Feel the noise
Until now, those who have lost their sense of touch have just had to live with the problem, trying instead to become more aware of their surroundings using the senses that remain. James Collins, a biomedical engineer at Boston University, and his colleagues now hope to change this. In a …
Stroke clinic at Apollo soon
The city's first "stroke clinic" providing state-of-the are facilities will start functioning soon at the Indraprastha Apollo Hospital.
North India most prone to malaria
Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir are among the most malaria and other vector disease prone states of the country . Any outbreak of epidemic might claim large number of deaths, noted experts at the conference of health ministers of the north region which concluded on Friday.
Rare insects discovered in Antarctica
For the first time, scientists have discovered a rare family of polar insects in Antarctica during extensive research operations at Gangotri, the Indian research station in the icy continent. Indian zoologists studying the existence of animal life in the sub-zero climate, hit upon the peculiat family of "springtails" during research …
TIFR project on tobacco-related disease
The Tala Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) will test a system of collecting information on tobacco-related disease through the medical records of deceased tobacco-users. The epidemiology department of TIFR will implement the project in collaboraiton with the World Health Organisation and the executive health officer, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. The doctor …
Nerve gas tests disputed
Swiss and French tests for a poison gas on Iraqi missile warheads appear to have reached results contrart to those of American tests that showed the presence of VX, a deadly nerve agent. If the preliminary findings are confirmed, perhaps as early as next week, Iraq is expected to argue …
Guidelines for asthma treatment
For the first time guidelines have been framed in the country for treatment of asthma from the Indian point of view of health. The guidelines will be released at a conference cum workshop on Saturday and these will benefit patients as well as doctors.The guidelines have been drawn up by …
Ban on use of asbestos comes closer
The Health and Safety Commission of UK is to publish a consultation paper proposing the banning of the supply, use and importationof white asbestos from 2001.
Patients 'at risk from 2000 bomb delay'
Hospital patients could die because of slippage in the UK government's drive to tackle the millennium bomb, MPs on the Commons public accounts committee will claim soon. A report by the committee makes a stark contrast with assurances from John Prescott, deputy prime minister, who insisted the government had the …
AIDs coupled with TB could be the killer
By AD 2008 Ahmedabad is expected to have an estimated 28,000 cases of AIDS, most of whom will also be suffering from a deadly variant of tuberculosis which is resistant to the existing TB drugs. According to the State AIDS Cell, seven people out of 1,000 in Ahmedabad and Gujarat …
Diseases of by-gone era making frightening comeback
Japanese encephalitis, a Vector-Borne Disease (VBD), alone caused 407 deaths in Nepal in 1997, shows the record at the Ministry of Health (MOH). According to Dr Mahendra Bista, director of Epidemiologu and Disease Control Division under the Ministry, altogether 2,953 cases of encephalitis were reported the same year. The figure …
If all goes well, Safa tempos may run in city
After months of foul-ups, delay and a general lack of enthusiasm on the part of Vikram Tempo owners, donor agencies are contemplating a change in strategy in their bid to put more environment-friendly three-wheelers on the streets of Kathmandu. The move, if successful, would put more cleaners, and efficient electric …
Herbal drugs under scrutiny
Herbal medicines range from potent pharmaceuticals to useless and sometimes hazardous substances, although it is often hard to determine which category a given preparation falls into. Those are among the conclusions reached by several groups of clinical investigators, who report their experience with herbal medicines in the current issue of …
Philip Morris broadens tests of smoking system
Philip Morris Cos. of the U.S. has expanded its market tests for Accord, a battery-powered "cigarette smoking system" that claims to eliminate sidestream smoke, ashes and most lingering odor. Scientists say Accord does have some advantages : A smoker can leave it on for hours between puffs, for example. Also, …
2 tobacco firms face new accusations
Philip Morris and British American Tobacco secretly joined forces to fix cigarette prices and divide markets in Argentina, Venezuela and other Latin American countries, according to internal documents that explicitly describe the deals and the involvement of some of the comapanies most senior executives.
Defective bags 'contaminate' blood at banks
State blood banks (West Bengal) have curtailed usage of banks manufactured by a Central government undertaking following complaints that some of them, used to store blood, have been found "defective".
Brain fever kills 70 in Nepal
Still recovering from the spate of deaths due to floods and landslips, parts of Nepal are now in the grip of a viral encephalitis epidemic. Some 70 deaths due to viral encephalitis, commonly referred to as brain fever, have been reported from Nepal's southern region, bordering the Bihar and Uttar …
Childhood asthma meet starts tomorrow
A national conference-cum-workshop on Childhood Asthma will be held at Delhi on September 19 to 20 to disseminate knowldege about the consensus Indian guidelines on asthma that has been evolved recently and to fine-tune the skills of the physicians involved in the care of affected children.
Guidelines for blood sale
The Government has come out with a set of guidelines on the price structure for blood units issued by blood banks, with a view to prevent them from exploiting the gap between the supply and demand for blood and over-charing the patients.A highlight of the guidelines is that instead of …
HK doctors warn of global rise in oceanic flesh-eating bacteria
Doctors warned on Thursday of a steady rise worldwide of a rare sea-borne, flesh-eating disease that can kill up to half of its victims. Although there has been no sign of an outbreak, doctors have found a steady rise globally of a sickness called necrotizing fastiitis, an infection by a …
