Admissions closing down shortly: Master of Public health programs in TAU

public health_Landing_page

Texila American University‘s (TAU) distance and online education program is one of the flexible ways for students to get educated being in their own town. Students can be benefited by this flexible Online Learning from Web Campus i.e., TAU Online Learning Management System.

The focus of public health intervention is to improve health and quality of life through the prevention and treatment of disease and other physical and mental health conditions, through surveillance of cases and health indicators, and through the promotion of healthy behaviors.

Programs Offered:

  • Master of Public health
  • PhD in Public Health (Doctoral Program)
  • PhD in Health Education (Doctoral Program)

Features of the program:

  • Practical based advanced curriculum
  • Well qualified renowned faculties
  • Dynamic collaboration with various leading Public health organizations
  • Challenging and real-world experiences
  • Dedicated student coordinator support throughout the program
  • Digital Library Access
  • Chat Application – where you can chat with their peers and fellow students all over the
  • world.

TAU – UCN Partnership

TAU and UNESCO-IAU (International Association of University) listed Universidad Central de Nicaragua (UCN), have signed an agreement to collaborate academically and also in scientific research. Students will receive degree/certification from UCN.

Apply Online


Fully-formed teeth growing inside baby’s BRAIN: Medical Miracle

A four-month-old baby boy was found to have teeth growing in his brain. The unnamed infant in Maryland, U.S., had a rare type of brain tumour which contained multiple fully formed teeth.

He is thought to be the first person in the world to be found to have teeth within this type of brain tumour. The baby required surgery to remove the tumour, but, a year on, he is now making a good recovery.

The child first came to the attention of doctors after a routine health check revealed his head was growing faster than expected.  According to a report in the New England Journal of Medicine, he had an MRI scan which revealed a tumour near his pituitary gland which measured 4.1cm by 4cm by 3.5cm.

The scan revealed that the tumour also contained teeth very similar to those found in the lower jaw. The baby underwent surgery to remove the tumour and further tests revealed it was a slow-growing mass called adamantinomatous craniopharyngioma.

The tumour is thought to have arisen from Rathke’s pouch, an embryonic precursor to part of the pituitary gland. These tumours are sometimes filled with viscous, yellow fluid containing cholesterol crystals.

They usually start in the area around the pituitary gland but spread into surrounding areas and they often recur after they have, seemingly, been completely removed. It is very rare for them to spread outside the brain.

It is now a year since the body underwent surgery and he is making good progress. However, he has had to have a shunt fitted to drain brain and spinal fluid from his head. He also has to take thyroid and adrenal hormone-replacement drugs.

He still undergoes regular MRI scans to ensure the tumour has not returned. The doctors who treat the boy say it has long been suspected that the type of tumour he suffered from form from the same cells as those involved in the creation of teeth.

However, until now, surgeons had never actually seen teeth within one of these tumours. Dr Narlin Beaty, a neurosurgeon at the University of Maryland Medical Center, who performed the boy’s surgery, told Live Science: ‘It’s not every day you see teeth in any type of tumour in the brain. In a craniopharyngioma, it’s unheard of.’

He added that these tumours often contain some calcium deposits ‘but when we pulled out a full tooth…I think that’s something slightly different’.

Source: Daily mail


Is a normal delivery possible after a C-section?

I got married on November 2011 and conceived on December 2011. My first pregnancy took a toll on me. Though I consider myself a strong person but went weak on my knees when I had to counter labour pains. Though my doctor assured a normal delivery, but I requested for a C-section amidst labour. Today my baby is 18 months old. I have a gut feeling that I might be pregnant again. Though I am not planning for any kids at the moment and ain’t sure if my concerns are true. But just in case I get pregnant again can I opt for a normal delivery now. Is it possible?

If you even have the slightest doubt that you could be pregnant get a home pregnancy test done and be sure. A normal delivery after a C-section is called a VBAC or vaginal birth after C-section. In most cases a normal delivery after a C-section is possible though it comes with some risks attached to it.

In a normal delivery after a C-section, the scar may tear open leading to uncontrolled bleeding at the site of previous C-section, during labour. Though it might not be the case always. If you opt for VBAC talk to your doctor about it. If you are planning for a VBAC, be sure that you take good care of yourself well in advance. Apart from regular exercises take care that you are doing enough to strengthen your core and back. With a history of C-section, putting too much pressure on your core is not advisable. Try alternative methods like side obliques or stretches. Hire a trainer if you can.

Remember during VBAC you would need a lot of monitoring during your labour to ensure that both you and your baby are safe. If your abdominal muscles are not strong enough to go through the strains of labour it can tear open at the site of operation. But if you are monitored constantly such an incidence can be avoided if at all it happens. If your doctor senses any trouble during the labour you might be taken for an emergency C-section too. But many doctors also support VBAC and would help you during your pregnancy to prepare for the same. So talk to your doctor and find out one who supports your decision. But before all that get checked if you are pregnant.

Source: the health site


New robotic surgical institute opens in the Dominican Republic

This week the Metropolitan Hospital of Santiago (HOMS), in the Dominican Republic, opened the first robotic surgery institute in the Caribbean. Named for Dr. David Samadi, a pioneer in robotic prostate surgery and member of the Fox News Medical A-Team, it is sure to draw patients from the United States as well from the Caribbean and South America.

Nearly one million Americans seek health care outside the U.S. every year. Medical tourism is increasingly popular in the Caribbean both in terms of its high quality, cost savings of up to 75 percent, and of course, you can’t beat the beautiful surroundings. The Dominican Republic has long been a tourist destination known for its inexpensive plastic surgery and dental procedures.

Now you can add to that the state-of-the-art Davinci robot which is like at avatar where the surgeon uses precision robotic arms to perform delicate procedures. Recovery with this kind of surgery is remarkable – you can get in and out of the hospital in a day. At a time when America is debating its health care future, our latest and greatest technology is still being exported.

Dominican Republic President Danilo Medina is opening the new facility along with Dr. Raphael Sanchez Espanol, CEO of HOMS hospital and, himself, a renowned surgeon.

“You’re going to change the lives of many, many people out there, and to be part of the first robotic institute in the Caribbean, this is a huge blessing and for the humanitarian part… for us to be part of this we’re very proud,” said Dr. David Samadi, chairman of urology and chief of robotic surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City.

The institute will include treatment of prostate, kidney, gynecologic and surgical cases. Doctors operating in the Dominican Republic will now be able to use techniques developed by Samadi, who performed the country’s first procedure, to treat prostate cancer as well as other delicate surgeries in a safer, more effective manner with minimal blood loss.

“Big decisions have transformed into small decisions,” said Dr. Espanol. “I like to say, with less trauma – the less trauma facilitates an amazing recovery of the sick.”

“This is a huge step in this country and it’s going to bring a lot of patients from the entire Caribbean to this hospital,” Samadi said.

And beyond the Caribbean, with more and more regulations and restrictions coming our way on American soil, many patients will look elsewhere for their surgeries. The new David Samadi Robotic Institute is one of the places they will be looking.

Source: Fox news


Egypt claims miracle cure for HIV and Hepatitis

Two days ago, Egyptian media began big campaigns about a miraculous device (billed as ”Complete Cure”) invented by Egypt’s armed forces for treating HIV/AIDS and the Hepatitis C virus.

The news stories depicted the machine as a breakthrough, and a real miracle for completely curing patients of any of the two resistant diseases, giving hope for 18 million Egyptians with Hepatitis C and tens of thousands with HIV. (All this in no time at all — only 16 hours for the cure and one minute for detecting the disease.)

According to the Egyptian media, with the device there is no need to take a sample of the patient’s blood to detect the infection. Moreover, Egypt’s national TV channels ran a video that showed a physician making tests for an HIV patient using the device and telling him, “your tests are so great; you had HIV but now the disease vanished.”

The reports said that ”Complete Cure” is two machines in one: ”C Fast” (for treating Hepatitis C) and “I Fast” (for treating HIV). Furthermore, the reports confirmed that the military had been working for 22 years on the project and although ”C Fast” had been ready to go since 2006, the inventing team preferred to wait until it could test the effectiveness of the machine on HIV patients.

There’s even more. Major Dr. Ibrahim Abdel-Atti, leader of the machine-inventing team, stressed that Egypt will not export the machine to other countries so that it can be protected from international monopoly and the black market. He was quoted in the Al-Ahram newspaper as saying, “Marshal el-Sisi once said, ”we lagged behind and we should jump rather than walk so that we can compete with others”, and this is the first jump.”

The strange thing is, the media stresses that the device can also treat swine flu or H1N1, a disease that has taken many Egyptian lives over the past few weeks.

The media message is, of course, clear: We can depend only on Egypt’s armed forces; they’re the hope; they’re the people who can meet all our needs; they’re the men of impossible missions; they’re the best to lead Egypt in the coming years; they’re the best in the world; they’re big scholars and hard workers; they spare no effort to develop Egypt and improve the lives of its people.

They worked for 22 years for a machine that can make Egyptians happy. In short, the leader of Egypt must be a military man (in particular, Marshal Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi).

This kind of propaganda reminds us of old campaigns about the military’s invention of two inter-continental missiles: Zafer and Qaher, during Abdel-Nasser’s and Saddat’s era.

The two rockets were said to be able to reach to the depths of Israel. During that time, the media depicted this as if it was a nuclear bomb that could deter any threats to Egypt.

However, General Saad Ed-Dien el-Shazli mentioned in his diaries later that this was just propaganda and the two missiles were in fact ineffective and had no destructive power. El-Shazli stressed that he was shocked every time the media told lies about the two missiles and every time Saddat threatened America and Israel with using them.

In the current period, ordinary Egyptians are building mountainous hopes on such new devices and think that, with them, they can find light at the end of the tunnel.

The large majority of comments in the news describe the machine as a blessing and a gift from God, and many happy people have wondered aloud in the media about when the machine will be available in the hospitals. Many have been seen expressing their gratitude for the military and Marshal el-Sisi.

Source: the commentator


Hundreds of foods in U.S. contain ‘ADA’ plastics chemical: report

Nearly 500 foods found on grocery store shelves in the United States, including many foods labeled as “healthy,” contain a potentially hazardous industrial plastics chemical, according to a report issued Thursday by a health research and advocacy group.

Azodicarbonamide, also known as ADA, was found as an ingredient in breads, bagels, tortillas, hamburger and hot dog buns, pizza, pastries, and other food products, according to a report by the Environmental Working Group, based in Washington.

Some consumer groups have called for the removal of azodicarbonamide from use in foods. Fast food chain Subway said earlier this month that it was removing the chemical from its products, but stated that ADA is a safe and widely used ingredient for many foods.

Azodicarbonamide is fully approved for use in food by the United States Food and Drug Administration and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. But ADA is banned as an additive in Australia and some European countries.

As a food additive, azodicarbonamide is used as a flour bleaching agent and as an oxidizing agent in dough to improve its performance for bakers. It is also used in plastics to improve elasticity and can be found in yoga mats and shoes.

The World Health Organization states that epidemiological studies in humans and other reports have produced “abundant evidence that azodicarbonamide can induce asthma, other respiratory symptoms, and skin sensitization” to people working with the chemical.

The Environmental Working Group said manufacturers should immediately end the use of ADA in food. U.S. Senator Charles Schumer, a Democrat from New York, this month called on the FDA to ban ADA from foods.

The FDA states that azodicarbonamide can be used safely if the amount in flour does not exceed 2.05 grams per 100 pounds of flour or 45 parts per million.

Source; Reuters


Admissions Going On for School of Nursing (RN-MSN): TAU

Nursing_website_page

Texila American University (TAU) offers exclusive Nursing courses for Nursing Professionals to fulfill ongoing educational job requirements of the health care sector. TAU equips Nurses with effective theoretical and clinical practice through Distance learning education under the guidance of well versed faculties to meet the essential demands in Hospitals.

Salient Features of the program

  • Flexible program to earn MSN to persons who have completed RN and couldn’t proceed their education further due to various reasons
  • Through this RN to MSN programs students have a Great Choice of directly getting into the master level nursing program with so many specializations
  • The main thrust of the program is to gain knowledge and competencies through blended learning which is acquired through an appropriate interplay of course work, clinical work and research
  • Students study the program through an innovative Online Teaching Learning Process [OTLP] in which one term is covered in a period of 4 months
  • Students get the access to the course content with Info graphics, Videos, Podcast, and Reading materials which makes the process much more effective
  • Each Module has Links to Reference materials in the TAU – E Library
  • Assessments are done through Assignments, Test (MCQ’s) & Field/Clinical/Mini/Capstone Project works.

Duration & Eligibility:

Registered Nurse to Bachelor of science in Nursing (RN-BSN)
Duration : 2 Years
Eligibility : Registered Nursing, Diploma in Nursing, General Nursing and Midwifery Should be registered with the respective nursing council

Registered Nurse to Master of science in Nursing (RN-MSN )
Duration : 3 years
Eligibility : Registered Nursing, Diploma in Nursing, General Nursing and Midwifery Should be registered with the respective nursing council.

Bachelor of science in Nursing to Master of science in Nursing (BSN-MSN )
Duration : 1.6 yrs
Eligibility : Registered nursing / General Nursing / BSN

TAU – UCN Partnership

TAU and UNESCO-IAU (International Association of University) listed Universidad Central de Nicaragua (UCN), have signed an agreement to collaborate academically and also in scientific research. Students will receive degree/certification from UCN.

Apply Online


New DNA test more accurate detecting Down Syndrome in pregnancy

It was the news Jennifer Fontaine had been dreading: Her unborn child tested positive for a deadly chromosome abnormality. “When I got a positive result, it was very devastating,” said Fontaine.

Her then unborn daughter had tested positive for trisomy 18, a deadly chromosome abnormality. Half of infants don’t survive their first week of life, according to the National Institutes of Health.

“I researched online, and the things I was seeing, it was very upsetting,” said Fontaine.

“Women (like Fontaine) are being given troubling news or anxiety provoking news,” said Dr. Diana Bianchi, a medical geneticist and executive director of the Mother Infant Research Institute at Tufts Medical Center.

What’s even worse is that that news is often wrong.

“Ninety-six percent of the time the screening test was positive, but the fetus has normal chromosomes,” said Bianchi.

But a new screening test is promising to cut down on false positives. It’s a simple blood draw called a cell-free DNA test, where doctors analyze fetal DNA circulating in the mother’s blood. In today’s New England Journal of Medicine, researchers at Tufts Medical Center compared the DNA test to current screening methods with stunning results

“Only 3 percent of the women had a false positive result. But if you had a positive result, then there was a 45 percent chance that the fetus actually had Down syndrome,” said Bianchi.

According to the study, the new DNA test is 10 times more accurate than standard tests and safer, too.

“Fewer women are going on to have unnecessary invasive diagnostic tests (like amniocentesis),” said Bianchi.

In amniocentesis, a needle is injected directly into the womb.

“There is a small chance of miscarriage associated with amniocentesis,” said Bianchi.

Less than a week after her DNA screening test, Fontaine’s doctors gave her the good news.

“The results were negative … she was perfect. Her DNA was perfect. The chromosomes were fine,” said Fontaine. “We were ecstatic.”

On Dec. 17, 2013, Morgan Stephanie was born. She weighed 6 pounds and 4 ounces and was 100 percent healthy.

“She’s doing great. She’s hitting all of her milestones,” said Fontaine.

The DNA test is already available for high-risk pregnancies, but currently, insurance doesn’t cover it in low risk women. Bianchi said that may soon change as more studies come out confirming Tufts’ findings.

source: wcvb


Integrating Yoga Into Medical Practice – ‘Just Relaxation Response’

Rajan Narayanan isn’t your average yoga instructor. During his classes, he uses words like “neuroplasticity,”avoids Sanskrit terms and sometimes shows up to teach in a suit and tie.

And often, like on this particular Monday at a Maryland conference center, most of his students are physicians and nurses. Stretched out on orange and green yoga mats for a weekend-long workshop, the 30 students learned breathing techniques, lifestyle suggestions and the research that supports the health benefits of yoga.

Narayanan, a long time practitioner and economist by day, is one of the founders of Life In Yoga, a nonprofit organization that seeks to educate people on the benefits of this ancient Indian practice. A major part of this effort, however, is directed at integrating yoga therapy in the mainstream health care system by training medical providers to use yogic breathing and techniques to treat various maladies.

“We need to expand the horizons of physicians – yoga is much more than just relaxation response,” he said.

Since starting this push in 2010, Life in Yoga has trained 145 doctors, and its programs are recognized by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education. Yoga therapy is a relatively new addition to the spectrum of courses, but one that has been proven helpful to physicians, said Dr. Murray Kopelow, president and CEO of the accreditation council.

“These are things our professionals need to know,” he said.

Dr. Harminder Kaur, a physician in Clarksburg, Md., agreed.

Kaur, who also practices yoga in her personal life, said the Life in Yoga curriculum has helped her patients with illnesses such as sleep apnea and arthritis.

“It takes one case to be successfully treated, then your mind is open to it.” she said.

Naryanan from Life in Yoga makes weekly visits to her practice to focus on specific techniques geared toward certain problems. They are currently working on ways to use yoga therapy to help patients with hypertension.

Source: kaiser health news


MIT engineers develop paper diagnostic for cancer

Cancer rates in developing nations have climbed sharply in recent years, and now account for 70 per cent of cancer mortality worldwide. Early detection has been proven to improve outcomes, but screening approaches such as mammograms and colonoscopy, used in the developed world, are too costly to be implemented in settings with little medical infrastructure.

To address this gap, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) engineers have developed a simple, cheap, paper test that could improve diagnosis rates and help people get treated earlier. The diagnostic, which works much like a pregnancy test, could reveal within minutes, based on a urine sample, whether a person has cancer. This approach has helped detect infectious diseases, and the new technology allows noncommunicable diseases to be detected using the same strategy.

The technology, developed by MIT professor and Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator Sangeeta Bhatia, relies on nanoparticles that interact with tumour proteins called proteases, each of which can trigger release of hundreds of biomarkers that are then easily detectable in a patient’s urine.

“When we invented this new class of synthetic biomarker, we used a highly specialized instrument to do the analysis,” says Bhatia, the John and Dorothy Wilson Professor of Health Sciences and Technology and Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. “For the developing world, we thought it would be exciting to adapt it instead to a paper test that could be performed on unprocessed samples in a rural setting, without the need for any specialized equipment. The simple readout could even be transmitted to a remote caregiver by a picture on a mobile phone.”

Bhatia, who is also a member of MIT’s Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research and Institute for Medical Engineering and Science, is the senior author of a paper describing the particles in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

In 2012, Bhatia and colleagues introduced the concept of a synthetic biomarker technology to amplify signals from tumour proteins that would be hard to detect on their own. These proteins, known as matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), help cancer cells escape their original locations by cutting through proteins of the extracellular matrix, which normally holds cells in place.

The MIT nanoparticles are coated with peptides (short protein fragments) targeted by different MMPs. These particles congregate at tumour sites, where MMPs cleave hundreds of peptides, which accumulate in the kidneys and are excreted in the urine.

In the original version of the technology, these peptides were detected using an instrument called a mass spectrometer, which analyses the molecular makeup of a sample. However, these instruments are not readily available in the developing world, so the researchers adapted the particles so they could be analysed on paper, using an approach known as a lateral flow assay — the same technology used in pregnancy tests.

To create the test strips, the researchers first coated nitrocellulose paper with antibodies that can capture the peptides. Once the peptides are captured, they flow along the strip and are exposed to several invisible test lines made of other antibodies specific to different tags attached to the peptides. If one of these lines becomes visible, it means the target peptide is present in the sample. The technology can also easily be modified to detect multiple types of peptides released by different types or stages of disease.

In tests in mice, the researchers were able to accurately identify colon tumours, as well as blood clots. Bhatia says these tests represent the first step toward a diagnostic device that could someday be useful in human patients.

“This is a new idea — to create an excreted biomarker instead of relying on what the body gives you,” she says. “To prove this approach is really going to be a useful diagnostic, the next step is to test it in patient populations.”

To help make that happen, the research team recently won a grant from MIT’s Deshpande Centre for Technological Innovation to develop a business plan for a startup that could work on commercializing the technology and performing clinical trials.

Bhatia says the technology would likely first be applied to high-risk populations, such as people who have had cancer previously, or had a family member with the disease. Eventually, she would like to see it used for early detection throughout developing nations.

Such technology might also prove useful in the United States, and other countries where more advanced diagnostics are available, as a simple and inexpensive alternative to imaging. “I think it would be great to bring it back to this setting, where point-of-care, image-free cancer detection, whether it’s in your home or in a pharmacy clinic, could really be transformative,” Bhatia says.

With the current version of the technology, patients would first receive an injection of the nanoparticles, then urinate onto the paper test strip. To make the process more convenient, the researchers are now working on a nanoparticle formulation that could be implanted under the skin for longer-term monitoring.

The team is also working to identify signatures of MMPs that could be exploited as biomarkers for other types of cancer, as well as for tumours that have metastasized.

Source: India Medical Times