|  It is the season of death in Uttar Pradesh's Poorvanchal area. Like every year, this monsoon too has seen Japanese encephalitis ravage the poor, killing 450 children within a month and spreading to 22 districts in the state.
The disease is caused by mosquitoes that become infected with the Japanese encephalitis virus while feeding on domestic pigs carrying the virus. These mosquitoes then transmit the virus to humans, with the incubation period ranging from 5-15 days. Which explains the Central advisory to Uttar Pradesh to keep pigs away from people and organise sprays to prevent breeding of mosquitoes. It is, however, not transmitted from person to person by touching or kissing. The onset of the disease-which has no effective treatment, only a preventive vaccine-is marked by headaches, high fever, vomiting, tremors and diarrhoea. It affects the brain and spinal cord, leading to coma and eventual death or permanent disability. The deadly disease first hit Japan in 1870 and has since spread to Asian countries, including India. | | | HEART OF THE MATTER | | | |  It is heartening news. The Health Ministry is planning to bring all medical devices under the purview of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, much to the relief of medical experts and heart patients who have been raising an alarm over the use of sub-standard stents. The move will ensure standardisation and proper regulations for improving the quality of the devices. A panel will soon draw up a list of devices to be classified.
| | | | SCREEN TEST | | There is growing concern over the harmful effects of CT scans | | | | |  Unregulated medical screenings like a computed tomography, or ct scan, can cause significant harm to the body, according to the New Scientist. With one such scan exposing a patient to ionising radiation 100 times the dosage in a mammogram, it is small wonder that the science and ethics group of the British Medical Association has expressed serious concern about people opting for the screening.
Consultants say a full-body scan increases the risk of a person subsequently developing fatal cancer by .08 per cent and younger people are more susceptible. With the boom in diagnostic centres in India and increased recommendations by doctors screening tests may be unduly increasing the chances of cancer. | Next |
