limits,” said the doctor in the video, PTI reports.

Also read- UP Govt Doctor, Nurse Transferred For Sending Patients To Private Labs

The video also shows the doctor throwing away the documents belonging to an injured patient towards the home guard and saying “Do kaudi ka guard, mujhse behes kar raha.” Following this, he asked the jawan and the patient to get out.

The incident took place on February 12 when the home guard jawan went to the hospital to get the CT scan and X-ray of a patient who was injured in a road accident. The patient was transferred to the district hospital after first aid from Barigarh Hospital.

The injured patient was known to the home guard stationed at Jujharnagar police station, leading to a recommendation being made on his behalf. However, the doctor became upset by this gesture, FPJ reports.

In response to the jawan making the request, the doctor said, “You don’t make requests, you use sticks (Nivedan nahi danda karte ho tum). You who are sold for Rs 2,000, do not talk nonsense to me.”

After its video surfaced, state Public Health and Medical Education Minister Rajendra Shukla ordered the removal of Dr *** from the Chhatarpur district hospital, saying this kind of behaviour would not be tolerated.

Taking serious cognisance of the matter, the health minister on Friday ordered the transfer of the doctor from his post.

“This kind of behaviour in public life is intolerable. He has been removed from his post and the matter will be investigated further,” he told reporters.

Also read- Kerala Paediatrician Booked For Allegedly Sexually Harassing, Showing Porn To Four Nursing Students

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Rs 18k stipend granted for FMGs in Maharashtra, similar benefits demanded across India

Mumbai: Granting major relief to the Foreign Medical Graduates (FMGs) undergoing internship in the State, the Maharashtra Government has decided to give them Rs 18 thousand as a monthly stipend.

Pointing out that Maharashtra is the third State across India to grant such a favour to the FMGs, the medical graduates from abroad are demanding that other States/UTs across the country should also follow suit.

Lauding the move, the National Convenor and the Former State President for Maharashtra, All India Medical Students Association- Foreign Medical Students Wing (AIMSA-FMSW), Dr. Apurv Dalvi told Medical Dialogues, “Since 15-20 years, students have been going abroad from various States of India. Till now, no stipend was being paid to the students undergoing Internship. NMC published the FMGL Regulations in 2021. Maharashtra is the third State from India to declare the Stipend for the FMGs.”

He further added that “Until 2021, students had to pay certain amount of fees to the Government and the respective authorities to do the internship. Now, Maharashtra Government is implementing the NCM rules and therefore, the students do not have to pay any Internship fees. Further, the State has also granted Rs 18 thousand as stipend to the FMGs.”

Welcoming the decision, Dr. Dalvi highlighted the issues faced by the FMGs, and said, “Students going abroad face many problems. They go abroad, far away from their home. After coming back and obtaining a degree from the foreign institute, they have to clear the screening test and again undergo a year of internship.”

He stressed the fact that all the students going abroad to pursue medical education are equivalent to Indian medical graduates and opined “This decision should have taken much earlier. Nevertheless, the State Government of Maharashtra has declared the decision. This is not only positive news for the students in Maharashtra, but also for the FMGs belonging to different States across India.”

Also Read: FMG internship in India: NMC releases clarification on CRMI, check out details

The association is now demanding that similar benefits should be extended to the FMGs belonging to other States across India as well. Commenting on the matter, Dr. Dalvi added, “FMGs belonging to major States like Rajasthan, Gujarat, Delhi, southern States including Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, are undergoing internship without any stipend. So, on behalf of the association, we are planning to raise the issue to the respective State Governments.”

Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that the decision to grant stipends to FMGs was taken by the Maharashtra Government recently when it sanctioned a substantial raise in the monthly stipend for the MBBS intern doctors from the Government Medical Colleges in the State. As per the decision, which was finalized during a cabinet meeting under the leadership of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, the stipend of MBBS interns in the GMCs has been increased from Rs 11,000 to Rs 18,000.

Along with increasing the stipend for the Indian Medical Students undergoing internship, the State also decided to extend the benefit to the FMGs also, who have completed their MBBS outside India and are interning in the GMCs in Maharashtra upon their return.

What do the rules say?

Medical Dialogues had reported back in 2022 that providing major relief to the FMGs who want to pursue Internship in India, NMC had clarified that the Indian medical colleges shall not charge any fees from the medical graduates from abroad for permitting them to do Internship in India.

NMC had further clarified that the FMGs would also be paid equal stipend and other facilities just like the Indian Medical Graduates who are being trained at Government Medical Colleges. However, last year, the matter was once again addressed by NMC, which issued a clarification regarding the conduct of internships for medical graduates from abroad.

Issuing a circular in this regard on May 9, 2023, the President of UG Medical Education Board (UGMEB), Dr. Aruna V Vanikar addressed several issues including important provisions under CRMI Regulations 2021 for the FMGs, validation for Online study by Commission, applicability of NMC Public notice dated 28.07.2022 on FMGs, requirement of Domicile by FMGs for internship, completion of Internship by FMGs in parts at hospitals and medical colleges, issue concerning payment of stipend to FMGs, and one-time relaxation to Foreign Medical Graduates to complete internship.

Referring to the issue of stipend, NMC had mentioned, “However, considering the requests/representations from various State Governments/UTs/medical colleges wherein it was intimated that there has been no budgetary provision in their allocation of annual budget to provide stipend to Foreign Medical Graduates, the Commission vide circular dated 19.10.2022 has already clarified that the amount of stipend to be paid to the interns is to be decided/fixed by the appropriate authority applicable to the Institution/University or State. The implementation of these guidelines/instructions/advisory is solely at the discretion of the concerned State authorities under which the medical college/institute is located.”

Meanwhile, the issue of internships for FMGs is being considered by the Supreme Court, which recently issued notices on a plea filed by FMGs challenging the non-payment of stipend during the compulsory internship.

While considering the plea by the medical graduates from abroad, who are undergoing internship at Atal Bihari Vajpayee Government Medical College, Vidisha, the top court bench comprising Justices B.R. Gavai and Sandeep Mehta issued notice on January 23.

The plea has been tagged with the case titled Abhishek Yadav & Ors. vs. Army Medical College & Ors. (W.P. (C) No. 730/2022). While considering this above-mentioned case, the Supreme Court had taken cognisance of the fact that 70 percent of the medical colleges across the country do not pay any stipend or are not paying the minimum stipend to doctors who are doing MBBS internships.

Also Read: FMGs challenge Non-Payment of Stipend, Supreme Court Issues Notice

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Medical Bulletin 17/February/2024

Here are the top medical news for the day:

Research produces new antibiotic-resistant to bacterial resistance

Researchers at the University of Illinois Chicago and Harvard University have created an antibiotic that could provide medicine with a fresh tool to combat drug-resistant bacteria and their associated diseases.

Published in Nature Chemical Biology, the antibiotic, Cresomycin, effectively suppresses pathogenic bacteria that have become resistant to many commonly prescribed antimicrobial drugs.

The UIC scientists focused on how many antibiotics interact with a common cellular target – the ribosome – and how drug-resistant bacteria modify their ribosomes to defend themselves. Their critical insights into cellular mechanisms and structure aided Harvard researchers in designing and synthesizing new drugs, including the development of the new antibiotic.

More than half of all antibiotics inhibit growth of pathogenic bacteria by interfering with their protein biosynthesis – a complex process catalyzed by the ribosome. Antibiotics bind to bacterial ribosomes and disrupt this protein-manufacturing process, causing bacterial invaders to die.But many bacterial species evolved simple defences against this attack. In one defense, they interfere with antibiotic activity by adding a single methyl group of one carbon and three hydrogen atoms to their ribosomes.

By using a method called X-ray crystallography to visualize drug-resistant ribosomes with nearly atomic precision, scientists discovered two defensive tactics. The methyl group, they found, physically blocks the binding site, but it also changes the shape of the ribosome’s inner “guts,” further disrupting antibiotic activity.

“By determining the actual structure of antibiotics interacting with two types of drug-resistant ribosomes, we saw what could not have been predicted by the available structural data or by computer modelling,” said Yury Polikanov, associate professor of biological sciences at UIC, and colleagues at Harvard.

Cresomycinis synthetic. It’s preorganized to avoid the methyl-group interference and attach strongly to ribosomes, disrupting their function. This process involves locking the drug into a shape that is pre-optimized to bind to the ribosome, which helps it get around bacterial defenses.

“It simply binds to the ribosomes and acts as if it doesn’t care whether there was this methylation or not,” Polikanov said. “It overcomes several of the most common types of drug resistance easily.”

“Without the structures, we would be blind in terms of how these drugs bind and act upon modified drug-resistant ribosomes. The structures that we determined provided fundamental insight into the molecular mechanisms that allow these drugs to evade the resistance.” concluded Polikanov.

Reference: DOI: 10.1126/science.adk8013

Regulating telomerase activity

The natural ends of chromosomes resemble broken DNA, posing a challenge in distinguishing them from intact strands. However, every cell must differentiate between the two, as the best method to safeguard the healthy end of a chromosome is also the least effective way to mend damaged DNA.

The enzyme telomerase is responsible for maintaining protective telomeres at the natural ends of chromosomes. If telomerase were to seal off a broken strand of DNA with a telomere, it would prevent further repair of that break and delete essential genes. The study published in Science describes how cells avoid such mishaps. These findings show that telomerase can indeed run amok, adding telomeres to damaged DNA, and would do so were it not for the ATR kinase, a key enzyme that responds to DNA damage.

“Telomerase is a good thing because it maintains our telomeres, but it should only be acting at the natural ends of chromosomes. It is very bad if it acts at double-stranded DNA breaks because it can lead to the loss of all genes distal to the break,” says Titia de Lange, the Leon Hess professor at Rockefeller. “This detrimental aspect of telomerase is inhibited by the ATR kinase, which, among its many talents, also keeps telomerase away.”

The discovery may help optimize CRISPR techniques and could inform the study of cancer.

Charles Kinzig, an MD/PhD student in the de Lange lab and colleagues first broke bits of human DNA with Cas9, the cutting component of the CRISPR gene-editing tool, and established that telomerase creates “neotelomeres” on broken DNA. Having established telomerase as driving the formation of neotelomeres, Kinzig then began interrogating various molecular pathways to determine what prevents telomerase from interfering with DNA repair under normal circumstances and found that disrupting ATR kinase signaling increases neotelomere formation and demonstrated that when ATR is activated at DNA breaks, it prevents telomerase from ruining the repair.

Thefindings have immediate implications for researchers and clinicians involved in CRISPR gene editing and that telomerase can add telomeric DNA to the DNA ends made during CRISPR editing. This could potentially lead to insertion of telomeric DNA or formation of a telomere at the site where CRISPR editing was intended.

Reference: DOI: 10.1126/science.adg3224

A protein-packed breakfast enhances both satiety and concentration

A recent study from Denmark investigates the connection between diet and cognitive abilities, demonstrating that a breakfast high in protein can enhance feelings of fullness and boost concentration.

“Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.” This is a well-known platitude that has never had much basis in scientific evidence.

The study monitored 30 obese women aged 18 to 30 for three days, during which the women consumed a protein-rich breakfast, a carbohydrate-rich breakfast or no breakfast at all. The women’s sense of satiety, hormone levels and energy intake were measured at lunchtime along with their total daily energy intake.Theywere also required to complete a cognitive concentration test during the study.

“We found that a protein-rich breakfast with skyr (a sour-milk product) and oats increased satiety and concentration in the participants, but it did not reduce the overall energy intake compared to skipping breakfast or eating a carbohydrate-rich breakfast,” says Mette Hansen, associate professor and PhD at the Department of Public Health, and one of the authors of the study.

Previous research hasindicated that individuals who consume breakfast tend to have a lower BMI compared to those who skip it. Additionally, protein-rich foods typically exhibit a greater satiety effect in comparison to carbohydrate-rich and high-fat foods with equivalent calorie content.

“The results confirm that protein-rich meals increase a sense of satiety, which is positive in regard to preventing weight gain. However, the results also suggest that for this nutritional strategy to be effective, it’s not enough to just eat a protein-rich breakfast.” concluded the research.

Reference: DOI: 10.3168/jds.2023-24152

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UP Govt launches mass drug administration in 17 districts to eradicate filariasis

Lucknow: In a battle against filariasis, the Uttar Pradesh government has initiated a door-to-door administration of anti-filarial medications across several districts as part of the Mass Drug Administration (MDA) campaign.

The Yogi Adityanath government has set an ambitious target to eradicate filariasis from the state by 2026, aligning with the Central government’s goal to achieve nationwide elimination by 2027. Globally, the target for eliminating this disease has been set for 2030. 

The initiative aims to reach every household in the state in the battle against the debilitating disease.

Also Read:UP Govt allocates Rs 27k crores to boost health sector

As a result of effective monitoring by Chief Minister Adityanath, within the first four days of the door-to-door campaign itself, about 20 per cent of people have taken the medicine. This campaign will run until February 28, an official statement noted.

Simultaneously, identified patients receive specialised training and support through the Morbidity Management and Disability Prevention (MMDP) programme. Those with mild infections benefit from a regimen of regular medication and exercise, facilitating their continuous recovery.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has urged the healthcare teams not only to distribute the medication but also to educate the populace, emphasising the importance of awareness in achieving the campaign’s goals.

Since he assumed office in 2017, Yogi Adityanath has embarked on a crusade against numerous serious diseases prevalent in the state. His proactive stance has led to a significant turnaround, with Uttar Pradesh being now free from many diseases that once afflicted its populace, the statement added.

In various districts across the state, alongside receiving anti-filarial medication, people are actively seeking to enhance their understanding of this disease.

Communities in areas such as Amethi, Azamgarh, Ballia, and Barabanki have displayed keen interest in learning about the potential side effects of the medication.

According to the statement, the health teams are assuring the populace that the anti-filarial medication is entirely safe, despite occasional symptoms like headache, body pain, fever, vomiting, rashes, and itching, which typically subside on their own. They emphasise the importance of consuming the medication after a meal to maximize its effectiveness and minimise any discomfort.

In areas like Lucknow, Unnao, Shahjahanpur, Bareilly, and Hamirpur, initial hesitancy towards taking the medication has been observed among some individuals. However, after receiving information from the health teams, many have willingly come forward to receive the treatment.

State Program Officer for Filariasis Ramesh Singh Thakur said that the MDA campaign aims to administer medication to a total of 3,60,25,891 individuals.

Filariasis, commonly known as elephantiasis, is a chronic and incurable disease that severely impacts the lymphatic system. This intricate network of vessels, organs, and specialised cells is profoundly impacted by filariasis infection, with symptoms often manifesting 10-15 years after contraction.

Concealing symptoms can exacerbate the condition, making it imperative to seek timely assistance from Ayushman Arogya Mandir or government health centres to access the array of benefits extended by the Yogi government’s progressive schemes.

Currently, there are 51 districts in the state grappling with filariasis. The ongoing campaign is operational in 17 of these districts.

Also Read:Filariasis Prevention Medication: UP to launch Annual Mass Drug Administration campaign from Feb 5 to 15

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Understanding Rheumatoid Arthritis and its Impact on Knee Joints – Dr Pramod Bhor

While arthritis is difficult, rheumatoid arthritis is debilitating. As opposed to typical wear-and-tear arthritis, RA is an autoimmune disease in which your body’s immune system unintentionally attacks your joints, especially your knees.
Consider it as a friendly fire that causes discomfort, stiffness, edema, and suffering. Over time, RA can have a substantial impact on your knees. Prolonged inflammation damages bones and cartilage, making daily tasks difficult and lowering your quality of life.
Orthopedic surgery in patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRD) historically represents a challenge for clinicians and orthopedic surgeons. The prevalence of IRD ranges from 0.05% to 1% in the general population, with many patients that need a surgical treatment such as total joint arthroplasty (TJA) because of articular degeneration.
When is surgery the right choice?
While non-surgical treatments prove effective for many RA patients, sometimes joint damage is extensive, requiring more intensive solutions.
In such cases, knee replacement surgery for rheumatoid arthritis becomes a viable option. TJA in IRD is a challenge for surgeons, whose responsibility is to choose the most effective and less invasive technique for these patients.
Challenges in TKR for RA Patients
1)Disease Influence on Surgery: RA complications, such as joint deformity and inflammation, may present challenges in performing the surgery and affect recovery.
2) Risk of Infection and Implant Failure: RA patients undergoing TKR face a higher risk of infection and implant failure due to the underlying disease and potential immune system compromise.
3) Long-term Joint Management: Continuous monitoring and management of RA after TKR is essential to prevent disease-related joint complications in the future.
Advantages of Robotic Knee replacement: Because robotic surgery delivers a level of precision that surpasses that of human vision, it is more accurate than traditional surgery. This makes it possible for the leg to align more correctly and for the soft tissue surrounding the knee to balance out.
As fewer tissues are damaged during minimally invasive incisions used in robotic-assisted surgery, the process is safer. Less scarring, a decreased chance of infection, shorter hospital stays, and quicker healing are further outcomes of this.
All things considered, robotic knee replacement surgery has been demonstrated to produce superior outcomes, less stress to the surrounding tissue and bone, and better patient outcomes when compared to traditional knee replacement surgery.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are of the author and not of Medical Dialogues. The Editorial/Content team of Medical Dialogues has not contributed to the writing/editing/packaging of this article.

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Hitchhiking cancer vaccine makes progress in the clinic

Therapeutic cancer vaccines are an appealing strategy for treating malignancies. In theory, when a patient is injected with peptide antigens—protein fragments from mutant proteins only expressed by tumor cells—T cells learn to recognize and attack cancer cells expressing the corresponding protein. By teaching the patient’s own immune system to attack cancer cells, these vaccines ideally would not only eliminate tumors but prevent them from recurring.

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Trial data underpins FDA approval of omalizumab for food allergy

Today’s Food and Drug Administration approval of a supplemental biologics license for the monoclonal antibody omalizumab (Xolair) highlights the vital role of the National Institutes of Health-supported research that underpins the FDA decision.

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