K’taka CM’s home-office shut after staffer’s kin tests positive

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K’taka CM’s home-office shut after staffer’s kin tests positive

Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa’s home-office in the city center was shut for sanitization after the husband of a woman employee working there tested COVID-19 positive, an official said on Friday.

“The chief minister’s home-office has been closed for sanitization after the employee’s husband tested positive for coronavirus,” an official of the Chief Minister’s Office told IANS here.

The employee did not report for duty for two days after her husband was infected with the virus.

“The chief minister’s engagements, including an official event involving the state police department, were shifted to the Vidhana Soudha (state secretariat),” said the official.

As the employee was on outpost duty, she did not come in contact with the Chief Minister or his cabinet colleagues and other senior officials.

Earlier in the day, the divisional railway manager’s office in the city center was shut for sanitization after a visiting employee tested positive for coronavirus.

“The three-floor DRM office has been closed for the day for sanitisation and all employees have been advised to work from home as one of our staffers who visited the office early this week tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday,” senior Divisional Commercial Manager Krishna Reddy told IANS here.

The DRM’s office is located adjacent to the Krantivira Sangoli Rayanna (KSR) main railway station in the city center.

The state’s mini secretariat Vikas Soudha adjacent to the iconic Vidhana Soudha in the city center has also been shut for sanitization after a government employee working in it tested COVID positive.

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), entrusted with the task of containing the virus spread, has already sanitized a portion of the massive building in the city center.

After an employee of the food and civil supplies department tested positive, all offices on the ground floor of the mini-secretariat were sealed and sanitized.

The city registered 17 fresh cases on Thursday, taking the total number of positive cases to 844. With 14 discharged earlier in the day, 384 have been cured of the infection, while 408 are under treatment.

Of the 114 COVID deaths across the southern state since March 10, Bengaluru has accounted for 51 to date.

Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on oxygen support after condition worsens

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Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on oxygen support after condition worsens

The condition of Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Friday worsened, two days after he tested positive for coronavirus.

The 55-year-old Jain has been shifted to ICU ward of another Covid-19 hospital from Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital, where he was admitted earlier this week. He was put on oxygen support after his lung infection increased.

Jain was tested twice this week after he developed symptoms of coronavirus, including high fever and breathing difficulty. He tested positive the second time on Wednesday.

On Sunday, he was present at a meeting between the Union Home Ministry and the Delhi government. The meeting was attended by Home Minister Amit Shah, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, his deputy Manish Sisodia, L-G Anil Baijal, and Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan.

Earlier on Friday, another Aam Aadmi Party leader Atishi Marlena tested positive for COVID-19 and is currently in quarantine in her house.

This came amid a sudden spurt in cases in the national capital. In Delhi, the cases are inching towards the 50,000-mark and over 1,969 people have succumbed to the disease.

On June 9, Chief Minister Kejriwal had tested for the coronavirus after he complained of mild fever and sore throat. His test report, however, came out as negative.

Nutrition in pregnancy during summer

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Nutrition in pregnancy during summer

Pregnancy is a journey where a mother must focus on her lifestyle, as much as she cares for her unborn child.

A mother should avoid gaining excessive weight, “She must try to prevent gestational diabetes and hypertension too. A healthy lifestyle is very important. Especially during summers when most of us tend to eat less. A Pregnant woman must take extra care in terms of what she eats so that her baby grows in a healthy way and she still stays fit,” believes Dr. Mahima Bakshi, Mother and Child wellness consultant at Madhukar Rainbow Children’s Hospital and author of ‘Birthing Natural’.

Trimester one

Plenty of fluids as most women can feel nauseous in this phase
Coconut water, smoothies, fresh juices, soups, milk, and buttermilk can be great options.
Avoid tea coffee as it can worsen the acidity or morning sickness however chamomile tea can help in reducing nausea.
Also, fruit like watermelon and veggies like cucumber contains good hydration.
Small frequent meals help in preventing nausea.

Trimester two

Appetite increases, hence avoid indulging in junk food or outside food.
Prefer home-cooked food with good protein, simple carbs, and lots of vitamin-rich foods like fruits veggies, daal, chicken, paneer.
Iron-rich sources like green veggies, carrot, and beetroot are important.
A handful of nuts must be taken for good omega fatty acid. Enjoy eating and enjoy the food cravings. But ensure that you do not gain too much weight suddenly.
The weight gain must be gradual. Breathing relaxation exercises and prenatal yoga is helpful to maintain a gradual weight gain.

Trimester three

Appetite slows down as digestion slows down hence some physical activity and prenatal exercises help.
The body prepares for labor so some good fats help – nuts, cooking oils, avocado, fish can be a great option.
Flaxseeds also help as a good source of omega.
Small frequent meals are better than large heavy meals.
Many develop constipation during this phase due to hormonal changes and reduced digestion.
Hence lots of fiber in the diet is important. Flax seeds, dates, bananas, nuts, and plenty of water will help.

All in all, to-be mothers should stay active, exercise to stay fit, and prefer to eat home-cooked fresh food at frequent intervals.
Avoid large heavy meals, maintain good hydration, and take lots of fruits and veggies. Seasonal fruits is always a better option. And add lots of natural probiotics to your diet to maintain a healthy gut flora in the body.

WHO concerned over rising COVID-19 cases in Europe

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WHO concerned over rising COVID-19 cases in Europe

The World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Europe rang the “alarm bells” by pointing out disturbing increases in “incidence and numbers” of coronavirus infections in eastern Europen countries despite weeks of COVID-19 cases declining in other nations.

“In the past month, the number of European countries showing significant increases in cumulative incidence has more than tripled from six to 21 countries,” Hans Kluge, WHO regional director for Europe, said during a regular virtual meeting hosted in Copenhagen on Wednesday.

Kluge’s remarks dispelled any notion of taking false security from WHO statistics that could show the European region had “stabilized at around 17,000 to 20,000 cases per day on average due to weeks of cases declining in other countries”.

“COVID-19 is still in a very active phase in many countries. It is crucial that we continue to recover and rebuild following the lockdown,” said the WHO official.

Kluge emphasized the need to remain diligent and lift restrictions with care, citing the reopening of schools in a few countries that resulted in local “flares”.

In his oft-repeated clarion call to countries in the region, Kluge asked them to strengthen the preparedness and readiness of their emergency services and routine health system delivery, because he was “hoping for the best but preparing for the worst” of a likely resurgence of COVID-19.

“We are not out of the woods. Lockdowns and social distancing have gained us time,” he said, reiterating that “the risk remains high across all countries”.

Kluge said that “it is important that the authorities fully invest in having an aggressive track, test and trace surveillance system to avoid costly additional lockdowns in the weeks and months ahead should the virus rebound”.

Texas COVID-19 hospitalizations hit record highs for 7 days

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Texas COVID-19 hospitalizations hit record highs for 7 days

The number of hospitalized coronavirus patients in the U.S. state of Texas hit record highs for seven consecutive days, local media reported Thursday.

According to figures released by the Texas Department of State Health Services, there are 2,947 people currently in hospitals being treated for COVID-19 on Thursday, the seventh consecutive day the state reported a record number, Xinhua news agency reported.

The Texas Tribune reported that since the beginning of June, hospitalizations have increased. The latest seven-day average for the number of people hospitalized is 2,468, almost doubling the number in late May.

Responding to the increasing numbers of hospitalized patients and confirmed cases in Texas, Governor Greg Abbott said earlier this week that the state’s hospital bed capacity is “abundant.”

The governor urged people to stay at home as much as they can, wear masks in public places, and keep social distance to slow down the spread of the coronavirus. Businesses, especially bars and restaurants, should follow the state guidelines, he noted.

Nine Texas mayors recently asked Abbott to allow them to make masks mandatory. The mayors said that wearing masks would help avoid a second wave of coronavirus that might shut down the economy again.

Early in the pandemic, some Texas cities tried to mandate face coverings. Abbott overruled them.

Ahmedabad’s corona count nears 18K, Gujarat death toll at 1,592

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Ahmedabad’s corona count nears 18K, Gujarat death toll at 1,592

Gujarat saw 510 more coronavirus cases on Thursday, taking the total number of positive cases to 25,658, with the main contributor of cases – Ahmedabad – touching the 18,000-mark with 17,946.

Coronavirus claimed 31 more lives in the state, taking the total death toll to 1,592. 348 patients were discharged after being treated in hospitals on Thursday.

On Thursday, after the health authorities carried out 5,073 RT-PCR tests, fresh 510 cases of SARS-Cov-2 virus infection were detected across the state.

Out of the 510, 317 cases were detected in Ahmedabad (62.15 percent). Ahmedabad was followed by Surat 82, Vadodara 43, Gandhinagar 11, Bharuch 9, Jamnagar 7, Anand 6, Aravalli and Patan with 5 each, Bhavnagar 4, Banaskantha and Navsari with 3 each, Sabarkantha, Panchmahals, Amreli and two patients from other states with 2 each and Rajkot, Kheda, Botad, Dahod, Surendranagar, Junagadh, Narmada and Morbi with one positive case each.

Gujarat’s death toll is almost touching 1,600 with a total of 1,592 deaths. The tally of over 30 deaths daily since the start of this month continued on Thursday.

Thursday saw yet another 31 patients succumbing to the global pandemic, out of which Ahmedabad had the highest casualties at 22. Six patients from Surat and one each from Patan, Chotta Udepur, and Gandhinagar succumbed to the virus.

Despite the share of positive cases from Ahmedabad having come down to 69.94 percent, the death rate of the city remained the same, around 81 percent of the total toll. 554 people, out of the total 1,592, have succumbed to the virus during just 18 days of June.

Till date, out of the total deaths, 1,278 people have died in Ahmedabad alone, followed by 112 in Surat, 49 in Vadodara, 23 in Gandhinagar, 15 in Panchmahals, 14 in Aravalli, 13 each in Bhavnagar and Anand, 11 in Patan, 9 in Mahesana and 8 in Banaskantha.

Gujarat has one of the highest mortality rates for coronavirus in the country at 6.20 percent.

On Thursday, a total of 348 patients were discharged. Till now, a total of 17,829 patients has been discharged in the state.

With this, the total number of positive cases in Gujarat has reached 25,658. Ahmedabad continued to lead the state with maximum positive cases with 17,946, followed by Surat 2,861, Vadodara 1,730, Gandhinagar 531, Mahesana 193, Bhavnagar 178, Rajkot 172, Banaskantha 159, Aravalli 157, Sabarkantha 146, Anand 141, Panchmahals 133, Patan 129, Mahisagar 121, Bharuch 115, Kheda 113, Kutch 104, Jamnagar 98, Surendranagar 84, Botad 70, Valsad 59, Gir-Somnath and Junagadh with 53 each and 50 patients from other states.

Out of a total of 3,08,744 RT-PCR tests carried out in the state, 2,83,086 have been found negative. There are 6,239 active cases, out of which the condition of 6,178 is stable, whereas 61 critical patients are still on a ventilator.

Right now, there are over 2.1 lakh people quarantined in the state with 2,06,770 in-home quarantine and 4,033 in government facilities.

People saw decrease in sexual behaviour during Covid-19: Study

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People saw decrease in sexual behaviour during Covid-19: Study

One in five adults in the US have experienced change — mostly a decrease — in their sexual behavior during the early months of the Covid-19 pandemic, researchers said.

The study examined changes in solo and partnered sexual behaviors from mid-March to mid-April in an effort to learn more about Americans’ sex lives and relationships during the first month of social distancing.

“Our data illustrate the very personal ways in which different pandemic-associated factors may create or inhibit opportunities for solo and partnered sex,” said study co-author Devon Hensel from Indiana University in the US.

The study, published in the preprint repository medRxiv, used the US nationally representative probability survey of adults to look at changes in 10 solo and partnered sexual behavior categories.

Across all the 10 behaviors studied, 50 percent of participants reported no change or stability in their sexual behaviors over in the period under survey.

Another third of the participants reported that they had either increased or decreased in some behaviors. The most common behaviours to increase and decrease were the same.

Among the participants reporting an increase in sexual behaviour, the most common increases were hugging, kissing, cuddling or holding hands with a partner. Similarly, those reporting decreases mentioned the same sexual behaviours — hugging, kissing, cuddling, or holding hands.

The study found that participants with any children at home under the age of five were three times more likely to report increased hugging, kissing, cuddling or holding hands with a partner in the period under survey, while having elementary-aged children was often linked to decreased reports of these behaviours.

Those findings could be attributed, the study said, to parents of smaller children being able to better maintain pre-pandemic schedules and routines.

Likewise, parents of small children could have reported an increase in hugging, kissing, cuddling or holding hands because it is part of group/family interactions such as family cuddles.

In terms of mental health factors, the study found that depressive symptoms and loneliness were associated with both reduced partnered bonding behaviours, such as hugging, cuddling, holding hands and kissing, as well as reduced partnered sexual behaviours.

The researchers said these mental health factors could be attributed to social distancing measures, which, while necessary, can exacerbate feelings of depression and loneliness for some people.

“This study is a reminder that pandemics impact every aspect of the human experience, including sexuality,” Hensel wrote.

Self-isolation, contact tracing key to control COVID-19: Lancet

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Self-isolation, contact tracing key to control COVID-19: Lancet

Combining isolation and intensive contact tracing with social distancing measures might be the most effective and efficient way to achieve and maintain pandemic control, says a new study published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases journal.

Using social-contact data on more than 40,000 individuals from the BBC Pandemic database to simulate SARS-CoV-2 transmission in different settings and under different combinations of control measures, the researchers estimated that a high incidence of COVID-19 would require a considerable number of individuals to be quarantined to control infection.

“Successful strategies will likely include intensive testing and contact tracing supplemented with moderate forms of physical distancing, such as limiting the size of social gatherings and remote working, which can both reduce transmission and the number of contacts that need to be traced,” said study researcher Dr. Adam Kucharski from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine in the UK.

The researchers have used social contact data to quantify the potential impact of control measures on reducing individual-level transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in specific settings.

They aimed to identify not only what would theoretically control transmission, but what the practical implications of these measures would be in terms of numbers quarantined.

However, the authors noted that the model is based on a series of assumptions about the effectiveness of testing, tracing, isolation, and quarantine–for example about the amount of time it takes to isolate cases with symptoms (average 2.6 days) and the likelihood that their contacts adhere to quarantine (90 percent)–which, although plausible, are optimistic.

In the study, researchers analyzed data on how 40,162 people moved about the UK and interacted with others prior to COVID-19 to simulate how combinations of different testing, isolation, tracing, and physical distancing scenarios might contribute to reducing secondary cases.

They also modeled the rate at which the virus is transmitted–known as the reproductive number (R), or the average number of people each individual with the virus is likely to infect at a given moment–under different strategies.

The model suggested that mass testing alone, with five percent of the population undergoing random testing each week (i.e. 460,000 tests per day in the UK), would lower R to just 2.5 because so many infections would either be missed or detected too late.

Compared with no control measures, self-isolation of symptomatic cases (at home) alone reduced transmission by an estimated 29 percent.

Whilst combining self-isolation, household quarantine, and tracing strategies could potentially lower transmission by as much as 47 percent when using app-based contact tracing, and by 64 percent with the manual tracing of all contacts.

“Our results highlight several characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 which make effective isolation and contact tracing challenging,” said study co-author Dr Hannah Fry from University College London in the UK.

Good news: Doctors welcome dexamethasone results in Covid patients

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Good news: Doctors welcome dexamethasone results in Covid patients

Leading physicians are celebrating a small dose of good news that arrived Tuesday about dexamethasone, a cheap and widely used steroid shown to be able to save lives among COVID-19 patients, but also cautioning against releasing study results by press release during a global health emergency, like in the case of the latest dexamethasone study by the University of Oxford.

“It will be great news if dexamethasone, a cheap steroid, really does cut deaths by one-third in ventilated patients with COVID19, but after all the retractions and walk backs, it is unacceptable to tout study results by press release without releasing the paper”, Atul Gawande, surgeon and CEO of Haven Healthcare, tweeted.

“Bottom line is, good news,” Dr. Fauci, America’s foremost infectious diseases expert told a US newswire on Tuesday, soon after the dexamethasone results were announced in the UK.

Fauci, who has long championed the therapeutics-first view said that dexamethasone is a “significant improvement” in the available therapeutic options currently available.

On Medical Twitter and Facebook, doctors broadly agree that dexamethasone use aligns well with the way COVID19 attacks the body’s immune system. Fauci said the results in the Oxford study make “perfect sense” in that context.

“We should see the number of people who actually survive go up, if the study holds up,” virologist and epidemiologist Dr. Joseph Fair told a television network.

Global coronavirus cases crossed 8 million on Tuesday. In the US, Texas and Florida are facing a new wave of cases after lifting lockdown orders earlier than medical experts recommended. Amidst the relentless graph upwards, the dexamethasone study results injected hope for better survival rates among those most seriously ill.

World Health Organization chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan welcomed the results from the randomised control trial.

Dr Eugene Gu, Founder and CEO of CoolQuit tweeted that he is “genuinely impressed” with the UK dexamethasone trial. This may be a “game changer”, he wrote.

“There’s no conflict of interest as dexamethasone is a generic steroid. The mechanism of action makes sense because steroids can reduce cytokine storms and overactive immune systems that makes COVID-19 so deadly. The number needed to treat is 8 ventilated patients which is great.”

The Oxford study found that dexamethasone reduced deaths by 35 percent in patients who needed treatment with breathing machines and by 20 percent in those only needing supplemental oxygen. Dexamethasone was one of 5 drugs studied in a large clinical trial in the United Kingdom named RECOVERY, short for Randomised Evaluation of COVID-19 Therapy.

Peter Horby, chief investigator of the University of Oxford clinical trial, said dexamethasone is the first drug to be shown to improve survival in COVID-19. Details of the study have not been released. The trial organisers said they made their announcement via a news release because of “the public health importance of these results.” According to Horby’s public comments, there was a lot of initial resistance to studying steroids.

During the study, 2,104 patients were randomly selected to be given 6 milligrams of dexamethasone once a day (either by mouth or by intravenous injection) for 10 days. That group was compared with 4,321 patients who received the usual care alone.

Researchers estimated that dexamethasone would prevent one death for every eight patients treated while on ventilators and one for every 25 patients on extra oxygen alone.

UK experts have called the study results a breakthrough in the fight against the virus. The researchers have promised they would publish the results soon.

Managing respiratory health during rains

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Managing respiratory health during rains

While Maharashtra continues to grapple with COVID-19, the monsoon season has entered the state as well. Mumbai dwellers are now gearing up to tackle a range of other monsoon related infectious diseases while taking precautionary measures against coronavirus.

While most of us are to remain indoors, it is imperative that we take the necessary precautions to bolster our health during the season. When it comes to the respiratory system, our body reacts as per the surroundings we dwell in.

Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) refers to the air quality within the home and in enclosed spaces. Bacteria that are present in our homes become the invisible enemy; it is important to understand and subsequently control common pollutants that are present indoors. This will help reduce the risk and prevent you from being susceptible to a host of health concerns during the monsoons.

Common monsoon factors to consider:

  • With the rise in humidity, one may experience musty or damp odour; furnishings may feel damp as well with the arrival of overgrowth of fungus and mould.
  • Monsoons may also increase indoor bugs and insects
  • Allowing surfaces to become cooler than the surrounding leads to condensation and dampness; dampness due to the monsoon may initiate chemical or biological degradation of furniture and materials. This could lead to indoor air pollution. Dampness, therefore, is a strong indicator of risk of Asthma and respiratory symptoms like coughing and wheezing.
  • Health effects from indoor air pollutants may be experienced soon after exposure or, even later. The immediate effects due to adverse indoor air quality may show up shortly after a single exposure or repeated exposure to a pollutant. These may include: Irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat; Headaches or dizziness; and Fatigue, says Dr Prashant Chhajed, HOD-Respiratory Medicine, Hiranandani Hospital, Vashi and Fortis Hospital, Mulund

Immediate effects as the above are generally short-term and can be treated. The treatment includes simply removing the affected person’s contact or exposure from the pollution source. It is important to identify the source to ensure complete elimination of contact. It is often noted that after immediate exposure to indoor air pollutants, symptoms pertaining to diseases like Asthma may be displayed. If it is an existing condition, this could even aggravate or worsen.

Follow these tips to prevent or reduce exposure to indoor pollutants during the monsoons to stay healthy and fit.

  • Maintain adequate ventilation at home
  • During the day, if there is sufficient sunlight, keep the windows open so that pollutants can escape and cleaner air may set in
  • The house should be checked for water leaks and dampness to prevent the growth of any microorganisms
  • Cleaning of air conditioning filters should also be undertaken regularly
  • Patients with Asthma need to take special care during the monsoon and should also ensure that fungus does not grow on wooden furniture, and on other articles such as shoes and leather bags. Clean and store them in a dry space as this might be a trigger for Asthma or patients with Allergic Rhinitis
  • Ensure carpets, curtains and other fabrics in the house are clean and well dried
  • Avoid smoking next to children or the elderly
  • Ensure to wear clean and dry clothes at all times; avoid airing wet clothes in a closed room
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