Diabetes Type 1 treatment in Delhi

Hi

My sister has Type 1 diabetes and is insulin dependant. She has been oked to go to Delhi for 12-14 months by her own doctor and was intially prescribed with enough medication for the trip. Just today though she had a call from an NHS doctor saying the guidelines states only 3 months supply can be ordered! Now she is in a right panic! Not sure whether she will be able to get the same type of insulin she has in the UK and also whether a doctor could treat her over there and how to go about finding someone. Any suggestions you guys might have would be greatly appreciated!!

Cheers

Jaz

Jaz,

Not sure if this is any help but thought it worth posting. I would suggest you contact either Dr Chawla or Dr Bhat at the East West Medical Centre in GK1, Delhi - Tel No: (011) 29243701. I spent a week in the centre last year being treated for phlebitis and have been back various times when I have needed medical advice. They are BUPA affiliated and recommended by the British High Commission. My personal experience is if these guys can't help you then no one can. At least they will probably be able to tell you whether you can get the insulin you require.

Availability should be no problem as both animal derived and human synthetic insulins are available under various brand names marketed by multinationals like Aventis. There is a good chance you may find the same brand also. Given that India has the largest no of diabetics in the world, there is no dearth of medical professionals to handle this condition.

Thank you for asking a question I have had lately! I am on both Humalog and Lantus, and have been wondering what I would use in India.

I have just written to an Indian friend who is an insulin-using diabetic and also a pharmacist -- he goes back to Gujarat quite often, so I will let you know what he says.

Thanks for all the advice guys, reassuring to know as my sister is totally stressed with it all which isn't doing her any favours for her diabetes control. Really does need the same kind of insulin and hoping it won't cost a fortune! Any advice/suggesstions is much appreciated. Will try and call that doctors number tomorrow.


Thanks Again

Both Humalog (eli lilly) and Lantus (Aventis) are widely available in India

Hi

Does anyone know of the cost of Humalog and Lantus? My sister will also need Thrroxine and Ferreous Sulphate aswell, is this readily available? And again what are the general costs?

Tried calling the Docs number but got nowhere, he ended up hanging up on us, don't think he could understand my Brit northern accent! Also rang a pharmacy and they couldn't understand any english and just kept saying 'hanji', so l gave up! Next time l'll try and speak Punjabi (its abit ropey like!). Also what is the Hindi/local name for Diabetes?

Cheers

Jaz

The Lantus kit is for about Rs 2500 (30 GBP).
Thyroxine (Eltroxin from Glaxo SK ) is for Rs. 75 for 100 tabs
Ferrous Sulphate would depend on the brand but would be certainly cheaper than the UK.
Humalog I'm not sure.

Karan, what do you mean by "Lantus kit"? Do you mean vials? One, or two? (that is the approximate price of two vials in the US). Does that include syringes?

Thanks!

It includes 1 10ml vial. But you can get a 3ml vial also for 1/3rd that price.

hi you replied to my question previously, i was wondering if you could provide further information. i have 5 x 3ml cartridges of humalo and lantus , in the u.k it would cost approx £6.50 per pack of 5 x 3ml, but from the info i have picked up it's approx £8 for a pack of 25 test strips!!!! That is v expensive as here you would get 50 strips for £6.50, i've been told you would find medication a lot cheaper in india than you would in u.k, that doesnt seem to be the case! Just wondering if you may be able gto enlighten me further! Any help would be greatly appreciated as im starting to panic, i never budgeted for having to pay for my medication as i was told prev it wouldnt be a problem taking 12 months supply but since been told can only have 3 months under NHS (national health service) guidelines!

I don't know about insulin prices in India, but do want to tell you about the Frio "wallet" that will keep your insulin cool -- I've just used mine for a trip to Las Vegas, where it was around 35C, and the insulin stayed very cool.

Frios use evaporation of water to keep the insulin cool, so can be used anywhere. Google for them; in the US the piece that's big enough for 2 or 3 vials of insulin costs around US$25.

(Ummm.... why is this in Rajasthan forum.

I'm moving it to the health forum.... )

Thing with comparing Indian prices to UK prices is, in the UK, everything is GBP6.50 or whatever the prescription charge is these days. For long term drug users, there are cheaper arrangements and some qualify for free medicines. If you get your drugs free then anywhere else will be more expensive.

Many of the common drugs do not cost anything like the UK prescription charges. Penycillin capsules are a few pennies each, and this is the sort of drug that I take a course back to UK in case I need it when there.

Some drugs, of course, cost many, many times the prescription charge. And this is where the Indian situation becomes a little complex. Due to Indian law not having (at least until now) recognised patent in the pharmaceutical industry, Indian companies have been able to make drugs without licence or payment to the patent holders. This makes the drugs much cheaper on the street. Just take a look at the daily e-mail spam and see where that "generic" cheap viagra comes from...