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People who have an irregular heartbeat called atrial fibrillation that is treated with a procedure called catheter ablation may have a reduced risk of dementia compared to those who are treated with medication alone. The preliminary study released April 18, 2023, will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s 75th Annual Meeting being held in person in Boston and live online from April 22-27, 2023.

A new USC Schaeffer Center white paper finds the value to society of Medicare coverage for new classes of weight loss drugs would equal nearly $1 trillion over ten years.

By NATION  REPORTER

LOCAL Pharmaceutical manufacturing fear they may have to close shop with government’s decision to award a US$120 million tender to an Egyptian company for the supply and delivery of all essential medicines and other medical supplies, the Association of Citizens Owned Pharmaceutical Companies (ACOPC) has complained.

Gallan Sichilima, the president of the Association of Citizens Owned Pharmaceutical Companies says the procurement of all essential medicines and other medical supplies from Egypt was likely to cause economic turmoil on the local pharmaceutical industry with a resultant consequence of closure for many companies.

Mr Sichilima has challenged the Zambia Medicines, Medical Supplies Agency (ZAMMSA) to be transparent and disclose the sum total of the tender that is seeking to single-source Unified Procurement Authority of Egypt for the supply and delivery of essential medicines and other medical supplies.

He said it was confusing and ironical that while President Hakainde Hichilema had been preaching of supporting and promoting local pharmaceutical manufacturers, some government official were frustrating the growth of the local industry by pulling in the opposite direction of that of the head of State.

He said ZAMMSA should clearly state whether the procurement of medicines from Egypt was a one-off purchase or was to become the norm, fearing that local pharmaceutical companies were at the risk of shutting down as a result.

“If government has decided to single source a foreign company to supply and deliver all essential medicines and other medial supplies, then we should stop talking about the local pharmaceutical manufacturing companies. They are killing the local manufacturers and we should stop talking about job creation in this country.”

“It is confusing that President Hichilema is talking about promoting and growing the local pharmaceutical manufacturing companies yet we haver government officials who are frustrating the growth of the sector the head of State is promoting. The decision by ZAMMSA to proceed to procure medicines from Egypt is going to have long-term economic ramifications. It will certainly cause economic turmoil not only in the pharmaceutical industry but will have a general negative effect on the growth of the economy,” Mr Sichilima said.

He noted that the 8TH National Development Plan (8NDP) was clear about the desire and ambition to grow the pharmaceutical industry in Zambia as the country’s budget on health had increased exponentially.

Mr Sichilima recalled that Zambia recently hosted the Zambia/European Union pharmaceutical manufacturing initiative launch at which emphasis was on the promotion of the growth of the pharmaceutical industry.

He said government should have considered looking at what medicines were being manufactured local before deciding to engage the Egyptian company for the bulk supply and delivery of the drugs.

“What is it that has precipitated the single-sourcing of an Egyptian company to bulk supply of the medicines. There are medicines and other medical supplies that are local manufactured and government should have considered our local companies. The shortage of medicines has been caused by the mismanagement of the supply chain built over the years and respected across the world. We can only blame it on incompetence of those in government,” Mr Sichilima said.       

A recent study conducted at the University of Turku in Finland shows that different people have similar brain activity when perceiving social situations. Researchers discovered an extensive neural network in the human brain that effectively processes various social information.

Weight regain is a common problem for weight loss individuals. A number of studies have shown that weight loss in overweight people results in a reduction in whole-body energy expenditure.

Information available at birth may help to identify children with higher likelihood of developing ADHD, according to new research from RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences.

Local governments are increasingly adopting policies that earmark taxes for mental health services, and approximately 30% of the U.S. population lives in a jurisdiction with such a policy, finds a new analysis published in the journal The Milbank Quarterly.

Air pollution, a warm bedroom, and high levels of carbon dioxide and ambient noise may all adversely affect our ability to get a good night’s sleep, suggests a study from researchers with the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Louisville.

By MICHAEL MIYOBA

Sensational Zanaco FC Coach Wedson Nyirenda is confident that Zanaco will not be relegated from the FAZ Super League.

Speaking after dropped into the relegation zone on the Super League table following last Saturdays’ 3-2 defeat to Zesco United in Ndola, Nyirenda noted that what was happening to Zanaco was worrying but he is confident that the team will pull through.

“Anyone can worry but I’m very confident that the team will pull through,” Nyirenda who replaced Kelvin Kaindu and Nigerian veteran Emmanuel Amunike said after recording defeat in his first game of his third stint at Sunset Stadium.

He said the game against Zesco United showed that the Bankers have what it takes to move forward to ensure survival.

“A very good game we played against Zesco United despite the loss. The boys did a good job and played out of their hearts we just gave away silly goals, all the three goals, Zesco didn’t work hard for them we were just giving them,” he said.

“And at the end of the day we scored two goals which we genuinely worked for and I think we have a team to go forward and get out of there.”

Asked what caused the Bankers downfall in Ndola after winning the home fixture played in November last year Nyirenda said; “The loss of Salulani Phiri in the first half. We lost him at a time when we needed him the most and loosing a player eight minutes into the game it’s a big blow because you have to start thinking of changing the plans so that was the biggest problem we encountered.”

Zanaco are currently 15th on the Super League table with 34 points collected from eight wins, ten draws and 11 defeats.

The Bankers’ next fixture will be against Kansanshi Dynamos who are also fighting to avoid beong relegated despite occupying 11th position on the log with 39 points.

Esport athletes can use mental imaging techniques to enhance performance and achieve optimal mental and emotional states while competing.