Covid-19 treatment: AIIMS to conduct clinical trials of plasma therapy

The AIIMS director stresses on the need to have good and well-conducted research trials before the therapy is recommended for routine use

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences is planning to conduct a clinical trial of the convalescent plasma therapy in the treatment of Covid-19 patients, AIIMS Director Dr Randeep Guleria said on Tuesday. The modalities of taking the approval from the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) is being worked out, official sources said.

Stating that the mode of treatment in Covid-19 is still at an “experimental stage”, Guleria stressed on the need to have good and well-conducted research trials before its benefit, and this mode of therapy can be recommended for routine use in coronavirus patients. “AIIMS is working with the ICMR to conduct a clinical trial on the efficacy of convalescent plasma therapy in Covid-19 patients,” he said. The doctor said it is necessary for all institutes to take necessary approvals from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and DCGI and follow proper clinical practice guidelines for this research.

“In very limited studies, globally, convalescent plasma as an adjunct to other supportive therapies and treatments has shown some benefit in the management of severe patients of Covid-19,” Guleria said. He also underlined that plasma has to be tested for its safety and it should have sufficient antibodies to be useful for giving it to Covid-19 patients. “Giving plasma from a recovered patient without testing whether it has enough antibody titer or not may cause more harm than good as it can cause transfusion-related reactions,” he said…Read More

With health dept in quarantine, MP struggles to tackle coronavirus pandemic

After Kumar and Govil were tested positive, the government’s first response was to downplay the news

The Shivraj Singh Chouhan-led government in Madhya Pradesh is finding itself in a tight spot in combating the Covid-19 pandemic. There is no Cabinet in place, and thus no health minister. Besides, the state health department, which was supposed to lead the fight against coronavirus, is almost defunct, with several top officials, including Pallavi Jain Govil, principal secretary (health), and J Vijay Kumar, managing director of MP Health Corporation and chief executive officer of the state’s Ayushman Bharat programme, testing positive.

‘Health’ crisis

After Kumar and Govil were tested positive, the government’s first response was to downplay the news. This resulted in the spreading of the virus among other health department officials. Until Sunday afternoon, Bhopal reported 134 confirmed Covid cases, including 80 health department officers and their family members. Even the coronavirus control room reported infections — Veena Sinha (additional director, health communication) and another official Pallav Dubey — were tested positive.

Yet, top officials were unwilling to go to hospitals for isolation. All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Bhopal Director Dr Sarman Singh wrote to Govil: “This is about the telephonic call received from your good self and Shri Faiz Ahmad Kidwai, health commissioner, regarding the unwillingness of some of your officials who are asymptomatic to get hospitalised at AIIMS, Bhopal.” Singh recommended such asymptomatic Covid-19 patients be isolated at home…Read More

India between Stage 2 and 3 of coronavirus pandemic: Health Ministry

AIIMS Director Dr Randeep Guleria, who is also a member of a Task Force on COVID-19, on Monday reportedly said that “localised community transmission” has been seen in some pockets

India is between Stage 2 and 3 of coronavirus pandemic with large number of cases being found in particular areas, the Union Health Ministry said on Monday concurring with the AIIMS Director’s remarks that localised community transmission is being observed in some pockets of the country.

AIIMS Director Dr Randeep Guleria, who is also a member of a Task Force on COVID-19, on Monday reportedly said that “localised community transmission” has been seen in some pockets and that India is between Stage 2 (local transmission) and Stage 3. He had clarified that the most of India is currently at Stage 2 of the COVID-19 pandemic. Asked about Guleria’s remarks, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Health Lav Agarwal said, “What the AIIMS Director has said is not in variance with what we have been explaining to you.”

Explaining further, Agarwal said that they go for a cluster containment strategy when limited cases are reported from a particular area while the government’s action and intervention gets intensified when larger number of cases are reported. “We tell you every time that if there will be a community transmission we will be the first one to tell you so that everyone gets alert. If we go by the wordings (of AIIMS Director), he said localised community transmission, which implies larger number of cases are being found in a particular area,” the official said.

“We are in between Stage 2 and 3 and that implies that our efforts and actions should be focused on ensuring we do not shift to stage 3,” the joint secretary said, adding there are clear defined strategies for containment in areas reporting larger number of cases and the government was working according to that. In Stage 2, disease transmission is limited to those with travel history to affected countries or those in contact with the infected persons…

Modi re-visits AIIMS, top leaders come calling as Vajpayee remains critical

Several senior politicians visited AIIMS to inquire about the health of the 93-year-old leader

As followers and well-wishers prayed for the recovery of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the national capital was preparing for the worst on Thursday afternoon.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited All India Institute of Media Science (AIIMS), where Vajpayee is currently admitted and on life support system, on Thursday afternoon. He had spent an hour at the hospital on Wednesday evening as well.

Atal bihari vajpayee

Traffic police were busy ensuring that roads leading to the hospitals were kept free of heavy traffic. Preparations were also underway outside Vajpayee’s official residence at 6A, Krishna Menon Marg in Lutyens’ Delhi.

Several senior politicians visited AIIMS to inquire about the health of the 93-year-old leader.

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu visited in the morning, as did Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Amit Shah and senior union ministers Sushma Swaraj and Rajnath Singh.

Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje cut short the second leg of her ‘Rajasthan Gaurav Yatra’, part of her assembly election campaign, to head to Delhi.

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AIIMS hands over Jayalalithaa's medical report to Tamil Nadu govt

The move assumes significance in the backdrop of doubts being raised from different quarters

The AIIMS on Monday handed over the medical report by its doctors of late Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa to the state government.

The report contains the analysis of Jayalalithaa health condition by the doctors of the premier institute during their five visits to Chennai.

#LATEST | AIIMS Deputy Director (Administration) V Srinivas said that the state government had on Sunday sought the visit notes of the delegation for its official records.

The move assumes significance in the backdrop of doubts being raised from different quarters over the former All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) chief's death on December 5.

Srinivas handed over the papers to the Principal Secretary of Health of Tamil Nadu, Dr J Radhakrishnan, here on Monday.

"On the request of the Tamil Nadu government for expert medical advise, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) had deployed a team of senior specialists to visit Chennai five times between October 5 and December 6, 2016.

"The team was led by Dr G C Khilnani, Professor in the department of pulmonology," Srinivas said.

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