Latest news with #BPaLM
Time of India
14-05-2025
- Health
- Time of India
New, shorter regimen for drug-resistant TB offers hope
Mumbai: For the first time, select patients with (DR-TB) in the city are being treated with a new, shorter regimen that promises better outcome and fewer side-effects. These patients, numbering 100 until Wedneday, aged over 14 began a six-month course of BPaLM — a four-drug combination approved in India last patients are under the care of private chest physicians, they remain linked to municipal health centres, as one of the vital drugs, bedaquiline, is available only through govt channels. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The other three medicines are pretomanid, linezolid, and 44 patients are being treated at JJ Hospital, which began offering BPaLM to chosen drug-resistant-TB patients in December. Nationally, over 1,000 patients are on the regimen."We are administering BPaLM to carefully selected patients in line with national guidelines," said Dr Priti Meshram, Head of Pulmonary Medicine at JJ Hospital. She noted that patients with disseminated TB — where infection spreads beyond the lungs, to other organs — cannot be put on this treatment due to a higher risk of relapse. "There is extensive screening done to prevent this," Dr Meshram most side-effects have been mild, like nausea and vomiting, one rare case was recorded as a 15-year-old who developed hepatitis. Another known side-effect is peripheral neuropathy. "The regimen isn't weight-adjusted. Low-BMI individuals receive the same dose as relatively heavier patients, which may lead to rare side-effects," Dr Meshram describe BPaLM as being safer than the older 18-month regimen, which includes up to seven drugs. This is still in use for an estimated 64,000 in India. Dr Chetan Jain, a pulmonologist treating around 40 patients with BPaLM in Vikhroli, Ghatkopar, and Kurla said: "Side-effects we're seeing in BPaLM are nothing compared to those in the longer regimen — psychosis, even skin discolouration." Dr Vikas Oswal, a pulmonologist who led the Mumbai arm of BPaLM clinical trial in 2021, has since enrolled 60 patients. "All are doing well... major complications are rare and manageable," he Oswal pointed out that live TB bacteria is not visible in lab tests, in just four weeks. "This has never happened before. Radiological changes are visible in one- to one-and-half month," he most city pulmonologists were trained for BPaLM, only three are placing patients on treatment. Reasons were unclear as BMC's executive health officer Dr Daksha Shah and city TB officer Dr Varsha Puri were unavailable for comment.
Time of India
02-05-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Ganjam launches new skin test to tackle TB cases
1 2 3 Berhampur: Ganjam administration has introduced the Cy-TB test to detect latent infections under the National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme (NTEP). "This will enable the breaking of the chain of the disease before its infection stage," said Bhabani Shankar Mishra, chief district medical officer (CDMO), while launching the new test here on Wednesday. He said the test is exclusively designed to detect TB infection among vulnerable groups, which will help in early detection and break the chain of its spread. These include household contacts of TB patients, diabetics, smokers, malnourished individuals and citizens above 60 years of age. "When we focus on these vulnerable groups, it will help to break the chain of infection," said Abani Kumar Patra, district TB officer. Bideshi Jena, district TB programme coordinator, added that the Cy-TB test reflects a strategic govt push for early detection. The district has received 3,500 vials, distributed to various community health centres (CHCs), for the test. On the first day alone, about 1,100 people were tested. Tuberculosis remains a serious public health challenge in Ganjam, with 280 deaths reported in 2024 and over 6,500 new cases. The district reported 6,698 new cases in 2023 and 6,466 in 2022, with 224 and 319 deaths, respectively. The govt has introduced a new 26-week BPaLM treatment regimen for multi-drug-resistant TB (MDR-TB). The shorter course has been launched at three major medical colleges — MKCG Medical College and Hospital, Berhampur, SCB Medical College and Hospital, Cuttack and PRM Medical College and Hospital, Baripada. Berhampur: Ganjam administration has introduced the Cy-TB test to detect latent infections under the National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme (NTEP). "This will enable the breaking of the chain of the disease before its infection stage," said Bhabani Shankar Mishra, chief district medical officer (CDMO), while launching the new test here on Wednesday. He said the test is exclusively designed to detect TB infection among vulnerable groups, which will help in early detection and break the chain of its spread. These include household contacts of TB patients, diabetics, smokers, malnourished individuals and citizens above 60 years of age. "When we focus on these vulnerable groups, it will help to break the chain of infection," said Abani Kumar Patra, district TB officer. Bideshi Jena, district TB programme coordinator, added that the Cy-TB test reflects a strategic govt push for early detection. The district has received 3,500 vials, distributed to various community health centres (CHCs), for the test. On the first day alone, about 1,100 people were tested. Tuberculosis remains a serious public health challenge in Ganjam, with 280 deaths reported in 2024 and over 6,500 new cases. The district reported 6,698 new cases in 2023 and 6,466 in 2022, with 224 and 319 deaths, respectively. The govt has introduced a new 26-week BPaLM treatment regimen for multi-drug-resistant TB (MDR-TB). The shorter course has been launched at three major medical colleges — MKCG Medical College and Hospital, Berhampur, SCB Medical College and Hospital, Cuttack and PRM Medical College and Hospital, Baripada.
