India records 18 lakh new brain stroke cases every year, nationwide campaign launched
Speaking at the event, P.Vijaya, president of the Indian Stroke Association, stressed that brain stroke can happen to anyone, regardless of age, gender, education or economic background. She pointed out that while ischemic stroke is the most common type in India, only 1% of eligible patients receive IV thrombolysis, a clot-busting injection that can improve outcomes if administered within the golden window of 4.5 hours from symptom onset. 'Recognising symptoms like sudden weakness, difficulty speaking or loss of vision is crucial,' she said.
Subhash Kaul, consultant neurologist at KIMS Hospital, Secunderabad, highlighted the need for timely intervention in cases of intracerebral haemorrhage, the deadliest form of stroke caused by brain bleeding. Public education plays a major role in early detection,' he noted.
ISA treasurer Salil Uppal drew attention to the strong link between hypertension and stroke, revealing that one in four Indian adults suffers from high blood pressure. 'Hypertension is the single most important risk factor for strokes, particularly haemorrhagic ones,' he said, urging all adults above the age of 18 to check their blood pressure at least once a year.
The campaign has been launched by the ISA in collaboration with the Indian Association of Physicians-Hyderabad Chapter and the Society for Emergency Medicine India.
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The Hindu
9 hours ago
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It delegates a certain amount of power to State governments to pass orders declaring medical practitioners on their State medical registers as persons 'practising the modern scientific system of medicine for the purposes of ….' the Drugs & Cosmetics Act, 1940. Many State governments have used this power under Rule 2(ee) to allow registered practitioners of Ayurveda and Unani to prescribe modern medicine such as antibiotics. The constitutionality of these orders was challenged before the courts and the first round of litigation concluded in 1998 with the judgment of the Supreme Court of India in Dr. Mukhtiar Chand & Ors vs The State Of Punjab & Ors. The Court concluded that 'the right to prescribe drugs of a system of medicine would be synonymous with the right to practise that system of medicine. In that sense, the right to prescribe allopathic drug cannot be wholly divorced from the claim to practice allopathic medicine'. Simply put, Ayurvedic practitioners had no right to prescribe modern medicine. That judgment never stopped the lobbying by Ayurvedic and Unani practitioners with State governments for the promulgation of orders under Rule 2(ee) allowing them to prescribe modern medicine. Several State governments have continued passing these orders in defiance of the Court's judgment. This inevitably leads to litigation before the High Courts, usually by the Indian Medical Association, which often wins these cases. Unsuspecting patients too have often sued practitioners of Ayurveda before consumer courts on the grounds that they were deceived into believing that they were being treated by a doctor with a MBBS degree who can prescribe modern medicine. While much of the litigation has revolved around the right to dispense modern medicine, there is also the issue regarding the medical procedures that can be conducted legally by practitioners of Ayurveda and Unani. 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This blind faith in traditional medicine is going to cost every citizen in the future since the government is actively considering the inclusion of AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy) treatments under the Ayushman Bharat insurance scheme funded by tax-payers. This is in addition to approximately ₹20,000 crore of tax-payer money spent on research councils functioning under the Ministry of AYUSH with a mandate to research AYUSH. They have very little to show for in terms of scientific breakthroughs. Twitter outrage notwithstanding, the joke at the end of the day is on the tax-payer. Dinesh S. Thakur is the author of 'The Truth Pill: The Myth of Drug Regulation in India'. Prashant Reddy T. is the coauthor of 'The Truth Pill: The Myth of Drug Regulation in India'
Time of India
9 hours ago
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