As many as 103 dengue patients were hospitalised during the last 24 hours till this morning, according to a daily statement of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS). 103 dengue patients were admitted to the hospital, although no deaths reported in the last 24 hours. More than 4,000 dengue patients have been admitted to hospitals this year. This information was revealed in the Health Department's dengue report on Friday (June 10th) morning. In the last 24 hours, 45 dengue patients were admitted to hospitals in Dhaka city and 58 outside Dhaka. Besides, 63 people were infected with dengue on July 8, 88 on July 9 and 79 on July 10. So far this year, 4,311 people have been hospitalised with dengue infection. In the meantime, 3,949 people have left the hospital after recovering. So far 47 people have died. Although the two city corporations of Dhaka have taken various initiatives throughout the year, entomologist Dr. Manzur Chowdhury says that only jail-fines and public awareness will not work to kill mosquitoes. Proper measures should be taken with skilled manpower by conducting a proper survey. In 2023, the country witnessed the highest number of dengue cases in the country's history was 3,21,179 and 1,705 people died.  

 A federal judge on Friday rejected a bid by a group of cancer victims to block Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N), opens new tab from pursuing a proposed bankruptcy settlement of tens of thousands of lawsuits alleging the company's baby powder and other talc products contain cancer-causing asbestos. The cancer victims sought a preliminary order in New Jersey on June 11 to preventing J&J from filing for bankruptcy outside the state, which would have effectively foiled the $6.48 billion settlement plan. The motion was part of a class action lawsuit brought by plaintiffs' lawyers opposed to the plan. But U.S. District Judge Michael Shipp on Friday said he could not grant the motion because any harm to the victims was "strictly hypothetical." He said he had no jurisdiction to resolve a dispute over 'events that have not, and may never, occur.' A lawyer for the plaintiffs did not immediately respond to a request for comment late on Friday (July 5). J&J hopes to garner support from 75% of claimants as part of the prepackaged bankruptcy plan. It has set a July 26 voting deadline. The healthcare conglomerate faces lawsuits from more than 61,000 plaintiffs alleging its talc caused ovarian cancer or mesothelioma, a deadly cancer linked to asbestos exposure. J&J maintains its talc is safe, asbestos-free and does not cause cancer. The company contends a bankruptcy settlement pays claimants fairly and equitably, as opposed to the civil justice system in which most plaintiffs receive nothing while some win outsized awards. Plaintiffs' attorneys opposing the plan say it is a fraudulent attempt to put billions of dollars of the company's assets out of plaintiffs' reach, preventing them from getting the compensation they deserve. J&J has failed twice to execute a bankruptcy maneuver aimed at ending current and future talc lawsuits. The strategy, known as a Texas two-step, involves creating a subsidiary to absorb J&J's talc liability, which then declares bankruptcy to resolve cases. Two courts previously found J&J's subsidiary lacked the "financial distress" necessary to legitimize a bankruptcy filing. J&J's plan focuses on resolving claims in bankruptcy from women with ovarian and other gynecological cancers allegedly linked to talc. It has settled most mesothelioma cases outside of bankruptcy, and this month finalized a separate $700 million agreement to resolve claims from state attorneys general. Source: Reuters

A disease caused by a rare "flesh-eating bacteria" that can kill people within 48 hours is spreading in Japan after the country relaxed Covid-era restrictions, Bloomberg reported on Saturday. Streptococcal toxic shock syndrome (STSS) is an aggressive illness that can be fatal within 48 hours of infection. As many as 977 cases of STSS have been reported in Japan this year by June 2, higher than the record 941 cases reported last year, according to the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, which has been tracking incidences of the disease since 1999. Group A Streptococcus (GAS) typically causes swelling and sore throat in children known as "strep throat," but some types of the bacteria can lead to symptoms developing rapidly, including limb pain and swelling, fever, low blood pressure, that can be followed by necrosis, breathing problems, organ failure and death, according to Bloomberg. “Most of the deaths happen within 48 hours,” said Ken Kikuchi, a professor in infectious diseases at Tokyo Women’s Medical University. "As soon as a patient notices swelling in the foot in the morning, it can expand to the knee by noon, and they can die within 48 hours,” he said. People over 50 are more prone to this disease. Kikuchi added that at the current rate of infections, the number of cases in Japan could reach 2,500 this year, with a “terrifying” mortality rate of 30%. Kikuchi urged people to maintain hand hygiene and to treat any open wounds. He said patients may carry GAS in their intestines, which could contaminate hands through faeces. Besides Japan, several other countries have experienced recent outbreaks of streptococcal toxic shock syndrome, according to Bloomberg. In late 2022, at least five European nations reported to the World Health Organization an increase in cases of invasive group A streptococcus (iGAS) disease, which includes STSS. The WHO said the rise in cases followed the end of Covid restrictions. Source: in

People who take Ozempic or Wegovy may have a higher risk of developing a rare form of blindness, a new study suggests. Still, doctors say it shouldn't deter patients from using the medicines to treat diabetes or obesity. Last summer, doctors at Mass Eye and Ear noticed an unusually high number of patients with non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy, or NAION, a type of eye stroke that causes sudden, painless vision loss in one eye. The condition is relatively rare — up to 10 out of 100,000 people in the general population may experience it — but the doctors noted three cases in one week, and each of those patients was taking semaglutide medications. A look back at six years of medical records showed that people with diabetes were more than four times more likely to be diagnosed NAION if they were taking a prescription semaglutide, and those who were overweight or obese were more than seven times more likely to experience the condition if they were taking the medication. The risk was found to be greatest within the first year of receiving a prescription for semaglutide. The study, published Wednesday in the medical journal JAMA Ophthalmology, cannot prove that semaglutide medications cause NAION. And the small number of patients — an average of about 100 cases were identified each year — from one specialized medical center may not apply to a broader population. Novo Nordisk, the manufacturer of the only semaglutide medications in the US, emphasized that the data in the new study is not sufficient to establish a causal association between the use of semaglutide medications and NAION. 'Patient safety is a top priority for Novo Nordisk, and we take all reports about adverse events from the use of our medicines very seriously,' a company spokesperson wrote in an email to CNN. Semaglutide prescriptions have soared in the US, which could raise the number of people at risk for a potential side effect. And NAION is the second-leading cause of optic nerve blindness after glaucoma. But even with an increased risk, the condition remains relatively uncommon. 'The use of these drugs has exploded throughout industrialized countries and they have provided very significant benefits in many ways, but future discussions between a patient and their physician should include NAION as a potential risk,' lead researcher Dr. Joseph Rizzo, director of the neuro-ophthalmology at Mass Eye and Ear and a professor at Harvard Medical School, said in a news release. 'Our findings should be viewed as being significant but tentative, as future studies are needed to examine these questions in a much larger and more diverse population.' Experts agree that the potential risk of NAION should not deter the use of semaglutide medications to treat diabetes or obesity. 'In the ever-changing landscape of systemic therapies, being vigilant for potential new disease associations is a duty we all share on behalf of patients,' Susan Mollan, an ophthalmologist with the University Hospitals Birmingham in the UK wrote in a related commentary. But the large number of people who are taking semaglutide should raise confidence that the absolute risk of developing NAION as a result is rare. The ways that semaglutides interact with the eyes are not entirely understood. And the exact cause of NAION is not known either. The condition causes damage to the optic nerve, but there is often no warning before vision loss. Changes in blood sugar levels can affect the shape of an eye's lens and may affect vision, said Dr. Disha Narang, an endocrinologist and director of obesity medicine at Endeavor Health in Chicago. She was not involved in the new study. And the use of semaglutides, which prompt the body to create more insulin to reduce blood sugar, has been previously linked to temporary vision changes — new or worsening cases of diabetic retinopathy, or damage to blood vessels at the back of the eye — likely related to the rapid improvement of blood sugars. The US Food and Drug Administration-approved labels for both Ozempic and Wegovy include vision changes among potential side effects, and Novo Nordisk is exploring the link between semaglutide use and diabetic retinopathy in a trial which they expect to complete 2027. 'Patient safety is paramount at the FDA and we continuously review available sources of data and new information on potential risks of drugs, including GLP-1 receptor agonists, and update labeling as needed to communicate new information on potential risks to healthcare providers and to patients as soon as possible,' Chanapa Tantibanchachai, a press officer with the FDA, told CNN over email. While there is a 'biologically plausible mechanism” for a potential interaction, ''association is not causation' and diabetes mellitus is a known risk factor for NAION,' Dr. Andrew Lee, clinical spokesperson for the American Academy of Ophthalmology and neuro-ophthalmologist at Houston Methodist Hospital, told CNN in an email. He was not involved in the new study. For now, patients who are taking semaglutide or considering treatment should discuss the risks and benefits with their doctors, especially those who have other known optic nerve problems such as glaucoma or preexisting visual loss, experts say 'It is important to consult with ophthalmology if patients experience visual changes,' Narang said. 'It is important to make sure patients are consulting with physicians who are also comfortable prescribing semaglutide and talking through what may be clinically relevant versus irrelevant, and discussing benefits versus risks of long-term therapy.'   Source: CNN

Synthetic opioids continue to concern European drug agencies. A new report states that 'polydrug' use is leading to new health risks. Data on cannabis since Germany's legalization, however, is still sparse. The top takeaway from the European Drug Report 2024 : Drug users in Europe are increasingly using more than one drug at the same time — a practice known as "polydrug" or "polysubstance" use. And synthetic opioids remain a top-level concern for drug monitoring and drug addiction agencies. These trends may or may not be voluntary as potent synthetic opioids are often being mis-sold or mixed with medicines and other drugs, and cannabis products are being adulterated with synthetic cannabinoids — so users don't always know what they are taking. Polydrug use is the use of two or more psychoactive substances, licit or illicit, simultaneously or sequentially. Substances may be sold that contain one or more drugs other than the one the purchaser was expecting, either in a mixture with the substance they intended to buy or even as a replacement for it. (Source: Understanding Europe's drug situation in 2024 — key developments/European Drug Report 2024) "Polydrug use can increase the risk of a drug overdose," stated the report, published by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) on June 11, 2024. "The majority of fatal overdoses involve the use of more than one substance […] cannabis was the drug most commonly reported in the cases of polydrug use toxicity." Heroin is still the most commonly used illicit opioid in Europe. Cocaine use is second only to cannabis. Synthetic opioids play a smaller role in Europe than they do in North America, according to the report, but their use is increasing in Europe, too. And they are "often highly potent and carry a significant risk of poisoning and death." Six out of seven new synthetic opioids reported for the first time to the EU Early Warning System (EWS) in 2023 were nitazenes.  EU Drug Reports lacks data on synthetic opioids By its own admission, and despite its 177-page heft, the report lacked data in a number of key areas essential for assessing public health effects and measures to curb addiction rates and drug overdoses. Take nitazenes, for example: The report stated that in 2023, nitazenes were associated with a "sharp rise" in deaths in Estonia and Latvia and with localized poisoning outbreaks in France and Ireland.  But nitazenes and similar substances are not always detected in routine post-mortem toxicology tests in some countries, "so associated deaths may be under-estimated." That means that the EMCDDA simply isn't getting the data it needs, especially when EU states fail to check for new and evolving drugs on the market. "As drug consumption patterns are becoming ever more complex, there is also a growing need to improve our understanding of how changes in patterns of polydrug use are impacting on mortality," stated the report. Another key area that lacked data was the impact of cannabis legalization. This is striking against two facts stated by top-level speakers at an EMCDDA briefing: Ylva Johanssen, European Commissioner for Home Affairs said: 'After cannabis, cocaine is the second most common drug used in the EU.' Alexis Goosdeel, EMCDDA Director said that the concentration of THC, the psychoactive element in cannabis resin had 'doubled in the last ten years' and it continues to rise, according the written report. Average THC was at 22.8% in the year 2022. The report suggests that 'any policy development in this area' meaning legalization or toleration of cannabis, for instance 'should be accompanied by an assessment of the impact of any changes introduced. This sort of evaluation will depend on the existence of good baseline data; underlining again the need to improve our monitoring of current patterns of use of Europe's most commonly consumed illicit drug.' The EMCDDA's 'national focal point' in Germany is the 'Deutsche Beobachtungsstelle für Drogen und Drogensucht" (DBDD), or the German observation office for drugs and drug addiction. DBDD Director Eva Hoch told DW that the issue of missing baseline data — an agreed "starting point" from which to evaluate any changes or developments — could affect Germany's ability to evaluate the impact of its legalizing cannabis in April 2024. 'German researchers said a year ago that the scientific evaluation should start before the legalization, because we need that baseline data,' said Hoch. Cannabis consumption had been on the rise for a decade before legalization, said Hoch, and this needed to be taken into account to properly track the impact of legalization. 'The picture is cracked in Germany,' said Hoch. 'There are many anecdotes on the internet and social media, but we don't have systematic data. It's unclear how the law has been adopted across the country's 16 federal states […]. There is no systematic data on the immediate impact of the new law we can't say whether cannabis consumption has increased in the two months since legalization or whether demand has increased, or whether there have been more traffic accidents since legalization in April.' Those factors are just the start. Studies in the US and Canada had shown, said Hoch, that there were more than 100 factors that can help evaluate the effect of cannabis legalization. The German government had planned to evaluate the impact of the legalization of cannabis, she said, but that process had yet to start, and there was no sign of when it would begin.

At least three people died of dengue and a total of 21 people have been admitted to hospitals. This information was given in the regular report  by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) on dengue sent from the Of the victims, 11 are from Dhaka City Corporation area. Besides, 10 people were admitted to hospitals outside Dhaka due to dengue. The highest of them are in Barisal, 5. A total of 2,545 people were infected with dengue across the country from January 1 to May 15 this year.  Of these, 851 are from Dhaka City Corporation area. At the same time, 2,377 people have been discharged from hospitals.

At least three people died in the 24 hours till 11am on Monday with heatstroke across the country due to the intense heat wave, according to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).   The organization says, 15 people died in heatstroke in the last 14 days. The Health Emergency Operation Center and Control Room of the DGHS reported this information on heatstroke cases and deaths on Monday (May 6). According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), 33 people suffered heat stroke in 14 days from April 22 to Sunday (May 5). Of them, 15 have died. The data showed that, Magura records is the highest number of deaths due to heatstroke with seven deaths. Besides,  fatalities were reported in Chattogram, Khulna, Chuadanga, Habiganj, Rajbari, Jhenaidah, Lalmonirhat, Bandarban and Madaripur.