Whose failure? Encephalitis kills 50,000 in 30 years

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Whose failure? Encephalitis kills 50,000 in 30 years

GoM on encephalitis focuses on sanitation, safe drinking water
Express news service

Posted: Tue Nov 22 2011, 03:08 hrs
New Delhi:

...

Faced with these compelling statistics, the first meeting of the GoM on JE focused on the lack of basic amenities such as sanitation and safe drinking water as the reason for the yearly outbreaks of the viral infection, asking the concerned ministries to fix these problems.

The GoM comprises, apart from Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, Urban Development Minister Kamal Math, Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Mukul Wasnik and Minister of Rural Development, Drinking Water and Sanitation Jairam Ramesh.

...

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/GoM-on-encephalitis-focuses-on-sanitation--safe-drinking-water/878963/

GoM meets to deal with water-borne disease AES
TUESDAY, 22 NOVEMBER 2011 00:40 PNS | NEW DELHI HITS: 49
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The Group of Ministers (GoM), set up to work out an action plan to deal with the deadly Japanese Encephalitis and Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) that have claimed over 850 lives so far this year across the country, met for the first time on Monday but could not reach any decision on the way forward.

The GoM will now again meet on Friday even as the water-borne disease has spread its tentacles in 135 districts in 16 States.

“Only the broad contours of the action plan were discussed but a decision on the logistics to tackle the disease at the ground-level remains to be taken,” sources said.

...

http://dailypioneer.com/nation/22252-gom-meets-to-deal-with-water-borne-disease-aes.html

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Whose failure? Encephalitis kills 50,000 in 30 years

Homoeopathy clinical trials on JE patients soon .
Saturday, 03 December 2011 00:22 Archana Jyoti | New Delhi

Can homoeopathy help curb killer disease Japanese Encephalitis (JE) which has claimed over 1,000 lives across the country this year? To ascertain this, the Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy (CCRH) of the Health Ministry will soon start clinical trial of homoeopathy on the JE patients in disease endemic zone, Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh, to test its efficacy.

Over 450 people have died in Gorakhpur so far due to JE. The first-of its kind, trial would be undertaken at BRD Medical College in Gorakhpur on 100 patients, mostly children, affected with the disease. As per treatment protocol, two groups of 50 patients each would be formed. One group would be subjected to allopathy medicine while the other would be administered allopathy as well as homoeopathy medicines, Professor C Nayak, former director of the CCRH told The Pioneer.

He said treatment protocol for the two-and-a-half year study has already been approved by Scientific Advisory Committee of CCRH and a positive result from the study on humans will not only silence the sceptics of homoeopathy but would also help in curbing the fatal disease.

The need for trial to test homoeopathy came as it was found that JE vaccination among children has failed to deliver results with the menace continuing to spread its tentacles. A total over 7,137 cases have been reported till November this year. (JE vaccination cannot stop the 80+% of encephalitis cases that are not caused by JE! This is not a failure of the vaccine - this is a failure by state and national governments to find the cause of the illness -Ro)

Under the study, the health status and rehabilitation speed of the two groups of patients will be compared to gauge the effectiveness of homoeopathy medicine. "For instance, if the results show that the patients getting allopathy with the addition of homoeopathy have better survival rate or show speedy recovery, then it means alternative Indian Medicine System has efficacy in treating the disease," Nayak said.

The homoeopathy experts are hopeful of positive results. A study by researchers at Kolkata's School of Tropical Medicine and the CCRH showed that the homeopathic medicine Belladonna prevented infection in chick embryos infected with the JE virus.

Moreover, second phase trials for the same study have also shown encouraging results, Prof Nayak said and informed that mice which were given the medicine were able to fight better. "The observations have been published in an American journal of infectious diseases."

http://www.dailypioneer.com/nation/25029-homoeopathy-clinical-trials-on-je-patients-soon.html

American Journal of Infectious Diseases 6 (2): 24-28, 2010
ISSN 1553-6203
© 2010 Science Publications
Corresponding Author: Bhaswati Bandyopadhyay, Department of Microbiology, Virology Unit, School of Tropical Medicine,
Kolkata-700073, India
24
Decreased Intensity of Japanese Encephalitis Virus Infection in Chick
Chorioallantoic Membrane Under Influence of Ultradiluted Belladonna Extract
1Bhaswati Bandyopadhyay, 2Satadal Das, 1Milan Sengupta, 3Chandan Saha,
4Kartick Chandra Das, 4Debabrata Sarkar and 5Chaturbhuj Nayak
1Department of Microbiology, Virology Unit, School of Tropical Medicine, Kolkata-700073, India
2Department of Pathology and Microbiology, D.N. De H. Medical College,
West Bengal University of Health Sciences, Kolkata-700046, India
3Department of Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology,
School of Tropical Medicine, Kolkata-700073, India
4Drug Proving Research Centre, CCRH, Government of India,
Kolkata-700 046, India
5Department of AYUSH, Ministry of Health, CCRH, Government of India, JLN Anudandhan Bhawan,
61-65 Intitutional Area, Janakpuri, New Delhi 110058

Abstract: Problem statement: No specific antiviral therapy is currently available despite an
emergence and resurgence of Japanese encephalitis in South-East Asian Countries. There are only few
recent studies, which were aimed to treat Japanese encephalitis with newer drugs. There is thus a real
need for study on antiviral agents that can reduce the toll of death and neurological sequelae resulting
from infection with this virus. Approach: Optimum dilution of the JE virus was determined which
could produce significant number of pocks on Chorioallantoic Membrane (CAM). Then ultradiluted
belladonna preparations were used to see their inhibitory action on JE virus infection in CAM.
Results: Ultradiluted belladonna showed significantly decreased pock count in CAM in comparison to
JE virus control. Conclusion: Ultradiluted belladonna could inhibit JE virus infection in CAM, which
may be mediated through glycosidase inhibitory role of calystegines present in belladonna.

...
full paper at; http://homeopathyplus.com.au/belladonnastudy.pdf

VERTICAL PREVENTIVE ROLE OF BELLADONNA 200 ON JAPANESE ENCEPHALITIS VIRUS INFECTION IN SUCKLING MICESession ID: M23
Author Name(s): Bhaswati Bandyopadhyay, Milan Sengupta, C.Saha, K. C. Das, Satadal Das, and Chaturbhuj Nayak
Organization: Dept. of Virology, School of Tropical Medicine, Kolkata & CCRH
Conference Session: Session II

Background:Approximately two billion people live in countries where JE presents a significant risk to humans and animals, particularly in China and India, with at least 700 million potentially susceptible children. Although most human infections are mild or asymptomatic, about 50% of patients who develop encephalitis suffer permanent neurological defects, and 30% of them die due to the disease. There is thus a real need for antiviral agents that can reduce the toll of death resulting from infection with JE virus. Therefore, this study was aimed to see whether Belladonna 200 has a preventive role in this infection.
Materials and Methods: For this study we selected Belladonna 200. The aqueous solution of above-mentioned alternative homeopathic medicine was procured from a local reputed homeopathic drug company, HAPCO, Kolkata. For control study, the Potentized distilled water 200 was also procured from HAPCO, Kolkata. JE virus stock ( Nakayama strain) which was maintained in School of Tropical Medicine, Kolkata was used in this study. In experimental group mothers were treated with Belladonna 200 in two groups - in one group (group I) mothers were treated for 7 days and in the other group (group II) mothers were treated for 14 days. There was a control group in which mothers were not treated with belladonna 200. The suckling mice in each group were challenged with JE virus following standard protocol.
Results: Mean &#177; Standard deviation&#177; Standard error of mean survival rate(%) in control group (N=44), group I (N=40) and group II (N=32) were respectively 49.32&#177;27.15&#177;4.52, 86.63&#177;7.02&#177;1.17 and 85.58&#177;10.22&#177;1.70. The differences between control group and experimental groups were highly significant (p value <0.01), however, there was no significant difference between the two experimental groups.
Conclusion: In conclusion, we may claim that Belladonna 200 has got a preventive role on JE virus infection in suckling mice when mothers were treated with this alternative medicine.

http://pascv2010.ivdnews.net/public/show_abstract/649.html

You should follow the link to read this full blog entry below - Ro;

Homeopathic Belladonna in Japanese Encephalitis? Naah!

Posted by Kausik Datta on Apr 26, 2011

Heh! Right now I have this stupid grin on my face, because I caught this glaring error in a published paper. Okay, it is a paper on homeopathy referenced in a godawful homeopathy website (that I mentioned in my yesterday's write-up), but nevertheless.

....

Let me be very clear: Atropa belladonna and its derived alkaloids ≠ ultradiluted homeopathic belladonna used in this study. Ain't quite the same.

I should also clarify that the doses used (3, 6, 30 and 200 - the authors don't mention the designation) possibly refer to 3, 6, 30 and 200X (the 'X'-designation is prevalent in India, the source of the preparations), which mean, respectively, the dilutions of a thousandth (10-3), a millionth (10-6) - both being fairly plausible dilutions, with reasonable amounts of the original alkaloid left - to be followed by 10-30 and 10-200 - both of which are ridiculous dilutions in which no remnant or trace of the original alkaloid can possibly remain. At these dilutions, only the solvent and dissolved impurities are around.

...

As you can see, they claim significance of the homeopathic dilutions, because the number of pock marks is significantly less with their administration, than with the virus alone. It is indeed significant (but not in the way the authors intended) that they chose not to show any data from the controls, just restricting the observation to 'no significant finding' for the control.

The authors also chose to ignore a very vital comparison: Even in absence of the homeopathic therapy (i.e. in the virus control), the virus-induced pock marks vary significantly (p<0.001, I plugged the numbers to check) from experiment to experiment - say, between the controls for the belladonna 3 and 30 test groups, which should have been nearly identical, because conditions are the same. This inherent/experimental variability in their control groups immediately invalidates their conclusion of difference between control and test groups, because one cannot satisfactorily estimate if the observed effect is due to the treatment or simply random chance events.

The authors also fail to mention why a higher dilution (therefore, more potent according to homeopathic principles) of 6X ends up with more pock marks than a lower dilution (3X). They plot the average counts in the paper, but the graph contains no error bars, leaving no visual means to ascertain the dispersal of their test data vis-&#224;-vis the control.

So, in conclusion, for a study that is hailed by the homeopathy website(s) as the evidence that a homeopathic nostrum works against the JE virus, the study is inadequate (only ex vivo), as well as plain darn wrong because it draws wrong conclusions stemming from a major logical flaw: confirmation bias. The authors saw in the observations only what they wanted to see, and didn't analyze the data critically. This study is sloppy, and I honestly wonder how it even passed peer review to be published in the American Journal of Infectious Disease (admittedly not a journal with whose academic standards I am familiar).

...

http://blogs.nature.com/kausikdatta/2011/04/26/homeopathic-belladonna-in-japanese-encephalitis

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Whose failure? Encephalitis kills 50,000 in 30 years

Report on Death of Children in Uttar Pradesh
The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) had called for a report from the Government of Uttar Pradesh regarding deaths of children in the State, the Minister of Women & Child Development Smt. Krishna Tirath revealed this in Rajya Sabha today in written reply to a question.

The Minister further stated that the Commission has received the report. As per report, 462 children died from Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) and 27 children died from Japanese Encephalitis (JE) in 2011 (as on 31st October, 2011). The State has further informed that a special immunization drive was carried out in 2006 and again in 2010 for Japanese Encephalitis (JE) in Gorakhpur district. Thereafter a regular immunization programme has covered 32,421 children till September, 2011.

She also said that as per the report, reason of AES in more than 50% of the cases is not known. (looking at the numbers above, I would say the cause of death is unknown in 94% of cases -Ro)Investigation for the reasons is going on in Gorakhpur Unit of National Institute of Virology, Pune. Once the reason is known, effective initiative can be planned.

******


DK/BS
(Release ID :78300)

http://pib.nic.in/newsite/erelease.aspx?relid=78300

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Whose failure? Encephalitis kills 50,000 in 30 years

NCPCR Recommends to UP Govt. For Stern Measures to Deal With Japanese Encephalitis




National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) team led by Dr. Yogesh Dube (Member), visited Japanese Encephalitis affected areas of Gorakhpur division, i.e., Gorakhpur, Kushinagar and Deoria districts of Uttar Pradesh during 5th ? 8th December, 2011. Following are the recommendations to the Uttar Pradesh government:-



? All the PHC and CHCs must be strengthened to provide immediate medical assistance to the patients. The district hospitals must be developed as the super specialized hospitals to treat the cases of J.E and A.E.S and special high tech virology laboratory must be set up;

? Every P.H.C, C.H.C and district hospitals shall have Citizen Charter or list of facilities available for public information;

? Ensure approval of the proposals sent by the districts to curb Japanese Encephalitis and Acute Encephalitis Syndrome on priority basis;

? Arrange a team of expert doctors from AIIMS, Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital and other national level institutions and sent them for the screening of patients so that clear identification of the cases could be done as soon as possible;

? Visit of team of doctors on rotation basis from other medical colleges to work in the affected areas for short period of time so that they can provide their services as well as train the doctors working in the affected areas under their guidance;

? All the vacant post of doctors and paramedical staff must be filled as soon as possible:

? A survey must be conducted to find the number of persons who became disabled due to J.E and A.E.S and a proper rehabilitation plan must be prepared;

? Special attention must be given to the children who are suffering from malnutrition and a survey must be conducted to know the exact details of Gorakhpur and Basti Division and district administration must ensure that no case of malnutrition exists;

? The administration must fix the accountability of every death that took place so that quick and stern action is taken against erring officials;

? Administration can send a proposal to Central Government to add the immunization of J.E and A.E.S in the National Eradication/Immunization Programme;

? Pediatric Ventilators and other machines must be made available to all the district hospital. Every district hospital in affected areas must have a dedicated well equipped 25 beds ward for the J.E and A.E.S patients;

? Ensure formation of a district level committee under the District Magistrate in all the affected districts with appropriate support from the State task force, which will review the situation in every 15 days and will report to the Principal Secretary, Health and also send a copy of the report to the Commission;



? Ensure a Joint Committee at Divisional level under the Divisional Commissioner with representation from Panchayati Raj institutions, Social Welfare Department, Women and Child Development Department, Health Department, Public Health and Engineering Department and Rural Development and Education department. There shall be representation from the civil society as well;

? Every affected district should make an Action Plan and Citizen Charter for long term intervention and immediate intervention to check the epidemic at the earliest in line with the Project Implementation Plan (PIP) developed for Kushinagar district. In the action plan special emphasis must be given to the best interest of the children;

? All the shallow hand pumps must be identified, sealed and replaced with India Mark II hand pumps and these must reach the depth as prescribed by the government norms. Alternative water sources must be developed like water supply through the taps or Rain water Harvesting system in the schools at least on a priority basis;

? Projects of IEC and BCC activities must be approved on a priority basis and a campaign must be carried out in every affected village to sensitize the people about J.E and A.E.S. with active support and co-operation of local NGOs;

? Overall infrastructure of all the laboratories testing the AES and JE samples at district level must be reviewed at the earliest and a report must be sent to the Commission within a month?s time. Increase the number of labs in the affected districts before the next monsoon;

? Water contamination in all the affected areas should be checked on a regular basis. All the sources which are found contaminated should be marked. All the laboratories which are testing water must check the samples of affected areas on priority basis;

? Proper surveillance system must be developed in all the affected areas and a report on this must be shared with the Commission;

? Ensure filling of the pits causing water-logging and breeding of mosquitoes and sprinkling of bleaching powder regularly;

? Vector transmission should be interrupted at the earliest. Vaccination/ Immunization drive must be carried out on a campaign mode to reach every section of the society;

? Every district must have adequate number of fogging machines to carry out fogging in a campaign mode in all the affected areas and the responsibility of monitoring shall be with the gram panchayats;

? Special sanitation and cleanliness drive should be carried out in the affected areas and a report must be sent to the Commission within 2 months; and

? All the committees at village and Panchayat level like Village Water and Sanitation Committee, Village Health Committee etc. must be activated and sensitized about the J.E and A.E.S. Total Sanitation Campaign and School Sanitation and Health Education programmes must be started in all the affected villages/panchayats;

? Training programme for all the doctors working in the area for proper sensitization about the issue and skill development to handle the cases; and

? Ensure profiling and auditing of patients to develop case studies of each patient and also study the recurrence of the disease in the patients.

KKP/bs


(Release ID :78732)

http://pib.nic.in/newsite/erelease.aspx?relid=78732

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Whose failure? Encephalitis kills 50,000 in 30 years

Drive to combat Japanese Encephalitis soon
Kounteya Sinha, TNN | Dec 17, 2011, 05.40AM IST


NEW DELHI: India will soon roll out a national programme to combat Japanese Encephalitis (JE).

Union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, who heads a group of ministers (GoM) against JE and Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES), will soon send the detailed plan to ministers Jairam Ramesh, Krishna Tirath, Mukul Vasnik and the Prime Minister's Office for final approval.

Once vetted, the programme will be placed before the Cabinet. Sources told TOI the programme, which includes replacement of shallow hand pumps by deep bore hand pumps in acute encephalitis syndrome-affected districts, setting up of ICU wards, especially for JE patients in all district hospitals and identifying the most undernourished children and providing them higher nutrition to fight the virus will first be rolled out in 60 districts in West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Assam.

Around 10 medical colleges in these states are being identified that will house physical and medical rehabilitation units for JE/AES patients. A ministry official told TOI that "The GOM has met thrice till now, and finalized the provisions of this national programme. We expect it to roll out early next year. Among the 171 districts affected with JE/AES, we will first take up 60," he said.

...

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Drive-to-combat-Japanese-Encephalitis-soon/articleshow/11140076.cms

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Whose failure? Encephalitis kills 50,000 in 30 years

All pigs to be screened in capital for JE virus
PTI | 08:12 PM,Dec 21,2011
New Delhi, Dec 21 (PTI) To check spread of Japanese Encephalitis in the city, Delhi Government today ordered screening of all pigs which are primary reservoirs of virus causing the disease. Health Minister A K Walia, at a meeting with top officials of his department as well as civic agencies, also issued direction for regular lifting of blood samples of pigs to ascertain prevalence of the virus. Domestic pigs are primary reservoirs of the virus and the disease is mainly spread through mosquitoes belonging to Culex tritaeniorhynchus if they bite humans after drawing blood from infected pigs.

...

http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/all-pigs-to-be-screened-in-capital-for-je-virus/940752.html

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Whose failure? Encephalitis kills 50,000 in 30 years

Inter-departmental panel to monitor Japanese encephalitis prevention plan
Aarti Dhar
Share ? Comment ? print ? T+ Centre and States will share cost of Rs. 3,355-crore on a 90:10 basis

The National Programme for Prevention and Control of Japanese Encephalitis (JE) and Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES), proposed by the Group of Ministers, will be monitored and supervised by an inter-departmental committee chaired by the Union Health Secretary. The cost-sharing for the implementation of the programme between the Centre and States will be on a 90:10 basis.

The Rs. 3,355-crore programme, to be rolled out in phases, will be jointly implemented by the Ministries of Health and Family Welfare, Drinking Water and Sanitation, Social Justice and Empowerment, and Women and Child Development. The largest chunk of money will be spent by the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation, amounting to Rs. 2,301.57 crore, followed by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare's Rs. 864 crore. The estimated cost to the Women and Child Development Ministry will be Rs. 177 crore and the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment will shell out Rs. 11.5 crore.

To be set up with the goal of reducing morbidity, mortality and disability in children due to the JE and AES, which claim hundreds of lives every year and leave hundreds physically and mentally disabled, the programme will deal with strengthening and expansion of JE vaccination in affected districts, strengthening surveillance, vector control, timely referral of serious cases and increasing access to safe drinking water and proper sanitation facilities to the target population in affected rural and urban areas.

...

http://www.thehindu.com/health/policy-and-issues/article2745198.ece

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Whose failure? Encephalitis kills 50,000 in 30 years

Rs 2,000cr budgetary sop likely to combat Japanese Encephalitis
Kounteya Sinha, TNN | Dec 26, 2011, 04.29AM IST

NEW DELHI: India will announce a national programme to the tune of nearly Rs 2,000 crore to combat Japanese Encephalitis and Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) in the upcoming Union budget.

...

The health ministry would require about Rs 1,600 crore for the national programme over the five-year period. "The budget will for the first time announce a separate allocation for the targeted intervention for JE and AES," an official told TOI. Initially, the drive will be rolled out in 60 districts in five states - West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Assam, and would include expansion of JE vaccination in 62 new districts, establishment of ICUs in 60 priority districts and would be a multi-pronged strategy to include safe water, sanitation, nutrition, community education, medical attention and rehabilitation.

Shallow hand pumps will be replaced by deep bore hand pumps in AES-affected districts, while the most undernourished children will be identified and provided higher nutrition to fight the virus.

...


JE/AES is a major public health challenge, and mostly children below 15 years are affected. About 25% of affected children die and, among survivors about 30%-40% suffer from physical and mental impairment.

This year, 861 deaths have been reported so far, and 70%-75% of the disease burden is in Uttar Pradesh. (latest nvbdcp figures 1,064 fatalities with 51% in UP http://nvbdcp.gov.in/je-cd.html - Ro)

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/11248911.cms

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Whose failure? Encephalitis kills 50,000 in 30 years

Encephalitis campaign in the affected villages
Jan 02, 02:20 am

The specific plan
- The government's special efforts to protect children village Consolidated Plan
- Nutrition, hygiene, health and education will focus on
- Health Department in the current financial year the goal was to start
- Up to 15 villages selected blueprint instructions
- Will DM Coordinator, will be the cooperation of various departments
- Development will be the support of friends
Rakesh Kumar, Muzaffarpur: Encephalitis will no longer child's life. Protect children from the terror of meningitis in due course of time the government has stepped up the exercise. The plan will be specific to the affected villages. Health Department Principal Secretary, DM, SP and civil surgeon Skemsiac necessary direction in this regard - have directed.
प्रधान सचिव ने चालू वित्तीय वर्ष में ही समेकित योजना को प्रारंभ करने के लक्ष्य रखे जाने की जानकारी देते हुए 15 जनवरी 2012 तक योजना को तैयार कर लिए जाने की बात कही है। Have been told that district meningitis (encephalitis) to the affected villages will be a special village-level action plan. Children with nutrition - with clean, Mahadlit settlements vaccination, clean water, toilets, etc. It will focus on critical needs. Campaign for Mahadlit cluster development is planned to include friends. Principal Secretary, based on records of previous years were instructed to select the sensitive villages where patients suffering from the disease occur annually. They play a coordinating role in DM Plan is requested. The district also cooperate with other related departments have been asked to.
What's Encephalitis: This is a fatal disease in which the patient has fever with high-frequency vibrations. Body temperature drops to 104 degrees. The patient's mouth begins to foam. Whole body occasionally is too stiff. The disease is not treated properly and immediately life goes on. Outbreaks of the disease is more common in children. The 2011 outbreak in the district by June 11 to mid-July. The deaths of 66 children. Not only several blocks of the district close to the disease every year in a half-dozen villages that Brpata havoc. In 2011 to explore the unknown disease, Pune, Patna and core team members visited the affected areas. Consisting of patients symptoms. The team from many places mosquitoes, pig, rat, cat and took samples of many other animals. Even resort to the brain tissue was taken for detection of disease, but so far it is not traceable.
Block affected villages: District Kanti, MOOSHAHARY, Meenapur, Bochan, Motipur, Skra blocks many of the villages are affected. These villages mainly Gangapur, Bahadurpur, Snati, Bndhara, Siwaiptty Bangra, New Village, Snghri, old Dharari Turkey, Ganjti, Mithanapur, Manikpur, Mohamadpur Drdha, Raini, Nkta, Jingha, Phadhck, Madhopur Ahiapur, Blmi Sahebganj, Kfen , Baria, Mdhuvn, Mitnsray, Madhopur, Pirapur etc.. Motihari and Sitamarhi in 2011, many areas of patient treatment in the district were suffering from the disease.

http://in.jagran.yahoo.com/news/local/bihar/4_4_8711576.html

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Whose failure? Encephalitis kills 50,000 in 30 years

Encephalitis on party manifestoes, not in their campaigns

SURBHI KHYATI : Gorakhpur, Thu Feb 02 2012, 00:06 hrs


After 4,000 deaths and 19,000 victims over seven years, encephalitis has made it to the election manifestoes of most parties in Uttar Pradesh in 2012. On ground zero in eastern Uttar Pradesh, however, it is still to figure in the candidates? campaign.
Voters are angry and frustrated but say they are not surprised. Some are determined not to vote at all on February 8 and 11, when the seats in these areas go to polls.

...
?In spite of the issue featuring in their manifestoes for the first time, the local candidates of parties are just not talking about the issue,? says Dr Singh. Blaming the people for not putting adequate pressure on candidates, Dr Singh has prepared a seven-point questionnaire for parties that is being distributed to villages for the public to raise.

The candidates are more content talking about the usual poll issue of infrastructure, like roads and electricity. In Dumrikhurd village of Chauri Chaura, Zulekha Bano?s 10-year-old son Shamsher is unable to hear or talk and do basic functions following a bout of encephalitis. Both Rahul and SP state president Akhilesh Yadav have been to Chauri Chaura the past month, holding poll meetings. Zulekha says she never heard of them.

Says Bindu Awadhesh Singh, a social activist of Chauri Chaura: ?Like previous times, voting will be on caste equations. Local issues will not decide who wins or loses the seat.?

In the Pipraich constituency, where encephalitis has killed three in the past month, local issues of electricity supply and sanitation dominate the poll debates. ?The candidates are not talking of encephalitis, and the people are not bothering to raise the issue either,? said Sumeshwar Prasad, one of the ward members of Pipraich.
...

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/encephalitis-on-party-manifestoes-not-in-their-campaigns/906701/0

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Whose failure? Encephalitis kills 50,000 in 30 years

Patna high court seeks government report on encephalitis
Nishant Sinha, TNN | Apr 7, 2012, 02.46AM IST

PATNA: The Patna high court on Friday directed the state government to file a detailed report on the steps taken to check the break out of encephalitis in Gaya district this summer. The disease breaks out every year in Gaya and its surrounding districts and had last year claimed the lives of around 80 children.

In November 2011 too, the court had asked the state government to submit a detailed report on the measures it had taken to treat and control encephalitis cases, especially in Magadh region.
...

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/patna/Patna-high-court-seeks-government-report-on-encephalitis/articleshow/12564063.cms

`Coordinated efforts needed to tackle water-borne diseases`
Last Updated: Friday, April 06, 2012,20:43

New Delhi: Concerned over the contamination of water by arsenic and other elements, the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation has sought "greater convergence? with the Ministry of Health to deal with the menace.

Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh, who also holds the portfolio of Drinking Water and Sanitation, has written to Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad seeking "greater convergence" between two Ministries to prevent the water-borne diseases.
...
"I would like to focus the additional resources we get sharply on projects that deal with water-quality issues like arsenic and fluoride contamination, that have public health
impacts as well as in areas where water-borne diseases like Acute Encephalitis Syndrome/ Japanese Encephalitis have assumed serious dimensions," the Minister said.
...

http://zeenews.india.com/news/health/exclusive/coordinated-efforts-needed-to-tackle-water-borne-diseases_16398.html

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Whose failure? Encephalitis kills 50,000 in 30 years

Measures to prevent AES/JE
PTI | 07:04 PM,Apr 24,2012
Patna, Apr 24 (PTI) Bihar government has decided to launch measures for prevention and control of the Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) and Japanese Encephalitis (JE) in the state with focus on Gaya and Muzaffarpur districts where 118 deaths were reported last year due to the twin diseases, an official said today. Under an action plan to control AES in Muzaffarpur and adjoining areas, it has been decided to adopt a standard treatment protocol for early diagnosis, treatment and referral Principal Secretary (Health) Amarjeet Sinha told reporters.
...

http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/measures-to-prevent-aesje/990017.html

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Whose failure? Encephalitis kills 50,000 in 30 years

From Karnataka 2005-2007;

Emerg Infect Dis. 2010 November; 16(11): 1780?1782.
doi: 10.3201/eid1611.100672
PMCID: PMC3294525

Enterovirus 75 Encephalitis in Children, Southern India

Penny Lewthwaite, David Perera, Mong How Ooi, Anna Last, Ravi Kumar, Anita Desai, Ashia Begum, Vasanthapuram Ravi, M. Veera Shankar, Phaik Hooi Tio, Mary Jane Cardosa, and Tom Solomon
...
Enteroviruses are a diverse group, and preferred samples for their diagnosis differ. Species B enteroviruses such as coxsackie virus A9 and Echo viruses B1?6 are usually readily isolated from CSF, unlike species A enteroviruses such as EV71. Although EV75 is a species B enterovirus, we were unable to isolate enterovirus from CSF from any of the patients, although throat swabs specimens were positive. This finding is similar to that for EV71, which has been isolated more frequently from throat swab specimens than from CSF or vesicles (4). In a study from Spain, EV75 was isolated from the CSF of 5 patients and nasopharyngeal swab specimens of 3 patients (3). However, throat swab specimens are rarely obtained in rural hospital settings with limited diagnostic facilities.
Although EV75 infection may have been a coincidental finding for the patients, we believe that this possibility is unlikely because results for other common causes of encephalitis were negative. Results of CSF testing were negative for other circulating viruses, including JEV, dengue virus, and herpes simplex virus, and patients also showed negative results for JEV and dengue virus by ELISA.
Our results illustrate the need to confirm diagnoses of EV75 in a range of specimens and by a range of laboratory investigations. This confirmation is required in India where encephalitis is often diagnosed clinically and recent outbreaks have been attributed to JEV. Laboratory diagnosis is hampered by single samples and high cost and low reliability of diagnostic tests currently available. Our study also shows that EV75 can cause encephalitis, in addition to aseptic meningitis and acute flaccid paralysis. Thus, as for other enteroviruses, throat swab specimens may be especially useful for diagnosis of infection with EV75.
...

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3294525/

Encephalitis ? a possible solution?

Issue 11: 22 October ? 7 November, 2011 | Dr Apeksha Rao

In this article:

Encephalitis in Gorakhpur
The Holiya model of water purification
The hilly regions of Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh look beautiful in the monsoons ? deceptively beautiful, because the rains bring with them an increase in cases of encephalitis, an acute infection and inflammation of the brain.

Till 2006, Japanese Encephalitis (JE), a deadly, mosquito-borne, viral illness, was the reigning terror and the cause of most of the deaths during monsoon, especially in children. Since 2006, the government has been carrying out an extensive vaccination drive against this illness. So the incidence of JE started falling.

Now, the monster has a new face. Since July 2011, there has been a virulent outbreak of encephalitis in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. In the Gorakhpur region itself, over 2,300 people have been admitted to the hospital and over 400 have succumbed to the illness, most of them, children.

According to Dr K P Kushwaha, the head of Paediatrics at the B. R. D. Medical College in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, this year, it?s worse than before because of a new virus. It is a waterborne virus, an enterovirus, which is released in the faeces, and the faeces contaminates drinking water, or potable sources. This encephalitis is chiefly seen in children, because they don?t clean their hands well and are prone to using contaminated water. There is no vaccine available for this virus.
...
Can it be prevented?

Yes, it can be prevented, and very easily. Dr R N Singh, Chief Campaigner, Encephalitis Eradication Movement, has implemented a very simple water purification method in the village of Holiya, Uttar Pradesh. It is called the Holiya model of water purification, and is based on Solar Water Disinfection (SODIS). It is a method of disinfecting water using only sunlight and plastic PET bottles.

SODIS is a free and effective method for decentralised water treatment, usually applied at the household level and is recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), as a viable method for household water treatment and safe storage. It requires about 6 hours of midday summer sunshine.

Here?s how it works:

UV-A (Ultra Violet-A) interferes directly with the metabolism and destroys cell structures of the bacteria.
UV-A having wavelength 320-400 nm (nanometre), reacts with oxygen dissolved in the water and produces highly reactive forms of oxygen (oxygen free radicals and hydrogen peroxide), that can damage pathogens (disease-causing microorganisms).
Cumulative solar energy (including the infrared radiation component) heats the water. If the water temperature rises above 50?C, the disinfection process is three times faster.
At water temperatures higher than 45?C (113?F), synergistic effects of UV radiation and temperature, further enhance the disinfection efficiency.
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http://sation.in/?page_id=1093

SODIS - Safe drinking water in 6 hours


Solar water disinfection - the SODIS method - is a simple procedure to disinfect drinking water. Contaminated water is filled in a transparent PET-bottle or glass bottle and exposed to the sun for 6 hours. During this time, the UV-radiation of the sun kills diarrhoea generating pathogens. The SODIS-method helps to prevent diarrhoea and thereby is saving lives of people. This is urgently necessary as still more than 4000 children die every day from the consequences of diarrhoea.

SODIS (abbreviation of Solar Water Disinfection) is an initiative of Eawag. We facilitate the dissemination of the SODIS-method in developing countries. Thereby people in the south get access to safe drinking water and can improve their health in the long term.
...

http://www.sodis.ch/index_EN

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Whose failure? Encephalitis kills 50,000 in 30 years

The model village

Since 2003, Holiya village in Kushinagar has seen five deaths and four cases of handicap due to Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES).
In 2007, 15-year-old Sanju survived the viral infection but could not recover fully. She was unable to move her limbs, her speech was impaired and she would scream for no reason. After months in hospitals, she can now walk. But her arms are still stiff and speech is affected.

Another victim is Shailesh, a standard III student. Like Sanju, his arms are also twisted and speech is impaired. His ability to learn and understand in the classroom is poor. He often cries in school.

People in the village figured out how to fight the disease. They got rid of stagnant water, opened clogged drains and spread awareness.

In the battle to save their children, they improved the methods of sanitation and hygiene with help from R N Singh, a paediatrician from Gorakhpur. They collected water from handpumps sunk by government. This water, when stored in buckets, covered with white cloth and kept under the sun for six to eight hours becomes good for drinking. ?The ultra violet rays of the sun kill the virus,? says Singh.

Parents were also asked to make their children wear full sleeves clothes, use mosquito nets at nights and ensure they did not go near paddy fields. With these basic preventive measures, Holiya did not get any case of AES this monsoon.
...

http://www.downtoearth.org.in/content/fever-stalks

NDMA impressed solar water purifier designed by doc
WEDNESDAY, 23 NOVEMBER 2011 21:51 FAISAL FAREED | LUCKNOW
An indigenous model of solar water purifier designed by a Gorakhpur doctor will be adopted across the country for providing safe drinking water.

Vice-Chairman of National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), Shashidhar Reddy, during his visit to Gorkhpur on Tuesday, announced adoption of the model.

Reddy was asked by Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi to visit the poorvanchal region of the state and he visited Gorakhpur.
...

http://www.dailypioneer.com/state-editions/lucknow/22596-ndma-impressed-solar-water-purifier-designed-by-doc.html

Sun as water purifier a hit in encephalitis-hit Gorakhpur

SURBHI KHYATI : Lucknow, Mon Oct 24 2011, 06:18 hrs
...
?We have decided to adopt a village which is worst hit by encephalitis in the season. Dr Singh will provide technical expertise and we will arrange for all the funds required,? said Jaiswal, president of Sanyukt Vyapar Mandal, Gorakhpur.

The campaign is expected to begin in the new villages in January. ?As this is the encephalitis season, we will not be able to start the campaign in other villages now. After winter sets in, we will be able to start the campaign and take all measures to prevent the spread of the virus for the next six to eight months,? said Singh.
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http://www.indianexpress.com/news/sun-as-water-purifier-a-hit-in-encephalitishit-gorakhpur/864663/2

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Whose failure? Encephalitis kills 50,000 in 30 years

After Ward began the construction of Encephalitis
May 15, 01:13 am

Gorakhpur: Medical College of encephalitis patients in the ward for the treatment of one hundred Bedon had to be ready by this month, the building began to go now. Nearly six months after receipt of funds in November on Monday laid the ground work on the college campus has begun. Although construction has been delayed and that under no circumstances is this year expected to benefit patients.
According to sources, officials at the recent meeting in Lucknow with Principal Secretary in the carrying case was a delay in the construction of the ward. The government began to intervene. CMO Dr. RN Mishra, the first day of water pipelines were built as well as the site office.
Tell the September 24 last year 2011, the then Chief Secretary of the State Medical College, visiting Anoop Mishra and lack of equipment on a bed looking at three to four patients in Medical College Campus hundred Bedon said construction of the encephalitis ward was. That same evening, two hundred million rupees to the then Chief Minister Mayawati Encephalitis ward declared to be released. It also twelve crore for construction of wards, 6 million to 88 million devices and the rest were for other purposes. Chief Secretary to the requirements relating to the ward on September 29 with Dr. KP Kushwaha of the called Lucknow. On November 5 after a week the amount of 20 million account came to Gorakhpur District Health Committee. Ward to build 12 million were transferred to the Public Works Department. December 23 of the Divisional Commissioner of Gorakhpur. Ravindra Naik, Medical College Campus hundred Bedon has laid the foundation stone of the encephalitis ward, but it was not until the arrival of the ward.
...

http://in.jagran.yahoo.com/news/local/uttarpradesh/4_1_9255023.html