India

Is Diabetes the Leading Cause of Kidney Failure in India

No one knows the answer to this one as we do not have collective data, however diabetes is the number one cause of kidney failure in the United States, accounting for more than 40 percent of the new cases of end-stage renal disease (ESRD)each year. People with ESRD require regular dialysis or a kidney transplant to stay alive. Almost 25% of patients suffering from diabetes will get kidney problem...

AIDS Disaster in India is Imminent

While concern over the AIDS crisis ravaging sub-Saharan Africa dominates much of the discussion at this week's XIII International AIDS Conference, researchers and AIDS workers are sounding the alarm for what many consider to be the next big trouble spot--India."We have a very serious catastrophe in the offing, and if there's an enemy of India it's not Pakistan, it's not China, and it's not any...

Indian Prime Minister has successful Knee Replacement Surgery

Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee, the Prime Minister of India has successfully undergone left knee joint replacement by Dr. Chittaranjan Ranawat at the Breach Candy Hospital in Mumbai. "The operation, which started at around 10 a.m., was completed by 11.15 a.m. and went on very well, to my satisfaction," Dr. Ranawat said at a press briefing. ``He (Mr. Vajpayee) was awake and comfortable throughout the op...

International community warns India on HIV situation

The International Community has warned India that it is time to treat the HIV situation as a national emergency. Experts attending the Peoples Health Assembly at Dhaka, Bangladesh , have cautioned India not to be complacent about the looming HIV crisis in the country. Rebuffing the optimistic statement of Union Health Minister, Dr.C.P.Takhur, the experts said if corrective measures are not taken...

India takes on foot-and-mouth disease by vaccinating animals

While the foot and mouth disease is playing havoc with the economies ofdeveloped countries like the UK, India has been adopting a more conservativeapproach of vaccinating the animals for the past three decades. "Vaccinating the domestic animals against FMD on a regular basis is the bestmeans of preventing the spread of the disease," says Dr S M Lal, the jointdirector of the Banga...

Development of AIDS vaccine -- Chiron Corp in talks with four Indian cos

A NOVEL research-cum-manufacturing agreement between Chiron Corp, the US-based vaccine major, and an Indian company for the development of a potential AIDS vaccine to halt the spread of the deadly disease in the country is in an advanced stage of finalisation. Two Hyderabad-based biotechnology/pharma companies -- Shanta Biotechnics and Biological E -- are reportedly the front-runners f...

India to benefit from pharma companies' move

The decision by 39 pharmaceutical companies to drop a historic case in South Africa has far-reaching consequences for India and other developing countries, according to leading non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The 39 companies had challenged a South African government order that legalized use and import of generic medicines free from patents. The pharmaceutical companies, which inc...

Healthcare sector is now a multi billion-dollar industry in India

A Confederation of Indian Industry study has identified the health care sector in India as a potential gold mine. India is poised to develop into a 'regional healthcare hub' with the $17 billion healthcare industry growing at a rate of 13 per cent the study says. With a 16% increase in budgetary outlay the healthcare industry is poised to zoom ahead bringing with it big bucks as returns....

The World Bank funds private Hospital in India

The World Bank, whose website (www.worldbank.org) declares "Our dream is a world free of poverty, 'is backing the construction of private hospital in Mumbai, India, a move which some health agencies fear sets a precedent for using development assistance for projects that will mainly benefit the rich. The bank has given the government of Maharashtra state an International Development Asso...

Parke-Davis (India) runs into rough weather – Court orders attachment of asset

The global merger between Warner-Lambert and Pfizer on the Indian front has run into rough weather due to the legal problems faced by Warner-Lambert’s subsidiary Parke-Davis (India). A local court in Hyderabad has ordered the attachment of its assets located in the city. The vacation court of the Ranga Reddy district civil courts has ordered attachment of plant and machinery of Parke-...

Indian Doctor granted US patent on organ regeneration

Dr. Balakrishna Ganapat Rao Matapurkar, from Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi has created history of sorts by winning the first patent on organ regeneration from the American patent office for his technique in successfully regenerating / repairing organs in human beings. A few weeks ago the American patent office granted him a patent on this technique. Dr. Matapurkar was able to...

India's anti-AIDS drug market engaged in price war

The Indian pharmaceutical companies hope to strike a pot of gold by making cheap anti-AIDS drugs. This has triggered a price war that is likely to escalate in coming days. The large number of AIDS cases has lured many companies to develop anti-AIDS drugs and market it in India and abroad by adapting innovative approaches to pricing. The anti-AIDS drug market, currently dominated...

Setting up a new pharmaceutical industry in India

Erweka Germany is setting up a new pharmaceutical company in India in the name of Erweka India Pvt Ltd to be based at Ahmedabad. Erweka has started manufacturing 50 years ago in Germany and today is world leader in testing equipment. Erweka, Germany, one of the biggest manufacturer - Supplier of testing and R&D equipment to phamaceutical industries worldwide has a strong brand name in the Indian...

Plague creates panic in India

Four people are confirmed dead from pneumonic plague in northern India. Doctors had feared an outbreak of the plague from a remote village of Himachal Pradesh state after several people suffered the symptoms of pneumonic plague. // "The sequence of tests collectively confirmed that the cases related to infection with yersinia pestis, commonly known as pneumonic plague," Federal Health...

Controversy over spread of Mad Cow disease from India

The cause of mad cow disease or Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy [BSE], which has infected more than 2 million cattle causing an epidemic in United Kingdom has caused a controversy due to Researchers in United Kingdom //blaming imported animal feed containing infected animal or human carcasses as the cause of mad cow disease outbreak. A recent report published in Lancet reports that mad cow dis...

India To March Ahead in The Global HealthCare Competition

The central government is supporting a programme named the "golden triangle" in which three institutes are working together to validate medicine protocols //for the global market.These are the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, the Indian Council of Medical Research and the Department of Indian System of Medicines. Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss told that the market for...

Five New Anti-Inflammatory Compounds Produced By Indian Scientists

Five new anti-inflammatory compounds (fight against inflammation) that are 10, 000 times more potent than the most commonly used drugs such as nimusulide and aspirin have been developed and patented by Indian researchers.// Researchers from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), situated in New Delhi, India, have carried out the work. "These compounds are about 10,000 ti...

Europe Seeks Indian Expertise

Indian expertise is sought by European nations in the field of life sciences and biotechnology. Staf Van Reet, Managing Director of the Belgian// company Viziphar Biosciences, told a seminar that the country has tremendous potential for global sourcing in life sciences. "We are starting with an R&D project in tuberculosis, in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Sciences in...

Debra Winger Wants Indians Abroad To Help Visually Impaired

Debra Winger, the Hollywood actress who is promoting eye care will be approaching Indians living abroad to help the visually impaired people living in India. Even though the country has a very high number// of visually impaired people, 80% of them can be cured, according to Debra Winger. Winger, who at the age of 17 met with an accident that left her temporarily blind, but she came ou...

Food Grains Project To Tackle Malnutrition In India

In an attempt to provide a solution to the nationwide prevalent malnutrition, 13 premier research institutions in India have decided to work in collaboration to ensure adequate supply of value added food grains. // This strategy is poised to mark a major shift in the national food policy by 2015. The first, experimental phase of the project is over and the trial phase is beginning. <b...

Bush Urged To Press India To Eliminate Medical Tariffs

Several experts in US have suggested that the President George W. Bush should press India to get rid of with tariffs on medicines// and medical products so that it can become affordable even to the poorest there. Jim Driscoll, an AIDS activist and advisor to President Bush on HIV-AIDS, and Roger Bate of the conservative American Enterprise Institute have urged countries such as India,...

Singapore’s Healthcare To Outsource To Indian Firm For Faster X-Ray Result

Singapore has made an outsourcing agreement with an Indian firm for sending x-ray results that will save the costs and benefits patients and doctors// as well. Under the agreement the x-rays taken there will be sent electronically to India to get the results in a faster manner. Under the National Healthcare Group's (NHG's) agreement with India's Teleradiology Solutions, a polyclinic has...

Heart attack kills one in every 10 Indians

It is a slow killer that ticks away in one out of every 10 Indians. It strikes fatally every 30 seconds. These were among the facts and figures trotted out on Sunday at an event to spread awareness// on World Heart Day. Gathered in front of the Victoria Statue, Cubbon Park, were officials from the Wockhardt Hospital and Heart Institute (WHHI), the City Police, and the Bangalore Metropolitan Trans...

Indian Cherry: Richest Source of Vitiamin C

The West Indian Cherry or Acerola fruit (Malpighia Punicifolia L) is the richest source of Vitamin C known to man. Hundred grams of edible portion yields 1000 to 4000 mg of Vitamin C. The West Indian Cherry tree grows well in the tropical parts in India. Apart from Vitamin C, West Indian Cherry is rich in Vitamin A, potassium, calcium, phosphorus and carbohydrates. According to the s...

Indian Nationals with Foreign Medical Degrees can now practice in India

A new policy by the Government of India will now enable Indians who have acquired medical degrees from abroad, to practice in India, through a screening test that will be conducted by the National Board of Examinations (An Autonomous Body of The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare). The purpose of the registration is only to qualify for registration with the Medical Council// of India or any St...

Second SARS suspect fuels worry in India

After the country reported a new suspected case of the disease fears of the deadly SARS virus grew in India. This happened hours after doctors gave the cleared a woman suspected of being India's first SARS case. In Hyderabed a 48-year-old software worker was immediately admitted to a hospital after he arrived from Australia via Singapore. He had symptoms of high fever, cough and cold similar to...

SARS: India's drugs in demand

In a report from the Indian capital, the SARS virus has increased demand for macrolides, resulting in severely affected countries like China approaching the Indian pharmaceutical companies for additional supplies. Macrolides are a family of antibiotics that treat a wide range of bacterial infections. While doctors are still battling with the exact cure for SARS, macrolides, common...

SARS make Air India cut flights

India's international carrier, Air India, has decided to make more cuts to its flights to Hong Kong because of concerns over Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). The move comes as the body representing India's commercial pilots issued directives to its members not to fly on the Bombay-Hong Kong route. However Air India flights will be operated by pilots who are not members of the pilots body...

An Indian Bride with signs of SARS

In a report an Indian bride and some family members were confirmed as SARS patients. The doctors quarantined the groom, the wedding guests and the priest. This report forms the first major occurrence of SARS in India. The bride's brother who is India's second confirmed SARS case victim tested positive for the illness after traveling to Maharashtra state from Jakarta via Singapore for the ceremony...

Are Indians aware of SARS ?

As the number of SARS patients in India went up to 10, authorities are not confident about the gravity of SARS. Officals claim that, India has shown a far higher recovery rate than the rest of the world as a result of early detection and superior medical care provided to SARS patients. Even what we call confirmed cases are only confirmed through laboratory tests and they are only between 60 and 6...

Indians Stay Away from Coke, Pepsi After Toxin Scare

Indian shopkeepers reported a plunge in sales of Coca-Cola and Pepsi soft drinks Friday and some put out banners to deter buyers in a growing scare after an environment group said the beverages contained pesticides.//...

Indian pharma industry upbeat on WTO drug deal

Hailing the World Trade Organisation (WTO) drug deal as a positive development, the Indian pharmaceutical industry has said it will enable smaller and poorer nations to make full use of the flexibility in the WTO intellectual property rules in order to deal with diseases that ravage their population. The WTO yesterday had approved a deal to let the poorer nations import cheaper generic...

Indian Treatment for Iraqi Babies

God willing, in about a month’s time from now five-year-old Hussain Abbas and Mohamed Salman, 10, will be able to return home to Baghdad as normal children.// Part of a contingent of 20 Iraqi kids who have arrived in Chennai to surgically correct their complicated cardiac problems by the Much Acclaimed heart surgeon Dr K.M. Cherian, who specialises in healing babies, these two underwent assessmen...

Indian Scientists Make Wide-Ranging Analysis And Annotation Of X Chromosome

Researchers at Institute of Bioinformatics (Bangalore) had made a study of the genomic sequence of human X chromosome// with its transcriptome and proteome sequences as well. The IOB analysis showed that the human X chromosome has a gene density less than other chromosomes with 43 novel protein-coding regions and 696 known genes. The researchers have been able to identify and find ou...

Banning the drug Valdecoxib In India

The National Pharmaco Vigilance Advisory Committee has prohibited the sale and manufacture of the drug// Valdecoxib, indicated for arthritis and acute pain in India under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act. Studies done abroad have indicated that the drug Valdecoxib is found to double the risk of heart attacks and strokes and also result in severe skin reactions. Although some of...

Drug regulatory officials giving the nod for sale of Unapproved drug formulations in India

In a recent court hearing over nimesulide, a controversial non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug prescribed in India to treat // fever and pain the health ministry admitted that drug formulations unapproved by India’s drug regulatory agency and not evaluated for effectiveness are prescribed and sold across the country. Social Jurist, a group of lawyers in New Delhi had filed a public i...

Drugs Banned worldwide still available in India

A drug banned in most parts of the world due to its side effects is still available in India,// despite reports of serious adverse events observed among several children who had been taking it in the Sub-continent. The drug Nimesulide, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, which has been reported as causing liver toxicity is still widely used in India commonly for pain relief and fever...

Clarithromycin tablets to be launched in India soon

Ranbaxy Laboratories Limited has recently launched its approved generic formulation of clarithromycin// immediate release tablets in the US, according to a press release. Ranbaxy has been given the green signal to manufacture and market Clarithromycin tablets—250 mg and 500 mg under the Ranbaxy label. Clarithromycin tablets are indicated for the treatment of mild to moderate infections caused by...

The Indian Government has given the nod to conduct Human volunteer trials inorder to develop preventive AIDS vaccines

The Indian Government has recently approved human volunteer trials for the country's second preventive// vaccine against HIV, the virus that leads to AIDS. A vaccine for the developing world, where anti-retroviral drugs are out of reach for millions of HIV-infected people, would be the ultimate prize in the fight against AIDS. But efforts to find one have been hampered by the virus's ability to m...

Anthrax Scare In Tamil Nadu State of India

Anthrax is a deadly disease that affects mainly farm animals and spread in humans// by inhaling spores from infected animals. It sometimes can prove fatal if immediate action is not taken. Now a report of Anthrax among the farm animals of the state of Tamil Nadu has renewed anxiety about this disease among the health officials. Kerala has also imposed ban on farm animals from Tamil Na...