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Medical Voice 20th November 2019

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Dr KK Aggarwal    20 November 2019

Understanding Air Masks and Air Purifiers

Types of Respirators or Masks

1.The first type of respirator removes contaminants from the air and are called air-purifying respirators (APRs). APRs include particulate respirators, which filter out airborne particles, and "gas masks," which filter out chemicals and gases.

2.Other respirators protect by supplying clean respirable air from another source. Air-Supplying Respirators(ASRs) comprise this category of respirators. They include airline respirators, which use compressed air from a remote source; and self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA), which include their own air supply.

Fire and Simple wet Cloth

1.N95 mask doesnt do anything for CO and gases and theyre very difficult to breathe with.

2.Wet cloth held over the nose and mouth will provide protection from smoke particulates. Wet cloth will absorb most of the water-soluble gases (hydrogen cyanide & hydrogen chloride). For wetting the cloth use water, soft drink or other non-alcoholic beverage to moisten the fabric."

3.During World War One, Canadian soldiers being attacked with chlorine gas(Mustard Gas) were told to urinate into their handkerchiefs and to breathe throughthat wet cloth. The chlorine gas would dissolve in the water as itpassed through the handkerchief, thereby keeping the troops safe andalive.

4.A dampened cloth will have a modest effectiveness against SO2, since SO2 dissolves readily in water.

5.CO is also soluble in water, but to a lesser extent than sulphor dioxide.

6.It will also take care of > 10-micron dust particles ....read more

Healthcare News Monitor

 

Few inspectors, no records: Drug regulation in India is hobbled by a number of problems

Scroll.in - Swagata Yadavar

The “pharmacy to the world” is besieged by problems, a new report says. Central and state governments have inadequate numbers of drug inspectors, no records or databases of errant drug manufacturers, and an overall lack of capacity that leaves them incapable of enforcing recalls and uneven punishing violators. Poor communication between state and central drug regulatory bodies compounds the problem. The report, Drug Regulation in India: The Working and Performance of CDSCO and SDRAs, is based on primary research unearthed through three Right to Information applications, and minutes of meetings, circulars and documents available on government websites. Lawyers Shree Agnihotri and Sumathi Chandrashekaran compiled the findings of the nine-month effort and published their report on the website of the non-profit Thakur Foundation in October. The Indian pharmaceutical industry, dominated by generic manufacturers, was worth Rs 2.3 lakh crore in 2017. The industry is expected to grow to Rs 8.5 lakh crore by 2030 if it grows by 11%-12% each year, The Economic Times reported in June. Drugs manufactured in the country find buyers across the world. India ranks third in volume and tenth in value in pharmaceutical sales in the world, according to a report by the Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance and global consultancy firm McKinsey.

FDA seizes cosmetics worth Rs 88 lakhs

The Asian Age - Vrushali Purandare

The Food and Drug Administration on Monday raided the premises of Nykaa E. Retail Pvt. Ltd. in Thane and confiscated boxes full of “branded” kajal, lipstick, lip balm, eyeliner and other cosmetics worth Rs 88 lakhs. The Food and Drug Administration took action against the manufacturer of cosmetics for manufacturing and selling the products without a licence and in violation of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940. According to the senior FDA officer who executed the raid, “The FDA seized products during the special raid conducted on the basis of confidential information and confiscated the stock of cosmetics.” He said that these products were manufactured by Bellezza Italia, Virar (E), Thane and marketed by NELF Cosmetics Pvt. Ltd. without a valid licence, thereby violating section 18C of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940. The product samples were sent to the laboratory to ascertain their quality. The products sold across the country through a website, added FDA officials. Food and Drug Administration commissioner Dr Pallavi Darade said that a case will be filed against the manufacturer for violations. “A license is a must for manufacturing and marketing cosmetic products in India. The products sold had no licence number. The cosmetics are required to be safe for consumer use and should be in accordance with the labelling. The licence is very important as it is given only after the products are tested to ensure the safety of a cosmetic product,” she said.

USFDA lens slow down Indian pharma exports, says CII official

Financial Express – PTI

Frequent inspections of Indian plants by the US FDA and subsequent observations slow down the growth of pharma exports even as US-China trade war presents huge opportunities for the drug industry, GV Prasad, Chairman, CII National Committee on Pharmaceuticals and Co-Chairman and MD of Dr Reddys Laboratories Ltd said on Monday. “It (effect of frequent inspections) is quite significant (on India pharma exports). Part of the slow Down is that. Lot of companies’ approvals have stalled because of warning letters. That has affected the new product introductions and growth,” he said. “Everybody should up their game in terms of quality, systems, discipline, integrity of data. All there are important things for the industry,” Prasad said when asked about the effect of frequent inspections of Indian pharma manufacturing plants by the FDA and measures to be taken to reduce the impact. According to him, China is a major source of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) and chemical intermediaries for the global pharmaceutical industry, including that of India, due to their competitive pricing. He, however, said, the trade war with the USA has prompted western companies to start ‘re-looking’ into their dependence on Asia’s largest economy as the situation impacted the duty structures, among others. “That (the situation) opens up an opportunity for India. China as a nation is moving towards more innovation and getting out of what they perceive as low value-added business. That is the opportunity which is opening up for India. And China itself is a great market,” he said. Prasad said there was a need for the government to focus on and invest more in primary healthcare. He further said though drug prices in India are cheaper when compared to other nations, the affordability by the public is becoming an issue as there is no ‘national healthcare system’ in place in the country.

Cadila Healthcare gains after tentative USFDA approval for arthritis drug

Business Standard

Pharmaceutical major, Cadila Healthcare announced on Saturday that it has received a tentative approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) to market Apremilast tablets in multiple strengths (10mg, 20 mg and 30 mg). The drug is used in treatment of certain type of arthritis (psoriatic arthritis) and a certain type of skin condition. It is also used in treatment of Behcets disease, a type of inflammatory disorder and helps to reduce the pain and improve the healing of these mouth sores. The drug will will be manufactured at the companys manufacturing facility located in SEZ, Ahmedabad. The group now has 276 approvals and has so far filed over 360 ANDAs since the commencement of the filing process in FY2003-04. The drug maker declared Q2 results on 13 November 2019. On consolidated basis, companys net profit declined 74.3% to Rs 107.20 crore on a 14.1% rise in net sales to Rs 3244.20 crore in Q2 September 2019 over Q2 September 2018. Shares of Cadila Healthcare rose 1.94% to Rs 238.90. The stock is trading near its 52-week low of Rs 206.45 registered on 22 August 2019. Cadila Healthcare is headquartered in Ahmedabad, India, and ranks 4th in the Indian pharmaceutical industry. The group has manufacturing sites and research facilities spread across five states of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Himachal Pradesh and Sikkim in India and in the US and Brazil.

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