Golden hour after an accident refers to the first hour after an accident during which medical intervention can reduce mortality.

To strengthen its road safety initiatives, the carmaker had partnered with the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), and International Road Federation (IRF) to provide first aid and trauma care training to commercial drivers at its Institute of Driving and Traffic Research (IDTR).

"The company aims to train drivers to become effective first responders during the ‘golden hour’ after accidents. Our customised programme provides practical hands-on life-saving interventions to enable drivers to handle trauma and injuries," Rahul Bharti, Executive Officer, Corporate Affairs, Maruti Suzuki India Limited, said in a statement.

The participants received comprehensive training in emergency care in collaboration with Jai Prakash Narayan-AIIMS Trauma Center.

The training provided them with the knowledge and practical skills needed to help road accident victims during the golden hour.

"As trauma is time-sensitive, the training of bystanders who are the real first responders to any road accident can go a long way to reduce the mortality and morbidity following road traffic crashes. Usually, this group of bystanders includes drivers of commercial vehicles," said Dr Amit Gupta, Professor at JPN Apex Trauma Centre, AIIMS, New Delhi.

The Korea Customs Service (KCS) announced the result after analysing 252 products for children selling on the two Chinese e-commerce platforms, such as toys and accessories for children.

Of them, 27 products were found to contain phthalate plasticizer at levels up to 82 times greater than the South Korean safety standards, reports Yonhap news agency.

Phthalates are banned from use in kid products as the chemicals are endocrine disruptors and exposure to them can cause cancer and other developmental issues.

Six of the 38 products had cadmium, which is classified as a Class 1 carcinogen, of levels up to 3,026 times larger than the standards, and five of the total were found to contain lead, according to the KCS.

The average price of those products came to 3,468 won ($2.52) and customers are allowed to buy them directly from sellers without meeting due import requirements.

"The government will strengthen the management and supervision of customs clearance to prevent those products from entering here and will continue to inspect substances of major products to ensure consumer safety," an agency official said.

Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) may pass from one infected person to another via blood, semen, vaginal, and other bodily fluids through sexual contact.

While these are usually asymptomatic, they can cause serious complications like infertility, both in men and women, if left untreated.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), almost 1 million people worldwide contract STDs.

Each year, about 30 million people in India alone contract STDs.

On the other hand, a recent Lancet study showed that India's Total Fertility Rate (TFR) -- the average number of children born per woman -- is dipping irreversibly to 1.29, far lower than the replacement rate of 2.1.

Explaining the link between the two, gynaecologist Dr. Manisha Singh from Fortis Hospital, Bengaluru, told IANS, "STIs like chlamydia, gonorrhoea, syphilis, and Mycoplasma genitalium can sneakily mess with fertility. They cause inflammation and scarring in reproductive organs, like the fallopian tubes in women or sperm ducts in men."

"Chlamydia and gonorrhoea are the two most common infections in women that can cause infertility. These infections cause pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) which can lead to chronic inflammation and damage to reproductive organs, like the fallopian tubes and uterus, making it difficult to conceive," added Dr. Dhivya Chandrasekar, Consultant - Obstetrician & Gynecologist, Motherhood Hospitals, Bengaluru.

"In men, it results in inflammation of the urethra, testicles, and other reproductive organs, which can lead to severe conditions like epididymitis or prostatitis, harming sperm production and quality," she told IANS.

The doctors said detecting and treating these infections early and having safe sex, are crucial to protect fertility.

When the tubes get blocked, one may require In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF), where fertilisation happens outside the body in a lab, as it can't occur naturally within the fallopian tubes.

"If you suspect the presence of an STI, it is best to get it diagnosed at the earliest. One must prioritise preventive measures like when used correctly and consistently, condoms offer one of the most effective methods of protection against STIs, including HIV," Dr. Dhivya said.

New Delhi, April 30 (IANSlife) Fatty liver is a condition where excess fat gets deposited in the liver, which increases its size. According to Shlloka Joshii, a Classical Hatha Yoga teacher, and Diet and Lifestyle expert, there are two types of fatty liver. Non-alcoholic fatty liver occurs in people who don’t drink alcohol or drink too little. It usually occurs in people who are obese, diabetic, or due to some medication. Alcoholic fatty liver is caused due to over alcohol consumption, where the liver is unable to process nutrients and metabolize fat. This further leads to scarring of the liver causing fibrosis/cirrhosis, a condition where the liver becomes inactive.

Symptoms

"Initially, one may feel tired or experience discomfort or pain in the right side of the upper abdomen, often after meals. In advanced stages, one might experience severe tenderness in the upper abdomen, loss of appetite, nausea, weakness, weight loss, abdominal distention (ascites), pale-coloured stools, muscle wasting, and swelling in the legs," outlines Joshii.

Causes

Too much alcohol consumption (a male who drinks 15 or more drinks per week and females who drink more than 8 are surely to get fatty liver - liver failure over 10-15 yrs).

Obesity

Insulin resistance

Type 2 diabetes

Metabolic syndrome

High cholesterol levels (raised triglycerides)

Medicine side effects

Pregnancy

Genetic disorders

Infections like hepatitis C

Joshii shares five foods to cut out fatty liver

Lemon: Squeeze half a lemon into a glass of warm water and drink it on an empty stomach every day, it helps in flushing out the toxins and improves the liver's health.

Papaya: Consume a bowl of papaya on an empty stomach, the enzymes present in papaya reduce the inflammation of the liver. It is a source of fiber, minerals, and antioxidants including vitamins A, C, and E.

Apples: Apples are a rich source of pectin, which helps cleanse the body and release toxins from the digestive system. Having an apple a day can prevent fatty liver. However, if you have Grade 2 or Grade 3 fatty liver, you can have up to three apples a day, one before each meal (breakfast, lunch, and dinner). Or apple cider vinegar: drink 20-40ml of Apple cider vinegar on an empty stomach.

Beetroots: Beetroots are known to stimulate bile juice and boost enzymatic activity as they are rich in vitamin C, carrying out similar functions. Carrots, rich in Vitamin A, help prevent liver disease and support the overall functions of the liver. Having 1 medium-sized beetroot or 1 medium-sized carrot per serving before food, as a salad, would be a good idea.

Green vegetables: High in chlorophyll and necessary antioxidants, green vegetables flush out toxins from the bloodstream and aid the liver. You can include healthy greens like spinach, green peas, okra, kale, broccoli, cauliflower, lettuce, etc., in your diet. We recommend consuming 100-150 grams of steamed or boiled vegetables before a meal, or they can be substituted for the meal itself.

IANSlife can be contacted at ianslife@ians.in

Fentanyl is cheap, readily available, and 50 times more potent than heroin, warned doctors in the journal BMJ Case Reports after treating a 47-year-old man found unresponsive in his hotel room after snorting the drug.

"We know very well the classic opiate side effects: respiratory depression, loss of consciousness, disorientation," said lead author Chris Eden, now a second-year resident in internal medicine at the Oregon Health & Science University

"But we don't classically think of it causing possibly irreversible brain damage and affecting the brain, as it did in this case," he added.

The middle-aged man was diagnosed with toxic leukoencephalopathy by fentanyl inhalation, which means the substance caused inflammation and damage to the brain's white matter. This led to unconsciousness and also to potentially irreversible loss of brain function, or possibly death.

The condition is manifest in various signs and symptoms, the most obvious of which are neurological and behavioural changes, ranging from mild confusion to stupor, coma, and death.

Although the recovery is slow, some people will recover fully, while others will progressively get worse.

In this case, a brain scan revealed white matter inflammation, swelling, and injury in his cerebellum -- part of the brain responsible for gait and balance.

The man remained bed-bound for 18 days later and was fed via a tube. Doctors prescribed several different drugs to treat urinary incontinence, kidney injury, cognitive impairment, suspected opioid withdrawal, pain and agitation, and pneumonia.

After 26 days, he underwent rehabilitation, and after another month, he returned home. However, outpatient physiotherapy and occupational therapy continued.

The study reported that it took him almost a year to fully recover and return to work full-time.

Emergency rooms and inpatient care will remain in place at the two hospitals -- Seoul National University Hospital and Severance Hospital -- while the health ministry expected no major disruptions despite the one-day labour action by the medical professors, Yonhap news agency reported.

In Seoul's neighbouring areas, a significant number of senior doctors at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Yongin Severance Hospital and Korea University Ansan Hospital were set to join the move.

Professors at Seoul St. Mary's Hospital are preparing to suspend noncritical surgical services every Friday as well, with those at Asan Medical Center also planning a day off on the same day.

Second Vice Health Minister Park Min-soo said Monday that the government will deploy more military doctors to cope with the weekly breaks by medical professors.

"There will be no major disruptions," Park told reporters.

About 12,000 trainee doctors have left their worksites since February 20 in protest of the plan to boost the number of medical students by 2,000, causing delays in medical treatments, with some emergency rooms partially limiting their treatment of critically ill patients.

The government's policy, meanwhile, was perceived as gaining traction after President Yoon Suk Yeol and Lee Jae-myung, the head of the main opposition Democratic Party, agreed on the need for medical reform the previous day.

Lee promised the party's active cooperation on the government's medical reform plans, including its decision to increase admissions to medical schools, the report said.

Prospects for an agreement between the government and the medical community shortly, however, are also seen as slim as Lim Hyun-taek, the hawkish president-elect of the Korean Medical Association, begins his term Wednesday.

Lim has claimed that the medical community will not engage in any dialogue until the government completely scraps the medical reform plan.

In the affidavit, the Uttarakhand government submitted that its State Licencing Authority has issued a public notice intimating that publication of advertisements contrary to the law would entail strict disciplinary and legal action, including fine, imprisonment, or both.

The affidavit filed by the State Licensing Authority, Ayurvedic and Unani Services, stated that it has granted permission on April 12 to the Drug Inspector, Haridwar for filing a complaint against Divya Pharmacy and Patanjali Ayurved Ltd. for repeated violations of the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954.

"The SLA issued an order, dated April 15, 2024, to Divya Pharmacy and Respondent No. 5-Patanjali Ayurved Ltd., stating therein that the manufacturing licenses for 14 of their products, namely 'Swasari Gold', 'Swasari Vati, Bronchom', 'Swasari Pravahi', 'Swasari Avaleh', 'MuktaVati Extra Power', 'Lipidom', 'Bp Grit', 'Madhugrit', 'MadhunashiniVati Extra Power', 'Livamrit Advance', 'Livogrit', 'Eyegrit Gold' and ‘Patanjali Drishti Eye Drop’, are suspended with immediate effect under Rule 159(1) of The Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945," it said.

"The District Ayurvedic and Unani Officer, Haridwar filed a criminal complaint before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Haridwar against Swami Ramdev, Acharya Balkrishna, Divya Pharmacy and Patanjali Ayurved Limited under Sections 3, 4 and 7 of the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954," the affidavit added.

The SLA said that it will continue to take all due and further steps against Divya Pharmacy and Patanjali Ayurved Ltd, as per the procedure prescribed in law and the directions issued by the Supreme Court.

In an order passed on April 10, the apex court had ordered the then Joint Director of the State Licencing Authority and all the officers holding the post of District Ayurvedic and Unani Officer, Haridwar from 2018 till date to file their respective affidavits explaining the inaction on their part.

The Indian Medical Association has sought action against Patanjali for violation of the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, which prohibits the advertisement of certain products for the treatment of specified diseases and disorders, including diabetes, heart diseases, high or low blood pressure and obesity.

The ayurvedic company had earlier made an undertaking before the Supreme Court saying that it would not make any casual statements claiming the medicinal efficacy of its products or advertise or brand them in violation of law and would not release any statement against any system of medicine to the media in any form.

A distinguished scientist and successful entrepreneur, Dr. Ella is acknowledged as the father of Genome Valley and is known for his pioneering work in biotechnology with his visionary leadership in the biotech industry.

He takes over the Presidency from Adar C. Poonawala who held the post from 2019 to March 2024.

For the current 2-year term, Mahima Datla, Managing Director of Biological E, assumes the role of Vice President, T. Srinivas, CFO of Bharat Biotech, will be Treasurer and Dr Harshavardhan will continue as Director General of IVMA.

"Vaccines are the vital pillar of global health, and the IVMA mission is to ensure that every individual, regardless of where they live, has access to life-saving immunisations," Dr Ella said.

"Innovation, sustainability, and equity are the foundations of our collective vision, and I am pleased to serve IVMA along with its distinguished members and contribute to its vision to protect and enhance public health in India and the developing world," he added.

He emphasised the need to support African nations' public health vision by IVMA members and also urged them to formulate policies and regulations in line with the WHO and the USFDA, which will help the industry to be not only globally competitive but also fortify India’s vision to boost the level playing field world-over in preventive care.

Under Dr Ella's leadership, the IVMA aims to fortify collaboration between vaccine manufacturers, researchers, and policymakers to accelerate the development of new vaccines and improve production processes.

"Dr Ella’s expertise and entrepreneurial spirit are exactly what the vaccine industry needs to navigate the complex challenges of the 21st century," Dr Harshavardhan said.

"His commitment to innovation and global health equity is well known, and it will undoubtedly help lead the industry in bringing transformative advancements in vaccine innovation, research, and manufacturing capabilities of India," he added.

The IVMA's mission is to bring to the fore the Indian private-sector human vaccine manufacturer’s concerns related to the progress and profitability of the industry and streamlining regulatory pathways and matters related to audits and inspections in consultations with the national Central Drugs Standard and Control Organisation.

The system is capable of hyperspectral imaging (HSI) -- a technique that captures and processes information across a given electromagnetic spectrum -- from visible to over-thousand-nanometre wavelengths.

While various types of HSI devices have been developed, for OTN wavelengths, ordinary visible cameras lose sensitivity and only a few commercially available lenses exist that can correct chromatic aberration.

"At the core of the innovative system lies a supercontinuum (SC) light source and an acoustic-opto tunable filter (AOTF) that can emit specific wavelengths," according to the team from Tokyo University of Science (TUS) and RIKEN in Japan.

"An SC light source can output intense coherent white light, whereas an AOTF can extract light containing a specific wavelength," said Professor Hiroshi Takemura from TUS. "This combination offers easy light transmission to the light guide and the ability to electrically switch between a broad range of wavelengths within a millisecond," he added.

Their findings were published in the journal Optics Express.

The team also identified several future research directions for improving this method, including enhancing image quality and recall in the visible region and refining the design of the rigid endoscope to correct chromatic aberrations over a wide area.

"With these further advancements, in the coming years, the proposed HSI technology is expected to facilitate new applications in industrial inspection and quality control, working as a ‘superhuman vision’ tool that unlocks new ways of perceiving and understanding the world around us," the researchers said.

The bird flu or avian influenza A (H5N1) virus outbreak in poultry farms is not a new occurrence. It has periodically been reported all around the world, including poultry farms in parts of India.

Migrating wild birds bring the virus to poultry farms. However, in recent years, this bird flu virus H5N1 has jumped to mammals.

In 2023, the H5N1 virus killed a record number of birds and also spread to otters, sea lions, foxes, dolphins, and seals, among others. More recently it also affected numerous cattle farms across the US. Health officials in the US found fragments of bird virus in pasteurised milk sold in stores, including in about 20 per cent of samples in initial testing across the country.

"This shows that the H5N1 bird flu virus has now adapted for circulating among mammals. It is now able to easily spread from mammal to mammal, rather than having to jump each time from bird to mammal. This shows the virus has made suitable adaptations already. And bird flu virus has moved one step closer to humans," Dr Rajeev Jayadevan, co-chairman of the Indian Medical Association’s National Covid-19 Task Force, told IANS.

Importantly, "there is no record to date of sustained human-to-human transmission. This can only occur if the virus makes more adaptations by mutating. The concern now is the virus has found a new host among cattle, which is always in contact with man," he added.

Can bird flu infect humans?

Bird flu -- a common phenomenon seen in India -- raised infection concerns among humans in Jharkhand’s Ranchi last week. Two doctors and six staff members of the Regional Poultry Farm in Hotwar were quarantined for two days. However, their throat swab samples sent for tests on April 27, were found to be negative.

According to data from the World Health Organisation, from 2003 to 2023, a total of 873 human cases of infection with influenza A (H5N1) and 458 deaths have been reported globally from 21 countries. However, to date, no sustained human-to-human transmission has been detected.

"Human infection due to avian influenza happens only with close contact with infected animals. Although the risk for human infection is rare, such occurrences come with a high mortality rate," biologist Vinod Scaria, told IANS.

The high mortality rate is because "humans have no prior immune memory for this particular type of influenza virus", said Dr Jayadevan.

The WHO believes that available epidemiological and virological evidence does not indicate that current bird flu viruses have acquired the ability of sustained transmission among humans. However, the recent episode of transmission to cattle, where it has reportedly affected one human, has raised fresh concerns.

Genomic analysis suggests that it has silently been spreading among the cattle for months - since December or January.

"Scientists are worried whether the virus will now make further adaptations where it can not only easily infect man, but also spread from man to man, in which case it could become a major catastrophic event. We hope it will not happen," Dr Jayadevan told IANS.

The WHO advises people in close contact with cattle and poultry to regularly wash hands and employ good food safety and food hygiene practices, pasteurise milk, as well as to get vaccinated against seasonal human flu, to reduce the risk that H5N1 could recombine with a human avian virus.

"Appropriate personal protection while handling infected birds/dead birds or excreta is very important and awareness of this among the public is important," Scaria told IANS.

Chennai, April 29 (IANS) A 45-year-old man died while climbing Velliangiri hills in Coimbatore to offer prayers at the Lord Shiva temple located atop the hill, Coimbatore Forest Department said in a statement on Monday.

The tragic incident had occurred on Sunday, according to the statement. The deceased, identified as Punniyakodi, was a resident of Ponneri Taluk in Tirvallur district.

According to the officials, he was climbing the hill along with a group of devotees and suddenly, he felt uneasy and nauseous.

The police said that Punniyakodi was brought down to the Boulavampatti Primary Health Centre, however, before being administered first aid, he died.

This is the ninth reported death of this season during the trek on the Velliangiri hills.

Earlier, responding to the situation, Coimbatore Forest officials advised people with medical conditions like heart ailments, diabetes, breathlessness, and obesity, as well as aged people, to not climb Velliangiri hills.

In addition to this, the devotees are also advised to have a complete medical check-up and fitness test before undertaking the Velliangiri temple trek.

The trek commences in February and continues till late May. It is believed that the idol of Lord Shiva at the top of the hill was ‘Swayambhu’ or appeared on its own.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), immunisation efforts have saved at least 154 million lives over the past 50 years worldwide.

"On the occasion of World Immunisation Week, we all should take a pledge that everyone should get proper immunisation as needed. Vaccination has saved billions of lives," Dr Ravindra Gupta, Head of Department, Internal Medicine, C.K. Birla Hospital, Gurugram, told IANS.

"Our immune system fights against pathogens and protects us from infectious diseases. Vaccination helps our immune system fight against these infections and protects ageing adults and children from severe infections," added Dr Agam Vora, General Secretary of the Association of Physicians of India.

The progress achieved on immunisation suffered a severe setback with some 20 million children missing out on one or more of their vaccines during the recent global Covid-19 pandemic. Further, growing conflicts, economic downturns, and a rise in vaccine hesitancy are some of the threats to efforts to reach these children.

"As a result, the world is seeing sudden outbreaks of diphtheria and measles diseases that, until now, we'd had nearly in hand," as per the WHO.

Immunisation eradicated smallpox and almost eliminated polio. Despite childhood immunisation being highly successful, adult immunisation for pneumonia, various kinds of flu viruses, Covid, cervical cancer, and now herpes zoster are lagging.

Dr Agam told IANS that vaccination can be key to protecting ageing adults from serious infections and their complications such as shingles, pneumonia, and influenza. It is because the immune system also undergoes ageing and does not function as well.

Similarly, children below the age of five also need vaccination because their immune system is not fully developed. This makes them susceptible to multiple infections that can interfere with their growth and development, the doctor said.

The new book 'The Psychology of Memory' by two US professors from Rhode Island College and Indiana University suggests that anyone can boost their powers of recall, and that "losing keys is normal."

In the book, Dr Megan Sumeracki and Dr Althea Need Kaminske stated that storing and retrieving information is far more complex than people think.

The book also highlighted simple recollection-boosting techniques to improve learning.

"Because we are most aware of our memory when we have trouble remembering something, our intuitions about how memory works might be a little biased," Dr Kaminske said.

"You may be unsurprised to learn that our memory systems are not necessarily designed to remember where we put our phones. Or keys. Or water bottles."

"Though we would hazard a guess that if we were in a survival scenario where dehydration was a concern, we would be much more aware of water sources."

"People are better at remembering information when they process it in a fitness-relevant scenario, such as being stranded in the grasslands of a foreign land," the authors said.

Further, the book shows how memory can be impaired by alcohol, sleep deprivation, and caffeine.

The authors suggested memory-boosting techniques like 'retrieval practice' -- the strategy of 'pulling' facts from memory. For example, deliberately addressing a new colleague's name every time you see them may help you memorise the name.

Seoul, April 29 (IANS) South Korea’s Health Minister Cho Kyoo-hong, on Monday, said that the government plans to deploy more medical staff as senior doctors at five major hospitals in Seoul decided to take a weekly day off starting this week.

Cho also renewed a pledge to accomplish medical reform, although a mass walkout by trainee doctors has crippled public health services at major hospitals for more than two months, Yonhap news agency reported.

The government will "further strengthen the emergency treatment system by sending more medical personnel to prevent damage to patients because of sudden resignations or leaves of absence by medical professors," Cho told at a government response meeting.

Cho said that the government will "unwaveringly push for medical reform," while calling for senior and junior doctors to stop their collective action against the government's plan to hike the number of medical students.

Last week, medical professors working for South Korea's five major hospitals -- Asan Medical Center, Samsung Medical Center, Severance Hospital, Seoul National University Hospital, and Seoul St. Mary's Hospital -- decided to suspend their work either on a day, or every week.

Those serving at Seoul National University Hospital will take a day off on Tuesday, and Severance professors will take a weekly break starting Tuesday through end of May.

Asan centre professors vowed not to work on Tuesday and Friday, and professors for Samsung and St. Mary's hospitals are discussing exactly when to take a day off, the report said.

About 12,000 trainee doctors have left their worksites since February 20 in protest of the plan to boost the number of medical students by 2,000, causing delays in medical treatments, with some emergency rooms partially limiting their treatment of critically ill patients.

The government launched a special presidential commission on medical reform on Thursday for talks on the issue with the medical community, including doctors.

It also decided to allow universities to decide their quotas by a range of 50 to 100 per cent of what the government assigned for next year.

But doctors have rejected the proposals, calling for the government to revisit the issue from scratch.

Separately, Second Vice Health Minister Park Min-soo repeated calls for doctors to find progress through talks to resolve the standoff over the hike in medical school admissions, the report said.

"The government has a willingness to hold one-on-one dialogues with the medical community," Park said.

Park said the government would increase compensation for treatment of cerebrovascular disease and organ transplants, as part of its efforts to support essential medical fields.

The deceased were identified as E. Lakshmi, 90, of Palakkad, and U.M. Viswanathan, 53, of Chokli in Kannur district.

Lakshmi was found in a canal in Elapully with burn injuries on Saturday and was taken to a nearby hospital where she succumbed. Her post-mortem examination conducted on Sunday revealed that she died of sunstroke.

Viswanathan was admitted to a hospital due to uneasiness and nausea after he suffered burn injuries while he was digging a well. He also died on Sunday and the death was also attributed to sunstroke.

A heat wave warning was announced for Palakkad, Kollam, and Thrissur districts till Monday evening.

In Palakkad, the temperature rose by 5.3 degrees Celsius on Sunday.

The Kerala government has announced a week's holiday for Anganwadi centres in the state due to the high temperatures in the state, and the State Disaster Management Authority has advised the people to guard themselves from heatstroke and asked people to stay indoors.

While ambient air pollution is known to affect respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, its effect on neurodegenerative disorders has limited evidence.

The study by researchers from the University of Antwerp in Belgium and the University of Groningen in the Netherlands screened different regions of biobank brains of 4 individuals from Belgium with neuropathologically confirmed Alzheimer's disease for the presence of black carbon particles.

The findings showed a significantly higher number of black carbon particles present in the thalamus (brain's information relay station), the prefrontal cortex (responsible for human cognitive abilities) including the olfactory bulb (a region that helps in the sense of smell), and the hippocampus (that plays a significant role in learning and memory).

In the paper published in JAMA Network Open, the researchers provided "evidence that ambient air pollution particles can translocate to the human brain and accumulate in multiple brain regions involved in cognitive functioning".

They said that the phenomenon may be behind "the onset and development of neurodegenerative disorders but also stressed the need for further studies to confirm their observations. A previous study on predisposed laboratory mice showed that particulate matter in polluted air can drive changes in the brain areas and speed up the onset of Alzheimer’s.

Testicular cancer is not only rare worldwide, but also in India. The country has one of the lowest incidences of testicular cancer with less than 1 man per 100, 000 population affected by this condition. However, it is the most common cancer in young men aged 15 to 35 years, and can significantly affect their fertility levels.

"Testicular cancer has a direct impact on the organs that produce sperm, which may interfere with the ability to reproduce," Dr Pallavi Prasad, Fertility Consultant, Nova IVF Fertility, Basaveshwara Nagar, Bengaluru, told IANS.

"Surgery is frequently used as the primary therapy for testicular cancer, which involves removing the cancerous testicle. While this surgery tries to eliminate malignant cells, it may influence sperm production. Even if the remaining testicle is healthy, sperm production might be temporarily or permanently impaired," she added.

In addition, chemotherapy and radiation therapy, used to target cancer cells throughout the body, can also cause collateral harm to sperm cells, reducing sperm production and quality. The doctor suggested fertility preservation methods, like sperm banking to save sperm samples before cancer treatment.

"Men can maintain the prospect of biological parenting by storing sperm before treatment, even if cancer therapy influences fertility. However, it is important to note that fertility preservation methods may not be available to all men, and the decision to explore such treatments might be difficult. Treatment urgency, financial factors, and personal preferences may all impact people's fertility preservation decisions," Dr Prasad said.

Although precise reasons behind testicular cancer are not yet understood, risk factors include early exposure to oestrogens via hormone therapy, and congenital conditions like small testes, or undescended testes (cryptorchidism), among others.

Dr Shalabh Agrawal, Consultant, Urology, C.K. Birla Hospital, Gurugram, told IANS that the most common symptom of testicular cancer is a painless enlargement in one of the testicles.

"This is in contrast to a sudden, painful enlargement, which is more likely to be due to an infection rather than cancer. If a patient is being treated for a long-standing testicular infection but the enlargement persists, they should be screened for the possibility of testicular cancer," he added.

Yet, "testicular cancer is considered a highly treatable form of cancer, with a 10-year survival rate exceeding 90 per cent," Dr Agrwal said, stressing the need for early detection via self-examination.

"The self-examination should be performed daily, after showering, by gently palpating both testicles to check for any abnormalities in size, position, or the presence of lumps or swelling. If any such changes are detected, it is essential to promptly report them to a healthcare provider for further evaluation and appropriate management," he added.

CRISPR-Cas, which functions like molecular "scissors", allows for precise alterations to the genomes of living organisms. This revolutionary technique, which brought its inventors, Jennifer Doudna and Emmanuelle Charpentier, the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2020, can cut the DNA at designated spots -- deleting unwanted genes or introducing new genetic material into an organism's cells, paving the way for advanced therapies.

Even as antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is continuing to increase globally, researchers from the University of Copenhagen noted that CRISPR/Cas systems can also be employed for developing antimicrobial agents. It can effectively and selectively kill target bacterial populations, they noted in the study, presented at the ongoing ESCMID Global Congress in Barcelona.

Dr Rodrigo Ibarra-Chavez, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, said that CRISPR-Cas systems (a bacterial immunity system) work by inducing "bacterial cell death or interfering with antibiotic resistance expression".

However, bacteria have ways to fight back as they also possess built-in anti-CRISPR systems that can repair any damage caused by CRISPR-Cas systems. Their research proposes creating guided systems against AMR genes that could treat infections and prevent the dissemination of resistance genes via mobile genetic elements (MGEs).

MGEs are parts of the bacterial genome that can move to other host cells or also transfer to another species.

Dr Ibarra-Chavez noted that repurposing MGEs and choosing the delivery mechanism involved in the antimicrobial strategy is important for reaching the target bacterium. The method removes bacteria's resistance power and makes "them vulnerable again to first-line antibiotics", the study said.

Every year, April 22 to 29 is observed as World Primary Immunodeficiency Week. It aims to raise awareness about Primary immunodeficiencies (PIs), also known as inborn errors of immunity (IEI) -- a group of 450 rare and chronic conditions where a part of the body's immune system is missing or does not function correctly.

Dr Gaurav Kharya, Director, Department of Bone Marrow Transplant and Cellular Therapy, Indraprastha Apollo Hospital, New Delhi, told IANS that the prevalence of primary immunodeficiency disorders (PIDs) is rising in India.

"These are potentially fatal genetic conditions that affect a child's immune system, making them more susceptible to infections, autoimmunity, and malignancies," he explained.

While there is no nationwide data on the prevalence of PIDs in India, statistical projections claim that there could be more than one million patients with PIDs in the country.

Dr Sagar Bhattad, Consultant - Paediatric Immunology & Rheumatology, Aster CMI Hospital, Bangalore, told IANS that over the past seven years, the hospital has identified more than 450 children suffering from rare and complex immune deficiency diseases.

"Whereas, a decade ago, the number was limited to 1-2 cases per month, which has now increased to 10-12 every month -- a significant five-fold increase. In the past year alone, over 125 diagnoses were made, and experts predict this number to rise substantially in the coming years.

"It is estimated that before 2004, less than 50 cases of immune deficiency were identified nationally. This number has risen dramatically, with an estimated 300-500 cases diagnosed in 2014 and a further increase to 2,500-3,000 cases projected in 2024. This represents a staggering 300-400 per cent increase over the past decade," Dr Sagar said.

The doctors blame lack of awareness about the conditions as well as treatment facilities to be a major reason for the rise in PIDs.

"These genetic conditions are more common in communities that practise consanguineous marriages. Many cases of immunodeficiency go undiagnosed due to a lack of facilities and awareness, especially in rural areas," Dr Gaurav said.

"The lack of awareness and diagnostic facilities are often the reasons why these patients do not reach tertiary care centres where they can be treated for these disorders," he explained.

The doctors stressed the need for recognising the signs and symptoms that can help in early diagnosis, as well as better outcomes. Genetic testing during pregnancy can be key to identifying potential problems and preventing recurrence in future pregnancies.

According to Dr Gaurav, bone marrow transplant (BMT), which replaces the defective immune cells of the patient with healthy cells from a compatible donor, has emerged as a potentially curative treatment for several types of primary immunodeficiencies.

"If a child falls ill repeatedly and requires frequent antibiotics, it could be a sign of a serious genetic immune problem. These conditions can affect multiple children in the same family," Dr Sagar said.

"By identifying these conditions at early stages, children can receive the targeted treatment they need to avoid frequent infections and the overuse of antibiotics," he said, calling for a wider availability of affordable genetic testing to enable earlier diagnoses and improve treatment outcomes.

"By working together, we can ensure that no child misses out on a healthy life due to an undiagnosed immune deficiency," the doctor said.

Using open-source software (the Snscrape library in Python), researchers from Stanford University in the US downloaded 567,915 posts with the hashtag "vaccine" from January 1, 2018 to December 31, 2022.

The analysis via machine learning algorithm showed that 458,045 were negative and 109,870 were positive. Posts that were negative in sentiment were predominant both before and after vaccines became available.

However, after Covid vaccines were introduced in December 2020, there was a marked increase in the number of posts about vaccines, with 10,201 more vaccine-related tweets per month, on average, than would be expected if vaccination hadn’t started.

"There was also a marked increase in negativity. There were 310,508 posts (approx. 12,420 a month on average) with negative sentiment after December 11, 2020. This is 27 per cent more than the 244,635 (9,785 a month) that would be expected if Covid vaccination hadn’t started," revealed the study, presented at the ongoing ESCMID Global Congress in Barcelona.

"Social media has the power to exponentially amplify health messages, both beneficial and harmful, and is an arena in which political figures, actors, singers, personalities and other ‘influencers’ outnumber healthcare voices," said lead researcher Dr Guillermo Rodriguez-Nava, of Stanford University School of Medicine.

"Unfortunately, in some countries, negative sentiments toward vaccines are not only health-related but also religious and political. This is a complex issue, with no easy solution, but we do need to change our approach because it is clearly not working," Rodriguez-Nava said.

The researcher proposed "avoiding derogatory terms such as 'anti-vaxxers', and perhaps even 'misinformation,' and approaching these individuals in a more respectful and understanding manner".

From 171,153 measles cases in 2022, it nearly doubled to 3,21,582 in 2023, said Patrick O'Connor of the WHO, who presented the research at the ongoing ESCMID Global Congress in Barcelona.

The report blamed the lack of vaccinations during the Covid-19 pandemic behind the significant increases in measles worldwide.

"Over the last decade there has been significant progress towards measles and rubella elimination -- the Regional Verification Commissions for Measles and Rubella Elimination (RVCs) from all of the WHO Regions will review all national measles and rubella 2023 reports in 2024," O'Connor said.

"The measles virus is extremely infectious and any gaps in immunisation coverage are potential risks for the outbreak. So, coverage needs to be high but also uniform and equitable," he added.

2024 is likely to see a further increase in measles cases as some 94,481 cases have been reported up to early April. While 45 per cent of these cases have been in the WHO European Region, Yemen, Azerbaijan, and Kyrgyzstan are the countries with the highest reported measles incidence in the world, the report said.

"Worryingly, the number of countries suffering large or disruptive measles outbreaks (defined as 20 cases/million population continuously over a 12-month period) has tripled from 17 to 51," the report said.

Meanwhile, the report showed that vaccination against measles averted an estimated 57 million deaths globally from 2000 to 2022. Of these, 1.5 million are in the European region where there has been a 98 per cent reduction in annual measles deaths from 3,584 in 2000 to 70 in 2022.

"Over the last 20 years, there has been significant progress toward achieving measles and rubella elimination -- in order to solidify and maintain those gains, we need to ensure high, uniform and equitable routine immunisation coverage; and robust outreach and rapid outbreak response," O'Connor said.

Lim Hyun-taek, the president-elect of the Korean Medical Association (KMA), pressed the government to fully scrap its proposed medical reform plans, including the medical school quota hike, to open a discussion with doctors from scratch, Yonhap news agency reported.

Lim, known for his hawkish stance in the ongoing stalemate with the government, is set to begin his official term starting on Wednesday.

"This is not a conflict between the medical community and the government. Rather, it is a unilateral abuse of power by the authorities," Lim said in a general meeting of the KMA in Seoul. "Otherwise, the medical community will not budge, and not respond to any call for negotiations."

A presidential committee on medical reform was formally launched on Thursday to seek a breakthrough over the prolonged walkout by doctors, but the KMA has been boycotting the initiative as well.

About 12,000 trainee doctors have left their worksites since February 20 in protest of the plan to boost the number of medical students by 2,000, causing delays in medical treatments, with some emergency rooms partially limiting their treatment of critically ill patients.

Last week, the police conducted an additional raid on Lim, who is accused of having instigated collective resignations by junior doctors, the report said.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said it additionally seized Lim's mobile phone and sent investigators to his office in western Seoul and his residence in Asan, 83 kilometres south of Seoul.

The police seized Lim's phone in their previous raid in March, but it was confirmed to have been used by him in the past.

This is the best thing to do in case of burns, said experts at the ongoing medical education event WOUNDCON 2024 hosted by the Society for Wound Care and Research at King George's Medical University (KGMU).

According to the faculty member in KGMU's plastic surgery department, Prof Brijesh Mishra, rubbing ice and applying toothpaste or oil on a burn might seem like common remedies, but they can actually do more harm than good.

"Ice can freeze the skin and halt blood flow while toothpaste has hard stuff like calcium and peppermint that can worsen burns and oil traps heat, making burns harder to cool," explained Mishra, warning that these methods raise the infection risk.

Head of KGMU's plastic surgery department, Prof Vijay Verma, advised, "The best approach is to rinse the affected under running water, cover with fresh bed linens, and seek medical help promptly in case of severe burns. Increasing hydration and protein intake is crucial for healing damaged skin, muscles, and tissues. For electrical burns, apply a sterile bandage or clean cloth; avoid blankets or towels to prevent fibres from sticking to the burned skin."

Dr K.S. Murthy, another plastic surgeon, highlighted the efficacy of fish skin products in healing burn wounds. "Fish skin products rich in omega fats and fatty collagen acids are now available in purified forms. They show promising results when applied to wounds," he added.

Lim Hyun-taek, the president-elect of the Korean Medical Association (KMA), is known for his hawkish stance in the ongoing stalemate with the government regarding an increase in the medical school enrollment quota.

"The Ministry of Health and Welfare's treatment of professors as criminals and its intimidation are deeply infuriating," said the KMA's transition team for Lim in a press release, adding that 140,000 doctors and medical students will launch an all-out war if the professors are mistreated.

Lim has come under police scrutiny after the Ministry of Health and Welfare filed a complaint alleging he violated medical law by inciting collective action by trainee doctors opposed to the government's plan to sharply increase medical school admissions, reports Yonhap news agency.

The country's 13,000 trainee doctors have been on strike, resigning 'en masse' since February 20, protesting the government's decision to significantly increase the medical school enrollment quota. In solidarity with medical interns and residents, medical professors at major general hospitals nationwide have joined the movement.

In an attempt to break the stalemate with the doctors, the government last week accepted a request from the chiefs of six national universities for flexibility in expanding the medical school enrollment quota.

This comes after a team of researchers from the US-based Duke University Medical Centre successfully predicted knee osteoarthritis via a blood test at least eight years before tell-tale signs of the disease appeared on X-rays.

In a study published in the journal Science Advances, the researchers validated the accuracy of the blood test that identifies key biomarkers of osteoarthritis.

They showed that it predicted the development of the disease, as well as its progression.

As per the study's senior author Virginia Byers Kraus, a professor at Duke University School of Medicine, the blood test shows that "it's possible to detect this disease much earlier than our current diagnostics permit".

Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis, affecting an estimated 35 million adults in the US.

While there is currently no cure, the potential new therapies may solve it by identifying it early and slowing its progression before it becomes too late, the study mentioned.

Researchers studied a large database in the UK and analysed the serum of 200 white women.

Half of the women had been diagnosed with knee osteoarthritis, while the other half did not have the disease.

The two groups were matched by body mass index and age.

They identified a few biomarkers in the blood test that successfully distinguished the women with knee osteoarthritis from those without it. These biomarkers detected molecular signals of osteoarthritis up to eight years before many of the women were diagnosed with the disease through X-ray tests.

According to Kraus, this is significant because it gives additional evidence that there are abnormalities in the joint that may be recognised by blood biomarkers long before X-rays can indicate osteoarthritis.

This approach which includes personalised 'cocktails' of antibiotics, probiotics and prebiotics was found to improve symptoms in almost all patients who were included in the study published in the journal European Society Of Clinical Microbiology And Infectious Diseases.

As per lead researcher Professor Maurizio Sanguinetti, "The research shows that about 10-30 per cent of individuals who experience acute gastroenteritis develop Post-infection IBS. Symptoms like diarrhoea, constipation, bloating and abdominal pain can last for months or even years after the initial infection."

Post-infection IBS (PI-IBS) is a form of irritable bowel syndrome that occurs after gastroenteritis or food poisoning.

To investigate the potential of this approach, the researchers performed a study on 13 PI-IBS patients (8 males and 5 females; mean age, 31 years) who were treated with targeted gut-microbiota therapy.

Nine patients (69.2 per cent) had diarrhoea-dominant IBS (IBS-D), while four (30.8 per cent) had constipation-dominant IBS (IBS-C).

Bloating and stomach pain were reported in 69.2 per cent (9/13) and 76.9 per cent (10/13) of patients, respectively.

Based on their results, researchers then designed a personalised therapy for each patient with the goal of rebalancing their gut microbiota.

The therapies consisted of short courses of the antibiotics rifaximin (9/13, 69 per cent of patients) or paromomycin (4/13, 31 per cent) to reduce levels of potentially harmful bacteria, followed by prebiotics or postbiotics to improve the numbers of protective bacteria and contest with the harmful bacteria for space and resources.

Twelve weeks after starting treatment, 93 per cent of patients improved their symptoms, and 38.5 per cent attained overall remission, the study noted.

"A precision medicine approach, in which testing and careful analysis of the gut microbiota allows the development of personalised treatments holds great promise in the treatment of PI-IBS," Sanguinetti said.

The country's 13,000 trainee doctors have been on strike through mass resignations since February 20, protesting the government's decision to significantly increase the medical school enrollment quota.

In solidarity with medical interns and residents, medical professors at major general hospitals nationwide have joined the movement, reports Yonhap news agency.

In an attempt to break the stalemate with the doctors, the government last week accepted a request from the chiefs of six national universities for flexibility in expanding the medical school enrollment quota.

"I earnestly implore the professors. Please continue to stand by the patients as you have done so far, and please persuade your students to return now," Han said during a meeting with government officials.

Despite the government's gesture, more professors have joined the move to offer resignations, even considering the potential suspension of all surgeries and treatments for outpatients once a week.

Han said the government and the people would listen more attentively to the voices of doctors and would accept them more seriously if they returned to hospitals.

According to the decision, 32 universities will be permitted to increase their admission quotas freely, with the annual increase ranging between 50 per cent and 100 per cent, starting in 2025, a turnaround from the previous decision to add 2,000 more medical school admissions in total.

Accompanied by Telangana Governor C.P. Radhakrishnan, the Vice President went around the company's premises at Genome Valley.

Dr. Krishna Ella, Executive Chairman of Bharat Biotech and Suchitra Ella, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Bharat Biotech, welcomed the Vice President.

V-P Dhankhar was briefed in detail about the manufacturing facility, the intricate processes involved in vaccine production, and the company's initiatives to develop new molecules and vaccine candidates to fight neglected diseases that affect the developing world, specifically focused on malaria, cholera, tuberculosis, and chikungunya.

The Vice President, who began his tour by planting a medicinal sapling, admired Bharat Biotech's dedication and resilience during unprecedented challenges.

"I am at a place where people are driven with a passion for research, development, and concern for society. Bharat Biotech has not only helped the nation fight the pandemic by developing indigenous vaccines but also contributed immensely in digital penetration," he said and called for greater collaboration between industry, academia and support to back more research in all sectors.

Dr. Krishna Ella thanked the Vice President for recognising Bharat Biotech's dedication and reaffirmed the company's continued commitment to developing novel vaccines, contributing to national self-reliance goals, and shaping a healthier future.

The Vice President was also taken on a virtual tour, offering a glimpse into the inner workings of the production facility.

From the state-of-the-art equipment to precise quality control measures, the virtual tour provided a fascinating insight into the meticulous process involved in researching and developing each vaccine dose rolled out from the facility, such as the Rotavirus Vaccine, Typhoid Conjugate Vaccine and Hepatitis Vaccine.

About 30-40 workers trapped inside Alvin Pharma came out safely or were rescued by firefighters, a police official said.

A worker was injured when he jumped out of a window to save himself. He was admitted to a hospital.

Police praised the heroic act of local boy Sai Charan who lent a rope, thus helping workers trapped in the building to come out. Some others were rescued by firefighters.

Workers said that the fire broke out due to sparks during the welding work. As the AC units exploded, it further spread the fire.

Fire tenders from surrounding areas rushed to the spot and doused the fire. Police registered a case and took up their investigation.

A subsidiary of Apollo Hospitals, Apollo 24|7 said it has also entered into a framework agreement to integrate 100 per cent of Keimed Private Ltd, India's leading wholesale pharma distributor, in a phased manner over the next 24-30 months.

Advent will invest in two tranches to secure a 12.1 per cent stake in the merged entity, by valuing the combined entity at an enterprise value of Rs 22,481 crore.

Apollo 24|7 is valued at an enterprise value of Rs 14,478 crore while Keimed is valued at an enterprise value of Rs 8,003 crore.

Post-merger, Keimed shareholders would hold a maximum of 25.7 per cent stake in the combined entity, while Apollo Hospitals would continue to remain the largest controlling shareholder with at least 59.2 per cent stake.

"Apollo 24|7 has delivered on this promise and has reached over 33 million Indians in a short span of time. With Advent's investment and the merger of Keimed, the combined entity will be one of the country's leading retail health companies," said Dr Prathap C. Reddy, Chairman, Apollo Hospitals Group.

The merger is subject to further corporate approvals to be obtained at the relevant time.

"The size of the merged supply chain will allow 1.4 billion Indians access to genuine medicines within 24 minutes to 24 hours, 7 days a week," said Shobana Kamineni, Executive Vice Chairperson, Apollo Hospitals.

According to Shweta Jalan, Managing Partner and Head of Advent India, this investment demonstrates Advent's commitment to investing in the fast-growing healthcare sector in India.

Since its inception in February 2020, Apollo 24|7 has built a user base of more than 33 million users and is facilitated by a network of over 7,000 doctors.