16-10-2021 The Asian Independent

12 16-10-2021 to 31-10-2021 NEWS
www.theasianindependent.co.uk
Manmohan Singh diagnosed with
dengue, gradually improving: AIIMS
New Delhi. Former Prime
Minister Manamohan Singh
has been diagnosed with
dengue, but his health condition
is gradually improving and
is out of danger, an AIIMS official
said on Saturday.
The official said that the former
Prime Minister's "platelets
are increasing and is out of danger
now".
The veteran Congress leader
was admitted to the AIIMS on
Wednesday evening after he
complained of fever and weakness.
Union Health Minister
Mansukh Mandaviya also visited
him and enquired about his
health.
A team of doctors, under the
guidance of Nitish Nayak, a
well -known cardiologist, are
attending on the former Prime
Minister.
He had developed fever
three days ago and was feeling
weak after which he was rushed
to AIIMS.
Singh had tested positive for
Covid-19 in April this year during
the second wave of the pandemic
and had been admitted to
the AIIMS.
Africa's Covid cases
surpass 8.41 million
Smartphone app helped people
significantly lower their BP
Addis Ababa. The number of
confirmed Covid-19 cases in
Africa reached 8,414,571 cases
as of Friday afternoon, the
Africa Centres for Disease
Control and Prevention (Africa
CDC) said.
The Africa CDC, the specialised
healthcare agency of
the African Union (AU), said
the death toll from the pandemic
across the continent stands at
215,042, Xinhua news agency
reported. Some 7,786,325
patients across the continent
have recovered from the disease
so far, according to the
agency. South Africa, Morocco,
Tunisia and Ethiopia are among
the countries with the most
cases in the continent, according
to the agency.
In terms of caseload, southern
Africa is the most affected
region, followed by the northern
and eastern parts of the continent,
while central Africa is
the least affected region in the
continent, according to the
Africa CDC.
New Delhi. A three-year-long
study involving nearly 28,000
adults has shown that a smartphone
app and a connected
monitor were able to help them
significantly lower their blood
pressure.
The programme, called
Hello Heart, let people track
their blood pressure, weight,
and physical activity and
offered tips on how to manage
blood pressure.
After one year of using the
programme, over 85 per cent of
people with stage 2 hypertension
had reductions in their systolic
pressure, which stayed at
lower levels over the course of
three years, according to the
study published in the journal
JAMA Network Open.
Most participants achieved
and maintained lower blood
pressure during a follow-up
period that lasted as long as
three years, said the
researchers.
"This is the first peerreviewed,
published study
reporting the long-term experience
of a digital health application
for blood pressure management,"
said study author
Alexis Beatty, a cardiologist
and associate professor at the
University of California, San
Francisco.
The 'Hello Heart' programme
included a blood pressure
monitor that automatically
sends readings directly to an
app.
The app monitors trends and
automatically gives users
strategies to improve their
blood pressure with things like
diet and exercise.
This cohort study enrolled
US adults with elevated BP or
hypertension between January
1, 2015, and July 1, 2020. The
hypertension self-management
programme was provided
through the participant's (or
their spouse's) employer health
plan.
The findings suggest that a
mobile technology hypertension
self-management program
can support long-term BP control
and very high BP detection.
Such programmes may
improve real-world BP monitoring
and control, said the
researchers.
Previous studies of mobile
technology-facilitated BP selfmanagement
interventions
have found significant associations
with BP control.
"To our knowledge, this is
the first study reporting longterm
experience with a digital
health application for hypertension
management, with a
magnitude of association that
is potentially clinically meaningful,"
the study authors
noted.
Although weight loss was
associated with lower BP,
weight loss did not appear to
mediate the association
between engagement and
lower BP.
"Thus, other factors were
likely responsible for the association
of engagement and
lower BP. Such factors may
include medication adherence,
sodium intake reduction, stress
management, and sleep management,
which are encouraged
by the app's recommendation
system," the team noted.
Future studies should examine
the efficacy and dissemination
of mobile technologyfacilitated
BP self-management
interventions and their
real-world effectiveness in
other settings and populations
as well as deeper investigations
into the mechanisms that drive
their effects on BP control,
they recommended.
Global Covid-19 caseload tops 240 mn
Washington. The global coronavirus caseload
has topped 240 million, while the deaths have
surged to more than 4.88 million and vaccinations
soared to over 6.58 billion, according to the
Johns Hopkins University.
In its latest update on Saturday morning, the
University's Center for Systems Science and
Engineering (CSSE) revealed that the current
global caseload, death toll and the total number
number of vaccine doses administered stood at
240,036,345, 4,888,986 and 6,586,517,325,
respectively.
The US continues to be the worst-hit country
with the world's highest number of cases and
deaths at 44,883,603 and 723,747, according to
the CSSE.
In terms of infections, India follows in the
second place with 34,037,592 cases. The other
worst countries with over 3 million cases are
Brazil (21,627,476), the UK (8,400,971), Russia
(7,804,750), Turkey (7,601,596), France
(7,180,773), Iran (5,765,904), Argentina
(5,271,361), Spain (4,984,386), Colombia
(4,978,689), Italy (4,712,482), Germany
(4,366,833), Indonesia (4,233,014) and Mexico
(3,744,574), the CSSE figures showed.
Nations with a death toll of over 100,000 are
Brazil (602,669), India (451,814), Mexico
(283,574), Russia (217,382), Peru (199,775),
Indonesia (142,889), the UK (138,792), Italy
(131,503), Colombia (126,796), Iran (123,695),
France (118,153) and Argentina (115,660).