Relevance
- GS 2: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.
Context
- Recently, World Health Organization (WHO) launched the first ever global strategy to defeat meningitis—a debilitating disease that kills hundreds of thousands of people each year.
Key points
- The Global Roadmap to Defeat Meningitis by 2030 was launched by a broad coalition of partners involved in meningitis prevention and control.
- Its focus is on preventing infections and improving care and diagnosis for those affected.
Malaria Disease
Meningitis
- Meningitis is usually caused by a viral infection but can also be bacterial or fungal. Vaccines can prevent some forms of meningitis.
- It is leading to around 250,000 deaths a year, and can causes fast-spreading epidemics.
- It kills 1 in 10 of those infected –mostly children and young people—and leaves 1 in 5 with long-lasting disability.
- Symptoms: Symptoms include headache, fever and stiff neck.
- Depending on the cause, meningitis may get better on its own or it can be life-threatening, requiring urgent antibiotic treatment.
Needed steps
- Expand access to existing tools like vaccines.
- Spearhead new research and innovation to prevent, detecting and treating the various causes of the disease.
- Improve rehabilitation for those affected by this disease.
National Action Plan for Dog Mediated Rabies Elimination
Meningitis prevalence
- Over the last ten years, meningitis epidemics have occurred in all regions of the world, though most commonly in the ‘Meningitis Belt’.
- Meningitis Belt: It spans 26 countries across Sub-Saharan Africa.
- These epidemics are unpredictable, can severely disrupt health systems, and create poverty – generating catastrophic expenditures for households and communities.
CRISPR to control growth of mosquitoes
Meningitis vaccine
- Several vaccines protect against meningitis, including meningococcal, Haemophilus influenzae type b and pneumococcal vaccines.
- However, not all communities have access to these lifesaving vaccines, and many countries are yet to introduce them into their national programmes.
Nipah Virus in India
Priorities of the global roadmap
- Achievement of high immunization coverage, development of new affordable vaccines, and improved prevention strategies and outbreak response;
- Speedy diagnosis and optimal treatment for patients;
- Good data to guide prevention and control efforts;
- Care and support for those affected, focusing on early recognition and improved access to care and support for after-effects, and
- Advocacy and engagement, to ensure high awareness of meningitis, accountability for national plans, and affirmation of the right to prevention, care and after-care services.
National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC)
Goals
- To eliminate epidemics of bacterial meningitis by 2030.
- To reduce deaths by 70% and halve the number of cases by 2030.
- The strategy could save more than 200,000 lives annually and significantly reduce disability caused by the disease.