‘1.7 million IVF embryos wasted in 21 years’

London: Millions of human embryos created for in-vitrofertilization (IVF) pregnancies in the UK are being thrown away unused, according to official figures. 
    The shocking figures show that for every woman who conceives a child through IVF, 15 embryos are made, and almost half of them are discarded during or after the process. Over 1.7 million IVF embryos have been thrown away since records began 21 years ago, the Daily Mail reported. 
    The figures were gathered by UK's fertility industry regulator, the Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority (HFEA), which has recorded IVF processes since 1991. Statistics released by UK health minister Lord Howe show that 3,546,818 human embryos have been created since August 1991. These have produced only 235,480 "gestational sacs" — evidence of successful implantation. As a result, 93% of all embryos created — more than 3.3 million — are never used to generate a pregnancy. Among the embryos created, 839,325 were put into storage for future use and 2,071 were stored for donation to others. A further 5,876 were kept for research. PTI

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Blood-on-call in Mum, Pune before March

Mumbai: The state government will roll out the blood-oncall service in Mumbai and Pune before the end of this financial year (March 2013). 

    "The department is ready to execute the proposal to deliver blood directly to hospitals. To ensure smooth functioning, the implementation will be done in phases," public health minister Suresh Shetty said on Monday. "A special helpline number would be set up for the "dial-a-blood-bag" project, so that patients or their kin do not have to run around for blood," Shetty said. 
    A meeting, chaired by Shetty, to review preparation of the project was held at Mantralaya on Monday. It was attended by additional chief secretary (health) T C Benjamin, secretary (health) Meeta Lochan and other seniorhealth department officials. Shetty also took stock of other health programmes, including Rajiv Gandhi Jeevandayee Arogya Yojana with CEO of the scheme Dr K Venkatesham. 
    Once the project is implemented, anyone who needs blood will have to dial the helpline number and place a request. Blood packages will be delivered to the specified hospital or clinic by delivery boys. The requested pouches will be delivered from the district blood bank to the nursing home or hospital located within a radius of 40 km or 1-hour distance. "The delivery would be done on motorcycles, which will have cold storage facility to maintain the blood temperature," the minister said, adding, "The transportation will be outsourced. Training will be given to those hired for transportation." 
    A health department official said Mumbai and Pune figure in the phase-2 list of the dial-a-blood-bag project. The first phase will be flagged off from rural areas in January, starting with chief minister 
Prithviraj Chavan's hometown Satara and former chief minister and senior Congress leader Narayan Rane's hometown Sindhudurg. 
    "The first phase was to take off by 2012-end, however, it got delayed by a fortnight due to technical reasons. Now the first phase will start from January," the official added. 
    Another official said the system will curb malpractices. "There is no system to keep a tab on how much blood was donated and where it was utilized. Some times, blood banks demand exorbitant amount," the official said.

A TOI report on July 1

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Eat a morning meal It could save your life and make you a happier person!

Five years ago, Manoj Vasudevan, sales executive with a reputed IT company, finally gave up on breakfast. "It was one of the most irritating things to do," says the 26 year old, who until then was under a strict mother-run regimen of not leaving the house without a good breakfast. "No matter how late I was, I had to have breakfast," recalls Vasudevan. Ditto Yogik Shah. Nothing major changed in their lives, except their mental peace. Until recently. While Vasudcvan began piling on the flab, Shah, now 35. agrees that he has transformed into a person who gets irritated at a snap.      Of course, your lifestyle including exercise and diet decisions, dictates your health status. But, breakfast definitely has a role in the circumstances.  BREAKFAST SKIPPERS There is nothing surprising in the fact that people skip breakfast. A recent study claims that three out of every eight people often skip breakfast. Plus, there is a good chance that two of the remaining will follow suit occasionally. Some of the best excuses for not having the dais first meal range from. "I had a huge cup of coffee," to "I had a glass of juice," to the classic, "I'm not a breakfast person".  BOOST YOUR BEING In spite of our hectic, urban lifestyles, numerous studies still continue to prove, over and over again, that the traditional wisdom of breakfast being the most important meal of the day, still holds true.      Endorses nutritionist Sveta Bhassin, "Breakfast is definitely still the most important meal of the day. The main reason for breakfast is to break the seven-hour, no-food spell. Plus, of course, In give the body nutrition to function properly."      Breakfast helps to rev up your metabolism. This ensures that your brain is well-fed and you can concentrate better. In addition, an active metabolism also means the levels of cortisol and adrenalines are at their highest. That's why people who have breakfast are happier and less nervous.      A healthy breakfast also brings down your serotonin levels, reducing cravings and creating a healthy appetite. Eating breakfast has far.reaching benefits, such as the prevention of diabetes. A recent Harvard School of Public Medicine's research involving about 30,000 men showed that eating breakfast can icduce tile risk of diabetes, even for those who are on the weightier side. EAT BREAKFAST, STAY HEALTHY All those who stay away from breakfast in their attempt at lowering their calorie intake for the day, are just being plain Silly. "Having breakfast not only ensures that the body uses up the nutrition provided effectively and efficiently, but, also keeps cravings at bay," promises Bhassin.      Medical nutritionist, Vishaklia Shivdasani, recommends people have a breakfast that is a mix of simple and complex carbohydrates. This way, "while you get the instant energy that makes you more focussed and happy, it also keeps you satiated  for a long time". This means there is a slimmer chance you will munch on wrong food items pre-lunch.      Bliassin too believes that people put on weight due to irregular meal times. "A satiating breakfast lakes care of this by supplying the body with necessary nutrIents to keep it fuelled."      So, don't just wake up and smell the coffee. Ensure you feed youi'self a bowlful of good health too each  morning.

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Gut bugs, not just food and laziness, tied to weight gain

Beijing: Body fat or obesity is caused by bacteria and not by laziness or over eating alone, according to research by Chinese scientists. 
    The bacteria can actually make genes generate fat, a report in the state-run China Daily said on Wednesday quoting a research team led by Zhao Liping, a professor of microbiology and associate dean at the School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology at Shanghai Jiao Tong University. They pointed out the precise link between a particular kind of bacteria and obesity, it said. 
    The paper was published on December 13 in the journal of the International Society for Microbial Ecology. 
    It showed that a pathogen, or infectious agent, isolated from the gut of an obese human induced obesity and insulin resistance in germ-free mice. In the study, researchers found an excessive growth of endotoxin-producing bacteria, accounting for 35% of the gut bacteria, in an obese patient, the report said. PTI

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FOR A HEALTHY MIND Aerobics boost brain power

Melbourne: Regular exercise and remaining physically active not only benefits the body, but also the mind, new research has found.      The study review by Hayley Guiney and Liana Machado from the University of Otago, New Zealand, focused on the importance of physical activity in keeping and potentially improving cognitive function throughout life.      Studies in older adults reviewed by the researchers consistently found that fitter individuals scored better in mental tests than their unfit peers, journal 'Springer' reported. Intervention studies found scores in mental tests improved in participants who were assigned to an aerobic exercise regimen compared to those assigned to stretch and tone classes.      Interestingly, these results were not replicated in children or young adults. The one area where physical fitness or regular exercise was found to have an effect on cognitive function in these age groups was for memory tasks.      Both the updating of working memory and the volume of information which could be held was better in fitter individuals or those put on an aerobic exercise regime. PTI

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Lower back pain main cause of crippled years

New Delhi:Lower back pain — a common phenomenon among Indians — has been found to be the leading cause of years lived with disability (YLD) globally.      The Global Disease Burden study published on Thursday showed that lower back pain caused 83.1 million YLDs across the globe in 2010. Pain in the neck along with depressive disorders and iron deficiency anemia make up the top four leading causes of YLD. In 2010, there were 777 million YLDs from all causes — up from 583 million in 1990. The main contributors to global YLDs were mental and behavioural and musculoskeletal disorders and diabetes or endocrine diseases.      The leading specific causes of YLDs were much the same in 2010 as they were in 1990 like lower back pain, major depressive disorder, iron-deficiency anemia, neck pain, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, anxiety disorders, migraine, diabetes and falls.      The study looked at consequences of 289 diseases and injuries, estimating their global prevalence and impact on health. The study first identified 220 unique consequences of disease and injury as causing disability. Hearing loss was found to be one of the main causes affecting 1.3 billion people, and vision loss affected another 661 million.      The study said that non-fatal health outcomes from diseases and injuries are a crucial consideration in the promotion and monitoring of individual and population health.      In 2010, the two disease categories responsible for almost half of all YLDs — and consequently the largest overall health impact — were musculoskeletal disorders like arthritis and back pain and mental and behavioural disorders such as depression, schizophrenia and drug and alcohol use.      According to Professor Alan Lopez from the School of Population Health of the University of Queensland, who authored the study, "In an era in which the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have focused global health attention on prevention of mortality from selected diseases, it is important to realize thathealth is about more than avoiding death. Health priorities have, for much of the past 100 years or more, been largely driven by the imperative of improving the survival of populations, particularly child survival."      Professor Theo Vos added, "This was justified, in view of the technologies available to treat and prevent childhood illness. However, societies spend substantial and increasing resources on keeping people healthy. As healthcare costs are rising fast, it is essential to provide governments with adequate information on how best to prioritize their health services to most adequately address the prevailing health problems."

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Dissolvable stents to be sold in India

Mumbai:Cardiac patients across India will soon have a new option while seeking treatment for their hearts. Within the next 10 days, they can ask for a bio-absorbable stent, which will completely disappear some 18-odd months after it's fixed in their blocked blood vessel. At present, metallic stents that permanently stay in the blood vessel are the most-sought-after treatment for cardiac diseases.      The bio-absorbable stent's upcoming commercial launch follows an approval given by the Drug Controller General of India to multinational firm Abbott Vascular after a review of the results of a trial, involving 100 patients. "The patients were doing well during a six-month follow-up. The results are as good as metallic stents," said the trial's Delhi-based principal investigator Dr Ashok Seth.      Each of these stents will cost around Rs 3 lakh. Soluble stents mark the 'dawning of a new era'  However, The Treatment For Blocked Blood Vessels Comes With A Price Tag. Each Stent Will Cost Rs 2.8L to Rs 3L      The new bio-absorbable stent, which can dissolve completely after some 18-odd months in the blood vessel, is set to revolutionize the treatment of cardiac problems in India. However, the bio-absorbale stent comes with a premium price tag.      "It will cost Rs 2.85 to 3 lakh for each stent, and the entire hospitalization may cost a patient over Rs 4 lakh for a single stent," said a hospital administrator. In contrast, imported drug-coated permanent metallic stents cost Rs 1.3 lakh each.      Senior cardiologist Dr A B Mehta, of Jaslok Hospital, said, "The absorbable stent may only be used for a few  wealthy people in the city." However, Seth added, "We are still negotiating the cost with the company, because the absorbable stent will be beyond the reach of the common man in India."      But experts said there is no denying that the absorbable stent is an evolution.     "It's the dawning of a new era. From using balloons in the 1970s, we have now evolved to using absorbable stents," said Dr Ganesh Kumar, of Hiranandani Hospital, Powai. He said the bioabsorbable device, in fact, should be called a scaffolding and not a stent. "A stent is a permanent metallic device, while this one will dissolve completely within two years," he added.      Experts list three major advantages of the absorbable scaffolding. "There is no question of stent thrombosis (clotting) because the scaffolding dissolves," said Mehta.      Seth said the biggest advantage of the bio-absorbable stent is that patients will not need to take two anti-platelet (blood-thinning) medicines for years on end.      City-based cardiologist V T Shah said patients will need to take two blood-thinners till the scaffolding dissolves. "Thereafter, they will need to take only one for up to two years," he added. Long-term studies will show whether the blood thinners need to be taken at all in the long run.      At present, patients with regular metallic stents can never be asked to stop taking their blood thinners for fear of some clotting occurring in the stent.      "So the patients w i t h stents w h o need to undergo another operation in the future, such as knee-replacement surgery or dental implants, are at risk of excessive bleeding. They cannot risk stopping taking the blood thinners," said Shah.      The bio-absorbable stent, or scaffolding, may be the best invention for younger cardiac patients who require treatment in their 30s or 40s.      "The scaffolding will dissolve and doctors can use any mode of treatment in the future, even a cardiac bypass surgery," said Seth.

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CBSE topper 83rd victim of TB strain this yr

Mumbai: The death of 2011 CBSE Class XII topper Shreeram Radhakrishnan due to multiple drug-resistant (MDR) TB has once again alerted the city about a surreptitious killer. 
    While graft and terror occupied headlines, MDR-TB cases grew silently but frenetically over the last two years. From just over 50 in 2010, the number of confirmed cases of the strain in Mumbai increased by over 40 times to cross 2,000 this year. As for the number of suspected infections, from 74 in 2010, they crossed 10,000 in 2012. The 19-year-old Radhakrishnan was MDR-TB's 83rd victim this year. Deadly strain of TB has grown 40 times in 2 yrs 
    Multiple drug-resistant (MDR) TB, which has claimed 83 lives in Mumbai this year, including that of 2011 CBSE class XII topper Shreeram Radhakrishnan, is not the only fatal strain of the disease that is stalking Mumbai. There is one even more so, but with a lesser incidence: extremely drug-resistant (XDR) TB, which has killed four in the city and infected 21 in 2012. 
    The BMC says 1,497 of those who tested positive for MDR-TB have been put on treatment. Additional municipal commissioner (health) Manisha Mhaiskar said there were various reasons why the remaining people were not on treatment. "In all, 106 are from outside Mumbai, 88 are seeking treatment in private hospitals, 68 are not traceable and 135 should be put on treatment in the next two weeks." 
    According to Mhaiskar, the reason why MDR-TB has grown by 40 times in the last two years is that there has been better detection owing to better diagnostic techniques in the city. "MDR-TB has always been prevalent. But after the introduction of criteria 'C' by the central government, new diagnostic facilities like gene expertise and data collection from all hospitals and laboratories have ensured that there is better diagnosis of the strain," she said. 
    Criteria 'C' means that any patient suffering from MDR-TB—even those previously on private treatment-—can be included under the government-run Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme (RNTCP), which ensures free treatment to patients. 
    But doctors say the city was largely ignorant about MDR-TB till this year. "It was only earlier this year, when the extra-extensively drug resistant (XXDR) TB strain was brought to the notice of the authorities, did the government become alert towards MDR-TB. Prior to this, most doctors tried various drugs and would then come to a conclusion on if the strain was multiple drug-resistant. By the time the correct treatment was found, the patient would die. What's more, MDR-TB+ cases were hardly reported and deaths would be marked as TB deaths," said a senior chest doctor from a private hospital.

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