Tag: health

New Chickenpox Virus Variant Detected In India, Know All About ‘Clade 9’

According to the World Health Organistaion varicella-zoster virus only leads to mild disorders in children, while in adults, it can be more severe.

New chickenpox virus variant, Clade 9, detected in India ( Image Source : Getty )

The National Institute of Virology (NIV) has discovered a new variant of Chickenpox, also known as varicella, in India by the name Clade 9. The variant, causing varicella-zoster virus (VZV) was detected in the country for the first time by scientists carrying out a study of monkeypox. Common in countries like Germany, UK and US, VZV causes chickenpox in children, teens and shingles in adults.

In India, Clade 1 and Clade 5 viruses were existent, but Clade 9 has been detected for the first time. The study’s findings were published in the ‘Annals of Medicine’ on September 6.

According to the World Health Organistaion (WHO), VZV is a member of the herpesvirus family. The transmission of this virus occurs via droplets, aerosols, or direct contact with respiratory secretions. It further states that VZV only leads to mild disorders in children, while in adults, it can be more severe. It may also prove to be fatal , especially in neonates and in immunocompromised persons.

Symptoms
Varicella or chickenpox is characterised by an itchy rash usually starting on the scalp and face and initially accompanied by fever and malaise, said the WHO. It can also cause pneumonia or encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), and prove to be fatal at times.

Other symptoms are reduced appetite, headache, fever, body pain, and a general feeling of unwellness.

The rash normally appears 2-3 weeks following exposure to the virus and manifests into a papule-like bumps.

Source: https://news.abplive.com/health/new-chickenpox-virus-variant-detected-in-india-know-all-about-clade-9-1629694

 

Meghan Markle wears anti-stress patch while Prince Harry is away in Asia

She’s trying to keep calm and carry on.

Meghan Markle was spotted wearing a calming device on her wrist during a stroll in California earlier this week.
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Meghan Markle was spotted wearing an anti-stress patch on her wrist as the mother of two spends some time without the help of her husband, Prince Harry.

The Duchess of Sussex, 42, was photographed on a make-up free stroll Thursday in Montecito, Calif., while the Duke of Sussex, 38, is on a work trip in Asia.

She noticeably accessorized her camel-colored $1,625 Max Mara Rispoli coat and blue-and-tan printed $1,225 cashmere Hermès Rayures D’Ete shawl with a dark blue NuCalm biosignal processing disc.

The calming device “activates the parasympathetic nervous system” so that its user can have a “rapid return to a functional state (motor skills, attention, and full cognition) with no lingering effects or mental lethargy,” according to the product’s website.

A pack of 20 discs costs $80, while a set of 100 discs retails for $400.

It’s unknown whether Markle feels she is going through a particularly high-stress time and her rep did not immediately return Page Six’s request for comment.

A source tells us, though, that “NuCalm is incredible and has nothing necessarily to do with stress.”

However, the “Suits” alum does have her hands full with two young kids, while Harry is away overseas.

The couple shares a 4-year-old son, Prince Archie, and 2-year-old daughter, Princess Lilibet.

Markle is in California with her two kids, while Prince Harry is on a work trip in Tokyo.
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The exact reason why the “Suits” alum is using an anti-stress patch is unknown.
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There have also been rumblings that the Sussexes were going through marital issues recently.

However, sources close to the pair told Page Six exclusively in July that any speculation of a looming breakup is false and those stories are “literally made up.”

Markle and Harry have also had some turmoil with their business endeavors, as they famously parted ways with Spotify in June following a $20 million deal with the streaming giant.

An insider previously told The Post that execs thought the couple didn’t produce enough content to receive their full multi-million dollar payout.

However, Markle, Harry and Spotify released a joint statement at the time that claimed the end of the partnership was “mutually agreed” upon by all parties involved.

A day after it was announced that the deal had been terminated, Spotify’s head of global sports strategy, Bill Simmons, called the Sussexes “lazy” and “f–king grifters.”

“I wish I had been involved in the ‘Megan and Harry leave Spotify’ negotiation,” he said during an episode of “The Bill Simmons Podcast” at the time.

Source: https://pagesix.com/2023/08/12/meghan-markle-wears-anti-stress-patch-while-prince-harry-is-in-tokyo/

At least 60 pregnant women test HIV positive at Uttar Pradesh government hospital

At least 60 pregnant women have tested HIV positive in 16 months at a government medical college in Uttar Pradesh’s Meerut, according to an India Today report. A health department official added that the situation is being monitored closely and that all affected women are being treated at the Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) Centre of Lala Lajpat Rai Medical College of Meerut.

The matter came to the notice of health officials following a report drafted by the ART Centre. The report revealed that HIV was confirmed in 81 women who were admitted to the hospital for delivery. Alarmingly, 35 out of these 81 HIV-positive women have given birth to children. The ART Centre’s nodal officer was quoted as saying by the publication that HIV tests of the newborns will be done once they complete one-and-a-half years and further measures will be taken after that.

Source: https://www.deccanherald.com/india/at-least-60-pregnant-women-test-hiv-positive-at-uttar-pradesh-government-hospital-1243968.html 

Back With eye flu cases up, doctors say humans have become susceptible to viral infections

Doctors are saying that almost every household is catching the infection.

With a large numbers of eye flu or conjunctivitis cases being diagnosed across the country, eye specialists are worried that it could be a new emerging threat related to viral infection.

Northeastern states, Delhi, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat are recording maximum number of such cases.

(Dr) Jeewan Singh Titiyal, professor of ophthalmology and Chief of RP Eye Center at AIIMS (Delhi) said, “There is an outbreak like situation of Conjunctivitis or eye flu this year. At AIIMS, we are seeing significant increases in cases and more than 100 patients per day. This is a viral infection and very common in India because this year we had extreme rains & flood, humid conditions and hygiene level has also gone down. What needs to be done is that people need to wash their hands and avoid touching their eyes. Use goggles if infected as it curbs the transmission of the virus. It’s a self-limiting disease goes away easily in some days, but one should consult an eye specialist if have itching and redness in eyes.”

“We need to educate people, especially school children, about viral infections and what precautionary measures they need to follow. These infections are very common. For example- conjunctivitis is not new and has been occurring. Health, sanitation, crowded areas and weather & climate conditions are some of the factors. There is a sudden spurt of cases and formation of clusters in multiple places. We have collected a few samples locally and are examining them,” said a senior scientist at National Institute of Virology, Pune.

Doctors are saying that almost every household is catching the infection. Hence, people need to follow appropriate hygiene while going out. They said that after Covid pandemic, the human body has become susceptible to all kinds of viral infection.

Source : https://www.livemint.com/news/india/with-eye-flu-cases-up-doctors-say-humans-have-become-susceptible-to-viral-infections-11690831206263.html

Govt cautions on antibiotics use as Covid cases rise

Amid a spike in cases across the country, the health ministry has shared an updated guideline on Covid-management which says that antibiotics should not be used unless there is ‘clinical suspicion’ of bacterial infection.
The guideline advises physicians should explore possibility of co-infection of Covid with other endemic infections and to avoid using steroids in mild disease incidence.

Though hospitalisations due to Covid are lower compared to the previous waves of the pandemic, the number of infections have surged significantly across the country. According to the latest data shared by the government on Saturday, 2,994 new Covid cases were recorded in the country on Saturday and nine fatalities in the past 24 hours were confirmed – two each from Kerala, Karnataka, Delhi and Punjab and one from Gujarat.

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