KATHMANDU, Dec 2 - People residing in Kathmandu, the country's lowlands or in the hills need not be surprised if researchers from Nepal and the US arrive at their doorsteps one of these days and start shooting questions about things ranging from history of family ailments to smoking, drinking, eating and mobility habits. The reason: a national level cardiac research, based on over 15,000 samples, is about to be conducted in Nepal.
Medical studies of this scope have rarely been conducted in Asia, let alone Nepal, said Dr Bhagwan Koirala, chief of Shahid Gangalal National Heart Center. "It's a big study. That's why we have looked for an American counterpart," he said.
Working for the purpose in the US is Dr Shiva Gautam, Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Gautam, who arrived in Kathmandu on November 26 for preliminary work on what he terms an "ambitious study", said that a number of professionals at Harvard University and the University of Washington are ready to work in this. Gautam, who is also director of the Biostatistics Program at Harvard-Thorndike General Clinical Research Center, said he received support from around the world after he floated the idea at PROCOR, an e-mail group of Nobel Laureate Dr Bernard Lown of Harvard.
"The tests that are currently conducted for cardiac ailments are based on the Framingham Heart Study of the US that was started in the 1940s," Gautam said. "The study was conducted in a small city among white people. While the risk factors for heart ailments are the same, the impact of the risk factors vary between populations," said Gautam, explaining the importance of the study to be conducted in Nepal.
"Such a study has not been conducted in developing countries. This will be an inspiration for developing countries and also Nepal's contribution to knowledge," Gautam said. In terms of scope, the study will also be the first of its kind in Nepal.
A pilot study on a sample of 100 people in Bansbari locality in Kathmandu has already started. About five doctors are involved in the pilot study that is scheduled to be completed in three months. The pilot study will provide an idea how to go about choosing samples and framing questionnaires.
"Thereafter, the real study will take two to three years," said Gautam, who has been with Harvard since 2003 and in the field of Biostatistics for 16 years now. Gautam has been involved in a large number of medical studies in the US.
The doctors are expecting funds for the purpose from the World Health Organization, the Nepal government, the US and Shahid Gangalal National Heart Center.
"It's an idea at the moment," said Gautam.
"It's more than an idea," insisted Koirala. "I think we can do it."
The ideal plan is to do a follow-up study on the sample in five to 10 years. Gautam is meeting Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala Sunday and several political leaders before leaving Nepal on December 10.
The national study will involve 15 to 20 doctors. The study will help frame policy and also help formulate future prevention strategy in Nepal and Asia where sedentary lifestyle and low awareness of risk factors have led to rapid spread of heart ailments and diabetes . -
The Kathmandu Post
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