Anaemia is a common problem in India. It is a risk in its own right and causes a number of deaths, yet it has further implications for heart function. Iron-deficiency anaemia places an increased strain on the heart, placing a great deal of stress on the organ and resulting in reduced cardiac function. Heart disease […]
maternal mortality
Poor sanitation damages health facilities – and patients
Worldwide, two billion people lack access to basic sanitation services at health facilities – leaving them vulnerable to the health risks that can arise because of unhygienic conditions. This is according to a new report by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organisation (WHO). The report’s findings reveal how a quarter […]
How air pollution ruins child health
Poisonous air is causing toxic damage to people across the world. Nine out of ten of us breathe polluted air. Now for the first time, a World Health Organisation (WHO) report has highlighted its damaging impact on child health and survival. Over 93 percent of the world’s 1.8 billion children are exposed to toxic air […]
Oxytocin: Doctors challenge Centre in Supreme Court
The fight over the government’s controversial ‘Oxytocin ban’ has escalated even further and will now be fought in the Supreme Court. . The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has joined the fight against the Centre’s efforts to have Oxytocin’s production and sale severely curtailed by moving the apex court. The new policy has been proposed since […]
Start up identifies key factors in maternal mortality
For many women in rural India, both postnatal and antenatal care are all but non-existent. Healthcare facilities are often out of reach. This alone is a significant contributing factor to both maternal and neonatal deaths in India, which is among the highest in the world. Could the minds of India’s start-ups begin to alleviate the […]
Delhi officials crack down on Oxytocin
The Centre’s controversial ban on Oxytocin may have been stayed until October, but authorities in Delhi are already cracking down on illegal sales of the drug. Authorities in the national capital have seized samples of Oxytocin from some vendors. This came after “a joint surprise check” was carried out by officers of the Central Drug […]
Ban on Oxytocin postponed – again
The Centre’s ban on hormone drug Oxytocin was supposed to come into force today, but has been stayed till October by the Delhi High Court (DHC). The news will surely come as a relief to activists, doctors and drugmakers opposing the Centre’s decision to tighten restrictions on the drug’s production and sale in India. Many […]
Centre lifts ban on sales of life-saving drug Oxytocin
The Centre has revoked its decision to ban retail sale of Oxytocin, a life saving drug for pregnant women in India after petitioners moved court. But tight restrictions remain in place. Oxytocin is a hormone drug used in the treatment of postpartum haemorrhage (PPH), the predominant cause of maternal mortality in India. Its misuse in […]
Oxytocin ban: High court seeks answers from the Centre
Will the government take a u-turn on its decision to revoke ban on hormone drug oxytocin or will the private companies be allowed to produce the life saving drug? The Delhi High Court is seeking answers from the Centre over legal challenges filed against its controversial ban on the hormone drug oxytocin. The Centre seems […]
Oxytocin: The strange case of India’s ban
The Centre has been encouraged to scrap its controversial ban on private sector sales of Oxytocin by the Drug and Technical Advisory Board (DTAB). In a stunning u-turn from the body’s previous stance, it is now exhorting the health ministry to ensure that the hormone drug is “[available] for human use.” Oxytocin is used to […]