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What To Know About Asthma

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Asthma  is a serious respiratory  disorder. It is a lung disease that  resultsd in the blockage of the airways.
The Natural Remedies Encyclopedia (sixth edition) reveals that  during an attack,  the muscles around the bronchi (the small passage ways of the lungs) tighten  and narrows,  making it difficult for air to leave the lungs.
The chronic  inflammation and excessive sensitivity of the bronchi produces those constricting spasons .
The bronchial  tubes swell and become plugged with  mucus. An attack  often  occurring at night usually begins as a non-productive cough and wheezing which  is often  followed by difficult  breathing and tight chest and after a few hours,  it subsides.
Symptoms:  Difficult breathing, coughing,  tight chest, wheezing etc. Attacks of multiple symptoms  can occur suddenly or gradually. Sometimes, there  is coughing with thick persistent sputum that may be clear or yellowish. There is a feeling of suffocation. Children often have coughing and vomiting episodes.
Causes: Only certain people have asthma. Those that do  may have an attack triggered by allergen or other irritants  (such as chemicals, drugs, dust mites,  feathers,  food  additives, pollutants, fumes,  tobacco smoke among others.
But other things can also cause it and they  include anxiety, fear, stress, low blood sugar, temperature charges, adrenal  disorders, extreme of dryness or humidity or respiratory  infections.
About 80 per cent have  allergic disorder but others do not. Experts warn that ever-increasing amounts of pollutants will cause  the number of asthmatics to increase. Many workers must continually live with such things as sulfite, polyurethane, exposy resins, dry clearing chemicals, lerathane and many other chemicals common to industry.
Types: There are two types-Intrinsic  and Extrinsic. Extrinsic (inherited) usually  begins in childhood. It is seasonal  and usually caused by  a definite number of substances which can  more easily be identified and occurs  between   in age 2 and 17 group.
This type of asthma can be difficult to diagnose  because its symptoms are similar  to those of bronchitis, emphysema and lung infections. But if the  symptoms  reoccur  every year at a certain time and there is  a family history of allergies, it should be treated as for Asthma.
Intrinsic Asthma  is more severe and generally  begin after 30 years of age. Attacks  can occur at any time and the causes are much more difficult to identify.
It is generally advisable that we keep away from such Asthma causing  agents to avoid or minimise  the level of  attacks  and stay healthy.

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‘How Micro RNA Research Won Nobel Prize’

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Two United States scientists who unraveled the human micro RNA have won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2024.
Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun won the coveted  prize for their work on microRNA as their discoveries help explain how complex life emerged on earth and how the human body is made up of a wide variety of different tissues.
MicroRNAs influence how genes – the instructions for life – are controlled inside organisms, including humans.
Every cell in the human body contains the same raw genetic information, locked in our DNA.
However, despite starting with the identical genetic information, the cells of the human body are wildly different in form and function.
The electrical impulses of nerve cells are distinct from the rhythmic beating of heart cells. The metabolic powerhouse that is a liver cell is distinct to a kidney cell, which filters urea out of the blood.
The light-sensing abilities of cells in the retina are different in skillset to white blood cells that produce antibodies to fight infection.
So much variety can arise from the same starting material because of gene expression.
The US scientists were the first to discover microRNAs and how they exerted control on how genes are expressed differently in different tissues.
The medicine and physiology prize winners are selected by the Nobel Assembly of Sweden’s Karolinska Institute.
They said: “Their groundbreaking discovery revealed a completely new principle of gene regulation that turned out to be essential for multicellular organisms, including humans.
“It is now known that the human genome codes for over 1,000 microRNAs.”

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WHO Begins Regulation On Antibiotic Waste

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The World Health Organisation (WHO) has begun acting to curb effects of antibiotic pollution.
The new guidance on wastewater and solid waste management for antibiotic manufacturing sheds light on this important but neglected challenge ahead of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) High-Level Meeting on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) taking place on 26 September 2024.
The emergence and spread of AMR caused by antibiotic pollution could undermine the effectiveness of antibiotics globally, including the medicines produced at the manufacturing sites responsible for the pollution.
Despite high antibiotic pollution levels being widely documented, the issue is largely unregulated and quality assurance criteria typically do not address environmental emissions. In addition, once distributed, there is a lack of information provided to consumers on how to dispose of antibiotics when they are not used, for example, when they expire or when a course is finished but there is still antibiotic left over.
“Pharmaceutical waste from antibiotic manufacturing can facilitate the emergence of new drug-resistant bacteria, which can spread globally and threaten our health. Controlling pollution from antibiotic production contributes to keeping these life-saving medicines effective for everyone,” said Dr Yukiko Nakatani, WHO Assistant Director-General for AMR ad interim.
Globally, there is a lack of accessible information on the environmental damage caused by manufacturing of medicines.

 

“The guidance provides an independent and impartial scientific basis for regulators, procurers, inspectors, and industry themselves to include robust antibiotic pollution control in their standards,” said Dr Maria Neira, Director, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health, WHO. “Critically, the strong focus on transparency will equip buyers, investors and the general public to make decisions that account for manufacturers’ efforts to control antibiotic pollution.”

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Kebbi Harmonises Doctors’ Salaries To Curb Brain Drain

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In a concerted effort to curb brain drain, the Kebbi State Government has harmonised medical doctors’ salaries to be at par with their colleagues in the federal government’s tertiary health facilities.
Kebbi State Commissioner for Health, Musa Inusa-Isma’il, disclosed this at the handing over of ambulances to the state-owned health facilities at the Ministry of Health in Birnin Kebbi yesterday.
Inusa Isma’il, according to a statement by Ahmed Idris, the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, said the essence of the harmonisation was to retain the existing medical doctors and attract more to the services of the state.
According to him, the doctors across the state had already started enjoying the new salaries from August 2024.
He said the release of the vehicles was in fulfilment of Governor Nasir Idris’ promise to uplift health care services in the state.
“His Excellency said I should inform you, the beneficiaries of this gesture, that the vehicle should be strictly used for the intended purpose. It should not be used for anything else.
“If there is no referral case, each of the vehicles must be parked at the hospital by 6 pm. The governor said you should warn your drivers against reckless driving as well as violating the instructions.
“We should also do everything possible to reciprocate the gesture by working according to the terms and conditions attached,” he advised.
The benefiting health facilities included Sir Yahaya Memorial Hospital, Birnin Kebbi; State Teaching Hospital, Kalgo; General Hospital, Argungu; General Hospital, Yauri; General Hospital, Zuru; and General Hospital, Bunza.

 

 

In his speech, the permanent secretary of the ministry, Dr Shehu Koko, recalled that the ambulances were handed over to the ministry last Friday by the governor for the onward handover to the benefiting hospitals.
He observed that the ambulances would go a long way in improving the referral system in the state, adding that delays in reaching the secondary and tertiary facilities would be eliminated.
The permanent secretary attributed the high rate of maternal mortality in the country to delays in getting to the health facilities for proper medical care.
“We believe with the provision of these ambulances, part of the gaps we have in our referral system will be addressed, whereby patients who require secondary healthcare could be easily transported to secondary and tertiary health centres, where they can get such help,” he said.
In a goodwill message, Commissioner for Information and Culture Alhaji Yakubu Ahmed expressed gratitude to the governor for the support he has given to the ministry to excel.
While advising the beneficiaries to use the vehicles judiciously, the commissioner advised that services and maintenance of the vehicles must be prompt to derive the maximum benefits from the vehicles.
The commissioner also highlighted some achievements recorded by the government in the last year, including beautification of the state capital, completion of a multimillion-naira ultramodern state secretariat, road construction, construction and renovation of classrooms and upgrading of some health facilities, among others.

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