Monday, August 31, 2009
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Swine flu shadow on Janmashtami
With swine. People suffering from flu or showing flu-like symptoms have been advised to stay home and temples will put up medical camps with doctors and nurses on duty to screen devotees at the entry point.
A day before the festival, some temples will be taking out tableaux on swine flu to spread awareness about the disease. And while some are even arranging for masks, most others have only beefed up security.
At Birla Mandir, which expects a crowd of around 2 lakh people, it could be a low-key affair this year because of the swine flu fear. V K Mishra, administrator, Birla Mandir, said, "There will be some impact on the number of people coming to temple. I would advise all those with symptoms of swine flu like a cold and fever to not come. There will be two medical camps in the temple. Devotees showing any signs of swine flu will be taken inside through a different route. We have not arranged for masks as yet, but might order for some.''
About the two tableaux on swine flu, Mishra added, "A doctor and nurse on the Jhanki would be wearing masks. And posters would carry information about the symptoms of swine flu to educate people. We will also list the dos and don'ts for people infected with the H1N1 virus. While ambulances will be stationed, our only request to those infected is to stay home.''
At Chhattarpur Mandir, arrangements for the midnight prayer and bhajans are on. "We cannot predict how many people will come and nobody can be stopped from visiting the temple. All necessary arrangements have been made for Janmashtami. We have a diagnostic centre inside the temple,'' said a spokesperson.
While Surendra Nath, a priest at Kalkaji temple, said they were burning neem leaves to burn all impurities, Jhandewalan temple has not made any special arrangements in view of the swine flu. "We haven't had a meeting about it yet. The management will on Thursday decide what precautions will be taken. As far as security is concerned, there will be heavy police deployment on Janmashtami.''
Meanwhile, since Iskon temple in Pune has cancelled pandal and cultural programmes on account of swine flu, programmes in Delhi have also been called off. "We are not having any gathering in Delhi either. We will ensure the crowd that comes for darshan does not collect at one place. While last year around 10 lakh devotees visited the temple, the number may go down by a few lakhs this year. Around 450 personnel from Delhi Police and 500 private security will be deployed on Friday,'' said Vrajendra Nandan Das, national communication director, Iskon.
Pune overflow by swine flu cases
Of the 13 suspected cases who have been quarantined in various government hospitals across the state, five are students from Pune who have come home with flu symptoms. Friends of atleast three of these students have also been diagnosed positive for the disease. One of the suspects, quarantined at Jodhpur has ran away from the hospital."The laxity on part of the health machinery in Pune has created a menace at our end, they must make some arrangements to control the outflow of suspected cases," a senior health official said.
The state health department is apprehensive as not only the risk of these cases being positive runs high, if left unattended they would spread the disease in the state. Earlier too, a couple of students who had returned from Pune had shown flu symptoms, but none of them tested positive.
On Wednesday, eight suspected cases of swine flu were quarantined at the SMS hospital isolation ward in Jaipur. They are an 18-year-old youth from Dholpur who had recently been on a trip to Madhya Pradesh, a 16 year old boy from Kotputali, a woman from Ajmer, other four suspected patients are from Jaipur, which includes two Pune-returned students.
In Kota, three students have been quarantined, while in Ajmer one person has been admitted at the isolation ward, after he returned from a foreign trip. The samples collected from these patients have been sent to National Institute of Communicable Disease (NICD) for tests.
Till date 52 samples have been collected across state, five of which tested positive and four treated at SMS Hospital. Reports of nearly 20 suspected patients are yet to arrive. The health department has also increased its preparations and has acquired more supplies of drugs and protection kit. "We have received additional stock of the antiviral drugs and protection kit for the infected patients as well as their kins," Dr B R Meena, additional director health department, said.
Swine flu suspect tests positive for HIV
The first suspected swine flu case of Balasore district was tested HIV positive on Wednesday. Upendra Rana (47) of Sundhira village
within Khaira police station limits, who had returned from Thane three days ago, was admitted to SCB Medical College and Hospital with suspected swine flu symptoms.
"But doctors, who conducted several tests on him, later confirmed that he had contracted the fatal virus. Rana admitted that he had been tested positive for the same virus. But he had kept quiet, fearing social stigma," said his brother Manoranjan Rana.
Members of his family said Rana, a bachelor, who was working at a Thane hotel returned home after 35 years. The hotel owner sent him home after conducting a few tests on him at a hospital there.
However, Rana's homecoming with a suspected deadly virus has shaken his family. His mother, Sabitri, who was waiting for her elder son since last more than three decades is taken aback.
"He had left home in search of job at the age of 12. During the past 35 years, he had never visited his home and didn't even make a phone call until he appeared at our doorstep with this deadly disease. We thought he had gone missing. Though I was happy to see him again, the news that he has contracted such a disease broke my heart," she said.
Apart from Hindi, Rana does not know any other language, not even his mother tongue Oriya. "He told us that he first went to Kolkata and then proceeded to Maharastra. He was working at a hotel in Thane as a cook where he fell sick. He returned home after the hotel owner sent him home with some money," Manoranjan Rana said.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Indian swine flu vaccine- take time
The clinical trials of vaccines against the pandemic strain of swine flu have started in Australia, China, Germany, the U.K. and the U.S., according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). Some of these vaccines could complete the process for regulatory approval and be ready for public use by next month.
India has hitherto not been producing flu vaccines. But now three leading manufacturers - Serum Institute of India in Pune, Bharat Biotech in Hyderabad and Panacea Biotec in Delhi - are seeking to make the swine flu vaccine within the country. But it looks like the indigenous vaccine will not be ready for several months more, and even subsequently it may be available only in limited quantities.
The Serum Institute of India was one of six manufacturers in developing countries chosen by the WHO for a programme to expand global pandemic vaccine production beyond a few wealthy countries that possess such capacity.
The company has received the seed strain and started making the swine flu vaccine, its executive director Suresh Jadhav told The Hindu. He also spoke about the long procedure that had to be completed to get the vaccine to the public. This included putting in place a production process that gave the best possible yield, scaling up of the process, quality-testing, pre-clinical tests for toxicity in animals and clinical trials in humans. Then regulatory approval had to be secured before the vaccine could be made commercially available. Phase-I clinical trials was likely to start in the first quarter of 2010.
The company currently had the capacity to produce only limited quantities of the vaccine, Dr. Jadhav said. Large-scale production would require the establishment of a new facility with appropriate levels of bio-safety. The Serum Institute would be able to make such an investment only if there was an assured demand for flu vaccines, he said.
Moreover, under the WHO scheme, the Serum Institute is committed to providing at least 10 per cent of its swine flu vaccine production for use in other countries, according to a report that has appeared in the latest issue of the Indian edition of the magazine Technology Review.
Bharat Biotech too has received the seed strain and begun the process of making a pandemic vaccine, said Krishna Ella, its chairman and managing director. Instead of the conventional eggbased method, the company intended to make the vaccine by growing the virus in cell culture. A vaccine that could be used for clinical trials was expected to be ready in fourfive months, Dr. Ella told this correspondent.
Bharat Biotech would be able to make only limited quantities of the vaccine. However, Dr. Ella said the Bangalore veterinary vaccine unit of Biovet, another company promoted by him, could be used. The veterinary vaccine production could be shut down if required, and the unit switched to large-scale production of the swine flu vaccine.
But "we need more encouragement from the government," he said. "If I produce the vaccine, who is going to buy?" There had to be either a purchase commitment from the government to buy the vaccine or grants to support the company in its efforts. International vaccine manufacturers were given such purchase commitments by governments, he said.
A spokesperson for Panacea Biotec said the company was not at present making any statement on its pandemic vaccine.
India has hitherto not been producing flu vaccines. But now three leading manufacturers - Serum Institute of India in Pune, Bharat Biotech in Hyderabad and Panacea Biotec in Delhi - are seeking to make the swine flu vaccine within the country. But it looks like the indigenous vaccine will not be ready for several months more, and even subsequently it may be available only in limited quantities.
The Serum Institute of India was one of six manufacturers in developing countries chosen by the WHO for a programme to expand global pandemic vaccine production beyond a few wealthy countries that possess such capacity.
The company has received the seed strain and started making the swine flu vaccine, its executive director Suresh Jadhav told The Hindu. He also spoke about the long procedure that had to be completed to get the vaccine to the public. This included putting in place a production process that gave the best possible yield, scaling up of the process, quality-testing, pre-clinical tests for toxicity in animals and clinical trials in humans. Then regulatory approval had to be secured before the vaccine could be made commercially available. Phase-I clinical trials was likely to start in the first quarter of 2010.
The company currently had the capacity to produce only limited quantities of the vaccine, Dr. Jadhav said. Large-scale production would require the establishment of a new facility with appropriate levels of bio-safety. The Serum Institute would be able to make such an investment only if there was an assured demand for flu vaccines, he said.
Moreover, under the WHO scheme, the Serum Institute is committed to providing at least 10 per cent of its swine flu vaccine production for use in other countries, according to a report that has appeared in the latest issue of the Indian edition of the magazine Technology Review.
Bharat Biotech too has received the seed strain and begun the process of making a pandemic vaccine, said Krishna Ella, its chairman and managing director. Instead of the conventional eggbased method, the company intended to make the vaccine by growing the virus in cell culture. A vaccine that could be used for clinical trials was expected to be ready in fourfive months, Dr. Ella told this correspondent.
Bharat Biotech would be able to make only limited quantities of the vaccine. However, Dr. Ella said the Bangalore veterinary vaccine unit of Biovet, another company promoted by him, could be used. The veterinary vaccine production could be shut down if required, and the unit switched to large-scale production of the swine flu vaccine.
But "we need more encouragement from the government," he said. "If I produce the vaccine, who is going to buy?" There had to be either a purchase commitment from the government to buy the vaccine or grants to support the company in its efforts. International vaccine manufacturers were given such purchase commitments by governments, he said.
A spokesperson for Panacea Biotec said the company was not at present making any statement on its pandemic vaccine.
Swine flu vaccine tests underway
The University of Maryland kicked off its tests of the H1N1 vaccine this morning with 67 adult volunteers. It's one nine centers nationwide testing whether the shot is safe and effective. The trial is the first step in what could be a mass vaccination campaign to start in mid-October, as infectious disease experts anticipate a resurgence of the new flu.
I'm spending the morning with volunteers and researchers over at the university and will be certain to keep you all updated as things get going. For now, here's the nuts and bolts:
Volunteers started arriving at 7 a.m. for an orientation session, briefing on consent forms and a medicalassessment. (Volunteers must be healthy to take part). Those who make the cut will get stuck and will remain on site for about 20-30 minutes in case of any allergic reactions, before they may go home.
Researchers will follow up with them in eight days for blood tests. Then, volunteers will return after two weeks later for another injection. If all goes well in adults, the vaccine will be tested in children as soon as the end of next week, said Dr. Karen Kotloff, the study's lead investigator.
Kotloff told me last week that she's been impressed by the response from volunteers. While researchers are still seeking people 65 and over to take part, they have had an easy time getting adults and even children -- especially those with doctors for parents.
"To me, that is very comforting," she said. "These are people who have a very good understanding of influenza and influenza vaccine, they have weighed, in a very personal way, what the risk and benefits are and have decided to volunteer their children. That says a lot."
I'm spending the morning with volunteers and researchers over at the university and will be certain to keep you all updated as things get going. For now, here's the nuts and bolts: Volunteers started arriving at 7 a.m. for an orientation session, briefing on consent forms and a medicalassessment. (Volunteers must be healthy to take part). Those who make the cut will get stuck and will remain on site for about 20-30 minutes in case of any allergic reactions, before they may go home.
Researchers will follow up with them in eight days for blood tests. Then, volunteers will return after two weeks later for another injection. If all goes well in adults, the vaccine will be tested in children as soon as the end of next week, said Dr. Karen Kotloff, the study's lead investigator.
Kotloff told me last week that she's been impressed by the response from volunteers. While researchers are still seeking people 65 and over to take part, they have had an easy time getting adults and even children -- especially those with doctors for parents.
"To me, that is very comforting," she said. "These are people who have a very good understanding of influenza and influenza vaccine, they have weighed, in a very personal way, what the risk and benefits are and have decided to volunteer their children. That says a lot."
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Fight against swine flu
The Ministry of Health announced on Sunday that it would set up an electronic network to connect all its 20 health regions in the Kingdom to monitor the movement of swine flu, according to Health Minister Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah.“We are making use of advance communications technology to counter the rapid spread of the swine flu, which has already killed four people in the Kingdom,” Al-Rabeeah told the health directors of the 20 regions in the Kingdom on Sunday. He also called upon participants of Sunday’s meeting to intensify their preventive measures in their respective regions.
Initially, 500 mobile surveillance machines will be distributed to health officials and prominent community leaders in all parts of the Kingdom. The minister explained that there would be a Central Command Office (CCO) that would monitor the movement of the influenza through this network. The users of the machine will communicate with the CCO in the event of any incidence of the disease in any part of the country. The ministry will gear its emergency activities according to the report from the CCO, the minister said.
“We must provide the best of preventive and curative services to citizens as well as expatriates who come for treatment in government and private hospitals,” he told the directors, insisting that patients’ safety is the top priority of his ministry. He also said the four main laboratories (Jeddah, Madinah, Riyadh and Dammam) are open for emergency services throughout the day and night.
He said the regional strategies adopted by the regional directors should be in accordance with the guidelines set out by the National Committee To Combat Swine Flu, which is in line with the standards of the World Health Organization.
While concentrating on the control and treatment of the infection, the minister said that the directors should organize effective public awareness programs to enable the members of the public to know the nature and the hazards of the virus. He said the ministry would communicate from time to time on swine flu developments in the Kingdom in accordance with the regular report submitted by the National Scientific Committee that coordinates with the WHO and the US Centers for Disease Control.
On Sunday, while seeking the cooperation of the newsmen to the ministry’s counter move against the spread of the virus, Al-Rabeeah said it would be transparent in all its activities regarding the control, spread and treatment of swine flu in the Kingdom.
Since May 27, there have been 595 cases of swine flu and the ministry reported 95 percent recovery among them.
Ziad Al-Memish, assistant deputy minister of health for preventive medicine, told Arab News that the ministry would start training the people who are using the mobile surveillance machines from Saturday.
“We have handpicked health officials from all 20 regions for necessary training,” he said, pointing out that those who are trained under the program are expected to teach the other users in the respective regions. “Initially, it’s going to be a train-the-trainer program.”
The official said that a major number of the machines would be distributed to Makkah, Madinah and Jeddah regions in view of the forthcoming Umrah season.
“We are making every effort to make the Umrah a flu-free season,” Memish said.
Initially, 500 mobile surveillance machines will be distributed to health officials and prominent community leaders in all parts of the Kingdom. The minister explained that there would be a Central Command Office (CCO) that would monitor the movement of the influenza through this network. The users of the machine will communicate with the CCO in the event of any incidence of the disease in any part of the country. The ministry will gear its emergency activities according to the report from the CCO, the minister said.“We must provide the best of preventive and curative services to citizens as well as expatriates who come for treatment in government and private hospitals,” he told the directors, insisting that patients’ safety is the top priority of his ministry. He also said the four main laboratories (Jeddah, Madinah, Riyadh and Dammam) are open for emergency services throughout the day and night.
He said the regional strategies adopted by the regional directors should be in accordance with the guidelines set out by the National Committee To Combat Swine Flu, which is in line with the standards of the World Health Organization.
While concentrating on the control and treatment of the infection, the minister said that the directors should organize effective public awareness programs to enable the members of the public to know the nature and the hazards of the virus. He said the ministry would communicate from time to time on swine flu developments in the Kingdom in accordance with the regular report submitted by the National Scientific Committee that coordinates with the WHO and the US Centers for Disease Control.
On Sunday, while seeking the cooperation of the newsmen to the ministry’s counter move against the spread of the virus, Al-Rabeeah said it would be transparent in all its activities regarding the control, spread and treatment of swine flu in the Kingdom.
Since May 27, there have been 595 cases of swine flu and the ministry reported 95 percent recovery among them.
Ziad Al-Memish, assistant deputy minister of health for preventive medicine, told Arab News that the ministry would start training the people who are using the mobile surveillance machines from Saturday.
“We have handpicked health officials from all 20 regions for necessary training,” he said, pointing out that those who are trained under the program are expected to teach the other users in the respective regions. “Initially, it’s going to be a train-the-trainer program.”
The official said that a major number of the machines would be distributed to Makkah, Madinah and Jeddah regions in view of the forthcoming Umrah season.
“We are making every effort to make the Umrah a flu-free season,” Memish said.
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