New Delhi: The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is conducting a study to know the connection between the sudden rise in deaths due to cardiac arrest and Covid-19 and its results are expected to come in two months’ time. The results of the study are expected to come in two months, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya informed on Tuesday (April 4).
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The ICMR team that is conducting this study includes several scientists like Dr Nivedita and Dr Tanveer Kaur.
Mr. Mandaviya told NDTV that the Health Ministry is investigating any possible link with Covid.
The government has commissioned research to find the link between the recent spate of heart attacks in young people with Covid, and the results are expected in two-three months. We saw so many young artistes, athletes, sportspersons…they died on stage while performing. We all saw that, and reports started coming in from several places. We needed to investigate.
On a possible fourth wave of the covid pandemic, the health minister said there’s a need to be alert. The last Covid mutation was BF.7 sub-variant of Omicron, and now XBB1.16 sub-variant is causing the surge in infections, he said, adding that in the ministry’s experience, sub-variants are not too dangerous. The minister said,
Whenever a new variant is detected, we identify and isolate it in a lab. We then study the efficacy of vaccines on them. So far, our vaccines have worked against all present variants.
The CoWIN platform has provided all vaccination data, which has helped greatly, Mr. Mandaviya said and revealed that the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has been studying the link between strokes and Covid for the last three-four months, and the study will be completed in the next two months.
In February, Dr Soumya Swaminathan, former Chief Scientist of the World Health Organization (WHO) said that it is well established that after being infected with Covid-19, the risk of heart attacks, diabetes, and strokes goes up. Dr Soumya Swaminathan had said while speaking to ANI exclusively.
Risk of getting a heart attack is 4-5 per cent higher after being infected with Covid-19 than getting it after vaccination. Covid-19 infection is itself a main risk factor for subsequent heart attacks.
Earlier on December 22 during Chintan Shivir in Uttar Pradesh’s Varanasi, the Union Health Minister told ANI that the study will take six more months to complete to know whether there is any connection between Covid-19 and heart attacks.
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NDTV – Dettol have been working towards a clean and healthy India since 2014 via the Banega Swachh India initiative, which is helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. The campaign aims to highlight the inter-dependency of humans and the environment, and of humans on one another with the focus on One Health, One Planet, One Future – Leaving No One Behind. It stresses on the need to take care of, and consider, everyone’s health in India – especially vulnerable communities – the LGBTQ population, indigenous people, India’s different tribes, ethnic and linguistic minorities, people with disabilities, migrants, geographically remote populations, gender and sexual minorities. In wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign will continue to raise awareness on the same along with focussing on the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children, fight malnutrition, mental wellbeing, self care, science and health, adolescent health & gender awareness. Along with the health of people, the campaign has realised the need to also take care of the health of the eco-system. Our environment is fragile due to human activity, which is not only over-exploiting available resources, but also generating immense pollution as a result of using and extracting those resources. The imbalance has also led to immense biodiversity loss that has caused one of the biggest threats to human survival – climate change. It has now been described as a “code red for humanity.” The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene. Banega Swasth India will also be taking forward the dream of Swasth Bharat, the campaign feels that only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and the country can become a Swasth or healthy India.
