India is one of the best places for the medical treatment or any other health care. Every year thousand of visitors are coming to India from around the world just for the medical check up and other type of surgery. Significant cost differences exist between U.K. and India when it comes to medical treatment. Foreign patients rely on the quality of semen banking in India because in India medical treatment is not only low cost but the waiting time is almost nil. This is due to the outburst of the private sector which comprises of hospitals and clinics with the latest technology and best practitioners. Health care centers of Delhi and Mumbai provide best facilities for semen banking in India.

Semen banking (the freezing of sperm) is a way to store sperm for future use. Sperm is routinely frozen and maintained in the Center for Reproductive Medicine Andrology Laboratory. Your physician or another member of your health-care team will work with the Andrology Laboratory to arrange for semen cryopreservation, should you decide to participate in semen banking. In most developed countries, the use of fresh untested semen for donor insemination has been discontinued to prevent the spread of these diseases through insemination procedures. Responding to this situation, Cryo-Genie has set up cryobanks to provide ready-to-use frozen semen samples for donor insemination. These samples are screened and quarantined to ensure safe donor insemination. Stringent criteria are used to select donors and semen samples are processed and preserved under optimized conditions. All the records of semen samples and donors are meticulously maintained under strict confidentiality.

India is one best option to go for semen banking because of its low cost and no waiting list. The idea of visiting to a new destination for health treatment and visiting some favorite tourist places at the same time sounds very relaxing and refreshing. Medical tourism is a term that has risen from the rapid growth of international healthcare where people from all around the world are traveling to other countries to obtain general medical surgery. As more and more patients from Europe, the USA and other nations with high medical costs look for effective options, healthcare tourism in India is definitely on the cards for most of them and the fast growing Indian corporate health sector is fully geared to meet that need. Semen banking in India is performed by highly qualified infertility doctors.

Courtesy : Indian Med Guru

Cardiac Rhabdomyomas are the most common primary tumors of the heart in infants and children. But they are so rare in adults that only 100 such cases are reported across the world so far since 1996. A Doctor team of Prime Hospitals including Dr. B. Vengal Reddy Cardio Thoracic Surgeon; Dr. C. Raghu, MD.DM FICP (France), Interventional Cardiologist; and Dr. M. S. S. Mukharjee, Interventional Cardiologist, performed the operation on the 16th of August.

Cardiac Rhabdomyoma is a condition where there is a tumour in the heart chamber. In this case the tumour was in the left ventricle of the heart i.e. within the pumping chamber of the heart, causing impairment of pumping and rhythm disturbances of the heart. Without surgery, the patient may have obstruction to the flow of blood and may die of heart failure. This rare surgery was performed for the first time in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh.

This operation was done under special permission from the Aarogyasri Trust within its limit of Rs.75000/.

Otherwise it would have cost anywhere between Rs. 14-15 lakh rupees, informed Dr. C. Raghu while addressing the conference.

According to Dr. B. Vengal Reddy, the Chief Cardio Thoracic Surgeon of the Prime Hospitals said that Cardiac tumors are rare at any age. Rhabdomyoma is one of the few rare tumours of the heart. They have an estimated occurrence rate of 1 in 6,000 to 1 in 10,000. In India a very few such surgeries are performed. Prime Hospitals is the only hospital among the 40 plus super specialty hospitals in the state to achieve this distinction.

Cardiac rhabdomyoma is a rare tumour (190 cases in the literature so far). Since the first operation in 1959 in the US, the tumour has been removed in very few patients. An undesirable scar in the pumping chamber, the impairment of pumping and rhythm disturbances are the common complications of the surgery. The adult form of rhabdomyoma occurs primarily in middle-aged and older individuals and usually (70% of cases) in males, Dr. Reddy said.

Adding to the information, Dr. M.S.S. Mukharjee, Consultant Cardiologist said that though Cardiac rhabdomyoma is the most common benign cardiac tumor in infants, in adults, it is very rare. These tumors in the childhood are often spontaneously reversible. But are associated with the right or left ventricular outflow tract obstruction, rhythm abnormalities and heart failure in adults, in whom surgery is often necessary.

“India is moving towards universal access for quality TB care and has it in its power to become a global leader in TB research and innovation, as well as in manufacturing of essential anti-TB drugs and TB diagnostics,” says Dr Vishwa Mohan Katoch, Secretary to the Government of India and Director-General, Indian Council of Medical Research.

India is the country with the world’s fastest growing pharmaceutical industry plus a huge potential to become a global frontrunner in biotech, medical and public health research. It also has a compelling incentive to mobilize these assets to thwart TB. It is the country with the highest number of people with TB in the world – 2 million new cases each year of a total approximately 9 million worldwide.
It is a small wonder that leaders in the TB field chose India as the venue for two key international gatherings taking place this week. In Bangalore experts have focused on India’s potential to lead the world in developing urgently needed innovations on TB diagnosis.

In Delhi, the Stop TB Partnership is thrashing out strategies to address global shortages in quality-assured TB drugs and launching a new guide aimed at helping scientists and public health programmes conduct needed research on how to improve the quality and reach of TB care.

“We are here this week not only to look at global issues on TB but also to encourage Indian government and people to fulfill a great destiny. India is a rising giant. I believe it can be a Titan on TB,” says Dr Lucica Ditiu, Executive of the Stop TB Partnership.

In most parts of the world TB is still diagnosed using a microscope – just as it has been done for more than a century. A new cutting-edge TB diagnostic called Xpert MTB/RIF, which was recently certified by the World Health Organization (WHO), can diagnose 30 percent more tuberculosis patients than the current test performed by microscope.

“This is an important scientific advance, but it is just a stepping stone to what we really need: a rapid test or self-test that can diagnose TB in just minutes and requires practically no special training or infrastructure,” says Blessi Kumar, a TB activist and Vice-Chair of the Stop TB Partnership Coordinating Board. “I challenge the Indian research community and pharmaceutical industry to take on this task.”

Experts also highlighted the looming shortage of manufacturers qualified to produce TB drugs that meet international standards established by WHO. With many countries poised to step up their efforts to treat TB, especially multidrug-resistant TB, manufacturers will not be in position to meet demand.

India’s generic drug manufacturers could fill this gap and additionally help bring about price reductions, they said.

It takes well-designed research to ensure public health programmes know how to adopt innovations in a way that improves the TB care patients receive and saves lives. Priorities in Operational Research to Improve Tuberculosis Care and Control – launched today by the Stop TB Partnership, WHO and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria – provides a roadmap for TB programmes and scientific institutions to do the necessary research to make good decisions.

“India has been one of the most active players in this type of research,” says Dr Christian Lienhardt, Senior Scientific Adviser, Stop TB Partnership. “We hope this guide will inspire even greater commitments while encouraging other countries to follow suit – especially now, when they can get funding for this research through Global Fund Round 11.”

India has committed to the goals of the Stop TB Partnership’s Global Plan to Stop TB 2011-2015, which seeks to halve TB deaths by increasing the number of people tested and treated through research. The cost of the plan is an estimated US $ 47 billion. The current funding gap is approximately US $20 billion.

This collaboration is an effort to strengthen health systems in India and promote continuous quality improvement to ensure quality care for patients when visiting hospitals with effective infection control practices in place.

With the wider rollout of community health insurance initiatives, there is an increased demand for bed capacity. Existing small and medium-size hospitals, estimated to account for more than two-thirds of all beds need to strengthen the quality systems. These hospitals can achieve quality-of-care systems by standardizing and adopting necessary infection control practices to ensure patient and healthcare worker safety.

According to Dr Giridhar J Gyani, Quality Council of India, Secretary General and CEO, NABH “Our objective is to develop a basic infection-control standard for all hospitals delivering healthcare in India. The association with BD will enable us to provide on- and off-site technical support to collaborating institutions for upgrading their infection control practices.”

NABH has recommended quality towards safe injection practices, waste management and infusion safety, to name a few, as minimum requirements across hospitals in India, following the lead of several facilities undertaking these processes.

Most of these hospitals are high in volume and have the bandwidth as well as the desire to improve clinical outcomes; whereas the quality of care in smaller hospitals, especially which are government empanelled is much more varied in terms of infection control practices. NABH is currently operating in India with nearly 500 hospitals in various phases of accreditation, and nearly 100 hospitals are already accredited.

Manoj Gopalakrishna, Managing Director, BD India, said “BD has always worked toward achieving our purpose of ‘Helping all people live healthy lives’. The MoU with NABH is an innovative collaboration for enhancing patient safety and healthcare worker safety in India. BD will leverage our global experiences in implementing infection control programs by supporting NABH to enhance infection control standards in the hospitals of India.”

This collaboration will have three phases. During Phase One, initial workshops would be carried out across hospitals in India to ensure that SAFE-ISM program is adopted by hospitals as a stepping stone towards achieving quality.

This will be followed by the second phase where Centers of Excellence (CoE) and Health Economic models will be developed for the benefit of Indian Healthcare after dissemination of Safe-ISM program. The last phase will augment national capability of standards dissemination by developing additional CoE.

SAFE-ISM certification will be viewed as a precursor for preparing HCO (Healthcare organisations) or SHCO (Small healthcare organisations) for NABH accreditation. Through its experienced field force, BD will guide applicant hospitals toward SAFE-ISM preparation and other relevant training and development workshops.

Aastha Kidney and Super Speciality Hospital, touched yet another milestone by performing an almost free of cost surgery on a poor patient, aided by Asha Kidney Charitable Foundation (AKCF).

The cost of the surgery was raised through AKCF, and the patient was provided free medicine and free stay by the hospital. The patient, who is the only earning hand among the family of 7, was provided a new lease of life by this act of philanthropy by Aastha Hospital.

The patient Shanu, 50 years old and a labourer by profession, had only one functional kidney, which was also partially obstructed. His right kidney was completely damaged due to stones as it was not treated on time and his left kidney was also on the verge of being completely damaged. It was blocked by a large stone and ureteric stricture and filled with pus. The patient was in the stage of renal failure and required advanced surgical Endoscopic Procedures which were performed by Dr. Sanjeev Gupta, Chief Urologist at the Aastha hospital.

Dr Gupta, who has performed a number of rare and complicated surgeries, commented ” There are a large number of patients with kidney stones who develop kidney failure and die due to delay in treatment. It is very sad situation, as kidney stones are completely curable and more than ninety five percent of kidney and ureteric stones can be removed by an Endoscopic surgery requiring a very short hospital stay of one to two days. With support of organizations like AKCF, which is doing a great work in the area of Kidney awareness, many other poor patients like Shanu can get a new life if treated at the right time”.

Aastha kidney & Super Speciality Hospital (AKSSH), founded in February 2005, is headed by a Urologist and Nephrologist couple, Dr. Sanjeev Gupta and Dr. Neena Gupta. AKSSH provides all facilities related to kidney may it be severe and chronic kidney failure requiring Haemodialysis, Peritoneal dialysis or Kidney transplantation, Kidney and Ureteric stone surgery, Prostate surgery, any kind of Kidney cancer surgery or any form of Medical Treatment of Hypertension, Diabetes and Kidney failure. The hospital has a dedicated team of Urologist, Nephrologists, Intensivist, Minimally Invasive surgeons, Technicians and Nursing staff. AKSSH is an ISO 9000-2008 accredited hospital.

Pediatricians of Indore city in India’s Madhya Pradesh have cautioned the public against the use of antibiotics without prescription because the high level of resistance to drugs could mean that soon there will be no antibiotics which can fight diseases. What was thought to be an adult phenomenon is also being witnessed in the younger population, with a rise in the cases of drug-resistant Pneumonia in children as young as five years of age.

According to child health experts, the increasing incidence of difficult-to-treat Pneumonia cases signifies the emergence of a bacteria strain or serotype “19 A” which is resistant to commonly used antibiotics become a leading cause of disease in Europe and the US.

The recent Asian Network for Surveillance of Resistant Pathogens ANSORP study has shown high incidence of 19 A in India too.

Dr. Dhananjay K. Mangal, Senior Consultant and Director, Dept of Pediatric Medicine, Babylon Children’s Hospital & Prenatal Centre, says “Use of antibiotics without prescription is one of the main contributing factors towards drug resistance and we are increasingly witnessing these cases even amongst children. It is important for parents to understand that children should not be given antibiotics without first consulting a pediatrician”.

Drug-resistance, is a consequence of the use, particularly the misuse, of antimicrobial and antibiotic medicines which develops when a microorganism mutates or acquires a resistance gene that becomes difficult to treat through standard treatment protocols.

Pneumonia is an acute respiratory disease that affects the lungs and is caused by a number of infectious agents, including viruses, bacteria and fungi. The bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae or pneumococcus is the leading cause of pneumonia right from infancy to adulthood. Streptococcus pneumoniae can also cause other serious infections such as bacteremia (blood infection), meningitis (infection of the coverings of brain and spinal cord), sinusitis (infection of the sinuses) and otitis media (middle ear infection).
There are approximately 155 million cases of childhood Pneumonia every year in the world that results in the death of an estimated 1.8 million children under the age of five years. Of these nearly 410,000 child deaths are from India, according to the World Health Organisation.

Other prevention measures include adequate nutrition and exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life which improve the infant’s natural defenses.

Pneumonia is an infection of the lungs that leads to cough and fever and makes breathing difficult. Pneumonia infections are caused by viruses and bacteria but most pneumonia deaths are caused by bacteria such as Haemophilus influenzae type b (often known as Hib) and pneumococcus.

Certain Facts
• Pneumococcal disease currently takes the lives of over a million people every year – including more than half a million children before their fifth birthday
• Pneumonia is the most common form of serious pneumococcal disease and accounts for 18 per cent of child deaths in developing countries, making it one of the two leading causes of death among young children
• Pneumonia is a disease responsible for the largest number of deaths in children under 5 worldwide
• India accounts for almost 40% of worldwide childhood pneumonia cases
• Studies have shown that children that survive pneumococcal meningitis, suffer more from major disabilities

The test, which Lifecare Medical Centre offers at Rs 2900, determine if the person has had a recent infection, a past infection, or has never been exposed. Elaborating on the significance of the test, Dr Vinay Goel, Promoter Director & Chairman, Lifecare Medical Centre said, “These infections can be serious if they occur during pregnancy because they can cross the placenta from the mother to the developing foetus, risking miscarriage, still birth, or a child with congenital defects.”

The test is performed before or as soon as pregnancy is diagnosed to determine the mother’s history of exposure to these organisms. Dr Goel further informs that Rubella infection during the first 16 weeks of pregnancy poses major risks for the unborn baby. It is difficult for a physician to tell if a person has rubella by their clinical appearance since other infections may look the same. Similarly, Toxoplasma or CMV may have flu-like symptoms that are not easily differentiated from other illnesses. “Antibody testing will help the physician diagnose an infection that may be harmful to the unborn baby,” he added.

The test may also be ordered on the newborn when the infant shows any signs suggestive of these infections, such as exceptionally small size relative to the gestational age, deafness, mental retardation, seizures, heart defects, cataracts, enlarged liver or spleen, low platelet level, or jaundice.

He suggests that even people having pets as well as people flying to the UK and the US must also undergo this test.

Results are usually given as positive or negative, indicating the presence or absence of IgG and IgM antibodies for each of the infectious agents. Presence of IgM antibodies in the newborn indicates high likelihood of infection with that organism. IgM antibodies produced in the mother cannot cross the placenta, so presence of this type of antibody strongly suggests an active infection in the infant. Presence of IgG and absence of IgM antibody in the infant may reflect passive transfer of maternal antibody to the baby and does not indicate active infection in the baby.

Likewise, the presence of IgM antibody in the pregnant woman suggests a new infection with the virus or parasite. Further testing must be done to confirm these results since IgM antibody may be present for other reasons. IgG antibody in the pregnant woman may be a sign of past infection with one of these infectious agents or vaccinations. “By testing a second blood sample drawn two weeks later, the level of antibody can be compared. If the second blood draw shows an increase in IgG antibody, it may indicate a recent infection with the infectious agent,” said Dr Goel.

If there is no antibody, you can take the antidote injection for it, so that you don’t get infected by any of these infections in the future,” he further added.

Monsoon Problems

The rainy season is notorious for bringing with it a host of viral, fungal and bacterial illnesses that can range from simple cold and cough [flu] and stomach upsets, to major illnesses like malaria, dengue, typhoid, gastroenteritis, food poisoning, cholera and jaundice.
Skin infections caused by bacteria and fungus due to the high moisture content of the air are also very common.

Children tend to fall sick more often during monsoons compared to adults because of low levels of immunity. They also play outdoors and thus come in contact with a lot of germs and contaminants.

The ambient temperature during this season is conducive for the growth of germs. These germs also multiply faster in the humid environment. All this, in addition to pooling of water, leaky walls and roofs, overflowing gutters, water logging and impure drinking water make the season an ideal time for infections and illnesses.

And the only protection against many of these illnesses, in addition to vaccinations for some of the diseases, is a high degree of personal and environmental hygiene.

Hygienic habits

Apart from having a bath once or twice a day and washing hands with soap frequently, there are measures you need to take to prevent illness.

Have bath twice daily with an anti germ soap; it helps get rid of the excessive dirt that occurs in the monsoon. It also helps in effective removal of germs that can cause illnesses. Stay Clean, Stay healthy.

Drink pure water

One of the common sources of infection during the rainy seasons is water. Due to the heavy rainfall, the water that is supplied through our taps is often muddy and filled with germs. Do not consume tap water directly, at least during the rainy season, and preferably all year round. You can render drinking water safe by boiling, filtering, or by using water purifiers.

Drinking clean water eliminates several worm infestations that occur through infected water. While some of these diseases are easy to cure, others like cholera and typhoid can lead to hospitalization and in rare cases, can even be fatal.

Like water, food too can cause several infections. Here are five good food practices to follow this monsoon.

1. Eat freshly cooked food —within a few hours of preparation.

2. Do not consume foods kept in the refrigerator for long, it may cause vomiting or diarrhea. Before consuming refrigerated food, check to see if it has started to decompose by observing changes in colour, smell, and taste. In case you have even a small doubt, discard the food.

3. Keep eating out to a bare minimum; it carries the risk of infection. Completely refrain from eating and drinking juices at roadside stalls during the rains. Even if you are forced to eat outside, opt for foods, which are steaming hot or fried, as they are less likely to be contaminated.

4. Avoid consuming uncooked food like salads.

5. Ensure that fruits and sweets are fresh before consuming them, and discard leftovers.
Keep mosquitoes away

Mosquito-borne diseases like malaria, dengue and chikungunya have assumed epidemic proportions in the last few years. The rampant water stagnation and pooling during the monsoons provide ideal breeding grounds for mosquitoes. As far as possible, water should not be allowed to stagnate. All water sources like wells, tanks, construction reservoirs, underground sumps and overhead tanks should be covered.

Protect your skin

Keeping yourself dry at all times is important, as the chances of contracting infective skin diseases are high during this time. In case you get wet in the rain, shift to warm dry clothing as soon as possible.

Have bath daily and frequently wash your face and hands; it helps get rid of the excessive oiliness that occurs in the monsoon.

Washing hands frequently also prevents other infections and is an important hygiene habit.

About 500 000 children die each year from vaccine-preventable diseases in WHO’s South-East Asia Region. Health Ministers and experts from 11 Member States of the Region met in New Delhi on August 2, 2011 to renew their commitment to increasing and sustaining immunization coverage in the Region.

Recognized as one of the most cost-effective and powerful public health interventions, immunization is critical to achieving Millennium Development Goal 4 (MDG 4): a reduction of deaths of children under the age of five. Despite the achievements in routine immunization in the Region, the coverage is not uniform between countries and within different geographical areas in the same country.

“About 10 million children still do not receive the third dose of DTP vaccine in the Region. Millions of children in the Region have no access to vaccines that are routinely given to children in the industrialized world” said Dr. Samlee Plianbangchang, WHO’s Regional Director for South-East Asia. “Access to safe and effective vaccines is a basic right of all children” he added.

Basic vaccines in routine immunization consist of four vaccines against six diseases namely BCG (vaccine against childhood tuberculosis), DTP (combined vaccine against diphtheria, whooping cough and tetanus), OPV (vaccine against polio) and measles vaccines.

Reaching high-risk communities and those in hard-to-reach areas is one of the challenges to routine immunization in South-East Asia. Inadequate resource allocation and lack of trained health workforce add up to the low coverage in the Region. Inadequate vaccine delivery mechanisms and a weak cold chain infrastructure also pose a big challenge to effective immunization coverage.

In 2005, the World Health Assembly endorsed the Global Immunization Vision and Strategies (GIVS). One of the most important goals was to achieve 90% immunization coverage nationally and 80% coverage in all districts. However, only seven countries in WHO’s South-East Asia Region had reached the national coverage of 90% in 2010. Though these countries have reached the national coverage of 90%, there are still districts with coverage below 80%.

WHO is urging countries in South-East Asia to strengthen their regulatory bodies. Countries need to invest in vaccines, technologies and train health workers to deliver life saving vaccines.

Unhealthy lifestyle, physical inactivity and inappropriate diet are the major reasons for increase in diabetes.

The Government of India has initiated the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases and Stroke (NPCDCS) in the 100 selected districts in 21 States during 2010-12.

The community based strategies include prevention and control of diabetes at various levels viz. CHC, District etc. in the Health care delivery system.

Government of India is providing glucometer, strips and lancets and training to ANM and other field workers to screen all persons of the age of 30 years and above and all pregnant women for blood sugar and hypertension.

The Government proposes to expand the screening programme through out the country to tackle rising cases of diabetes with other components of the programme. The monitoring would be done through National, State and District level Non-Communicable Disease Cells.

The community based strategies for the prevention and control of Non-Communicable Diseases would continue to be hallmark/mainstay of the program. The funding requirement would be more than six times of the budget allotted for 100 Districts in the 11th five year plan i.e. Rs. 1230.90 crores. The State Government share would be 20% while the central share would be 80%.

This information was given by the Union Minister of Health & Family Welfare Sh. Ghulam Nabi Azad in reply to oral questions in the Lok Sabha Friday, August 5.

Courtesy : Press Information Bureau