Britain to open two new megalabs for Covid-19 tests in early 2021

LONDON: Britain will open two new laboratories in early 2021 that will more than double the countrys capacity for carrying out Covid-19 tests, the government said on Monday. The new "megalabs", one in Leamington Spa near the central English city of Birmingham, and the other in Scotland, will boost daily testing capacity by 600,000 when at full capacity. ....read more

Understanding Obesity

When two pandemics meet- obesity linked to increased mortality in COVID 19, join us at 7:00 PM ON MEDtalks with Dr K K Aggarwal as he talks in detail about obesity.Just click on www.facebook.com/drkkaggarwal or https://perfecthealthmela.com/vevent2/hall1a.php

CMAAO Coronavirus Facts and Myth Buster: HCFI-CMAAO Round Table Expert Zoom Meeting on “Is my COVID serious?”

With input from Dr Monica Vasudev 1146: HCFI-CMAAO Round Table Expert Zoom Meeting on “Is my COVID serious?” 7th November, 2020, 11am-12pm,Participants: Dr KK Aggarwal, Dr AK Agarwal, Dr Jayalal JA, Prof Mahesh Verma, Dr Ashok Gupta, Dr Jayakrishnan Alapet, Ms Upasana Arora, Dr KK Kalra, Dr Anil Kumar, Ms Ira Gupta, Dr S Sharma Consensus Statement of HCFI Expert Round Table: Most cases of COVID-19 are mild to moderate. But some become serious. We do not know who will become serious. ....read more

Plasma therapy for COVID-19 patients: Handle with care

Reproduced from: India Legal https://www.indialegallive.com/column-news/plasma-therapy-covid-19-sars-cov-2-who/, published October 30, 2020 There has been much debate about the pros and cons of the therapy and trials have shown that it improves symptoms like difficulty in breathing and fatigue. But the decision is best left to the physician. The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which causes Covid-19, is proving to be a mysterious virus even though knowledge about the disease is evolving every day. Accordingly, the guidelines for the management of patients are developed and regularly updated, based on the latest research. This has created several challenges, one being the discrepancy between trial findings and their clinical application. ....read more

The science behind Bhai Dooj

Bhai Dooj is celebrated two days after Diwali. Like Raksha Bandhan, it’s a day dedicated to the sacred love between a brother and sister. Both Raksha Bandhan and Bhai Dooj fall in Chaturmas - one at the start and the other at the end of these four months of negative state of mind. The Jagannath Yatra (another festival of love between brother and sister where Krishna is worshipped with his sister Subhadra) is also held in Chaturmas. All three festivals also signify purification of mind, getting it lust free and reminding the people about the sacred relationship between men and women. ....read more

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More about pollution and COVID

Healthcare News Monitor

Steroid treatment should be reserved for worst Covid-19 cases: Scientists

hindustantimes.com

Most adults with moderate-to-severe Covid-19 have a suppressed immune response against the novel coronavirus rather than life-threatening hyper-inflammation, according to a study which suggests steroids such as dexamethasone should be reserved for the sickest patients. Scientists, including those from St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in the US, assessed the levels of the immune system protein cytokines, and other health markers in 168 adults with Covid-19, 26 adults with flu and 16 healthy volunteers. They said more than 90% of the Covid-19 patients were hospitalised, and about half in the intensive care unit (ICU), while more than half of flu patients were admitted for treatment, and 35% were in the ICU.

Some vaccines that require cold chain at -70°C not ‘ideal’ for India: Experts

health.economictimes

Pune: Leading health experts in the country have expressed concern over the number of cold chain facilities that will have to be readied to deploy vaccines with recommended storage temperatures as low as -70°C. Former director general of the Indian Council of Medical Research, Dr NK Ganguly, told TOI that most of the Covid vaccines being developed require super-cold storage and may prove difficult for even the most sophisticated cities to store and transport. “Medical freezers that go down to -70°C or -80°C are rare even in American and European hospitals. Most, if not all the current vaccine frontrunners, require stringent cold chains, making them immensely challenging for India to deploy,” he said.

CDC: Wearing A Mask Could Keep You From Catching Virus

news18.com

NEW YORK: U.S. health officials are taking a new tack to encourage Americans to wear masks: They’re emphasizing recent research that a mask protects the person who wears it. Previously, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advised people to wear masks because of evidence that it stops people who are infected with coronavirus whether they know it or not from spreading it to others. But this week the CDC posted a new scientific brief discussing recent studies finding that a wearer gets some protection.

What is soft tissue sarcoma and why should you know about it?

The Indian Express

The human body is a complex network of tissues, veins, blood, cells, etc. Doctors advise that one must always try to understand their body as much as possible and stay updated about diseases, illnesses and infections that could be threatening their health. Among them is something called the soft tissue sarcoma which, Dr Rajeev Agarwal, Director of Breast Services, Cancer Institute at Medanta, says is crucial and needs to be understood.