GUWAHATI: The Assam Government has decided to ban the sale of gutka and smokeless tobacco in the State. The government is planning to introduce a Bill in the Assembly soon in this regard.

Over 110 Have Succumbed To Swine Flu In 65 Days

Jaipur: Alarmed over the spurt in swine flu deaths, the health department on Sunday directed the officials to closely monitor high-risk groups including persons suffering from diabetes, hypertension, obesity, under-5 children, senior citizens and pregnant women.
Over 110 deaths took place in the past 65 days even as 600 persons underwent test for swine flu. Principal secretary, health, Deepak Upreti directed officials to take necessary steps to prevent the spread of swine flu and especially deaths. He said that within 24 hours of swine flu testing, the report must be issued. There should not be delay in the treatment. There should be no shortage of testing kits and medicines.

New Delhi: Two more people have died of swine flu in the city on Friday, taking the H1N1 toll to seven this year.

The Delhi health department said the victims, both middle-aged, were hospitalized last week and died due to severe complications caused by the viral infection. Another death was reported from Safdarjung Hospital but the officials did not confirm it. A nodal officer said 58 new cases of swine flu or H1N1 influenza have been identified in the capital, taking the total number of cases this season to 302. A senior doctor at Safdarjung Hospital said delay in treatment was one of the main reasons for the death of swine flu patients. Simple steps can prevent swine flu

People With Low Immunity Levels Need To Take Extra Precautions, Say Doctors

Bangalore: Influenza A (H1N1) or swine flu is back in Bangalore. The deadly virus which first surfaced in India in 2009, may not have claimed any life in the state so far this year, but the scale at which it is back has had warning bells ringing in the healthcare establishment. Do not panic, doctors say, because it is not necessary that every person contracting H1N1 will die. It is just that people with low-immunity levels must take extra precautions.

GUWAHATI: With Guwahati being the door to Northeast India and hundreds of people from outside the State entering the city each day, there is a huge danger of contacting the swine flu virus that has already killed many people in various parts of the country.

The State Health department has taken all out measures to quell fears of a swine flu outbreak in the State by taking all possible precautionary measures to fight it’s outbreak in Assam.

The Health department has called a meeting to review the measures in place to counter the steadily increasing cases of swine flu. The meeting has been scheduled for Tuesday.

Health Minister Dr A K Walia said epidemiologists from the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), representatives of laboratories authorised to conduct the tests and nodal officers designated for swine flu from hospitals will attend the meeting.

Jaipur: A screening for non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in seven districts of Rajasthan, conducted by the health department, has found that Bikaner and Jodhpur are most vulnerable to NCDs such as diabetes and hypertension.

The survey also revealed that Barmer, Jaisalmer and Nagaur have the least cases of NCDs. In these three districts, less than 3% of the population screened by the department was found to be suffering from diabetes or hypertension.

NEW DELHI: Diabetes and hypertension, traditionally seen as a rich man's disease, has made its way to the slums. Health ministry's fresh data shows one out of every four persons living in the urban slums of Chennai suffer from diabetes — which is three times higher than the national average of about 7%.
In the slums of Bangalore the prevalence rate of diabetes was reported to be 14.77%, followed by 13.37% in Ahmedabad. Delhi had among the lowest rates of 5.02%.

"The results of Chennai are shocking. I have asked the state health officials concerned to indentify all positive cases and refer them to the nearest centre for treatment," said Dr Jagdish Prasad, the Director General of Health Services ( DGHS).

The hospital’s diabetic clinic sees about 17 new cases annually. Diabetes, called as the rich man’s disease is on a steady rise in Trashigang, records with Trashigang general hospital show.