Today is the Annual World Pneumonia Day. Tagged “Innovating to Fight Child Pneumonia” the day is set aside to raise awareness, promote interventions, to protect, prevent and treat pneumonia to generate actions to combat pneumonia.
Pneumonia is a form if acute respiratory infection that affects the lungs, making breathing painful and limiting oxygen intake. This is a preventable and treatable illness via vaccines, antibiotic treatment, and improved sanitation.
To combat pneumonia, the Global Coalition against Child Pneumonia announced that advocates will call upon governments to invest more in the developments of new diagnostics and treatments.
This year’s activists are focusing on the clear link between Pneumonia and Diarrhoea. More than 99 per cent of deaths from Pneumonia occur in developing countries, where access to health care is out of reach for many children.
According to the UNICEF progress reports with updates on the trends and levels in under-five mortality over the past two decades, the good news is that, the world is making progress, having saved nearly 90 million lives over the past two decades.
“The Bad News: The progress isn’t fast enough. Right now, we are 13 years behind schedule. That means we won’t meet MDG 4 until 2028. And 35 million more children will die – children whose lives could have been saved had we kept our promise in 2015.
“In 2000, the global community made a promise to children — to reduce by two thirds the risk that a child will not live to see his or her fifth birthday. The deadline for this promise is 2015.
“A new UNICEF report shows that, despite impressive progress, we are way behind schedule. The global effort to keep this promise needs a kick in the pants. This is the reason for “A Promise Renewed,” the report stated.
According to the UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation, (CME), 2013, “The Global burden of under-five deaths has fallen steadily since 1990- 12.6 per cent, 1995- 10.9 per cent, 2000- 9.2 per cent, 2005-8.2 per cent, 2010-7.0 per cent, 2015-6.6 per cent deaths.
The Global Action Plan for the prevention and control of Pneumonia (GAPP) released by World Health Organisation (WHO), and UNICEF on (WPD), 2009, finds that 1million children’s lives could be saved every year if prevention and treatment interventions for pneumonia were widely introduced in the World’s poorest countries.
Dr. F.A Onaolapo, Onaolapo of Victory Clinics, Lagos, said pneumonia is a bacterial infection of the lungs, “Bacteria and viruses are the primary causes of pneumonia. When a person breathes pneumonia-causing germs into his lungs and his body’s immune system cannot otherwise prevent entry, the organisms settle in small air sacs called alveoli and continue multiplying. As the body sends white blood cells to attack the infection, the sacs become filed with fluid and pus – causing pneumonia,” he added.
Dr Onaolapo advised that when coughing, the mouth should be covered so as not to contaminate others. “The same goes for an infected wife not to kiss her husband and vice-versa.”
He said” Pneumonia is a communicable disease which is transferred through air. It is usually more serious in children. “Symptoms of Pneumonia are cough, chest pain which brings out “sprotum” not too white or yellowish saliva,” Dr. Onaolapo said.
Some people are more likely than others to develop pneumonia. Individuals at higher risk include those who: Smoke, Abuse alcohol, Have other medical conditions: such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), emphysema, asthma, or HIV/AIDS. Those younger than a year or older than 65 are also at risk.
Dr. Alabi, De-Nikky Hospital and Maternity Care, Lagos, said majority of people are so unhygienic that they are not conscious of their contaminated environment, “The immunity of a child can be reduced if he is not immunised from birth. Most of our women don’t come for immunisation. They prefer the Trado-Medical treatment, which has nothing to do with Orthodox Medicine.”
