Current Affairs

Dr. Gavin Francis. J

June 2022 Department Of Social and Preventive Medicine
Week 01, June 2022
• World Health Organization (WHO) has claimed that climate change poses potentially serious risks to the mental health and
well-being of individuals.

• The WHO has urged countries to add mental health support to their climate change crisis response.

• Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) published in February stated that Fast-rising climate change poses a
growing hazard to mental health and psychological well-being. This includes emotional distress, anxiety, depression,
bereavement, and suicidal behavior.

• The brief added that the impact of climate change on one's mental health is directly related to their socio-economic status,
gender, and age. Since social determinants are already a contributing factor to mental health problems, climate change is
making them worse around the world.

• According to a survey conducted by WHO in 2021, out of 95 countries, only nine of them included mental health support in
their national health and climate change plans.

Source: India Times | June 06, 2022 Dr. Gavin Francis. J | 1

• India is set to record more than 25,000 Covid-19 fresh cases in the week ending Sunday, the highest weekly tally in nearly three
months and around 45% higher than the tally in the previous seven days. However, deaths continued to be extremely low.

• The jump in infections was driven by a spurt in cases in Kerala and Maharashtra, with the two states accounting for over 60%
of India’s fresh cases in the week. In all, 10 states showed a rise in weekly Covid cases. The country is likely to record more
than 25,300 new cases in the May 30-June 5 week, the first time since March 7-13 that the tally has exceeded 25,000. India had
logged 17,361 cases in the previous week. Kerala is likely to log over 8,000 fresh cases, up at least 65% in a week.

• The Tamil Nadu government said that cases of sub-variants BA.4 and BA.5 of Omicron variants have been found in the state.
150 samples of infected people were sent for testing, out of which BA.4 sub-variants were confirmed in four people and BA.5
sub-variants in eight people. At present, all the infected have been isolated and they are being monitored.

Source: News 18 | June 06, 2022 Dr. Gavin Francis. J | 2

• Kerala government on Sunday said norovirus infection, similar to the diarrhea-inducing rotavirus, was confirmed in two
children in the state.

• The Health Department evaluated the situation and said precautionary measures have been taken as the virus spreads through
contaminated water and food. Officials suspect the food poisoning took place after the students took mid-day meals at school.

• In November 2021, around 30 students of Pookode Veterinary College in Kerala were infected with the disease.

• Norovirus is a highly contagious virus that is also sometimes referred to as the ‘stomach flu’ or the ‘winter vomiting bug’. It
can be transmitted through contaminated food, water, and surfaces.

• As per the World Health Organization (WHO), an estimated 685 million cases of norovirus are seen annually, including 200
million cases amongst children under five.

• Norovirus is resistant to many disinfectants and can withstand heat up to 60°C. Therefore, merely steaming food or chlorinating
water does not kill the virus.

Source: News 18 | June 06, 2022 Dr. Gavin Francis. J | 3

 Continued…

• It is important to repeatedly wash hands carefully after using the lavatory or changing diapers, and before eating or preparing
food. The US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that those infected should avoid contact with others and
avoid preparing food for others while sick and for two days after symptoms stop.

• Norovirus infection can be self-limiting. The infection, even though it takes a lot out of the patient, normally lasts only two or
three days, and most individuals who are not very young, very old, or malnourished can get well with sufficient rest and
hydration.

• There are no vaccines available for the disease.

Source: News 18 | June 06, 2022 Dr. Gavin Francis. J | 4

• A recent report published by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has warned that people who are
marginalized by society because of their gender are less able to adapt to climate change or recover from its effects.

• According to a report by the United Nations, women are most likely to live in poverty. Besides this women are also likely to
have less access to basic human rights like the ability to freely move and acquire land and face systematic violence that
escalates during periods of instability.

• Global Citizen reports that the Paris climate agreement includes specific provisions to ensure women receive support to cope
with the hazards of climate change.

Source: DNA | June 03, 2022 Dr. Gavin Francis. J | 5

 Rivers facing heavy pollution: CSE
Heavy toxic metals such as lead, iron, nickel present at
alarming levels, says NGO

• Three of every four river monitoring stations in India posted alarming levels of heavy toxic metals such as lead, iron, nickel,
cadmium, arsenic, chromium and copper. In about a fourth of the stations, which are spread across 117 rivers and tributaries,
high levels of two or more toxic metals were reported.

• Of the 33 monitoring stations in the Ganga, 10 had high levels of contaminants. The river, which is the focus of the Centre’s
Namami Gange mission, has high levels of lead, iron, nickel, cadmium and arsenic, according to the State of Environment
Report, 2022 from the environmental NGO, the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE).

• Of the 588 water quality stations monitored for pollution, total coliform was high in 239 and biochemical oxygen demand was
high in 88 stations across 21 States — an indicator of poor wastewater treatment from industry, agriculture and domestic
households.

• India dumps 72% of its sewage without treatment. Ten States do not treat their sewage at all, as per the Central Pollution
Control Board.

Source: The Hindu | June 06, 2022 Dr. Gavin Francis. J | 6

 Corbevax gets nod as COVID-19 booster
dose
the booster dose of Corbevax vaccine increased the
neutralizing antibody titers in the Covishield or Covaxin
groups

• BE furnished its clinical trials data to the DCGI, which after a detailed evaluation and deliberations with the Subject Experts
Committee, granted approval for administering Corbevax vaccine as a heterologous booster dose to people who have taken two
doses of either Covishield or Covaxin.

• It added that clinical trial data showed that Corbevax booster dose provided significant enhancement in immune response and
good safety profile required for an effective booster.

• BE has conducted a multi-centre phase III placebo controlled heterologous booster clinical trial in 416 subjects from 18 to 80
years of age, who were previously vaccinated with two doses of either Covishield or Covaxin at least six months prior to the
booster dose.

• The study indicated that the booster dose of Corbevax vaccine increased the neutralising antibody titres in the Covishield or
Covaxin groups significantly when compared to placebo. The company added that Corbevax heterologous booster vaccine was
well tolerated and safe.

Source: The Hindu | June 05, 2022 Dr. Gavin Francis. J | 7

 India’s Health Ministry has issued
guidelines on the management of the
monkeypox disease
No cases of the virus have been confirmed in India

• The guidelines recommend that contacts be monitored every day for the onset of signs/symptoms for a period of 21 days (as per case
definition) from the last contact with a patient or their contaminated materials during the infectious period.

• Suspected cases of monkeypox include a person of any age with a history of travel to affected countries within the last 21 days and
presenting an unexplained acute rash and one or more of symptoms, including swollen lymph nodes, fever, head/body ache and
profound weakness.

• Other symptoms include pain in the eye or blurring of vision, shortness of breath, chest pain, difficulty in breathing, altered
consciousness, seizure, decrease in urine output, poor oral intake and lethargy.

• A case of monkeypox is confirmed in a laboratory by detection of unique sequences of viral DNA either by polymerase chain reaction
(PCR) and/or sequencing, much like a test for COVID-19. However, there are no commercial tests for monkeypox yet and all clinical
specimens are to be transported to the apex laboratory of the ICMR-NIV (Pune) routed through the Integrated Disease Surveillance
Programme (IDSP) network of the respective district/State.

Source: The Hindu | June 04, 2022 Dr. Gavin Francis. J | 8