Express News Service
BENGALURU: Health experts and virologists warn that a diabetes epidemic is set to sweep the country soon, if there is no plan on meticulously eradicating Covid- 19. They say that so far, Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes were mostly due to overnutrition and sedentary lifestyle, but now, several studies have shown that patients hospitalised with Covid-19 are newly diagnosed with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes. It’s a trend medical experts are watching closely.
“It is known that Covid has the ability to worsen existing diabetes, but we are seeing that the virus is also triggering newonset diabetes,” said renowned virologist Dr John Jacob, Christian Medical College, Vellore. He said the virus damages certain cells known as beta cells in the pancreas. They are found within another kind of cell, known as islet cell. The destruction of beta cells prevents the body from making insulin, triggering hyperglycemia.
Dr Prakash Doraiswamy of Aster hospital is among those who recovered from Covid and who took the vaccine
BENGALURU: Many healthcare professionals including doctors, who recovered from Covid-19, were among those who have taken the vaccine.
Since they continue to work with Covid patients, protection against the disease through immunisation is necessary, doctors said. Some of them were asymptomatic when they tested positive for the virus, but all are wary of reinfection since there has been multiple such cases among colleagues.
“There is no clarity on how long antibody protection lasts for those exposed to the virus,” said a doctor from Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute, who took the jab. The doctor said he suffered the infection eight months ago and there is no evidence yet on whether antibodies produced then would help now or in the future. “Though we have recovered, we are as vulnerable as those who have never been infected,” he said.
Express News Service
BENGALURU : Even as the on Tuesday directed the state to take immediate steps to quarantine passengers arriving from UK and subject them to RT-PCR test and submit the details of tests conducted, the state machinery has already swung into action to trace and track them.
The government has received a list of passengers who arrived from the UK between November 25 and December 22. It is now collecting samples of these passengers and genome sequencing will be done to determine whether the SARS-CoV-2 virus is the new variant emerging and spreading in the UK.
As on December 22, at least 2,127 passengers had arrived in Karnataka from the UK and moved to 28 districts of the state.