There is a new version of COVID-19 and the World Health Organisation has labelled it a “variant of concern.” First identified in South Africa on 25 November, preliminary evidence suggests that it carries a greater risk of reinfection than other strains. (www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2021/11/26/a-new-covid-19-variant-has-emerged) Just a day after its emergence, the world turned hyper. The EU imposed […]
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Does Omicron threaten India’s COVID-19 decline?
The news of a new strain of COVID-19 — designated as Omicron, or B.1.1.529, that was first detected in South Africa — has put recent news of India’s consistent decline in COVID-19 cases into question. With a new strain on the horizon, will India continue its success story in keeping COVID-19 under control? A […]
Global Health Newsletter XV
The more things change the more they remain the same or, what you gain in the swing you lose on the roundabout. Despite the vaccine, Europe is back where it started, becoming the focal point of the Covid-19 pandemic just as it was in the spring and summer of 2020. However, thanks to the vaccines, […]
A new era for vaccines in Africa?
Pharma major BioNTech plans to start construction on its first start-to-finish vaccine plant in Africa in the middle of next year, Bloomberg reports (www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-10-26/biontech-to-start-building-vaccine-plant-in-africa-next-year). The German company said it is developing the plans with the governments of Rwanda and Senegal, and initially, the factory will have an annual capacity of 50 million messenger RNA vaccine […]
Heart disease is not just a concern among the elderly
The recent deaths of celebrities Puneeth Rajkumar and Siddharth Shukla due to cardiac arrest have once again brought heart disease to the forefront of public attention. The key message derived from Indian cardiologists, as well as cardiologists across the globe is that heart disease is not just a disease of the elderly. As reported by […]
Was it American-funded research that went wrong in Wuhan?
During his tenure US President Donald Trump had accused the Chinese of creating and unleashing the COVID-19 virus on an unsuspecting world, repeatedly calling it the “China virus” for good measure. Ironically, possibilities have now been raised of a US role in China’s virology research. The US National Institutes of Health (NIH) has denied that […]
Malaria and the long road to a vaccine that’s a mixed blessing
With Covid-19 figures generally heading south (touchwood and all that!), the big news of the week focussed on older ailments with the bat virus being replaced by the unfriendly neighbourhood mosquito. More than 130 years after the naming of the Plasmodium parasites behind malaria, the world now has its first approved vaccine against them. Many malaria researchers […]
Five must-know facts about monsoons and climate change
The UN’s latest major climate report published by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) – the IPCC WG1 – evidence displaying the “physical science basis” for climate change’s effect on monsoons. India, like many countries, relies on this seasonal rainfall for the sustenance of livelihoods, food supplies, and the upkeep of ways of life […]
Global health news: The latest
It’s going to take years for the world to come to grips with the impact of COVID-19. Moving slightly away from the immediate effect of the disease, there are numerous medical issues that have arisen during the pandemic. Shortages in hospital facilities and medical personnel are most prominent among them. This has, in turn, led […]
IP and breakthrough infections: Global Health Today
This is the third in a series of newsletters, offering the expert insight of Lalita Panicker – consulting editor, views, Hindustan Times, New Delhi – into some of the most pressing health issues of the day. This edition highlights vaccines – specifically, the IP debate and so-called breakthrough infections. To read the first, click here. COVID-19 […]