NHA, Cancer Grid in tie-up
The National Health Authority (NHA) and the National Cancer Grid (NCG) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to develop uniform standards of patient care to battle cancer under Ayushman Bharat – Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB - PMJAY). National Cancer Grid (NCG) is an initiative of the Government of India to create a network of cancer centres, research institutes, patient groups and charitable institutions across India.
Owing to the multi-disciplinary nature of care required for cancer management, both NHA and NCG recognise the importance of collaborative efforts required to strengthen delivery of cancer services under AB - PMJAY with common objectives to reduce cancer burden, ensure uniform standards of patient care towards effective and efficient patient-centric care, improve access to cancer services and ensure financial risk protection with minimum prevalence of catastrophic health spending and impoverishment, a note from the NHA said.
snake bite poisoning
WHO unveils strategy
The World Health Organization has released details of its strategy to prevent and control snakebite envenoming, a neglected tropical disease that affects 1.8-2.7 million people each year, claiming 81,000-1,38,000 lives and causing 4,00,000 cases of permanent disability.
The aim is to halve the numbers of deaths and cases of disability due to snakebite envenoming over the next 12 years by ensuring through a programme that targets affected communities and their health systems, and by ensuring access to safe, effective treatment. through increased cooperation, collaboration and partnership at all levels. The central objective is to ensure access to safe, effective and affordable treatment such as anti-venoms and ancillary medical care, improved and strengthened production, supply and distribution of life-saving antivenoms and prioritisation of other commodities needed to treat snakebites.
WHO will also work to encourage research on new treatments, diagnostics and health device breakthroughs that can improve treatment outcomes for victims.
prosthetic joint infections
USFDA nod for diagnostic test
The US Food and Drug Administration has permitted marketing of the Synovasure Lateral Flow Test Kit as an aid for the detection of periprosthetic joint infection (infection around a joint replacement) in the synovial (lubricant) fluid of patients being evaluated for revision surgery, which is surgery performed to replace or compensate for a failed implant.
Prior to this, there were no FDA-authorised diagnostic tests specifically designed to help healthcare professionals determine whether the inflammation around a prosthetic joint was due to an infection or another cause, said Tim Stenzel, M.D. director of the Office of In Vitro Diagnostics and Radiological Health in the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health.
“With this test, health care professionals now have an additional option available to aid their clinical assessment as to whether the patient has an infection and requires revision surgery. Whereas before surgeons may have opted for surgery when the presence of an infection was unclear, with this test, they have more information and could potentially reduce patient risk by avoiding unnecessary revision operations for replacement joints,” a note from the FDA said.