Rise in kidney ailments overload dialysis units

December 16, 2015

Bengalur, Dec 16: The rising number of kidney ailments, due to the increasing cases of non-communicable diseases, has posed a serious challenge to the government. The limited dialysis facilities are witnessing an overload.

kidneyAt least two lakh people undergo dialysis in the State. Speaking to media persons, Dr Keshavamurthy R, director, Institute of Nephro Urology, said that with non-communicable diseases such as diabetes on the rise, those with kidney ailments are seen in good numbers.

The Institute sees a patient overload most of the time. With 25 units in place, 60 to 65 people undergo dialysis every day, while a good number are asked to await their turn. “No matter how many units are started, they are occupied because patients are seen in growing numbers,” he said.

This Institute sees patients from West Bengal and Odisha as well. “The diagnosis is done and we put them on dialysis.

Later, they are sent back to their respective places unless their condition is serious as a very small number can be treated completely or can undergo a transplant. The rest have to be on dialysis for life,” he said.

Institute expansion

The autonomous institute will undergo expansion soon. A proposal has been sent to the government for construction of a four-storey building on a plot behind the present premises. With this, 45 more beds will be added. If approved, the construction will begin in the next six months.

PPP model

If infrastructure is one challenge, inadequate manpower is another. For a dialysis centre to be functional, at least one nephrologist, a technician and nurses trained in dialysis are a must.

However, with not enough specialists on hand, the department of health and family welfare and that of medical education have resorted to training general physicians to carry out the procedure. One doctor from each taluk is undergoing training by turns at the Institute of Nephro Urology to be able to go back and run dialysis units.

Meanwhile, Dr G Vamadev, director, department of health and family welfare, said that they had sought a report from all districts on the number of dialysis units available and the want of manpower.

“There is a proposal to start dialysis units on a public-private partnership model. The government will provide the infrastructure necessary, while the other party will run the centre with manpower and consumables,” he said.

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News Network
May 9,2020

Bengaluru, May 9: Karnataka government in its latest order has allowed restaurants, pubs and bars to sell liquor at retail prices from May 9 till May 17. The third phase of coronavirus lockdown is slated to end on May 17.

"Karnataka government has allowed restaurants, pubs and bars to sell liquor at retail prices from tomorrow till May 17. However, they can be sold only in take away form," read an order issued by the state government.

Earlier, the government had allowed the opening of liquor shops in order to mobilise revenue. However, bars, pubs, restaurants were ordered to remain close amid the COVID-19 lockdown.

As per the latest update by the State Health Department, the total number of coronavirus cases in the state is 753. "Of 753 cases, 346 are active cases. 376 persons were discharged after treatment while 30 people have succumbed to the coronavirus," the Health Department said in a release. 

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News Network
July 20,2020

Bengaluru, Jul 20: Karnataka Minister for Primary and Higher Education S Suresh Kumar today said that the results of the Secondary School Leaving Certificate (SSLC) Examinations, held amidst Corona threat, will be announced in the first week of August.

Speaking to newsmen on Monday after visiting the evaluation centres in the City, said that the work is in full swing and it was proposed to announce the results by end of first week next month.

He said that the evaluation of the answer sheets are set to take another 10-12 days. Currently, evaluations of the answer sheets are taking place at 220 centres in the State.

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News Network
June 2,2020

Udupi, June 2: The number of positive cases may continue to be more in Udupi district since the results of more than 3,000 samples are pending with Labs.

The district total cases to 260. The figure had seemed far-fetched on May 15, when the number of cases stood at just three. The latest spike has been attributed to the return of migrants from other States as well as from abroad. These samples are from people who returned to the district in the last two weeks.

This delay is because the laboratories testing samples from Udupi are burdened with a high case-load after more than 8,500 people returned to the district, particularly from the neighbouring state of Maharashtra.

"Samples have piled up after the influx of people returning from other states and from abroad," says Dr Prashant Bhat, nodal officer for COVID-19 in Udupi. This delay has caused returnees in institutional quarantine to stay on for as long as 18 days.

The designated laboratory for coronavirus testing in Udupi is Wenlock District Hospital in Mangaluru. The district administration also sends samples to laboratories at the Kasturba Hospital in Manipal, Yenepoya Medical College, Mangaluru, KS Hegde Medical Academy, Mangaluru, and Viral Diagnostic Laboratory in Shivamogga. Apart from Udupi, the laboratory in Manipal is also testing samples from Uttara Kannada district. The laboratory in Shivamogga is also testing samples from Shivamogga and Bijapur districts. The laboratories in Mangaluru, similarly, have samples from Dakshina Kannada district.

Dr Avinash Shetty, Medical Superintendent of Kasturba Hospital in Manipal, one of the private laboratories being used by the Udupi district administration, said that they are testing samples in batches. "We received around 600 samples today and we will be testing them now. The backlog of samples should be cleared in the next few days," Dr Avinash said.

All 73 cases reported in Udupi on Monday were patients with travel history of returning from Maharashtra or patients with travel history of returning from abroad.

In cases of some patients who tested coronavirus positive in the past week, people were released from institutional quarantine after a stipulated period only to be tracked down again and admitted in hospitals after their results returned positive.

While two such cases emerged in Belapu and Belman in the district, the administration is now following up with others who were released from institutional quarantine to ensure they remain in home quarantine till their test results are confirmed.

The spike in cases among returning migrants in Udupi also comes at a time the Karnataka government reduced restrictions on interstate travel.

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