Researchers inch closer to potential treatment for heart diseases

The study has shown that a protein therapy-recombinant human platelet-derived growth factor-AB (rhPDGF-AB) can improve the outcomes that follow myocardial infarction.

Washington D.C: Researchers in a recent study have found a potential treatment for heart diseases that follow after a heart attack.

The study was conducted by the researchers from the Westmead Institute for Medical Research (WIMR) and the University of Sydney and was published in the journal Science Translational Medicine. ....read more

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China rolls out drug to treat Alzheimer’s disease

ET Healthworld- PTI

China’s much publicised new drug to treat Alzheimer’s disease has hit the market, raising hopes of a cure for millions of people in the country and abroad suffering from the brain disorder. Extracted from brown algae, the medicine is said to be the world’s first innovative therapy for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease in 17 years, China’s National Medical Products Administration (CNMPA) said. The drug named GV-971, which was officially approved on November 2, is now available in the domestic market from Sunday, official media reported. It is however priced 40,000 yuan ($5,700) for a patient per annum. Playing down the high price, Lyu Songtao, chairman of Shanghai Green Valley Pharmaceuticals, one of the drug’s developers, said: “We will try to include it in the basic medical insurance programme so it will be reimbursable, so the drug will be affordable to most patients”. According to the CNMPA, GV-971 can treat mild to moderate forms of Alzheimer’s disease and improve cognition. The drug provides new choices to patients with Alzheimer’s and continued research will be conducted on its long-term effects and safety, it said.

NCLT rejects Sun Pharma’s plan to demerge overseas subsidiary

ET Healthworld- Sachin Dave & Divya Rajagopal

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries’ plans to consolidate its subsidiaries have hit a roadblock after the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) rejected a proposal in which India’s biggest drug-maker sought to demerge an overseas unit. The company had approached the Ahmedabad bench of NCLT for an approval to transfer investment undertakings from Sun Pharma to its Netherlands-based wholly-owned subsidiary. Sun Pharma now has the option to challenge the NCLT ruling in higher courts. The decision was approved by the Sun Pharma board in May 2018. The NCLT’s stand could also put a question mark on several other such restructuring proposals of India Inc. Many Indian companies were seeking consolidation to help raise funds in overseas subsidiaries. “The purpose (of the demerger) is to consolidate the holding structure for Sun Pharma’s overseas, direct or indirect wholly-owned subsidiaries. The proposed demerger/consolidation plan is on hold and we are considering options,” a Sun Pharma spokesperson said. Analysts believe there would be ramifications of this ruling across industries. “The NCLT’s ruling to disallow a demerger will mean that the company will have to put its consolidation exercise on hold for now. It’s still not clear as to the exact reasons for this, but this will have huge implications on several Indian companies that have undertaken similar restructuring exercises,” said Girish Vanvari, founder of tax advisory firm Transaction Square.

1 lakh kids remain critical after birth, says health minister

ET Healthworld- TNN

Health minister Raghu Sharma on Tuesday every year 18 lakh infants take birth in the state and out of those 1 lakh remain critical due to anaemic mother, premature delivery and underweight. “People should remain aware about health of their infants. They need to take immediate decision for getting clinical support, if the infant is unwell to save his life,” he said, adding that it is painful if an infant dies. Sharma said if anyone was found guilty of negligence in the report of investigating team in the deaths of children in JK Lon Hospital in Kota, strict action would be taken against him. Sharma criticised the previous BJP government for not installing centralised oxygen system in every hospital, including Kota’s JK Lon. He, however, claimed that infant mortality rate (IMR) in the state had taken a significant dip. It was 7.62 per cent during BJP’s tenure in 2014, which has now been reduced to 5.55 per cent in 2019. “They (BJP) themselves did not do anything. The IMR during their term was much higher, whereas we have reduced IMR and Maternal Mortality Ratio. We are bringing in more facilities in hospitals across the state. The government has focused majorly on the health sector,” he said.

Ahmedabad: With hospital closed, consumer court rejects claim

ET Healthworld- TNN

Only one person working 24x7 at a closed hospital in Surat, resulted in the rejection of insurance claims made for repeated hospitalizations. Gujarat State Consumer Dispute Redressal Commission quashed orders passed by the Surat consumer forum ordering Apollo Munich Health Insurance Co Ltd to pay consumers for hospitalizations in 2010-11 at one particular hospital. The consumer commission quashed an order for payment of Rs 30,000 and Rs 24,000 to Shailesh Italiya for his two stints at Panchratna Hospital in the Udhna area. The commission upheld the insurance company’s claim that the hospital had been locked for nearly six months when Italiya claimed repeated hospitalizations for malaria. The commission said that just one person is shown monitoring the patient for more than a week every time. The monitoring sheet reflected that it was filled in by the treating person. He was the only one who attended to the patient for 24 hours every day. This continuous monitoring by one person is not possible for 11 days. This showed that this was a fraudulent claim.