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ETHealthworld interacted with domain experts to understand the expectations of the healthcare industry from the Union Budget 2023-24, especially in terms of communicable diseases, and affiliated healthcare departments that need increased focus on managing and containing the spread of communicable diseases.

New Delhi: Communicable diseases pose a substantial challenge to the public health system in India. With increased public spending on healthcare more attention is the need of the hour, inform domain experts. The emergence of new COVID strains, increasing cases of measles and tuberculosis (TB), Zika virus, and Japanese Encephalitis (JE) in various parts of India, highlight the need for increased budgetary spending to strengthen the healthcare industry’s response to communicable diseases. Moreover, The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare’s (MoHFW) goal of making India TB-free by 2025 would require additional funds to increase access to quality healthcare and advanced treatment. The Government of India (Gol) allocated Rs 72 crore to the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) branches to augment disease surveillance of zoonotic diseases and other neglected tropical diseases surveillance in the Union Budget 22-23.

Communicable diseases need proper attention to strengthen the healthcare industry “We have seen how alarming the situation could be if proper attention is not given to the infectious diseases, expecting a good budget strength in the healthcare industry in response to communicable diseases,” mentioned Dr. Ankita Baidya, Senior  Infectious Disease Expert, HCMCT Manipal Hospitals, Dwarka.

Diabetic kidney disease or commonly referred term as diabetic nephropathy is one of the long-term sequelae of diabetes.

Diabetes Mellitus is a chronic disease that occurs when the pancreas fails to produce sufficient insulin or when the body cannot effectively use the insulin it produces. Patients with uncontrolled diabetes over time experience serious damage to many organ systems including the heart, eyes, kidneys, nerves, and blood vessels.

Diabetes has reached epidemic proportions over the past few decades worldwide. Diabetic kidney disease or commonly referred term as diabetic nephropathy is one of the long-term sequelae of diabetes. Over 1 in 3 adults with diabetes will develop some form of diabetic kidney disease in their lifetime.

Once a patient is detected to have diabetic kidney disease, he/she should be in regular follow up with the nephrologist (kidney specialist) along with their primary physician.

The symptoms of the progression of chronic kidney disease include decreased urine output with fluid retention, swelling over the feet and face, breathlessness, anemia, and high BP recordings.

To reduce the risk of progression of diabetic nephropathy blood sugar and BP should be regularly monitored and controlled. Lifestyle modifications include exercise, adequate hydration, no smoking, and dietary restrictions like low carb and salt intake. Intake of pain medications should be only under the guidance of a nephrologist in patients with diabetic kidney disease.

Fact check: Anti-vaxxers link sudden cardiac events with COVID-19 vaccines; is there truth to it?

While playing against the Cincinnati Bengals during a Monday night football game, Buffalo Bills' defensive back Damar Hamlin suddenly collapsed on the field. Reportedly, the 24-year-old had suffered a cardiac arrest. However, moments after the incident, social media was stormed with claims that the sudden collapse was linked to COVID-19 vaccines.

Georgia congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene took to Twitter and said, "Before the covid vaccines we didn’t see athletes dropping dead on the playing field like we do now… Time to investigate the covid vaccines.”

Dr. Ankita Baidya, Consultant Infectious Disease, HCMCT Manipal Hospitals, Dwarka, says, "I don't see any relation between COVID vaccine and the sudden death of young people around the world. During the lockdown people had a sedentary life which actually increases the cardiac risk, the second thing is COVID itself as a virus has a chance of making blood clots. So, even if somebody doesn't remember that he has COVID because COVID is a viral infection that can also go as an asymptomatic viral infection but still it can have effects on the body."

Important factors while taking care of a critical heart patient

Increased abdominal fat is a sign of obesity and is linked to an increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

By Dr. Bipin Dubey

With the change in lifestyle, heart problems are now a growing concern in different parts of the world. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), almost 17.9 million people die due to some type of cardiovascular disease. This problem is now also affecting the younger generation due to the adoption of a sedentary lifestyle, poor food habits, and increased stress.

People who are diagnosed or have recently experienced an episode of heart condition have to make major changes in their lives. People like close family members of those who have suffered from a heart attack or heart failure, find a lot of challenges initially to provide the best caregiving. Here are a few important things that must be kept in mind while taking care of a critical heart patient: Diet, Regular Monitoring of Blood Sugar, Weight Management, Physical Exercise, Quit Smoking & Alcohol

Diagnosed with chronic kidney disease? Here's how long it takes for things to get worse.

Kidney diseases can progress rapidly or slowly based on the type of underlying disorder and other medical conditions. To understand the progression of kidney diseases, it is important to first understand some facts about kidney disorders. Today, we have Dr. Ashish Nandwani, Consultant Nephrology, HCMCT Manipal Hospitals, Dwarka with us who will help us know how the disease progresses after being diagnosed.

Kidney disorders can affect people of all ages and genders, but they are more prevalent in older people, women, and people with already existing diseases like diabetes, high blood pressure, and cardiovascular diseases. Symptoms of chronic kidney disease can be minimal at first, which is why many people tend to ignore the common signs and symptoms and delay the treatment. Kidney disorders must not be taken lightly. If they are not treated on time, they can progress to kidney failure causing, muscle weakness, excess fluid formation, complications due to uremia electrolyte disorders, and even death.

China is reportedly battling another wave of COVID-19, believed to be driven by Omicron sub-variant BF.7. In India, four cases of the BF.7 variant - two from Gujarat and two from Odisha - have been detected so far. Up until now, the new variant has been detected in several countries including Germany, Belgium, France, Denmark, The US and the UK.

Amid such chaos, experts believe vaccination plays an important role in keeping us protected and preventing severe COVID complications.

Dr. Ankita Baidya, Consultant Infectious Disease, HCMCT Manipal Hospitals, Dwarka, says, "Frontline workers and healthcare workers are at more risk of COVID but for severe COVID, elderly people or people who have comorbid conditions, people who are diabetic, or have pre-existing lung disease or kidney disease, or people who are on long-term steroids are on higher risk of developing a severe covid infection."

Dr Puneet Khanna, the HOD pulmonology department at the HCMCT Manipal Hospital in Dwarka highlighted how air pollution is leading to respiratory issues. 

Dr Khanna said that an Air Quality Index (AQI) in the range of 50 to 100 leads to increased inflammatory response and difficulty in breathing for patients sensitive to respiratory diseases. An AQI of above 300 poses problems for healthy people as well. 

Air pollution has a massive impact on the health of people. it is a known fact that the combined effects of outdoor and household air pollution cause millions of premature deaths every year resulting from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, and acute respiratory infections. Dr Khanna stated that "from smoke inside the home to smog hanging over cities, air pollution is a major threat to health and climate". 

'Avoid early morning outdoor walks'

Dr Rajput suggested that early morning outdoor walks and exercises are not good for asthmatics and should be avoided. Dr Khanna also urged that early morning walks are not advisable as pollution levels are highest in the morning, and merely walking could result in health complications due to the high concentration of particulate matter. 

India has come out as the major contributor to cervical cancer in Asia, a study published in The Lancet journal on Wednesday revealed.

According to the study, more than 58 percent of all cases of cervical cancer globally were estimated in Asia, with India accounting for the highest number of cases at 21 percent followed by China at 18 percent.

The study also revealed that out of the 40 percent of total deaths from cervical cancer 23 percent occur in India followed by 17 percent in China.

“We have indeed come a long way in controlling the menace of Cervical Cancer in India. We used to see nearly 38/1,00,000 Indian women affected with cervical cancer in 1980s. We see it less commonly now, affecting about 18/1,00,000 our women-years annually, thanks to increasing awareness and timely access to health care, but it still continues to be a major health concern for us, especially in the under-developed parts of our country,” Dr. Shubham Jain, HOD & Consultant of Surgical Oncology at HCMCT Manipal Hospitals, Dwarka, New Delhi told Financial Express.com.

There were over 6,00,000 estimated new cervical cancer cases and over 3,40,000 deaths in 2020.

Headline: What is postpartum hemorrhage, and can it be prevented?

Doctor quoted: Dr (Lt Col) Leena N Sreedhar, HOD and consultant – obstetrics and gynaecology, HCMCT Manipal Hospitals, Dwarka

Headline: Iraqi girl gets a new life in Delhi

Doctor quoted: Dr. Anurag Saxena, HOD and Consultant Neurosurgery, HCMCT Manipal Hospitals, Dwarka