Latest news with #SreeChitraTirunalInstituteforMedicalSciencesandTechnology
Time of India
10-06-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Study to explore impact of indoor air pollution on heart failure patients
T'puram: Air pollution is increasingly being recognised as a serious threat to heart health, contributing to heart failure and other cardiovascular conditions. To explore whether cleaner indoor air can lead to better health outcomes for heart failure patients, the Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST) launched a new study. The research is part of the Indo-US collaborative agreement on environmental and occupational health and focuses on one key question: Can reducing indoor air pollution improve the health of people with heart failure? The study is being carried out at three major medical centres in India: All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi; Dayanand Medical College (DMC), Ludhiana; and SCTIMST, Trivandrum. As part of the study, air purifiers were installed in the homes of 10 heart failure patients in Trivandrum and Kollam districts. The plan is to expand this number and install a total of 200 air purifiers in patients' homes across these districts. "Air pollution is often seen as a problem of cities and traffic, but indoor air pollution is equally dangerous, especially in places where people spend most of their time — their homes. For patients with heart failure, who are particularly vulnerable to environmental stressors, breathing cleaner air could significantly reduce complications, hospitalisations, and even death," Dr Harikrishnan S, the principal investigator, said. He said if successful, it could lead to new guidelines for managing heart failure, emphasising the importance of air quality at home. It may also inform national health policies, making air purifiers a potential part of patient care for high-risk groups. The findings could benefit millions of people living in polluted regions, not just in India, but globally. With heart disease being the leading cause of death in India, innovative, evidence-based interventions are urgently needed. By focusing on the connection between clean air and cardiac health, this research places India at the forefront of an emerging area of public health. SCTIMST and its partners are hopeful that the study will provide valuable data to shape the future of care for heart failure patients — one breath at a time, Dr Harikrishnan added.
United News of India
09-06-2025
- Health
- United News of India
Emergency surgeries stopped at country's prestigious Sree Chitra Institute
Thiruvananthapuram, June 9 (UNI) Several emergency surgeries were stopped indefinitely due to a shortage of equipment at the country's prestigious 'Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST). Surgeries in the Interventional Radiology department were stopped for the last few days as the patients admitted for emergency surgeries have also been discharged, sources told UNI. The companies supplying equipment say that they are not able to supply it at the old rate following the increase in price of foreign-made surgical equipment. Sree Chithira purchases surgical equipment only through the Government e Marketplace (GeM) Portal as per the Central Government's instructions. There is also a serious allegation that an unholy nexus between the supply companies demanding a price hike of surgical equipment and a top few in the Institute led to the current crisis. UNI DS ARN
New Indian Express
05-06-2025
- Health
- New Indian Express
Sree Chitra to explore link between indoor air pollution, heart health
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Over the next year, 200 heart patients in Kerala will sleep with a drum-sized cylindrical air purifier beside their beds. This is part of a major study being undertaken by the Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST) to explore the link between indoor air pollution and heart health. The air purifiers -- supplied by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi -- will continuously monitor indoor air quality even as clinicians track each patient's heart condition. The goal: to understand whether cleaner indoor air can reduce complications in people suffering from heart failure. The Kerala-based project is part of a larger multi-centre research initiative involving AIIMS, New Delhi, and the Dayanand Medical College, Ludhiana, in Punjab -- regions known for far worse air quality than Kerala. Funded by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the study is significant as cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death in India. 'Air pollution is not just a city or traffic issue. Indoor air, where people spend a majority of their time, can be just as hazardous, especially for those with heart failure,' Dr Harikrishnan S, principal investigator and professor of cardiology at SCTIMST, told TNIE. 'This study asks a crucial question: can reducing indoor air pollution improve outcomes for patients with heart failure?' Each home will be equipped with one of two types of purifiers, distributed randomly. One has a basic bacterial filter while the other comes with both bacterial and dust filters. The devices will measure pollutants from environmental sources and household practices such as cooking. 'Patients will return for clinical review every three months, during which doctors will assess changes in their heart function, specifically the heart's pumping efficiency,' Dr Harikrishnan said. A baseline reading from a central monitor installed at SCTIMST will help interpret the data collected by the homebased machines.
New Indian Express
05-06-2025
- Health
- New Indian Express
How does air pollution affect heart? Sree Chitra to find out with purifiers
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Over the next year, 200 heart patients in Kerala will sleep with a drum-sized cylindrical air purifier beside their beds. This is part of a major study being undertaken by the Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST) to explore the link between indoor air pollution and heart health. The air purifiers -- supplied by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi -- will continuously monitor indoor air quality even as clinicians track each patient's heart condition. The goal: to understand whether cleaner indoor air can reduce complications in people suffering from heart failure. The Kerala-based project is part of a larger multi-centre research initiative involving AIIMS, New Delhi, and the Dayanand Medical College, Ludhiana, in Punjab -- regions known for far worse air quality than Kerala. Funded by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the study is significant as cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death in India. 'Air pollution is not just a city or traffic issue. Indoor air, where people spend a majority of their time, can be just as hazardous, especially for those with heart failure,' Dr Harikrishnan S, principal investigator and professor of cardiology at SCTIMST, told TNIE. 'This study asks a crucial question: can reducing indoor air pollution improve outcomes for patients with heart failure?' Each home will be equipped with one of two types of purifiers, distributed randomly. One has a basic bacterial filter while the other comes with both bacterial and dust filters. The devices will measure pollutants from environmental sources and household practices such as cooking. 'Patients will return for clinical review every three months, during which doctors will assess changes in their heart function, specifically the heart's pumping efficiency,' Dr Harikrishnan said. A baseline reading from a central monitor installed at SCTIMST will help interpret the data collected by the homebased machines.
The Hindu
04-06-2025
- Health
- The Hindu
SCTIMST launches multi-centric study on air pollution and heart health
The Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST) has launched a new study o explore whether cleaner indoor air can lead to better health outcomes for heart failure patients. Air pollution is increasingly being recognised as a serious threat to heart health, contributing to heart failure and other cardiovascular conditions. Higher levels of ambient air pollution, especially particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or less (PM 2.5) are specifically placed as a serious environmental risk factor for morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular diseases. Other pollutants that increase cardiovascular risk include nitrogen oxides (NOx), and ozone (O3), sulphur dioxide and black carbon Both short and long term exposure are linked to increased risk of cardiovascular diseases-related mortality, myocardial infarction, hypertension, and stroke. Air pollution is often seen as a problem of cities and traffic, but indoor air pollution is equally dangerous, especially in their own homes, where people spend most of their time. For patients with heart failure who are particularly vulnerable to environmental stressors, breathing cleaner air could significantly reduce complications, hospitalisations, and even deaths. SCTIMST study to explore whether cleaner indoor air can lead to better health outcomes is being carried out in collaboration with partners in India and the U.S. Indo–US collaborative This research is part of the Indo–US collaborative agreement on environmental and occupational health and focuses on one key question: Can reducing indoor air pollution improve the health of people with heart failure? The study is being carried out at three major medical centres in the country- the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi; Dayanand Medical College (DMC), Ludhiana; and SCTIMST, Thiruvananthapuram. Some of the dangerous indoor air pollutants include nitrogen dioxides (commonly produced by gas stoves and heaters) and carbon monoxide (produced by home appliances without proper air vents or when burning fuels), both of which can be quite harmful for patients with heart failure or other cardiovascular disease. As part of the study, air purifiers have already been installed in the houses of 10 heart patients in Thiruvananthapuram and Kollam districts. The plan is to expand this number and install a total of 200 air purifiers in patients' houses across these districts. Wide-reaching implications This study could have wide-reaching public health implications for it could lead to new guidelines for managing heart failure, with an emphasis on the importance of air quality at home. It may be informative for national health policies, making air purifiers a potential part of patient care for high-risk groups, according to Harikrishnan S., Professor of Cardiology, who is the the Principal Investigator of the study. The co-investigators are Jeemon Panniyammakal, G. Sanjay and Jyothi Vijay. With heart disease being the leading cause of death in India, innovative, evidence-based interventions are urgently needed. Exploring the connection between clean air and cardiac health could be the first step towards this, they said.
