GS Paper 2
Syllabus: Issues related to development and management of social sector related to health etc
Context:
Researchers at the Indian Council of Medical Research-National Institute for Research in Tuberculosis (ICMR-NIRT) have found human-to-animal transmission of TB in livestock (cattle)
According to WHO, Tuberculosis is the among worst endemic disease. In India, the TB capital of the world, the disease kills some 1,400 persons every day.
Bacteria Mycobacteria cause diseases like TB and Leprosy in humans and others infect a wide range of animals. In humans, TB most commonly affects the lungs (pulmonary TB), but it can also affect other organs (extra-pulmonary TB). TB is a treatable and curable disease.
Background:
End TB strategy: India is committed to eliminating tuberculosis from the country by 2025, five years ahead of the global target by the World Health Organisation (WHO) i.e. 2030.
Revised National Tuberculosis Control Program(RNTCP)
(The programme has been renamed from the Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme (RNTCP) to National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme (NTEP))
- It is the state-run tuberculosis control initiative of the Government of India.
- RNTCP incorporates the principles of directly observed treatment-short course (DOTS).
- DOTS is a systematic strategy which has five components (see diagram)
Flaws in RNTCP:
- No prescribed methods of monitoring: First, for a programme that is heavily funded by the government, there is no prescribed method of monitoring the trajectory of TB control.
- Programme is based on assumptions: The assumption that treating pulmonary TB patients alone would control TB was epidemiologically fallacious in India.
- Failed to elicit people’s participation: RNTCP has failed to elicit people’s partnership in TB control. In India’s AIDS Control Programme, public education was given high priority. Red ribbon clubs in schools and colleges are its legacy.
Ways to control Tuberculosis:
- Better basic facilities: Diseases that have social determinants tend to decline over time with better housing, nutrition, education and income. Globally the burden of TB had been falling by 1% or 1.5% per year.
- Focus on control rather than elimination: As India has a huge backlog of latent TB, it cannot eliminate TB, but it must aim for a high level of control (lowering from 200 per lakh cases per year to 50 per lakh per year) and document it with measurement.
Initiatives to control TB:
Insta Links:
Practice Questions:
Q. Appropriate local community-level healthcare intervention is a prerequisite to achieve “health for all” in India. Explain. (UPSC 2018)
Q. Which of the following is/are bacterial infections?
- Dengue
- Tuberculosis
- Leprosy
- Hepatitis A
- Yellow fever
Select the correct answer using the codes given below:
a. 1, 2 and 3 only
b. 2 and 3 only
c. 1, 2, 4 and 5 only
d. 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5
Ans: (b)
Justification:
- Dengue is caused by dengue virus and spread by an infected Adee’s mosquito.
- Tuberculosis is caused by bacteria Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
- Leprosy is caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium Leprae.
- Hepatitis is caused by Hepatitis A virus infecting the liver.
- Yellow fever is caused by yellow fever virus(flavivirus) transmitted by mosquito bite.
