Andhra Pradesh reports 19 new COVID cases in a day
This is the biggest 24-hour jump in the State since the first case was reported from Visakhapatnam on May 20.
Four people are reported to have recovered during this period. The active caseload in the State now stands at 50. The country reported 564 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, taking the total tally to 4,866.
Meanwhile, there was no response from the Health Department officials regarding the number of tests being done and the preparedness.
A 14-year-old girl tested positive for COVID-19 in the neurosurgery ward of King George Hospital (KGH). She was admitted to the ward for treatment of a brain tumour.
'Usually, we conduct all tests before performing any surgery. She tested positive for COVID-19 through a rapid test kit. She was shifted to the isolation ward. The sample collected from her has been sent to the RTPCR lab for confirmation,' KGH Superintendent Dr. P. Sivananda told The Hindu on Thursday.
He said that the girl was doing fine and there was no cause for worry.
The isolation ward has 20 beds, and the bed strength can be increased if needed. The required drugs and kits are available. There is no cause for alarm,' Dr. Sivananda said.
Meanwhile, a pregnant woman hailing from Paturu in Anantapur district is being treated in home isolation after she tested positive for COVID-19.
According to doctors, the woman visited the Anantapur Government General Hospital with symptoms of fever, cold and cough. A rapid antigen test confirmed her positive for COVID-19. Though she was advised to admit herself to the isolation ward at the hospital, the woman preferred treatment in home isolation. She was given the necessary medicines and face masks.
Officials said the family members of the woman would undergo COVID-19 test, adding that the health condition of the woman would be monitored.
Meanwhile, Anantapur Urban MLA Daggubati Venkateswara Prasad asked the District Medical and Health Officer (DM&HO) Dr E.B. Devi, Municipal Commissioner Balaswamy and the GGH officials to create awareness about the measures to be taken to curb the spread of VOID-19. He wanted the officials to maintain sanitation in the city.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
39 minutes ago
- The Hindu
The path to ending global hunger runs through India
With global chronic undernourishment now on a downward trend, the world is beginning to turn a corner in its fight against hunger. The United Nations' newly released The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2025 reports that 673 million people (8.2% of the world's population) were undernourished in 2024. This is down from 688 million in 2023. Although we have not yet returned to pre-pandemic levels (7.3% in 2018), this reversal marks a welcome shift from the sharp rise experienced during COVID-19. India has played a decisive role in this global progress. The gains are the result of policy investments in food security and nutrition, increasingly driven by digital technology, smarter governance, and improved service delivery. Revised estimates using the latest National Sample Survey data on household consumption show that the prevalence of undernourishment in India declined from 14.3% in 2020–22 to 12% in 2022–24. In absolute terms, this means 30 million fewer people living with hunger — an impressive achievement considering the scale of the population and the depth of disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The transformation of the PDS At the centre of this progress is India's Public Distribution System, which has undergone a profound transformation. The system has been revitalised through digitalisation, Aadhaar-enabled targeting, real-time inventory tracking, and biometric authentication. The rollout of electronic point-of-sale systems and the One Nation One Ration Card platform have made entitlements portable across the country, which is particularly crucial for internal migrants and vulnerable households. These innovations allowed India to rapidly scale up food support during the pandemic and to continue to ensure access to subsidised staples for more than 800 million people. Now, progress on calories must give way to progress on nutrition. The cost of a healthy diet in India remains unaffordable for over 60% of the population, driven by high prices of nutrient-dense foods, inadequate cold chains, and inefficient market linkages. That said, India has begun investing in improving the quality of calories. For example, the Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman (PM POSHAN) school-feeding scheme, launched in 2021, and the Integrated Child Development Services are now focusing on dietary diversity and nutrition sensitivity, laying the foundation for long-term improvements in child development and public health. New data in the UN report also shows progress the country has made in making healthy diets more affordable despite food inflation. What is happening underscores a larger structural challenge: even as hunger falls, malnutrition, obesity, and micronutrient deficiencies are rising. This is especially so among poor urban and rural populations. The agrifood system needs transformation India can meet this challenge by transforming its agrifood system. This means boosting the production and the affordability of nutrient-rich foods such as pulses, fruits, vegetables, and animal-source products, which are often out of reach for low-income families. It also means investing in post-harvest infrastructure such as cold storage and digital logistics systems, to reduce the estimated 13% of food lost between farm and market. These losses directly affect food availability and affordability. In addition, India should further strengthen support for women-led food enterprises and local cooperatives, including Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), especially those cultivating climate-resilient crops, as these can enhance both nutrition and livelihoods. India must continue to invest in its digital advantage to drive the transformation of its agrifood systems. Platforms such as AgriStack, e-NAM, and geospatial data tools can strengthen market access, improve agricultural planning, and enhance the delivery of nutrition-sensitive interventions. A symbol of hope The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) notes that the progress of India in agrifood system transformation is not just national imperatives; they are global contributions. As a leader among developing countries, India is well-positioned to share its innovations in digital governance, social protection, and data-driven agriculture with others across the Global South. India's experience shows that reducing hunger is not only possible but that it can be scaled when backed by political will, smart investment, and inclusion. With just five years left to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), including SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) on ending hunger, India's recent performance gives this writer hope. But sustaining this momentum will require a shift from delivering sustenance to delivering nutrition, resilience, and opportunity. The hunger clock is ticking. India is no longer just feeding itself. The path to ending global hunger runs through India, and its continued leadership is essential to getting us there. Maximo Torero Cullen is Chief Economist, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Study finds COVID-19 may have aged blood vessels by 5 years, especially among women
New Delhi: A COVID-19 infection could age one's blood vessels by about five years, especially among women, according to a new study. The effect was found to be stronger among women who experienced persistent symptoms after recovering from COVID-19 -- collectively termed 'long Covid' -- such as shortness of breath and fatigue. "Since the pandemic, we have learned that many people who have had (COVID-19) are left with symptoms that can last for months or even years. However, we are still learning what's happening in the body to create these symptoms," lead researcher Rosa Maria Bruno from Universite Paris Cite, France, said. The study, published in the European Heart Journal, looked at around 2,400 people -- about half were women -- from across 16 countries, including Australia, Brazil and those in Europe. While blood vessels are known to become stiffer with age, a COVID-19 infection can accelerate the process and can heighten the risk of developing cardiovascular disease, including stroke and heart attack, the researchers said. The participants' vascular (blood vessel) age was measured using a device that looks at how quickly a wave of blood pressure travels between the carotid artery (in the neck) and femoral arteries (in the legs) -- called 'carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity'. A higher value indicates more stiffness and ageing of blood vessels. Measurements were taken six months after a COVID-19 infection and again after 12 months. An increase in pulse wave velocity of around 0.5 metres per second is clinically relevant and roughly amounts to ageing by five years, with a three per cent increased risk of cardiovascular disease, in a 60-year-old woman, the researchers said. The study found that, on average, pulse wave velocity among women who had a mild infection was increased by 0.55 metres per second, by 0.60 metres per second in those hospitalised and by over one metre per second for women treated in intensive care. "(Pulse wave velocity) differences were significant in women, but not in men. Among COVID-19 positive women, persistent symptoms were associated with higher (pulse wave velocity)," the authors wrote. "A stable or improved (pulse wave velocity) after 12 months was found in COVID-positive groups, whereas a progression was observed in the COVID-negative group," they wrote. Explaining how COVID-19 impacts blood vessels, Bruno said that the disease-causing virus "acts on specific receptors in the body, called the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 receptors, that are present on the lining of the blood vessels." "The virus uses these receptors to enter and infect cells. This may result in vascular dysfunction and accelerated vascular ageing. Our body's inflammation and immune responses, which defend against infections, may also be involved," the lead researcher said. Further, compared to men, women are known to produce a more rapid and robust immune response which can protect from infection but can also inflict damage on blood vessels after initial infection, Bruno said. In a related editorial, published in the European Heart Journal, researchers from Harvard Medical School in the US wrote, "Although the acute threat of the COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic has waned, a new challenge emerged in its aftermath: post-acute COVID-19 syndrome." The study highlights that "COVID-19's vascular legacy is real, measurable, and with a plausible likelihood of sex-specific findings," they wrote. "COVID-19 has aged our arteries, especially for female adults. The question is whether we can find modifiable targets to prevent this in future surges of infection, and mitigate adverse outcomes in those afflicted with COVID-19-induced vascular ageing," the authors said.>
The Hindu
7 hours ago
- The Hindu
Don't panic over heart attacks as numbers show no alarming rise: Karnataka Minister
Asking the public not to panic over heart attacks, Medical Education Minister Sharan Prakash Patil on Monday said that the data does not show any significant increase. 'Lifestyle changes can prevent heart attack episodes. Though concerns have been raised over heart attacks, there has been no significant increase. On an average, 5% to 6% of the cases are heart-related. The trend remains the same this year too,' the Minister told Legislative Council in response to a question from Congress member Dinesh Gooligowda. 'Isolated incidents should not create panic among public.' The Minister also clarified that lifestyle has been major contributor to heart attacks. Dr. Patil said that there has been no evidence to link post-COVID-19 effects to heart attack cases, and a committee, led by K.S. Rabindranath, director of Sri Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences, and a task force set up by the Health department have dismissed any link between the two. Tele ECG to be expanded Meanwhile, to a question from BJP member Dhananjaya Sarji, Health and Family Welfare Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao said that the tele ECG facility will be extended to all taluk hospitals and PHCs across the State. Currently, it is available in 86 hospitals. He told the House that there is a proposal to install AED devices used to revive persons who suffer a heart attack at public places, including airports, bus stands and railway stations. Mr. Rao said that cathlabs have been proposed in Mangaluru, Hosapete, and at C.V. Raman Nagar in Bengaluru. Number of cases The Minister also informed the House that since heart attack was not a notifiable disease earlier, it was difficult to ascertain the exact number of cases. However, under Puneeth Rajkumar Hrudaya Jyothi scheme, 1,004 heart attack-related deaths were reported in the last three years at primary care centres. At Sri Jayadeva Institute, 6.12 lakh heart-attack cases have been reported in which 472 persons below 45 years have died. He further stated that the Dr. Rabindranath committee has found that in nearly 75% of all cases persons were at risk owing to more than one factor.
