Linking the multiple drug-resistant bacterium detected in Britain to India is wrong say city doctors
Linking the multiple drug-resistant bacterium detected in Britain to India is wrong say city doctorsIt's not what this tiny bacterium can do that's worrying the Indian medical fraternity. It's all about the name. Experts say the nomenclature of the superbug - New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase 1 (NDM-1) - is wrong as apart from India and other neighbouring countries, a number of such bacteria have been reported from various other nations. Health experts have also expressed suspicions that this is a ploy by Western medical businesses to thwart the booming medical tourism industry in India.
What's bugging everyone? Doctors have said that the superbug can
infect people in rare cases and only in places like an ICU or medical
wards in hospitals. representative picThe news of this antibiotic-resistant microbe, however, has spread like an epidemic and has created panic and confusion amongst Delhiites. Hospitals and private medical practitioners have been receiving endless calls from anxious citizens seeking clarifications on the issue.
"Since morning I have got many queries about the bacteria just because its name has New Delhi in it. Bacteria like Metallo-Beta Lactamase have been existing for long and we have diagnosed many such cases before.
Nobody walking on the street and sitting at home will get infected by this bacterium, as it only exists in places like an ICU. The term New Delhi being included in the nomenclature has created panic but this does not means that Delhi is a breeding ground for this bacterium. Nobody ever used the term Mexican swine flu though the disease originated there," said Dr Shalini Duggal, consultant Microbiologist, Dr BL Kapoor Memorial Hospital.
But Delhiites are not taking any chances. "I have had fever for the last three days. When I hear the news about NDM-1, I thought it was some flu possibly spread by mosquitoes in NDMC area. I was worried," said Siddhart Sabikhi, a resident of south Delhi.
Doctors claims this superbug is not something to be feared as such phenomena are common, but this may impact the Indian medical tourism for a while. "This superbug may have an adverse impact on the industry initially but the effect will not last long as all the patients coming to Indian hospitals come to the best institutions which have the approval of all international bodies.
This bacterium can exist only in unhygienic conditions, so it will not affect the Indian market, as we have best services and doctors. The report is authentic but saying the Indian sub-continental is root to the origin of the bacterium is wrong," said Dr Sandeep Budhiraja, Director, Institute of Internal Medicine, Max Healthcare.
Other health officials have rejected the claim by British scientists that the superbug entered UK from India. The Department of Health in UK has already put out an alert on the issue.
"This phenomenon is not India-centric; the superbug is everywhere. It is wrong to blame India, its hospitals, and our drug policy. Indian hospitals are world class. This gives a very wrong message. We will register protest," said V M Katoch, Secretary, Department of Health and Research.
The Health Ministry said it was unfair to link the bug to India and officials described it as "malicious propaganda".
"When India is emerging as a medical tourism destination, this type of news is unfortunate and may be a sinister design of multi-national companies," said SS Ahluwalia MP, Bharatiya Janata Party.
Congress party's Jayanthi Natarajan said the report of the superbug was a "wrong propaganda against the country".
When asked why it has been named New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase-1 or NDM-1, V M Katoch said it is a general trend to name the bacteria after the country from where the first strand of bacteria is reported and in this case it is India.
HEALTH CHECKThe Indian health ministry in a statement, said: "While such organisms may be circulating more commonly in the world due to international travel but to link this with the safety of surgery hospitals in India and citing isolated examples to show that due to presence of such organism in Indian environment, India is not a safe place to visit is wrong."
The ministry also took strong exception to naming of the bug as "New Delhi metallo beta lactamase". "...strongly refute the naming of this enzyme as New Delhi metallo beta lactamase and also refute that hospitals in India are not safe for treatment including medical tourism," the ministry said.
