Warangal recorded the highest number of HIV positive cases in Andhra Pradesh, according to the latest State HIV Sentinel Surveillance Report. The report, which was released by Health Minister Dr Sivaprasada Rao, has revealed that 101 cases out of 250 tested turned out to be HIV positive in Warangal, followed by Chittoor (98), Visakhapatnam (89) and Khammam (83). The study covered the SV Medical College, Tirupati, Area Hospital, Rajamundry, Osmania Medical College, Hyderabad, District Headquarters Hospital (DHH), Khammam, Area Hospital Ramagundam, Sidhartha Medical College, Vijayawada, Kurnool Medical College, DHH, Sanga Reddy, DHH, Ongole, Area Medical College, Visakhapatnam, and the Kakatiya Medical College, Warangal. The studies were done between August and November 2002.

According to earlier surveys, Vijayawada topped in HIV positive cases in the state, which ranks second in the country with more than four lakh HIV positive patients.

Meanwhile, to address the problem of safe disposal of syringes and needles, especially with HIV and the Children’s Vaccination Programme, health workers in the state will be provided needle-destroyer devices. As part of a pilot project, the project will be started in Mehboobnagar district. Under the vaccination programme, auto-disable syringes were introduced in 12 districts of the state, but disposal of these syringes were becoming a problem for health workers, especially the auxiliary nurse midwives (ANMs). Though over two lakh safety boxes were provided to ANMs to dispose and incinerate needles and syringes, the related health hazards of burning bio-medical wastes was a cause for concern, though on a small scale.

These needle destroyers are being imported from a London-based company and will be supplied to 250 ANMs in Mehboobnagar .Plans are also underway to put in place a system to ensure that the syringes are collected and recycled. The needles, once cut using the device, will fall into an attached box that can be removed and ‘deep-buried’ to prevent the spread of infection and diseases through accidental pricks.

According to Dr Raj Kumar, Project Manager for PATH (Program for Appropriate Technology in Health), Children’s Vaccination Program, if the pilot project is successful, it will be replicated in all the districts of the state. “Once these needle-destroyer devices – that will initially complement the safety boxes – are successful in the safe disposal of sharps, steps can be taken to transfer the technology to a local manufacturer. Each of these devices costs Rs 300 and once a local manufacturer is able to produce them, the cost will come down,” Dr Raj Kumar said.

The pilot project is being implemented by a local non-government organisation (NGO) which will train ANMs to use the device. The program will be started as soon as the devices arrive.