About CentriCycle

Background of relevant diseases in India

Despite the many improvements that are currently happening in the field of healthcare in India, preventable, manageable diseases such as anemia and hepatitis still impose a serious burden on society. This is especially the case in rural areas, where the lack of basic utilities such as clean water and electricity limit the accessibility of adequate healthcare for residents. We will focus our intervention on the province of Karnataka, where these problems are particularly severe. Here is an overview of the most prevalent diseases that our product aims to address.

Anemia

• affects over 2 billion (about 25%) people worldwide, with children and pregnant women being the hardest hit.
• In Karnataka, about 88% of pregnant women and 75% of children currently live with some form of anemia. This is thought to contribute to a 40% of maternal deaths per year and 30% of babies to be born with low birth weights. The children that do survive go on to face complications throughout life such as impaired growth and development and chronic weakness.

Hepatitis

• Worldwide, 1 out of every 12 people is affected by Hepatitis, with 3-4 million new infections each year.
• India does not have a Hepatitis B virus registry but various studies have reported that approximately 20 million Indians are Hepatitis B carriers. Large population based studies in India have reported incidences of 0.09%-1.4% around the region of Karnataka.
• Hepatitis is the #1 cause of liver cirrhosis and liver cancer and contributes to India's high child mortality rate of 62.7 deaths per 1000 children under the age of five.
  

HIV/AIDS

• There are an estimated 2.4 million people living with HIV/AIDS in India
• Costs for monitoring HIV is extremely high, both in terms of economics (e.g. lost wages, lost hours of work) and social burden (e.g. family members need to take care of sick relatives).
• Although centrifuging blood is not necessary for diagnosing HIV/AIDS, CentriCycle will be able to support diagnosis by allowing preservation of blood in case tests cannot be performed on-site.

Diabetes

• India is currently ranked #1 in the world in terms of Type II Diabetes, with an estimated 50.8 million affected.
• This is predicted to increase in developing countries. In the state of Karnataka, overall prevalence is estimated to be approximately 16%. This is a particularly severe issue among people in the high socioeconomic strata, with over 32% estimated to be affected by the disease.
• If left unchecked, the prevalence of diabetes will no doubt increase and impose an even greater burden on society.