Thiruvananthapuram, March 29 (SocialNews.XYZ) Kerala on Tuesday reported 424 new Covid cases while the test positivity rate came down to 2.38 per cent, Health Minister Veena George said.

No fresh Covid deaths were reported, and the death toll continued to stand at 67,844.

Meanwhile, 528 people recovered, bringing the active cases in the state came down to 3,555.

On the vaccination front, 100 per cent (2.69 crore) had the first dose of which 87 per cent (2.33 crore) have taken both the doses.

Likewise, in the above aged 15 to 18 years, 79 per cent (12.09 lakh) have been given one dose, while 47 per cent (7.18 lakhs) have now received their second dose also.

Source: IANS

The post Kerala reports 424 new Covid cases appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New Delhi, March 8 (SocialNews.XYZ) India achieved a major milestone on Tuesday as the daily new Covid-19 cases declined to 3,993 in the last 24 hours.

This is the lowest new Covid-19 cases recorded in India after a gap of 662 days, since 3,970 cases were reported on May 16, 2020.

In another achievement, India's active caseload has dropped below 50,000 after 664 days. At present, the country's active cases stand at 49,948, which is at its lowest since 49,219 cases were recorded on May 14, 2021.

The testing capacity in the country continues to be expanded.

India conducted 8.5 lakh average tests in the last week and recorded a weekly positivity rate of 0.68 per cent.

The Indian government has been leading the fight against the Covid-19 infection in collaboration with the states and Union Territories (UTs) through a 'Whole of Government' approach.

Vaccination forms an integral component of the five-point strategy of the Indian government's containment and management of the pandemic which includes test, track, treat and Covid-appropriate behaviour, said the Union Health Ministry in a statement.

The Indian government continues to augment its efforts towards containment and management of Covid-19 with the support of states and UTs, it added.

Meanwhile, India's Covid-19 vaccination coverage has exceeded 179.13 crore, with the administration of more than 21.34 lakh vaccine doses in the last 24 hours.

Source: IANS

The post India crosses milestone as daily Covid cases fall below 4k appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Bengaluru, March 7 (SocialNews.XYZ) The new Covid cases have come down to 155 against 349 discharges and 5 deaths in Karnataka on Monday. There are 3,049 active cases in the state. The positivity rate for the day stood at 0.47 per cent and case fatality rate for the day stood at 3.22 per cent.

In Bengaluru, the cases further came down to 97 against 169 discharges and 3 deaths. The total active cases in the city stood at 2,350.

Yadgir, Ramnagar, Raichur, Koppala, Kodagu, Gadag, Davanagere, Chikkamagalur, Chikkaballapur and Bengaluru Rural districts recorded zero cases. Only Mysuru (14) district in the state recorded Covid cases in double digits.

The health authorities have administered 10,14,04,625 doses of vaccinations in the state. The number of cases of Omicron virus stood at 1,115 and 4,431 persons are being treated for Delta and its sub-lineages. Karnataka recorded 229 Covid cases against 264 discharges and 3 deaths on Sunday.

Source: IANS

The post K’taka logs 155 Covid cases, 5 deaths in a day appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New Delhi, March 7 (SocialNews.XYZ) Two women from Tamil Nadu, and one each from Bihar, Punjab, and West Bengal are the top five vaccinators selected among 40 healthcare workers to be felicitated by the Union Health Ministry on the occasion of International Women's Day, on March 8.

According to the Ministry, these five women administered maximum number of Covid-19 vaccine doses in the country.

The Ministry has selected 40 women vaccinators, top two vaccinators from each state and Union Territories, for felicitation recognising their efforts towards the implementation of India's Covid-19 vaccination programme.

E. Tharani, a woman vaccinator from Beemanagar urban primary health centre in Tiruchirappalli district of Tamil Nadu, is credited with administering highest number of Covid-19 vaccine doses - 3,02,705 at 372 vaccination sessionss.

General nursing midwives, Maya Yadav, posted at Patna's Gurunanak Bhawan vaccination centre, is second only to Tharani in terms of administering vaccine doses.

Yadav administered 2,73,732 Covid vaccine doses, says the letter issued by the Health Ministry. She took 517 sessions to achieve the feat.

Lekha Roy from Barasat in West Bengal comes at third position in terms of the number of vaccines administered. She has administered 2,68,590 Covid vaccines in 227 sessions till February 26 when the letter was issued by the Union Health Ministry.

Babita Devi from Jalandhar in Punjab ranks fourth among the women vaccinators as per the number of vaccines administered. She has administered 2,66,409 vaccines in 253 sessions.

Similarly, Kalimuthu from Chennai in Tamil Nadu has administered 2,55,306 Covid vaccines in 546 sessions.

The government has used CoWIN data to arrive at top two vaccinators of the states and UTs, which have recorded the maximum number of vaccines administered and vaccines sessions attended.

-
Source: IANS

The post Meet India’s top vaccinators to be awarded on Women’s day appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Mumbai, March 7 (SocialNews.XYZ) Spelling huge relief, Maharashtra on Monday, for the second time in 5 days, notched zero Covid-19 deaths and also no new Omicron cases, officials said.

On March 2, the state recorded nil fatalities - for the first time after April 1, 2020.

The state also recorded nil Omicron cases on Monday, and only 225 new Covid-19 infections - compared with 544 new cases on March 2 (five days ago) along with 38 Omicron infectees.

Till date, the state has recorded a staggering 78,69,038 cumulative cases and 143,740 deaths, besides 5,726 Omicron variant infections - all highest in the country.

With a total of 77,17,823 persons fully cured, the state recorded a recovery rate of 98.08 per cent and a death rate of 1.82 per cent.

Currently, the state has 3,472 active cases while 28,975 people are in home isolation and 589 in institutional quarantine.

Encouraged by the waning 'third wave', the state government has practically opened up 14 of the state's 36 districts and more easing of restrictions are expected in the coming weeks.

Civic and local bodies are either dismantling or shutting down many dedicated Covid-19 infrastructure like hospitals, jumbo field hospitals, ICUs, oxygen beds in existing health centres, etc, as the occupancy rates have fallen drastically all over Maharashtra.

However, the state government has urged people to exercise caution and continue to adhere to all Covid appropriate behaviour till further orders.

Source: IANS

The post Maha notches zero Covid deaths for second time in week appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Panaji, March 7 (SocialNews.XYZ) Goa and the rest of India, may not witness a Covid spike unless the virus mutates once again, a member of the state government's experts' committee for Covid management said on Monday.

"One thing I have to tell you. Unless there is a new variant, there will not be a spike again," Dr Shekhar Salkar told reporters here.

"There should have been a spike in cases due to election rallies. But it has reduced. Only crowds are not a factor (for increase in infections). It is the change in mutation, everytime a new variant, which has caused a problem. We hope and pray that the new variant, if there is one, is a milder one," he added.

Only two new Covid cases were reported in Goa on Monday, taking the state's total tally of active cases to 121.

Source: IANS

The post No Covid spike unless fresh virus mutation: Goa govt expert appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Puducherry, March 7 (SocialNews.XYZ) For the first time in the past two years since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Union Territory of Puducherry reported no fresh cases on Monday.

Puducherry Director of Health services in a statement said that in the past 24 hours 157 samples were tested but not a single person was found Covid-19 positive in all the four regions of the territory.

The active cases in the Union Territory stood at 28 with 3 patients undergoing treatment at hospitals while 25 being treated at home.

The statement said that 11 persons were discharged after treatment and no deaths were reported. The overall recoveries, according to the Director of Health services, stood at 1,63,755 and 1,962 people died of the virus in the UT so far.

Puducherry has so far vaccinated 15,96,951 people. Of these 9,32,278 received their first dose of the vaccine and 6,52,024 were inoculated with the second dose. A total 12,649 people were administered booster doses.

The health department in the statement said that people should not lower the guard and directed them to continue adhering strictly to Covid protocols including wearing masks, safe distancing, hand hygiene, and doing away with unnecessary trips. People are also urged to take vaccination at the earliest.

Source: IANS

The post For first time in 2 yrs, Puducherry has no new Covid cases appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Thiruvananthapuram, March 7 (SocialNews.XYZ) The daily Covid cases in Kerala have been consistently coming down and on Monday there were 1,223 new cases while the test positivity rate was 5.17 per cent, said a statement from Health Minister Veena George.

The day also saw 2,424 recoveries, while the total active cases stood at 12,868, of which 10 per cent of the patients were admitted to various hospitals in the state.

There were 4 Covid deaths taking the total toll to 66,263 in the state so far.

On the vaccination front 100 per cent (2.69 crore) have had one dose, of which 87 per cent (2.31 crore) have taken both the doses.

Likewise in the above aged 15 to 18 years, 78 per cent (11.91 lakh) have been given one dose, while 38 per cent (5.84 lakh) have now received their second dose also.

Source: IANS

The post Daily Covid cases sliding down in Kerala as 1,223 turn positive appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Geneva, March 7 (SocialNews.XYZ) The introduction of SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing Covid-19 infection, to wildlife could result in the establishment of animal reservoirs, which may, in turn, result in the emergence of a new virus variant, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Monday.

The WHO made the statement jointly with the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), and World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE).

It called for prioritising monitoring of SARS-CoV-2 infection in wildlife and preventing the formation of animal reservoirs.

Although the Covid pandemic is driven by human-to-human transmission, the SARS-CoV-2 virus is also known to infect animal species.

Current knowledge also indicates that wildlife does not play a significant role in the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in humans, but spread in animal populations can affect the health of these populations and may facilitate the emergence of new virus variants.

But, besides domestic animals, free-ranging, captive or farmed wild animals such as big cats, minks, ferrets, North American white-tailed deer, and great apes have been observed to be infected with SARS-CoV-2.

In addition, farmed mink and pet hamsters have shown to be capable of infecting humans with the Covid while a potential case of transmission between white-tailed deer and a human is currently under review.

The FAO, OIE and WHO called on all countries to take steps to reduce the risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission between humans and wildlife "with the aim of reducing the risk of variant emergence and for protecting both humans and wildlife".

The organisations urged authorities to adopt relevant regulations and recommend personnel working closely with wildlife to be trained to implement measures that reduce the risk of transmission between people and between people and animals.

The guidelines include the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and good hygiene practices around animals, including good hygiene practices for hunters and butchers.

While there is no evidence to back that eating meat can cause Covid, hunters should not track animals that appear sick or harvest those that are found dead, the statement read.

"Appropriate butchering and food preparing techniques, including proper hygiene practices, can limit transmission of coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV-2, and other zoonotic pathogens," it added.

The organisations also urged countries to suspend the sale of captured live wild mammals in food markets as an emergency measure.

Source: IANS

The post Covid in wildlife threatens emergence of new virus variant: WHO appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New York, March 7 (SocialNews.XYZ) Cow milk contains proteins with virus inhibiting properties that can help prevent Covid-19 from replicating in a person's body and cause infection, according to a study.

The protein lactoferrin is found in the milk of most mammals.

Researchers from the University of Michigan found that bovine lactoferrin, from cow milk, has bioactive characteristics against many microbes, viruses, and other pathogens.

It has also been found to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 infection under experimental conditions by blocking the ability of the virus to enter target cells, as well as by supporting cells' antiviral defense mechanisms.

"Bovine lactoferrin has shown antiviral activity in human clinical trials," said lead investigator Jonathan Sexton, from the varsity's Department of Internal Medicine.

"For example, orally administered bovine lactoferrin has been shown to improve the severity of viral infections, including rotavirus and norovirus. Given the broad antiviral efficacy and safety, minimal side effects, and commercial availability of bovine lactoferrin, several review papers have suggested using it as a preventive or post-exposure treatment for SARS-CoV-2 infection," he added.

The findings are detailed in the Journal of Dairy Science.

With the goal of improving clinical relevance and translatability, the team tested bovine lactoferrin against some of the most common SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern from around the world, including the WA1 variant representative of the US outbreak in 2020, the B.1.1.7, B.1.351, and P.1 variants, and the Delta variant.

"Each of these variants includes modifications to the SARS-Cov-2 spike protein that reduce the efficacy of newly produced vaccines. Furthermore, each of these strains shows reduced neutralisation by vaccination sera," Sexton explained.

A key benefit of the broad antiviral efficacy of lactoferrin is its potential for the prevention or treatment of emerging diseases.

"This is especially important when there are limited treatment options, or when the treatment options are too costly for widespread use. An orally available therapeutic that covers emerging strains would be ideal for treating SARS-CoV-2 in areas without widespread vaccination or if new strains escape the vaccine," Sexton said.

Source: IANS

The post Can drinking cow milk help fight Covid infection? appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New Delhi, March 7 (SocialNews.XYZ) India reported further decline in daily Covid cases. A total of 4,362 fresh infections and 66 new deaths were registered in a span of 24 hours, the Union health ministry said on Monday morning.

On Sunday, India reported 5,476 fresh Covid infections and 158 deaths.

The new deaths have taken the overall toll to 5,15,102 in the country.

The active Covid case has further reduced to 54,118 which constitute 0.13 per cent of the country's total positive cases, as per the ministry report.

The recovery of 9,620 patients in the last 24 hours has increased the cumulative tally to 4,23,98,095. Consequently, India's recovery rate stands at 98.67 per cent, said the Union Health Ministry on Monday.

Also in the same period, a total of 6,12,926 tests were conducted across the country. India has so far conducted over 77.34 crore cumulative tests.

Meanwhile, the weekly positivity rate has further come down to 0.73 per cent while the daily positivity rate has marginally risen at 0.71 per cent.

With the administration of over 4.80 lakhs Covid vaccine doses in the last 24 hours, India's inoculation coverage has reached 178.90 crore as of Monday morning. This has been achieved through 2,07,51,079 sessions.

More than 15.58 crore balance and unutilised Covid vaccine doses are still available with the states and union territories to be administered, according to the health ministry as of Monday morning.

Source: IANS

The post India’s reports 4,362 fresh Covid cases, 66 deaths appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New Delhi, March 6 (SocialNews.XYZ) Delhi on Sunday reported no Covid related death for the second consecutive day, while there were 249 fresh infections in the last 24 hours, according to the Health Department bulletin.

The fresh cases has taken the tally to 18,61,712, while the death toll remains 26,134.

The infection rate stands at 0.59 per cent, while the number of covid cases has reduced to 1,261.

With Covid recovery rate continuing at 98.52 per cent, and the death rate at 1.40 per cent, the active case rate has come down to 0.067 per cent.

With 338 patients recovering in the last 24 hours, the total number of recoveries has gone to 18,34,317. A total of 9,35 Covid patients are being treated in home isolation at present, and the number of Covid containment zones has also declined to 4,005.

A total of 42,364 new tests -- 34,854 RT-PCR and 7,510 Rapid Antigen - were conducted in the last 24 hours, taking the total to 3,66,43,470.

Out of 42,603 vaccines administered in the last 24 hours, 4,646 were first doses and 35,185 second doses. Meanwhile, 2,772 precaution doses were also administered. The total number of cumulative beneficiaries stands at 3,15,57,676, according to the health bulletin.

Source: IANS

The post Delhi reports no Covid death for second day running, 249 new cases appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New Delhi, March 6 (SocialNews.XYZ) The Subject Expert Committee of India's apex drugs authority Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has recommended permission for vaccine manufacturer Serum Institute of India to conducting Phase 3 trial of Covovax as booster dose in adults, said a source familiar with the development.

The Pune-based SII had sought the permission from the DCGI to conduct Phase 3 study to evaluate the safety and immunogenicity of Covovax as booster dose on those who have received primary vaccination either with Covishield or Covaxin at least three months back.

Earlier, the Subject Expert Committee of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) on Friday recommended granting the Emergency Use Authorisation for SII's Covid-19 vaccine Covovax among 12-17 year age bracket.

The apex drug regulatory body had already approved Covovax for restricted use on December 28. However, this vaccine has not been included in national vaccination programme yet.

India on Sunday reported further decline in fresh Covid cases at 5,476 in the last 24 hours. The active Covid cases have also further reduced to 59,442 which constitute 0.14 per cent of the country's total positive cases, as per the ministry report on Sunday.

With the administration of over 26.19 lakhs covid vaccine doses in the last 24 hours, India's Covid inoculation coverage has reached 178.83 crore as of Sunday morning.

Source: IANS

The post SEC recommends permission for Phase 3 trial of Covovax as booster appeared first on Social News XYZ.

London, March 6 (SocialNews.XYZ) A team of UK experts said they have found another life-saving drug that can help treat Covid positive people.

The anti-inflammatory baricitinib is normally used to treat rheumatoid arthritis. Trials suggest it can cut death risk by about a fifth in patients needing hospital care for severe Covid, the BBC reported.

It could be used with other Covid treatments, such as the cheap steroid dexamethasone, to save even more lives, researchers say. That might halve deaths, they added.

The NHS may soon recommend baricitinib based on these new results. A 10-day course of the pills costs around 250 pound, although the NHS may be able to negotiate a discount.

"A big thank you to all of the researchers, doctors and volunteers involved in this work," Health and Social Care Secretary Sajid Javid was quoted as saying.

"Our medical and scientific experts will now consider the results before any decisions are made on next steps," Javid added.

Although vaccines have been doing a great job at cutting infections and protecting lives, some people will still catch and become very sick due to Covid.

And the recovery trial has been testing existing medications on Covid patients to see if they help.

It has already identified dexamethasone, tocilizumab and a treatment called Ronapreve - discoveries that have changed clinical practice worldwide and been credited with saving hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of lives, experts say.

And now it appears some very ill Covid patients, including those on ventilators, fare much better if they receive baricitinib.

The benefit was on top of other proven life-saving Covid drugs.

Source: IANS

The post Another life-saving Covid drug identified appeared first on Social News XYZ.

London, March 6 (SocialNews.XYZ) Just 41 per cent of adults in Britain were 'very worried' about Covid-19 in mid-February, says a new survey.

The figure was less than half the proportion that were terrified by Covid-19 at the start of the pandemic in March 2020 (86 per cent), DailyMail reported quoting a survey by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The report mentioned that it had been falling since January 22, when the Omicron wave started to subside.

Since then, infections, hospitalisations and deaths had all been falling consistently until this week, with UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson dropping all restrictions on February 24.

Statisticians surveyed 3,000 people in Britain from February 16 to 27 -- with all restrictions ending on February 24.

They showed the use of face coverings in shops and on public transport decreased compared to the previous week.

Some 71 per cent said they always or often wore face coverings while in shops, down from 77 per cent from February 3 to 13.

And 70 per cent reporting wearing a face covering throughout the journey on public transport, down from 78 per cent in the previous period.

Almost one-third (32 per cent) of adults reported always or often maintaining social distancing, down from 35 per cent.

This is the lowest proportion of adults reporting maintaining social distancing since data collection on this measure started in September 2020, the report said.

Around four in 10 (42 per cent) adults said they had taken a rapid lateral flow test in the past seven days, decreasing from 49 per cent.

The percentage of people working from home last week also continued to fall, with 15 per cent working remotely compared with 26 per cent from January 6 to 16.

Source: IANS

The post Just 41% of people in Britain ‘very worried’ about Covid: Report appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New Delhi, March 6 (SocialNews.XYZ) India reported 5,476 fresh Covid infections and 158 new deaths in the last 24 hours, the Union health ministry said on Sunday morning.

With the new deaths the toll has climbed to 5,15,036 in the country.

Meanwhile, the active Covid cases have further reduced to 59,442, which constitute 0.14 per cent of the country's total positive cases, as per the ministry report.

The recovery of 9,754 patients in the last 24 hours has increased the cumulative tally to 4,23,88,475. Consequently, India's recovery rate stands at 98.66 per cent, said the Union Health Ministry on Sunday.

Also in the same period, a total of 9,09,985 tests were conducted across the country. India has so far conducted over 77.28 crore cumulative tests.

Meanwhile, the weekly positivity rate has further come down to 0.77 per cent while the daily positivity rate has fallen at 0.60 per cent.

With the administration of over 26.19 lakhs vaccine doses in the last 24 hours, India's Covid inoculation coverage has reached 178.83 crore as of Sunday morning. This has been achieved through 2,07,34,782 sessions.

More than 15.54 crore balance and unutilised Covid vaccine doses are still available with the states and union territories to be administered, according to the health ministry as of Sunday morning.

Source: IANS

The post India reports 5,476 new Covid cases & 158 deaths appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Lucknow, March 6 (SocialNews.XYZ) This 11-year-old has not stopped smiling since he received an appreciation letter from Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Abhiyansh Shukla, a class 6 student, has been appreciated by the Prime Minister for writing a memoir on the Covid-19 pandemic.

In his letter to Abhiyansh, the Prime Minister said: "The once-in-a-century pandemic has affected people the world over. India's fight against the pandemic has been a shining example of our collective spirit and 'Sabka Prayas'. Your sensitivity in expressing a wide gamut of emotions and personal experiences during the pandemic is appreciable.

"The challenges faced due to the pandemic have been narrated effectively from a child's point of view. The simple language and illustrations make the book interesting."

In his book, Abhiyansh, a student of La Martiniere Boys' College, narrates how the 500 days of pandemic and lockdown have been for the children of India.

Narrating his experience of staying back at home with no school, no play, no outings, no birthday parties and no pocket money, he has named the book "One and half years of Covid".

Abhiyansh's father, Dr Abhishek Shukla, who is a practising geriatrician, said his son utilised his time well during pandemic holidays and wrote this book.

Source: IANS

The post This kid’s ‘Covid memoirs’ get PM’s appreciation appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New Delhi, March 5 (SocialNews.XYZ) The national capital on Saturday reported 274 fresh Covid cases, taking the coronavirus tally to 18,61,463, the city's health bulletin showed.

However, with no Covid related fatality registered in the city, Delhi's death toll remained at 26,134.

According to the bulletin, the Covid infection rate in the city has reduced to 0.58 per cent. The number of active Covid cases has come down to 1,350.

Similarly, the Covid recovery rate stands at 98.52 per cent and the death rate in the capital city is at 1.40 per cent.

With 390 more patients recovering in 24 hours, the total number of recoveries has gone to 18,33,979.

A total of 1,005 Covid patients are being treated in home isolation at present. The number of Covid containment zones has also declined to 4,051 in the city.

Meanwhile, as many as 47,652 new tests -- 39,365 RT-PCR and 8,287 Rapid Antigen - were conducted in 24 hours, taking the total to 3,66,01,106, the bulletin said.

Out of 33,078 vaccines administered, 3,875 were first doses, 27,454 were second doses and 1,749 were precautions doses. The total number of vaccines administered so far stands at 3,15,15,073, it added.

Source: IANS

The post Delhi records 274 new Covid cases, no death appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Bengaluru, March 5 (SocialNews.XYZ) Karnataka logged 278 new Covid cases against 458 discharges and 3 deaths on Saturday, the health department said. The total active cases in the state came down to 3,286. Positivity rate for the day stood at 0.53 per cent and case fatality rate for the day was 1.07 per cent.

The city of Bengaluru reported 182 cases against 222 discharges and reported 1 death in the last 24 hours. The number of positive cases stood at 2,419.

Karnataka logged 233 new Covid cases against 648 discharges and 6 deaths on Friday.

Vijayapura, Ramnagar, Raichur, Mandya, Gadag, Davanagere, Chikkaballapur and Chamarajanagar districts recorded zero cases of Covid and most of the districts recorded Covid cases in single digit. The state has completed administering 10,12,57,63 doses of Covid vaccination.

Source: IANS

The post K’taka logs 278 Covid cases, 3 deaths in a day appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Thiruvananthapuram, March 5 (SocialNews.XYZ) After a long gap, the daily Covid cases in Kerala have fallen below the 2,000 mark. The state on Saturday logged 1,836 positive cases, while the test positivity rate also came down to 6.02 per cent, said Health Minister Veena George in a statement.

A total 2,988 people turned Covid negative. The total active cases in the state are 15,825, of which 8.5 per cent of the patients were being treated in various hospitals across the state.

There were 4 Covid deaths, which took the total death tolld to 66,136 in the state so far.

On the vaccination front 100 per cent (2.69 crore) have had one dose, of which 86 per cent (2.31 crore) have taken both the doses.

Likewise in the above aged 15 to 18 years, 77 per cent (11.88 lakh) have been given one dose, while 37 per cent (5.64 lakh) have now received their second dose also.

Source: IANS

The post Finally daily Covid cases drop below 2,000 in Kerala appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New Delhi, March 5 (SocialNews.XYZ) Covid-19 mRNA vaccines do not affect the ovarian response or pregnancy rates in IVF (In-vitro fertilisation) treatment, according to a study.

A team of researchers from the Tel Aviv University in Israel found that in patients undergoing IVF treatments, ovarian response and pregnancy rates were similar with those that were vaccinated with the mRNA Covid-19 vaccine prior to IVF treatment, as compared to unvaccinated women.

The study published in the peer-reviewed medical journal 'Fertility and Sterility' included a total of 400 patients, 200 vaccinated women and 200 age-matched unvaccinated women, undergoing IVF during January-April 2021.

The results showed no effect of Covid-19 mRNA vaccine on oocyte yield during hormonal stimulation or on pregnancy rates during IVF treatments.

The study did not support concerns that the vaccine might affect fertility treatment outcomes were not supported, said researchers.

"The theoretical concept of the supposed similarity between the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and the syncytin protein that is speculated to take part in the fertilisation process and the formation of the placenta, has led to the assumption that the vaccine might induce an immune response which would affect implantation and pregnancy," said researchers, including Alon Kedem from the varsity's Shamir Medical Centre, in the study.

"Our results demonstrate similar oocyte yields and fertilisation rates among vaccinated and unvaccinated women," Kedem added.

The researchers said taking into account the potential harm of the infection itself on fertility, the already proven worse pregnancy outcomes among pregnant women with Covid-19 infection, and the higher risk of infection among unvaccinated pregnant women, it seems reasonable to reduce infection risk through vaccination.

"We recommend considering Covid-19 vaccination prior to commencing IVF treatments in order to reduce the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy," Kedem said.

Preliminary reports on vaccine safety in pregnant women found similar miscarriage rates among vaccinated women as compared to historical data from the literature.

However, the results of this study "strengthen the notion that it is unlikely that the vaccine would generate a response that might interfere with placentation," researchers said.

Yet further studies are needed to evaluate the safety of the vaccine beyond the eighth week of pregnancy, the team said.

Source: IANS

The post mRNA Covid vax doesn’t affect IVF success rates: Study appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Bengaluru, March 5 (SocialNews.XYZ) To ramp up the vaccination drive in Karnataka, the state Health department is now targeting to ensure that the eligible population receives the second dose of Covid-19 vaccine as soon as possible.

More than 10 crore vaccine doses have been administered to the people in the state so far along with 100 per cent vaccination of people with the first dose.

Four districts in Karnataka -- Bengaluru Rural, Vijayapura, Kodagu and Gadag -- have achieved 100 per cent second dose vaccination.

The Gadag district administration ensured both vaccine doses to the eligible population of 7,75,000 and has vaccinated 7,90,593 people (including floating population), according to statistics released by the state Health and Family Welfare department.

As many as 8,31,395 persons have been identified and vaccinated in Bengaluru Rural district while 16,56,611 beneficiaries have been given both vaccine doses in Vijayapura district.

In Kodagu district 4,03,846 persons have been administered with both doses of vaccines.

These four districts achieved the vaccination target ahead of Bengaluru Urban district, which has managed to vaccinate 91 per cent of people in the city despite good infrastructure, workforce and facilities compared to the other four districts.

Raichur, considered as one of the most backward districts in Karnataka, has the least administration of second dose of vaccine at 89 per cent.

Despite the huge eligible population of 34,80,530, Belagavi district (98 per cent) is very close to achieving 100 per cent vaccination with both the doses. Kolar district has achieved 97 per cent of vaccination.

Mandya and Hassan districts are inching closer with 96 per cent of vaccination of the eligible population.

The state average in terms of vaccination stands at 94 per cent as far as the second dose is concerned.

State Health Minister, K. Sudhakar has congratulated the district administrations and health workers of the four districts for ensuring vaccination of all eligible population.

Source: IANS

The post Four K’taka districts achieve 100% full vaccination appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New Delhi, March 5 (SocialNews.XYZ) India has administered both doses of Covid-19 vaccines to over 3 crore youngsters of 15 to 18 age group so far. The vaccination drive for teenagers started on January 3.

India has administered 5,52,63,296 first vaccine doses and 3,01,57,910 second vaccine doses to persons of 15 to 18 age bracket till Saturday morning.

"What a great feat by our young warriors! Over 3 crore youngsters between 15-18 age group are now fully vaccinated against Covid-19. Young India is taking the world's largest vaccination drive to the next level", said Union Health Ministry in a tweet on Saturday.

The country has also administered over 2 crore precaution doses among the eligible beneficiaries. Additionally, over 97 per cent of India's adult population has also received their first dose of vaccine against Covid-19.

Meanwhile, India's Covid-19 vaccination coverage has exceeded 178.55 crore as on Saturday with the administration of more than 24.62 lakh doses in the last 24 hours. This has been achieved through 2,06,52,074 sessions.

Moreover, the daily Covid caseload continues to decline as India on Saturday reported 5,921 fresh Covid infections in the last 24 hours with 289 deaths, taking the death toll to 5,14,878, the union health ministry said on Saturday morning.

Source: IANS

The post Over 3 cr teenagers fully vaccinated against Covid appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New York, March 5 (SocialNews.XYZ) A team of researchers has identified unique features of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C), a rare but potentially deadly complication of Covid in children, that suggest how the syndrome gets started.

The findings, published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, may lead to faster diagnosis and better treatment of MIS-C.

"One of the major unanswered questions about MIS-C is how, immunologically, the disease evolves from the initial infectious episode to the final, immune-mediated assault," said Mark Gorelik, Assistant Professor of pediatrics at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons.

The team compared eight MIS-C patients with 14 patients who had other febrile infections, by looking at the array of immune cells and responses in blood samples taken at the very first encounter with care in the emergency department, before treatments were initiated.

A clue to what causes MIS-C may lie in the different immune cells found in MIS-C patients compared with other patients, the researchers said.

"Only some cells were activated, which suggests that these cells are mistakenly directing the immune system to attack blood vessels in the body that had been damaged by the virus," said Robert Winchester, Professor at the varsity.

"These cells are drawn to the blood vessels because of the presence of the virus, but they appear to misidentify the culprit when they alert the rest of the immune system," he added.

MIS-C also appears to drive patients' natural killer cells -- another type of immune cell - to exhaustion.

"They get to the point where they are no longer able to carry out their function properly," Winchester said. "This is seen in some other inflammatory diseases and may offer a clue to treatment similar to those diseases."

Further, interleukin-27, an inflammatory molecule, was very highly upregulated in patients with MIS-C but not in other febrile children.

"This cytokine is poorly understood but has been associated with increased mortality in patients with serious blood infection or sepsis," Gorelik said.

"If validated, these findings may allow researchers to run a simple, easily available test to readily confirm MIS-C in patients when they are in the emergency department."

The researchers also postulate that MIS-C and adult Covid-19 infection may be more similar than is currently believed.

"Perhaps - and this is highly speculative - what is unique to children is the ability to handle the initial viral infection more efficiently, and then a month or so later they develop MIS-C," Gorelik said.

"In contrast, adults are not able to suppress the initial viral infection. And then secondarily, in severe cases, a serious MIS-C-like immune response develops. In both adults and children, however, this second phase immune signature appears quite similar."

Source: IANS

The post Study shows how MIS-C gets started in children appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New Delhi, March 5 (SocialNews.XYZ) India on Saturday reported a further decline in fresh Covid-19 cases with 5,921 infections recorded in the past 24 hours, as per Union Health Ministry's data.

In the same period, 289 Covid-related deaths were reported pushing the toll to 5,14,878.

Meanwhile, the active Covid cases have further reduced to 63,878 which constitute 0.15 per cent of the country's total positive cases, as per the ministry report.

The recovery of 11,651 patients in the last 24 hours has increased the cumulative tally to 4,23,78,721. Consequently, India's recovery rate stands at 98.65 per cent.

Also in the same period, a total of 9,40,905 tests were conducted across the country. India has, so far, conducted over 77.19 crore cumulative tests.

Meanwhile, the weekly positivity rate has further come down to 0.84 per cent while the daily positivity rate has further fallen at 0.63 per cent.

With the administration of over 24.62 lakh Covid vaccine doses in the last 24 hours, India's Covid inoculation coverage has reached 178.55 crore as of this morning. This has been achieved through 2,06,52,074 sessions.

More than 15.62 crore balance and unutilised Covid vaccine doses are still available with the states and UTs to be administered, according to the ministry.

Source: IANS

The post India logs 5,921 fresh Covid cases, 289 deaths appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New Delhi, March 4 (SocialNews.XYZ) Delhi on Friday reported 302 fresh Covid infections, as well as four deaths in the last 24 hours, the Health Department bulletin said.

The fresh infections and deaths took the tally to 18,61,189, and the death toll to 26,134, said the Health bulletin on Friday evening.

Meanwhile, the Covid infection rate has reduced to 0.63 per cent, and the number of active cases to 1,466.

With recovery rate continuing at 98.51 per cent, and the death rate at 1.40 per cent, the active case rate has come down to 0.078 per cent.

With 420 patients recovering in the last 24 hours, the total number of recoveries has gone to 18,33,589. A total of 1,080 Covid patients are being treated in home isolation at present. The number of Covid containment zones has also declined to 4236 in the city.

Meanwhile, a total of 47,738 new tests -- 39,032 RT-PCR and 8,706 Rapid Antigen - were conducted in the last 24 hours, taking the total to 3,65,53,454.

Out of 40,967 vaccines administered in the last 24 hours, 4,701 were first doses and 33,661 second doses. Meanwhile, 2,605 precaution doses were also administered. The total number of cumulative beneficiaries vaccinated so far stands at 3,14,81,995 according to the health bulletin.

Source: IANS

The post Delhi records 302 new Covid cases, 4 deaths appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Bengaluru, March 4 (SocialNews.XYZ) Karnataka logged 233 new Covid cases against 648 discharges and six deaths on Friday. The total active cases in the state came down to 3,469.

The Covid positivity rate and the case fatality rate for the day at stood at 0.48 per cent and 2.57 per cent repectively.

Bengaluru reported 163 cases against 331 discharges and two more deaths in the last 24 hours. The number of positive cases stood at 2,460.

Vijayapura, Ramnagar, Koppal, Chikkamagalur, Bidar and Bagalkot districts recorded zero cases of Covid and most of the districts recorded Covid cases in single digits.

The state has administered 10,11,17,802 doses of Covid vaccines.

On Thursday, the state logged 382 new Covid cases against 689 discharges and 10 deaths.

Source: IANS

The post K’taka logs to 233 fresh Covid cases, 6 deaths appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New Delhi, March 4 (SocialNews.XYZ) The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation's (CDSCO)Subject Expert Committee on Friday recommended granting Emergency Use Authorisation for Covid-19 vaccine Covovax for administering to 12-17-year-olds, said a source.

The expert committee cleared Pune-based vaccine manufacturer SII's application, and the recommendation will be sent to the Drug Controller General of India for approval.

The SII had submitted an application to the DCGI seeking EUA for Covovax for the 12-17 years-old group on February 21.

The DCGI had approved Covovax for restricted use in emergency situation in adults on December 28. However, the vaccine has not yet been included in the country's inoculation drive. Covovax is manufactured by technology transfer from Novavax. As of now only only Bharat Biotech's indigenously-made Covaxin is available for vaccinating those aged 15 to 18.

Meanwhile, India's Covid-19 vaccination coverage has crossed 178.52 crore on Friday, with over 21 lakh vaccine doses have been administered till 7 p.m., while 2.04 crore precaution doses for the identified categories of beneficiaries have been administered so far.

Source: IANS

The post Grant of EUA recommended for Covovax among 12-17 age bracket appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Thiruvananthapuram, March 4 (SocialNews.XYZ) Kerala is seeing the Covid situation improve with with 2,190 people turning positive on Friday, against 2,222 the previous day, with a test positivity rate of 6.74 per cent, Health Minister Veena George said in a statement.

In the past several days, things appear sunny for the state as from a daily high of 50,000 cases a month back, the daily numbers have been consistently falling and has been hovering around lower end of four-digit figures.

Consequent to this, theatres, malls, restaurants and educational institutions have all reopened and are operating in full capacity.

The day saw 3,878 recoveries with the total active cases in the state also coming down to 17,105, of which 8.8 per cent are admitted in various hospitals in the state.

Three more Covid deaths were reported taking the total death tally to 66,012.

Source: IANS

The post Kerala sees daily Covid tally drop further, malls and cinemas at full strength appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New York, March 4 (SocialNews.XYZ) The effectiveness of mRNA vaccines and antibody therapy is reduced against all three subvariants of Omicron, according to new research.

The study by scientists at Columbia University and the University of Hong Kong showed that only one currently authorised antibody treatment retains its activity against all Omicron subvariants.

Omicron is a highly transmissible variant of SARS-CoV-2 that has caused the biggest surge in Covid cases so far in many countries.

Researchers have identified three subvariants of Omicron that share 21 mutations in the spike protein, and named them BA.1, BA.1.1 and BA.2.

The findings, published in the journal Nature, showed that in neutralisation experiments, all three variants exhibited a strong resistance to most of the monoclonal antibodies tested.

Of 19 antibodies, 17 were ineffective against the BA.2 subvariant. The researchers found that bebtelovimab, the latest monoclonal antibody to receive FDA Emergency Use Authorisation, is the only currently available antibody therapy that can adequately treat all three Omicron subvariants.

"The emergence of new variants is narrowing our treatment options and challenging the effectiveness of our current vaccines," said David D. Ho, Professor of Medicine at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons.

"It is critical that we don't relax prematurely and continue to devise novel strategies to contain this ever-evolving pathogen," he added.

In laboratory experiments, the team studied the ability of 19 monoclonal antibodies and the sera from individuals immunised with one of two available mRNA vaccines to neutralise the three known subvariants of Omicron.

The researchers observed a loss of neutralisation activity against BA.1.1 and BA.2 in blood samples from individuals who had received two mRNA shots.

However, the decline in neutralisation was less prominent in blood samples from individuals who had received three mRNA shots, reinforcing the importance of booster shots for sustaining immunity.

When Omicron was first identified in November 2021, the dominant variant was BA.1.

Since December, BA.1 cases have declined, while BA1.1 cases have risen and now make up around 40 per cent of all Omicron cases sequenced globally. The BA.2 subvariant currently represents only 10 perA cent of all Omicron cases globally but is increasing in prevalence.

Source: IANS

The post Antibody therapies, vax blunted by all three Omicron subvariants: Study appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Washington, March 4 (SocialNews.XYZ) The US is planning to roll out a policy to offer the World Health Organization (WHO) access to technology that can be used by low and middle-income nations to develop treatment for Covid-19, top federal health officials have said.

While the officials, which include President Joe Biden's health secretary Xavier Becerra, and his top medical adviser for Covid Dr. Anthony S. Fauci did not specify the technologies that might be included, but hinted that the policy could eventually apply to the Moderna vaccine, the New York Times reported.

However, it depends only if the Biden administration wins a patent dispute with the drugmaker.

Biden has been under intense pressure from activists and WHO officials to do more to press the pharmaceutical industry to share its technology with the world, the report said.

The new policy, officials said, will enable poor nations to manufacture inexpensive vaccines and therapeutics that are developed in the US.

According to Fauci, the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) has already "offered to license several NIH-owned technologies" to the WHO's Covid-19 Technology Access Pool, known as C-TAP, which the health organisation describes as a "global one-stop shop" for drug developers to share their intellectual property.

The technologies would then be made available to the Medicines Patent Pool, a UN backed public health organisation that works to increase access to medicines in poor and middle-income nations.

But, Fauci did not specify which technologies will be licensed or whether Moderna's powerful Covid vaccine - developed in partnership with NIH scientists - would be among them.

Moderna is undergoing a patent war with the US government over who deserves credit for inventing the central component of the vaccine, which grew out of a four-year collaboration between the US drugmaker and the NIH.

Fauci said the negotiations are ongoing, but both he and Becerra strongly suggested that if the government wins that dispute and gains ownership of the crucial patent, it would work to include the Moderna technology in its offerings, the report said.

"President Biden has made it very clear that he wishes to assert all his authorities to make sure that we use everything at our disposal" to make medicines available to those who need them, Becerra was quoted as saying.

He added that "it should be no surprise" that "we're going to push the envelope where the law allows us."

Source: IANS

The post US likely to share some Covid vax technologies with WHO appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New Delhi, March 4 (SocialNews.XYZ) India has so far administered over 2 crore precaution doses or the third vaccine shots among the eligible beneficiaries, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on Friday.

Additionally, over 97 per cent of the country's adult population have also received their first dose of vaccine against Covid-19.

"Over two crore healthcare & frontline workers and citizens aged 60 years or above have received precaution doses", the minister tweeted.

He also requested the eligible beneficiaries to get their third shot at the earliest.

So far, the country has administered 2,03,69,898 precaution doses as on this morning. With the administration of over 24.84 lakh doses in the last 24 hours, the Covid-19 inoculation coverage has reached 178.29 crore. This has been achieved through 2,06,05,684 sessions, as per the Union Health Ministry data.

As many as 6,396 fresh Covid-19 cases were reported in the last 24 hours. In the same period, 201 Covid-related fatalities took the death toll to 5,14,589. The active Covid cases have further reduced to 69,897 which constitute 0.16 per cent of the country's total positive cases, as per the ministry report.

Meanwhile, the Health Minister welcomed the Indian students on their arrival from the war-torn Ukraine at Delhi airport in the morning.

He said that the students have shown amazing courage even in difficult situations. Every effort is being made by the PM Modi government for the safe evacuation of everyone.

Source: IANS

The post Over 2 cr precaution doses administered among eligible beneficiaries: Mansukh Mandaviya appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New Delhi, March 4 (SocialNews.XYZ) India reported 6,396 fresh Covid infections and 201 deaths in a span of 24 hours, the Union health ministry said on Friday morning.

With the new Covid related deaths, the death toll has reached 5,14,589

The active cases have further reduced to 69,897 which constitute 0.16 per cent of the country's total positive cases, said the ministry report.

The recovery of 13,450 patients in the last 24 hours has increased the cumulative tally to 4,23,67,070. Consequently, India's recovery rate stands at 98.64 per cent, said the Union Health Ministry.

Also in the same period, a total of 9,23,351 tests were conducted across the country. India has so far conducted over 77.09 crore cumulative tests.

Meanwhile, the weekly positivity rate has come down to 0.90 per cent while the daily positivity rate has further fallen at 0.69 per cent.

With the administration of over 24.84 lakh Covid vaccine doses in the last 24 hours, India's inoculation coverage has reached 178.29 crore as of Friday morning. This has been achieved through 2,06,05,684 sessions.

More than 15.49 crore balance and unutilised Covid vaccine doses are still available with the states and union territories to be administered, according to the health ministry as of Friday morning.

Source: IANS

The post India logs 6,396 new Covid cases, 201 deaths appeared first on Social News XYZ.

New Delhi, March 3 (SocialNews.XYZ) Delhi on Thursday reported 326 fresh Covid infections, as well as three more deaths, the Health Department bulletin said.

The fresh infections and fatalities has pushed the tally at 18,60,887 and the toll to 26,130.

The infection rate stands at 0.77 per cent, and the number of active cases has reduced to 1,588.

With recovery rate rising at 98.51 per cent, the death rate constant at 1.40 per cent, the active case rate has come down to 0.08 per cent.

With 388 patients recovering in the last 24 hours, the total number of recoveries has gone to 18,33,169. A total of 1,171 Covid patients are being treated in home isolation at present, while the number of containment zones has also declined to 4,415.

A total of 42,542 new tests -- 34,402 RT-PCR and 8,140 Rapid Antigen - were conducted in the last 24 hours, taking the total to 3,65,05,716.

Out of 39,396 vaccines administered in the last 24 hours, 4,708 were first doses and 32,506 second. Meanwhile, 2,182 precaution doses were also administered. The total number of beneficiaries vaccinated so far stands at 3,14,41,028 according to the health bulletin.

Source: IANS

The post Delhi records 326 new Covid cases, 3 deaths appeared first on Social News XYZ.

Bengaluru, March 3 (SocialNews.XYZ) Karnataka logged 382 new Covid cases against 689 discharges and 10 deaths on Thursday. The total active cases in the state came down to 3,890.

The Covid positivity rate and case fatality rate for the day stood at 1.04 per cent and 2.61 per cent respectively.

Bengaluru reported 239 new cases against 340 discharges and four deaths. The number of positive cases stood at 2,630.

Ramnagar, Raichur, Mandya, Haveri, Davanagere and Bagalkot districts recorded zero cases.

Most of the districts recorded Covid cases in single digits. The state has administered 10,09,62,774 doses of Covid vaccination.

On Wednesday, the state recorded 188 cases against 816 discharges and 12 deaths.

Source: IANS

The post K’taka logs 382 new Covid cases, 10 deaths appeared first on Social News XYZ.