News & Events
Hindustan Latex and BD Launch Auto-Disable Syringes in India
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- First Public-Private Collaboration in India to Promote Injection Safety - Government of India: "60 percent of all injections given in India are unsafe"
Contact: Michael Marinello BD Public Relations (201) 847-7437 Franklin Lakes, NJ (December 16, 2004) -- Hindustan Latex Ltd (HLL), a Government of India enterprise, and BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company) (NYSE:BDX), a global medical technology company and leader in immunization, announced today that they have entered into an agreement that will form the basis of a public-private collaboration to help prevent the reuse of syringes in India through the introduction of auto-disable syringes, education and training of healthcare workers, and the implementation of advocacy programs with the Government of India.
"BD is proud to enter into this agreement with HLL and applauds the India Health Ministry for taking decisive action against the pervasive problem of unsafe injection practices and the improper reuse of injection devices," said Gary Cohen, President, BD Medical.
Mr. M. Ayyappan, Managing Director, HLL said, "HLL is already a leader in HIV/AIDS prevention and this collaboration expands our capabilities. While unsafe sex remains the leading cause of the spread of this disease, medically transmitted HIV/AIDS remains the second leading cause in India."
Reports from the World Health Organization (WHO) indicate that as many as 40 percent of all injections in the developing world are administered with reused, unsterile medical devices. In the year 2000 alone, WHO estimates indicate that 260,000 new HIV/AIDS infections, two million hepatitis C and 21 million hepatitis B infections were the result of injections from reused devices.
A recent study conducted by the Government of India revealed that 60 percent of all injections given in India were unsafe. Further, the WHO estimates that in India, alarmingly, unsafe injections account for 53.6 percent of all hepatitis B, 59.5 percent of hepatitis C, and 24.3 percent of HIV/AIDS infections each year.1
To address this significant public health issue, the Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss, recently declared in Parliament that the Government of India will introduce legislation to ensure the use of auto-disable syringes in its immunization programs to safeguard children from contacting diseases such as AIDS.
Global health organizations, in collaboration with BD and other device manufacturers, have made significant progress over the past decade in ensuring that safe, auto-disable injection devices with features that prevent reuse, are used for childhood immunization programs in Africa. These devices have been proven effective in preventing reuse. However, immunizations only account for 10 percent of injections globally. Curative injections, which make up 90 percent of all injections in the developing world, are administered in many different settings, from acute care hospitals to health clinics in remote rural locations, under much less controlled circumstances compared with mass immunization programs.
For this collaboration, BD will manufacture and sell to HLL auto-disable syringes based on BD SoloShot™ technology for immunization and curative purposes for HLL.2 HLL will market these immunization syringes under its own brand name, 'AutoLok.' A curative syringe specially designed to prevent reuse, based on BD SoloMed™ technology, will also be manufactured by BD and sold to HLL in this agreement. BD, which has a manufacturing facility in Bawal, India, has also agreed to provide certain consulting services to HLL relating to the marketing and sale of the auto-disable and reuse prevention syringes. BD and HLL will also work together to train and educate healthcare workers about safe injection practices and the new technology.
About BD BD is a medical technology company that serves healthcare institutions, life science researchers, clinical laboratories, industry and the general public. BD manufactures and sells a broad range of medical supplies, devices, laboratory equipment and diagnostic products. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 2004, BD reported revenues of $4.935 billion.
About HLL Hindustan Latex Limited (HLL) is a Government of India Company, under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Their products range from contraceptive aids and healthcare aids to social marketing products. HLL has set up a trust - Hindustan Latex Family Planning Promotion Trust (HLFPPT), which is implementing various Social Projects with an objective of bringing about planned behavioral change in some of the most remote areas in India.
1 International Journal of STD & AIDS 2004, Article: "The global burden of disease attributable to contaminated injections given in health care settings," authors: Anja Hauri, MD, Gregory Armstrong, MD and Yvan Hutin, MD
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