New Delhi: Homoeopathic medicine `Belladona`
might have a probable role in preventing Japanese
Encephalitis, a new Government research has found.
In a recent study conducted by the School of Tropical
Medicine, Kolkata, in collaboration with Central Council for
Research in Homoeopathy (CCRH), under the Department of AYUSH,
researchers have found a significant decrease in the pocks
count (infection) in chick embryos infected with JE virus.
The results of the study have been published in the
latest issue of the American Journal of Infectious Diseases.
The outcome of the study was also presented by Bhaswati
Bandopadhyay, the Principal Investigator, at the 25th Clinical
Virology Symposium held from April 19-22, 2009 by the PAN
American Society for Clinical Virology, Florida, USA.
JE presents a significant risk to humans and animals,
particularly in Southeast Asia, including India, where around
50,000 cases and 10,000 deaths occur per year, essentially
affecting children below 10 years of age.
Statistics reveal that about 50 per cent of the patients
who develop Japanese Encephalitis suffer from permanent
neurological defects and 30 per cent of them die due to the
disease. Further, the JE virus has shown a tendency to extend
to other geographic areas.
PTI
