Month: March 2023

COVID-19 Government Guidelines Medical Equipments Medical Updates

AIIMS Delhi to set up robotic surgery training facility

Post author By Pragya sharma
Post date March 4, 2023
No Comments on AIIMS Delhi to set up robotic surgery training facility

Synopsis

It said that robotic-assisted surgery is one of the newest areas of innovation in minimally invasive surgery. AIIMS Delhi has been an early adopter of this innovation in medical technology and has a talent pool of faculty using robotic surgical systems for many years.

AIIMS Delhi will soon set up a robotic surgery training facility in its campus here to train its doctors and other healthcare professionals across India. The premier hospital will float an open expression of interest (EOI) to invite Robotic Surgery System manufacturers (OEMs) to co-create and develop robotic surgery training facilities at AIIMS on a not-for-profit basis within the next 3-6 months, according to an office memorandum issued by AIIMS director Dr M Srinivas said on Friday.

AIIMS Delhi will provide around 500 sq ft of space, academic areas, cadavers/tissues for training and a pool of trained faculty among others, the memorandum stated.

It said that robotic-assisted surgery is one of the newest areas of innovation in minimally invasive surgery. AIIMS Delhi has been an early adopter of this innovation in medical technology and has a talent pool of faculty using robotic surgical systems for many years.

“Keeping in view the availability of adequate number of master trainers at AlIMS New Delhi, there is an immediate requirement to establish Robotic Surgery Training Facilities herein for imparting training to doctors from AIIMS New Delhi and other healthcare facilities in India,” the memorandum said.

“Accordingly, it is desired that an open expression of interest (EOI) should be floated to invite Robotic Surgery System manufacturers (OEMs) to co-create and develop Robotic Surgery Training facilities at various campuses of AIIMS, New Delhi on not-for-profit basis within the next 3-6 months,” it said.

The OEMS shall be expected to install the complete robotic surgery training platform and provide related accessories and consumables, etc free of cost. OEMS may at their own cost, also invite external experts for imparting training on any newer techniques with the prior permission of AIIMS, New Delhi, the document stated.

Influenza (flu) vs Covid: Symptoms, differences and similarities

Post author By Pragya sharma
Post date March 3, 2023
No Comments on Influenza (flu) vs Covid: Symptoms, differences and similarities

Despite the fact that COVID-19 and influenza (flu) are both contagious respiratory illnesses, they are caused by separate viruses. COVID-19 is induced by contact with a coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) that was discovered in 2019. Flu is caused by infection with a flu virus (influenza viruses).

From no signs (asymptomatic) to severe symptoms, COVID-19 and the flu can both have a range of symptoms. The flu and COVID-19 both commonly exhibit these symptoms:

Experiencing chills or feeling feverish, Cough, Respiratory issues or shortness of breath, Fatigue, Sore throat, Runny or congested nostrils, Headache, Vomiting, Diarrhea (more common in children with flu, but can occur in any age with COVID-19), Taste or scent alteration or loss, though this occurs more frequently with COVID-19.

How does it spread?

Similarities:

People who are close to or in direct contact with one another are more likely to contract COVID-19 or the flu. Both are primarily transmitted by virus-containing large and small particles that are released when COVID-19 or flu patients cough, sneeze, or talk. Majority of transmission occurs through the inhalation of large and tiny droplets, it is still possible for someone to become infected by touching another person who has the virus

Differences:

Superspreading episodes for COVID-19 have been found to be higher than those for flu. This implies that the virus that causes COVID-19 can rapidly and easily spread to a large number of people and cause ongoing spreading among people over time.
People without symptoms, people with very mild symptoms, and people who never experience symptoms can all transmit the virus that causes COVID-19 to others (asymptomatic people).

Similarities: For both COVID-19 and the flu, it may take one or more days for a person to start showing signs after contracting the infection. The virus that causes COVID-19 can be contracted even if no signs are present. Flu viruses can also infect people even when they show no signs.

Differences: Compared to the flu, COVID-19 patients may encounter symptoms later in the course of the illness where as an individual typically experiences symptoms one to four days after infection in flu.

Differences:
Compared to the flu, COVID-19 may render an individual more contagious for a prolonged period of time.

Flu
Before showing symptoms, people who have the flu virus are possibly contagious for about one day. However, it is thought that the majority of those who transmit the flu virus infection are already exhibiting flu-like symptoms.
Although some individuals may continue to be contagious for a little longer periods, older children and adults with the flu appear to be most contagious during the first 3–4 days of their illness.

COVID-19
The COVID-19 virus can start spreading between two and three days before symptoms appear, but it reaches its highest infectiousness the day before symptoms start. The COVID-19 virus can also propagate among people even when they are asymptomatic. People are typically deemed contagious for eight days after the onset of their symptoms.

Similarities: COVID-19 and the flu both have the potential to cause serious sickness and complications. Those at higher risk comprise of older people, individuals with particular underlying medical problems, pregnant women.

Differences:

Even healthy individuals can develop a severe COVID-19 illness that requires hospitalisation and results in death. Some COVID-19 patients may go on to acquire multisystem inflammatory syndrome or post-COVID conditions (MIS)

Certified treatments

Similarities:

People who are more likely to develop complications or who have been admitted to the hospital with COVID-19 or the flu should receive the proposed treatments and supportive care to assist with symptom relief and complications.

Differences:

Flu
Guidelines for treating COVID-19 have been established by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and they are frequently updated as new information about potential treatments becomes available. Antiviral therapy is included here for individuals who aren’t admitted but are at higher risk.

COVID-19
Guidelines for treating COVID-19 have been established by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and they are frequently updated as new information about potential treatments becomes accessible. This covers both antiviral treatment for patients hospitalised with severe COVID-19 and antiviral treatment for non-hospitalized individuals at higher risk for the virus. People who are more likely to develop severe COVID-19 should get help as soon as their first symptoms appear.

Early-life stress can disrupt brain’s reward circuits: Research

Post author By Pragya sharma
Post date March 2, 2023
No Comments on Early-life stress can disrupt brain’s reward circuits: Research

In addition to CRH, projection fibres co-expressed gamma-aminobutyric acid. They found that this new pathway, when stimulated, suppresses several types of reward behaviours in male mice.

A novel brain link may provide a new therapeutic target for the treatment of mental illness by explaining how early stress and adversity cause the reward circuit in the brain to function improperly. This circuit’s dysfunction is regarded to be the root cause of a number of severe illnesses, including depression, drug misuse, and excessive risk-taking.

In an article recently published online in Nature Communications, Dr Tallie Z. Baram, senior author and UCI Donald Bren Professor and Distinguished Professor in the Departments of Anatomy & Neurobiology, Pediatrics, Neurology and Physiology & Biophysics, and Matt Birnie, lead author and a postdoctoral researcher, describe the cellular changes in the brain’s circuitry caused by exposure to adversity during childhood.

“We know that early-life stress impacts the brain, but until now, we didn’t know how,” Baram said. “Our team focused on identifying potentially stress-sensitive brain pathways. We discovered a new pathway within the reward circuit that expresses a molecule called corticotropin-releasing hormone that controls our responses to stress. We found that adverse experiences cause this brain pathway to be overactive.”

“These changes to the pathway disrupt reward behaviours, reducing pleasure and motivation for fun, food and sex cues in mice,” she said. “In humans, such behavioural changes, called ‘anhedonia,’ are associated with emotional disorders. Importantly, we discovered that when we silence this pathway using modern technology, we restore the brain’s normal reward behaviours.”

Researchers mapped all the CRH-expressing connections to the nucleus accumbens, a pleasure and motivation hub in the brain, and found a previously unknown projection arising from the basolateral amygdala. In addition to CRH, projection fibres co-expressed gamma-aminobutyric acid. They found that this new pathway, when stimulated, suppresses several types of reward behaviours in male mice.

The study involved two groups of male and female mice. One was exposed to adversity early in life by living for a week in cages with limited bedding and nesting material, and the other was reared in typical cages. As adults, the early adversity-experiencing male mice had little interest in sweet foods or sex cues compared to typically reared mice. In contrast, adversity-experiencing females craved rich, sweet food. Inhibiting the pathway restored normal reward behaviours in males, yet it had no effect in females.

“We believe that our findings provide breakthrough insights into the impact of early-life adversity on brain development and specifically on control of reward behaviours that underlie many emotional disorders. Our discovery of the previously unknown circuit function of the basolateral amygdala-nucleus accumbens brain pathway deepens our understanding of this complex mechanism and identifies a significant new therapeutic target.” Baram said. “Future studies are needed to increase our understanding of the different and sex-specific effects of early-life adversity on behaviour.”