Is India Winning the War Against Rising Non-Communicable Diseases? The latest health statistics paint a concerning picture: diabetes, heart disease, and cancer rates are climbing, impacting millions across the country. From rural healthcare access to the burgeoning urban health crisis, challenges remain significant. This week, we delve into the crucial initiatives underway – government policies, technological advancements in telemedicine, and the rising role of preventative healthcare – that aim to address this national health emergency. Experts weigh in on the effectiveness of current strategies and the critical need for increased public awareness campaigns targeting lifestyle diseases. Are these efforts enough? Explore Abtak.com's in-depth coverage on healthcare in India and discover the vital information you need to protect your well-being and the future of public health. Stay informed; stay healthy.
Mumbai: Three children aged 12 to 16 died of disseminated tuberculosis (TB) at one of the major public hospitals in the city over the last month not due to lack of treatment but because private general practitioners failed to diagnose the disease early.Disseminated TB refers to the spread of the disease from the lungs to other organs. Sometimes, even chest physicians miss its signs in paediatric patients. For instance, a 15-year-old girl was sent to the hospital as a drug-resistant TB (DR-TB) patient without further evaluation. "All we were told was that she had a headache. As soon as she arrived, she collapsed and had to be put on a ventilator. She was severely neurologically impaired with meningitis," said a doctor from the hospital's paediatric department.The girl's parents told the hospital that she had been vomiting for the past month: a classic telltale sign of disseminated TB. The hospital sees a few such cases every month. "Such patients visit general physicians first who fail to refer them to specialists till it is very late. That is what happened to the three who died," the doctor said.The head of the hospital's paediatric department said DR-TB remains a serious issue in children. "We are seeing every type of TB in children: abdominal, pulmonary, bone, brain, intestine, skin. Most of these patients rush in too late and in terrible distress, sometimes unconscious, with convulsions that cannot be controlled, and they all turn out to be TB patients."Paediatric TB cases in Mumbai account for about 7-9% of all TB cases, according to data from BMC's health department. The city reports around 60,000 TB cases annually. There is a considerable delay in seeking treatment for TB in the first place, and stigma as well as limited access play a role in this.Ganesh Acharya, a city-based TB-HIV activist, said, "A delay of two to three months in the treatment of children with TB is common. Families visit multiple general doctors who diagnose them with cough and cold, and in the end, it becomes a case of disseminated TB."For children aged 12-16, delayed diagnosis is far more common as parents often stop consulting paediatricians and instead take them to general practitioners. A former paediatrician at Sion Hospital who routinely treated TB patients said, "There are complex reasons as to why general practitioners are unable to diagnose TB patients; one is that the manifestation of TB in children is very different than that in adults."In children, it can show up as pleural effusion (fluid in chest) or severe bronchitis, said the doctor. "There's a wide range of symptoms. That's why general practitioners often don't recognise it as TB."Dr Tanu Singhal, paediatric consultant at Kokilaben Hospital, said, "TB is common even among well-off families. General practitioners may miss or sometimes misdiagnose it, but these families often go to specialists early themselves if the child doesn't improve."
Bhubaneswar/Balasore: The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Bhubaneswar, has constituted a high-level expert committee to oversee and monitor the treatment of the Fakir Mohan (Autonomous) College student who attempted self-immolation. The woman student was admitted to the institute following her self-immolation bid before the principal's chamber Saturday over alleged harassment by the Head of Department (HOD). As per the office order issued by the Medical Superintendent of AIIMS Bhubaneswar, the expert committee includes Prof. Jayant Mitra - Department of Anaesthesia, Prof. Ma ...Read More >
A doctor at the hospital said it is a clear case of food poisoning (Representational) ShowQuick Read Summary is AI-generated, newsroom-reviewed * More than 100 film unit workers were hospitalised due to food poisoning in Leh * Patients showed symptoms of abdominal pain, headache, and vomiting after meals * Around 600 people ate at the location where the film unit was shooting Did our AI summary help? Let us know. Switch To Beeps Mode Leh: More than 100 workers of a film unit have been h ...Read More >
HYDERABAD: Thousands of residents of Madhapur face a serious health hazard as illegal water traders supply highly contaminated water from unauthorised borewells drilled near the heavily polluted Sunnam Cheruvu. This water, laced with dangerous levels of toxic heavy metals, is being delivered to hostels, educational institutions, hotels and eateries in the area. Many residents are consuming this water daily, unaware of the long-term harm to their health. Locals say the situation is dire. The stench from Sunnam Cheruvu is so strong that even standing near the lake has become unbearable. Yet, w ...Read More >
New Delhi, July 9 (SocialNews.XYZ) Verbal autopsy is a scientific tool that can significantly aid India in the fight against tuberculosis, as it helps identify the deep reasons for mortality caused by the world's deadliest infection, said Dr Kavita Vasudevan from Indira Gandhi Medical College and Research Institute (IGMC&RI) in Puducherry. Speaking to IANS, Vasudevan, from the Community Medicine Department at the Medical College explained how a verbal autopsy model can help identify TB treatment delay patterns, and reasons for TB deaths and improve the referral process. "A comprehensive appr ...Read More >
Kalpetta: DMO Dr T Mohandas advised caution in Wayanad after Nipah has been confirmed in Malappuram district. In the sample tests conducted by the Indian Council of Medical Research in the previous years, it was found that the fruit bats in the district had developed antibodies against Nipah virus. However, caution has been advised as the risk of Nipah is more during the reproductive season of the fruit bats. The medical officer stated that all the health centres have been urged to observe the symptoms and report them promptly. Nipah symptoms Severe headache along with fever, throat pain, mu ...Read More >
Bhubaneswar, Jul 13 (PTI) The health condition of a 20-year-old college student, who immolated herself over an alleged sexual harassment incident in Odisha's Balasore district, remained critical, with doctors at AIIMS Bhubaneswar starting her dialysis as part of the initiation of renal replacement therapy, a treating medical practitioner said. The second-year student of the integrated B Ed programme at Fakir Mohan (Autonomous) College in Balasore had on Saturday set herself on fire, demanding action against a teacher who had allegedly sexually assaulted and mentally harassed her. Dialysis co ...Read More >
Mumbai: The Maharashtra government is planning to increase the budget for organ transplants under the Mahatma Jyotirao Phule Jan Arogya Yojana, Health Minister Prakash Abitkar announced on Wednesday, pledging wider financial support for patients in need. The commitment came during a moving ceremony at Bai Jerbai Wadia Hospital for Children to mark World Organ Donation Day, where donor families were honoured for their life-saving contributions. Wadia Hospital Secures Pediatric Heart Transplant License The event, filled with emotion and gratitude, featured a soulful prayer dance by Riddhi-Sidd ...Read More >
The CM said while addressing the foundation day ceremony of the Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences at Indira Gandhi Pratishthan CHIEF MINISTER Yogi Adityanath said on Saturday that "life is defined by three states -- tendency, distortion and culture." "Staying unchanged is tendency, continuous decline is distortion and decisions taken in the larger public and national interest embody culture," Adityanath said while addressing the foundation day ceremony of the Dr Ram Manohar Lohi ...Read More >
Project led by Professor Sivaprakasam with international team The Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) has achieved a groundbreaking milestone by releasing the most detailed high-resolution 3D images of the human fetal brain. Developed by researchers at the Sudha Gopalakrishnan Brain Centre, this pioneering project is the first of its kind globally, showcasing over 5,132 digitally captured brain sections at a cellular level using advanced brain mapping technology. The dataset, apt ...Read More >
Chennai: In a landmark feat, IT-Madras has released the world's first high-resolution detailed 3D images of the human foetal brain, pushing the frontiers of brain mapping technology and placing India in the global league in this segment of science. This data set, termed 'DHARANI', is open source, meaning it is freely available for all researchers world-wide. For the first time globally, 5,132 brain sections have been captured digitally using cutting-edge brain mapping technology developed by Sudha Gopalakrishnan Brain Centre at the IIT. This work will advance the field of neuroscience and pot ...Read More >
New Delhi: Chief minister Rekha Gupta on Sunday said authorities cannot go against demolition orders issued by courts and stressed that displaced residents have been provided accommodation.Her words came in the wake of the recent Madrasi Camp demolition for which the opposition Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has criticised her. AAP has targeted Gupta, and alleged that the displaced Madrasi Camp residents were provided homes in faraway Narela, and those lack basic amenities.Attending an event to mark the construction of a Jan Sewa camp at a slum cluster in the Haiderpur area, Gupta told reporters: "In t ...Read More >
Hyderabad: At least five people have died and 15 others have been hospitalised after allegedly consuming adulterated toddy from three compounds in Kukatpally and KPHB since Monday night. While police officially confirmed one death, hospital sources and the victims' families claim the toll is higher. The deceased include Seetharam, 47, a mason from Sriramnagar Colony, and Swaroopa, 61, a housewife from Hydernagar. Police have not released the names of two others suspected to have died at Kukatpally. Seetharam had consumed toddy on Monday evening and began vomiting soon after. He was declared ...Read More >
SRINAGAR: A defiant Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday scaled the gates of the Naqshband Sahib graveyard to pay tributes to the 22 people killed by the Dogra army on July 13, 1931. The dramatic scene unfolded a day after Abdullah and several leaders of the National Conference and opposition parties were put under house arrest to prevent them from going to the graveyard to mark Martyrs' Day. National Conference president Farooq Abdullah took an autorickshaw from the Khanyar crossing to the martyrs memorial while Minister for Education Sakina Ittoo surprised everyone by r ...Read More >
New Delhi, Jul 15 (PTI) The Indian economy is expected to grow at 6.5 per cent in the current financial year, despite geo-political tensions and trade policy uncertainties, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) Chairman S Mahendra Dev said on Tuesday. In an interview with PTI, Dev further said that domestic growth will be driven by low inflation, resulting from good monsoon and benign interest rate regime, triggered by three back-to-back rate cuts by the Reserve Bank of India. "There are significant global headwinds like the twin shocks of geo-political tensions and trade ...Read More >
Kolkata : To commemorate Indian Organ Donation Day -- observed annually on August 3rd to mark the anniversary of India's first successful deceased donor heart transplant -- Manipal Hospital, EM Bypass, organized a Patient Education Programme aimed at spreading awareness about the importance of organ donation and transplantation. The session was graced by (Prof.) Dr. Dilip Kumar Pahari, Senior Consultant and Head of Nephrology, Manipal Hospital, EM Bypass and (Prof.) Dr. Arpita Ray Chowdhury (Lahiri), Senior Consultant - Nephrology and Transplant President of the Indian Society of Organ Transpl ...Read More >
New Delhi: Days after a pediatric doctor was arrested in Madhya Pradesh following the death of a few children after consumption of contaminated cough syrup, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) on Wednesday sought personal intervention of Health Minister JP Nadda over the issue and immediate withdrawal of the case against the bona fide medical practitioner. Meanwhile, the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) has asked all drug controllers from States and UTs for strict compliance with the Drugs Rules, 1945, for testing of raw materials and finished formulations. Quoting recent ...Read More >
New Delhi, Oct 8 (PTI) In view of pediatrician's arrest following deaths of children due to the consumption of a "contaminated" cough syrup in Madhya Pradesh, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) on Wednesday sought Union Health Minister JP Nadda's intervention into the matter and immediate withdrawal of the case against the bona fide medical practitioner. Condemning the action taken against the Registered Medical Practitioner (RMP), IMA said the root cause of this tragedy is the failure of quality control at the level of the manufacturer, and the subsequent failure of the regulatory system r ...Read More >
Guwahati, July 6: The outbreak of Japanese Encephalitis (JE) in Assam has taken a worrying turn, with the Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) reporting 13 deaths linked to the disease in the past three months. According to hospital authorities, a total of 57 encephalitis patients have been admitted to GMCH during this period. As of Friday, 47 patients are currently undergoing treatment at the hospital. In the past 24 hours alone, GMCH admitted 10 new JE cases, indicating a sharp surge in infections. However, there is some relief as 10 patients have successfully recovered and been dis ...Read More >
New Delhi [India], July 19 (ANI): After US President Donald Trump was diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency (CVI), Dr Abhishek Bansal, Senior Consultant and Chief of Interventional Radiology at Aakash Healthcare, warned that even mild symptoms, like Trump's ankle swelling, should not be ignored, as they could signal underlying vascular issues. 'The body often sends out early distress signals, and ignoring them could delay crucial diagnoses. Symptoms like swollen ankles, unexplained bruises, or a persistent limp may appear minor, but they could be the body's way of signalling something m ...Read More >
The death of policeman-turned-Punjabi singer and actor Rajvir Jawanda has sparked an outpouring of grief from fans, politicians and the music community. The 35-year-old died on Wednesday, 11 days after he was fatally injured in an accident in the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. Jawanda suffered severe injuries after he lost control of his motorcycle when he collided with cattle while he was travelling through Solan district, reports said. His songs, which often carried messages of l ...Read More >
The wife, Kruthika M Reddy, reportedly fell ill and was rushed to the nearby hospital in Ayyappa Layout, Munnekolalu. The doctors examined her and confirmed that she was brought dead. Six months after the death of a 29-year-old dermatologist from Bengaluru, Marathahalli Police have arrested the victim's husband, a fellow doctor, for allegedly murdering his wife by injecting anaesthetic drugs, police said on Wednesday. According to the police, the husband, Dr Mahendra Reddy, allegedly overdosed ...Read More >
Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], July 9 (ANI): More than half of all tuberculosis (TB) deaths occur within the first two months of treatment. In response, the Indian Council of Medical Research-National Institute of Epidemiology (ICMR-NIE) has introduced a new alert feature designed to immediately notify frontline healthcare workers when a patient is identified as severely ill following a TB diagnosis. Also Read | Delhi-NCR Rains: Waterlogging and Traffic Disruptions in Several Areas As Sudden Spell of Heavy Rain Batters National Capital; IMD Issues Red Alert (Watch Video). The predictive model ...Read More >
As the body experiences prolonged stress, the "calming neurotransmitter GABA can dip" When your body experiences prolonged stress, the supply of GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) can be diminished. Nutritionist Anjali Mukerjee has said that GABA is an important neurotransmitter that helps to inhibit neural activity and calm the brain, acting as a natural tranquiliser. But, if its supply lessens, then a person starts experiencing weakness, unsteady legs, muscle tension, headache, loose motions and excessive thirst, according to the nutritionist. In a video on Instagram, Anjali Mukerjee has discu ...Read More >
Nagpur: Eminent neurologists from the city joined experts from across the globe on World Brain Tumour Day to raise awareness about the disease.At an event held at the Indian Medical Association (IMA) headquarters in Nagpur, specialists emphasised the importance of early diagnosis, discussed symptoms and treatment options, and highlighted the multifaceted challenges faced by patients and their families.Renowned neurologist and Padma Shri Dr Chandrashekhar Meshram stressed the need for timely detection and comprehensive care. He said awareness about the type of brain tumour and its symptoms is c ...Read More >
NEW DELHI: The Uttar Pradesh administration has strengthened security arrangements across several districts including Lucknow, Sambhal, and Moradabad to ensure peace and avoid any disruption, as Muharram processions and the Kanwar Yatra are being held at the same time.Large crowds gathered for Muharram processions across different regions, while preparations for the Kanwar Yatra are also underway. Police personnel have been deployed in all sensitive areas, and surveillance is being carried out using drones and CCTV cameras.In SambhalDistrict Magistrate Dr Rajender Pensiya while speaking to ANI ...Read More >
Srinagar, July 09: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday said that Jammu & Kashmir's tourism sector is witnessing a strong revival, with a steady rise in the number of tourists visiting the Union Territory each day.Abdullah, while addressing reporters in West Bengal ahead of the Kolkata Tourism Fair, said, "Tourists are coming back to Kashmir in good numbers. The ongoingAmarnathYatra is proceeding smoothly with heavy footfall on both the Pahalgam and Baltal routes, he said."I spoke to several pilgrims, and they are all happy and satisfied with the arrangements. I have come to Kolkata to ta ...Read More >
Lucknow, Jul 17 (PTI) To curb illegal mining and transportation, the Uttar Pradesh government is deploying advanced technologies under the Integrated Mining Surveillance System (IMSS), a release said on Thursday. Mining activities are already being monitored through drones, geo-fencing, RFID tags, and AI-powered check gates. Now, the state is set to introduce 'Weigh-In-Motion' (WIM) technology to accurately track vehicle overloading. Also Read | 'Arvind Kejriwal Used Government Funds to Buy Mobiles Costing Up to INR 1.63 Lakh', Claims Delhi Minister Ashish Sood. According to the official re ...Read More >
Kerala has reported 104 cases of amoebic encephalitis, with 23 deaths, primarily in Kollam and Thiruvananthapuram districts. The state health minister highlighted that early detection and treatment have significantly reduced the global fatality rate of this rare brain infection. An action plan based on the One Health approach is being implemented to prevent further cases. A total of 104 cases of amoebic encephalitis (brain fever) have been reported so far in Kerala, of which 23 patients have die ...Read More >
Curchorem : The Sanguem police seized 5.75 kg of whale vomit (ambergris) valued at over Rs 10 crore at Dabamol in Sanguem taluka and arrested three people in connection with the case. The police registered an offence under sections 39, 44, 49B, 51 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972 against Sainath Shet (50) of Sadewada Panchawadi, Ratnakant Karapurkar (55) of Zuarinagar-Sancoale and Yogesh Ramchandra Redkar (40) of Bandwadi-Sawantwadi. Acting on a tip-off, the police on Thursday seized 5.75 kg of the waxy substance, which is used in the perfume industry. The seized whale vomit is valued ...Read More >
Hyderabad: A brain tumour diagnosis often triggers fear -- not just from the disease but from the invasive treatments that follow. Surgery, radiation, long hospital stays and uncertain outcomes overwhelm patients and families. But this World Brain Tumour Day on Sunday brings new hope, as doctors highlight emerging non-invasive therapies that could transform care. Advances in medical technology are introducing targeted, non-surgical treatments that promise better outcomes with fewer side effects and faster recovery. One such breakthrough is Focused Ultrasound Therapy. "It uses sound energy, l ...Read More >