Health Bulletin 8/January/2023

Here are the top health stories for the day:

NEET PG 2023 postponement: Doctors protest at Jantar Mantar 

Escalating their demand for NEET PG 2023 postponement, the doctors under the Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) staged a protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi today.

The candidates have been pushing for an extension in the NEET PG 2023 exam by two to three weeks to reduce the gap between the result declaration and the counselling process.

The NEET PG 2023 exam is scheduled for March 5. The doctors' body sought the exam to be postponed by May-June.

For more details, check out the link given below:

NEET PG 2023 Postponement: Doctors Protest At Jantar Mantar

Unusual case study of mehndi (henna) smell leading to seizures in 9 yrs old female

Department of Neurology, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi recently reported an unusual case study of a 9 years old female who was suffering epileptic seizures after application of Mehndi (Henna). This case study has been published on 23rd January 2023 in latest edition of Clinical Neurophysiology. 

Department of Neurology, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital received a 9 years old female child who suffered her first convulsion after Mehndi application. She had abrupt loss of consciousness leading to fall and convulsions for 20 seconds. A year later she suffered 2 similar seizures after application of Mehndi. Recently she was brought to the hospital for further checkup.

Check out the official site of Medical Dialogues for more health news:

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Vitamin D could be weapon against type 2 diabetes

A review of clinical trials has found that higher vitamin D intake was associated with a 15 percent decreased likelihood for developing type 2 diabetes in adults with prediabetes. The review is published in Annals of Internal Medicine.

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin available in or added to some foods, as a supplement, or produced by the body when ultraviolet rays from sunlight strike the skin. Vitamin D has many functions in the body, including a role in insulin secretion and glucose metabolism. Observational studies have found an association between having a low level of vitamin D in the blood and high risk for developing diabetes.

Reference:

Anastassios G. Pittas, Tetsuya Kawahara, Rolf Jorde, et al. Vitamin D and Risk for Type 2 Diabetes in People With Prediabetes: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Individual Participant Data From 3 Randomized Clinical Trials. Ann Intern Med, DOI:10.7326/M22-3018

Drug Safety Alert: Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission flags adverse reactions linked to Amphotericin B

The Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission (IPC), through its recently issued drug safety alert for the month of January, has revealed that Amphotericin B (Liposomal), popular antifungal drug, is linked with Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs) named Hearing disorders and Tachycardia.

This came after preliminary analysis of Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs) from the Pharmacovigilance Programme of India (PvPI) database.

For more details, check out the link given below:

Drug Safety Alert: Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission Flags Adverse Reactions Linked To Amphotericin B

Covishield even worse in terms of cardiovascular effects, heart attacks and strokes, claims leading British Indian Cardiologist

Eminent British Indian Cardiologist Dr Aseem Malhotra, who has been leading international calls for the suspension of mRNA COVID 19 vaccines, said on Tuesday that Oxford-AstraZeneca’s jab, administered in India as Covishield, was even “worse” in terms of cardiovascular effects, heart attacks and strokes.

Dr Malhotra, who has demanded a full safety review into the use of AstraZeneca’s Covid vaccine, told PTI Covishield “should never have been rolled out in the country in the first place”.

For more details, check out the link given below:

Covishield Even Worse In Terms Of Cardiovascular Effects, Heart Attacks And Strokes, Claims Leading British Indian Cardiologist