Prevalence and incidence of zoonotic diseases in South Asia: a systematic review protocol.

Objective: This review aims to estimate the prevalence and incidence of zoonotic diseases from studies of populations from South Asia (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka).

Introduction: South Asia is of notable importance in terms of the prevalence and incidence of endemic zoonoses, as well as its role as a focal point for emerging zoonotic diseases.

Inclusion Criteria: All populations residing in the 8 South Asian countries, irrespective of age/gender, will be considered.

Does induction or augmentation of labor increase the risk of postpartum hemorrhage in pregnant women with anemia? A multicenter prospective cohort study in India.

Objective: To investigate whether induction/augmentation of labor in pregnant women with anemia increases the risk of postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) and whether this risk varied by indications for labor induction/augmentation and by anemia severity in pregnancy.

Methods: In a prospective cohort study of 9420 pregnant women from 13 hospitals across India, we measured hemoglobin concentrations at recruitment (≥28 weeks of gestation) and blood loss after childbirth during follow-up and collected clinical information about PPH. Clinical obstetric and childbirth information at both visits were extracted from medical records.

Reported snakebite mortality and state compensation payments in Madhya Pradesh, India, from 2020 to 2022.

Background: India experiences the highest snakebite burden globally, with 58 000 predicted deaths annually. The central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh is thought to have a substantial snakebite burden and provides compensation to families who can demonstrate by postmortem and hospital treatment reports that their relatives have died due to snakebite. This study represents the first report on the frequency of distribution of compensation for snakebite deaths in Madhya Pradesh.

Economic evaluations of neglected tropical disease interventions in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic review protocol.

Objective: The objective of this systematic review is to provide an overview of economic evaluation studies of interventions for neglected tropical diseases in low- and/or middle-income countries.

Introduction: The majority of people most susceptible to neglected tropical diseases reside in low- and middle-income countries and suffer significant economic impact due to these diseases. The World Health Organization suggests utilizing a systematic and cross-cutting approach with multiple interventions to lessen the neglected tropical disease burden.

Women's awareness of perinatal mental health conditions and the acceptability of being asked about mental health in two regions in India: a qualitative study.

Background: Mental health conditions are common during pregnancy and the first year after childbirth. Early detection allows timely support and treatment to be offered, but identifying perinatal mental health conditions may be challenging due to stigma and under-recognition of symptoms. Asking about symptoms of mental health conditions during routine antenatal and postnatal appointments can help to identify women at risk.

Diagnosis of rabies using reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction on post-mortem skin tissue specimens of the nasolabial plate in a rabies suspected cow: a case study.

In India, rabies in cattle is under-reported. Religious sentiments hamper its diagnosis, discouraging post-mortem examination, particularly opening the cranium. Specimens of peripheral tissue innervated by the cranial nerves could potentially be used as alternative diagnostic specimens to the brain.

Reply to Kapur, V. Is Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis a Cost-Effective Intervention to Avert Rabies Deaths among School-Aged Children in India? Comment on "Royal et al. A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis to Avert Rabies Deaths in School-Aged Children in India. 2023, , 88".

Thank you so much for forwarding the critical analysis the author (VK) conducted on our recently published modelling study 'A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis to Avert Rabies Deaths in School-Aged Children in India' in your reputed journal [...

Multilevel Comparison of Indian Venoms and Their Cross-Reactivity with Indian Polyvalent Antivenoms.

Snake envenoming is caused by many biological species, rather than a single infectious agent, each with a multiplicity of toxins in their venom. Hence, developing effective treatments is challenging, especially in biodiverse and biogeographically complex countries such as India. The present study represents the first genus-wide proteomics analysis of venom composition across species (, , and ) found in mainland India.

ICMR task force project- survey of the incidence, mortality, morbidity and socio-economic burden of snakebite in India: A study protocol.

Background: Snakebite is possibly the most neglected of the NTDs (Neglected Tropical Diseases). Half of the global deaths due to venomous snakebites, estimated at 100,000 per year, occur in India. The only representative data on snakebite available from India is the mortality data from the RGI-MDS study (Registrar General of India- 1 Million Death Study) and another study on mortality from the state of Bihar.

Venom of several Indian green pit vipers: Comparison of biochemical activities and cross-reactivity with antivenoms.

Green pit vipers, a name that can refer to several unrelated species, comprise a large group of venomous snakes found across the humid areas of tropical and sub-tropical Asia, and are responsible for most of the bite cases across this region. In India, green pit vipers belonging to several genera are prevalent in the northern and north-eastern hilly region, unrelated to species present in the peninsular region. In the present study, crude venom of representative species of green pit vipers present in the north and north-eastern hilly region of India (Trimeresurus erythrurus, T.

Epidemiological, humanistic and economic burden of dog-mediated rabies in India: a systematic review protocol.

Rabies is a neglected zoonotic disease. It is transmitted through the bite of a rabid animal and dog bites are responsible for around 95% of human cases. The disease is almost always fatal after the onset of symptoms.

Mean corpuscular volume/mean corpuscular hemoglobin values are not reliable predictors of the β-thalassemia carrier status among healthy diverse populations of Himachal Pradesh, India.

Background: Himachal Pradesh is a hill state in North India in the Western Himalayas. β-thalassemia is a genetic disorder of hemoglobin inherited in an autosomal recessive manner that results in defective globin production leading to the early destruction of red blood cells. β-thalassemia has long been neglected in Himachal Pradesh due to popular belief that it runs along "Lahore-Gujarat-Punjab" belt in India.

Reviewing Solutions of Scale for Canine Rabies Elimination in India.

Canine rabies elimination can be achieved through mass vaccination of the dog population, as advocated by the WHO, OIE and FAO under the 'United Against Rabies' initiative. Many countries in which canine rabies is endemic are exploring methods to access dogs for vaccination, campaign structures and approaches to resource mobilization. Reviewing aspects that fostered success in rabies elimination campaigns elsewhere, as well as examples of largescale resource mobilization, such as that seen in the global initiative to eliminate poliomyelitis, may help to guide the planning of sustainable, scalable methods for mass dog vaccination.

Study of a hepatitis E virus outbreak involving drinking water and sewage contamination in Shimla, India, 2015-2016.

Background: Hepatitis E, caused by hepatitis E virus (HEV), accounts for 50% of acute hepatitis cases in India. We report an outbreak of hepatitis E in Shimla, India, in 2015-2016.

Methods: ICMR-National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune, received two batches of water samples from Shimla in January 2016 to test for the presence of enterically transmitted hepatitis viruses.

Wound-only injection of rabies immunoglobulin (RIG) saves lives and costs less than a dollar per patient by "pooling strategy".

Since 2008, we in Himachal Pradesh have used a "pooling strategy" to help patients save money by pooling vials of antirabies vaccine at a centralized hospital and sharing them using the intradermal technique. In 2014, there was an acute shortage of rabies immunoglobulins (RIG) and two patients died after four injections of rabies vaccine were administered without RIG, which was not commercially available. After an extensive literature review and technical and ethical committee clearances, in June 2014 we started to infiltrate equine RIG (eRIG) into wound/s only without the recommended systemic intramuscular (IM) injection.

Using a modified rabies immunoglobulin protocol in a crisis of unavailability: Ethical and practical challenges.

Rabies is a dreaded disease of zoonotic origin, responsible for an estimated 55,000 deaths annually, of which 20,000 deaths are in India. Some animal bite patients need rabies immunoglobulin (RIG) for post exposure prophylaxis, in addition to the vaccine against rabies. The major reason for the high death rate in India is the high cost of RIG.

Failure of postexposure prophylaxis in a girl child attacked by rabid dog severing her facial nerve causing possible direct entry of rabies virus into the facial nerve.

On January 4, 2019 an eight-year-old girl child was bitten by a suspected rabid dog over the left parotid region. After a 17-h delay, the child was brought for rabies postexposure prophylaxis (PEP) at Civil Hospital Theog and was administered complete PEP. On January 29, 2019, the child was again brought to Theog Hospital with complaints of having fever, difficulty in walking, neck drop, and ptosis.

Modelling to inform prophylaxis regimens to prevent human rabies.

Background: The Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) Working Group on rabies vaccines and immunoglobulins was established in 2016 to develop practical and feasible recommendations for prevention of human rabies. To support the SAGE agenda we developed models to compare the relative costs and potential benefits of rabies prevention strategies.

Methods: We examined Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) regimens, protocols for administration of Rabies Immunoglobulin (RIG) and inclusion of rabies Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) within the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI).

Failure of Postexposure Prophylaxis in a Patient Given Rabies Vaccine Intramuscularly in the Gluteus Muscle, Himachal Pradesh, India.

A 48-year-old male was bitten by a dog on the forehead and on the RIGHT side of left eyebrow on November 26, 2017, at 2 pm. The patient was immediately rushed to a nearby private hospital where an MBBS doctor gave him immediate wound wash with soap and water and prescribed five doses of rabies vaccine intramuscularly (IM). Since the patient weight was 60 kg, he was also prescribed 2400 IU of equine rabies immunoglobulin (ERIG), but as eRIG was not available, it was not administered.

Injecting rabies immunoglobulin (RIG) into wounds only: A significant saving of lives and costly RIG.

An increasing number of dog bite victims were being presented to public hospitals in Himachal Pradesh in 2014 amidst virtual non availability of any rabies immunoglobulin (RIG). Only a small quantity of equine rabies immunoglobulin (eRIG) was available from the government owned Central Research Institute (CRI) Kasauli. This available eRIG was used in 269 patients as an emergency response and only for local infiltration of severe bite wounds by suspected rabid dogs.