Abantika Ghosh

In this E-Xplained episode before a nationwide audience on Zoom, K K Shailaja, Kerala Health Minister, discusses how Kerala kept the numbers down, and looks at the challenges ahead.

Over two days next week, June 16 and 17, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will interact with state chief ministers.

“This shows that the lockdown has been successful,” ICMR chief Dr Balram Bhargava said while presenting the results Thursday. The second phase of the survey is being carried out in containment zones.

After claiming asymptomatic transmission of Covid-19 is rare, WHO has now clarified that it does happen. How does one without symptoms transmit the disease? Why is this important in containment strategies?

The Indian Council of Medical Research’s testing strategy includes asymptomatic direct and high-risk contacts of a confirmed case. A senior official from ICMR said India as a country should follow this guidance.

However, senior officials in the Health Ministry have ruled out any immediate change in the current testing strategy.

After publishing a study raising questions on hydroxychloroquine’s efficacy against Covid-19, The Lancet has issued a retraction. What led to this, and what questions does it raise about the peer review process?

Among the signatories in the joint statement were Dr Shashi Kant, Professor and Head of the Centre for Community Medicine, AIIMS, New Delhi, and Dr D C S Reddy, former Professor and Head of Community Medicine at BHU.

India continues use HCQ for prophylaxis and treatment of Covid-19. All eyes will now be on the Solidarity Trial.

The statements came after grave questions were raised about the quality of data used in both studies, sourced from a Chicago firm called Surgisphere.

Unlockdown SOPs: The guidelines are advisory in nature; it is for state governments and individual establishments to enforce them. 

Data released by the Health Department in compliance with a May 4 order of the Delhi High Court show that since May 28 — when the daily increase in case numbers reached four figures — the positivity rate has remained above 17 per cent, and touched a staggering 37.7 per cent on May 31.

Apart from the mandatory use of masks, thermal screening, social distancing and sanitisation, the SOPs require people above 65 years of age, those with comorbidities, pregnant woman, and children below the age of 10 years, to stay at home.

In a statement, The Lancet said that “important scientific questions” were raised about data in the paper authored by cardiologist Mandeep Mehra, Desai and Zurich cardiologist Frank Ruschitzka. It said an independent audit has been commissioned.

“We are very far away from the peak. Our preventive measures have been very effective. We are in a much better position vis-a-vis other countries and you will see the data soon,” Dr Gupta said.

Besides, other things, this particular trait could potentially make the virus weaker, one of the scientists involved in the study said.

Naidu and Birla held a detailed discussion on Monday on the options and modalities for the Monsoon Session.

The government has maintained that there is no community transmission even as the total cases in the country touched 1,73,763 on Saturday.

The government may also consider relaxing night curfew hours based on suggestions from health experts. “It (decision to impose curfew from 7 pm to 7 am) is not exactly based on technical considerations of health. There is no harm if it is extended at least to 9 pm,” said an official.

Of the total 83,004 active cases on May 27, less than 3500 needed any kind of intervention -- oxygen therapy, ICU or ventilators.

The recovery trial is currently the largest randomised controlled trial of HCQ for Covid-19.

WHO Solidarity trial: In the hunt for possible Covid-19 treatments, WHO has halted enrolment for the hydroxychloroquine arm of trials. What led to the move, and what progress has been made with the other arms of Solidarity so far?

Incidentally, 182 private labs in the country make up 29 per cent of the total testing infrastructure. There are 428 government laboratories where Covid testing is currently taking place.

Symptomatic healthcare workers were eligible for testing from the very start, but inclusion of other frontline workers was the big takeaway of the last testing strategy revision.