Category Health & Science

Novel drug treatment offers hope to XDR-TB patients

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By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 03.02.21 (SciDev.Net): A new three-drug, all-oral, six-month treatment is providing hope to patients in Tajikistan with highly drug-resistant forms of tuberculosis, which until now had limited treatment options and a poor prognosis.

Tajikistan is the first country in Central Asia and second in the world after Ukraine to provide patients with extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB) access to the novel BPaL regimen treatment under operational research conditions from December 2020. The regimen consists of three drugs –  bedaquiline, pretomanid and linezolid.

“The BPaL regimen offers the shortest possible treatment course for XDR-TB patients, excludes injectable drugs, it’s easy to use and more affordable. Conventional treatment regimen for patients with XDR-TB consists of 7- 8 antibiotics for a minimum of 18 months, including any of the injectable drugs, which not every patient can tolerate”, says Veriko Mirtskhulava, senior epidemiologist at KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation, an international NGO devoted to eliminating TB.

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Nanosensors embedded in living plants detect arsenic

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Arsenic contaminated water used for drinking, food preparation and irrigation of food crops poses the greatest threat to public health in many countries. Photo Credit: © Neena Bhandari

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 11.12.20 (SciDev.Net): Researchers have developed a living plant-based sensor that can in real-time detect and monitor levels of arsenic, a highly toxic heavy metal, in the soil. Arsenic pollution is a major threat to humans and ecosystems in many Asia Pacific countries.

Arsenic contaminated water used for drinking, food preparation and irrigation of food crops poses the greatest threat to public health because the toxic chemical is naturally present at high levels in the groundwater of a number of countries, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

“Detecting arsenic level in the soil is important to ensure minimal contamination of our food chain. If we can have a convenient way to measure arsenic concentration in the soil in real time, we would be able to take preventive measures to keep arsenic level at the minimum, strengthening our food safety”, says Tedrick Thomas Salim Lew, a recent graduate student of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and co-lead author of the research published in Advanced Materials on 26th November 2020.

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Asia needs to improve equity in health

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A floating village in Ha Long Bay, in the Gulf of Tonkin, where most residents are part of Vietnam's majority ethnic group, the Kinh people. Photo Credit: © Neena Bhandari

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 18.11.2020 (SciDev.Net): Access to health care is a challenge for the most marginalised communities within Asian countries, but over the past decade there has been a growing commitment to identify and address health inequalities to make progress towards universal health coverage, a seminar heard.

A satellite session (8—12 November) of the Sixth Global Symposium on Health Systems Research, organised by Health Systems Global (HSG), focused on creative ways people working in health policy and research across Asia are increasing health equity, including for ethnic minorities and non-citizens.

Evidence suggests that certain socially disadvantaged groups tend to use health services less, although these groups may need health services more. This is partly because disadvantaged groups typically face multiple barriers, such as financial, geographical and cultural, in accessing services, according to Health at a Glance: Asia/Pacific 2018.

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