IOACON 2013 – Agra

“Missing Microbes – How Antibiotics can do Harm” – by Dr. Martin J. Blaser – published March 2014 Dr Blaser is a professor of medicine and infectious diseases at New York University. Some points from the book – 1. Increasing resistance due to rampant abuse of antibiotics 2. Benevolent bacteria are killed as well by…

ET has an interesting article by Karan Singh, a partner in the Healthcare practice at Bain. He estimates that by 2020, there will be 450 million people in the Urban Mass Market (other than the urban affluent). The estimated healthcare spend of this urban market is Rs 200,000 crores. He also recommends a less stringent…

In Sept 2013, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the United States issued what was seen as the first time hard-data was made available on the problem of antibiotic resistance. The report estimates that 2 million Americans are infected each year by antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains and lead to 23,000 deaths per annum….

A team at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale in Lausanne, Switzerland has announced the development of flexible spinal implants that could help paralysed people walk again. The implant is called the eDura for “electronic dura mater”. The dura mater is the soft connective tissue that surrounds the brain and spinal cord. Traditional implants are more rigid…

The government has lifted the ban on Analgin (a brand of Metamizole Sodium) on March 19th 2014. Analgin is a a pain-killer and anti-pyretic introduced in 1920. It is banned in more than 30 developed countries including the US which banned it in 1977. Even developing countries like Nepal have banned this product. India had…

Smith and Nephew buys out Sushrut-Adler, a leading Indian manufacturer of orthopedic implants and instrumentation. This reflects the trend in the pharmaceutical industry of MNCs buying out Indian companies.