Promoting health through the life-course: World Pneumonia Day 2017
World Pneumonia Day
12 November 2017
World Pneumonia Day brings people from all over the world together uniting to demand that something be done to fight the pneumonia illness. World Pneumonia Day helps to highlight the severity of pneumonia and encourages more organisations to look at ways of combating the disease. This day was first hosted in 2009 when over 100 organisations joined to form the Global Coalition against Child Pneumonia. It’s marked every year on 12 November to:
- Raise awareness about pneumonia, the world’s leading killer of children under the age of five;
- Promote interventions to protect against, prevent and treat pneumonia; and
- Generate action to combat pneumonia.
Pneumonia is one of the most solvable problems in global health and yet a child dies from the infection every 20 seconds. Together we can ensure the fight against pneumonia is won.
This year, the theme of World Pneumonia Day is “Stop Pneumonia: Invest in Child health.”
Pneumonia Statistics in Nepal
In FY 2072/73, a total of 1,916,250 ARI cases were registered and out of them 22.7 percent were classified and treated for pneumonia (severe pneumonia and pneumonia). The incidence of pneumonia at national level was 147/1000 under five year’s children which was significantly lower than previous two years.
Further, percentage of severe pneumonia decreased to 0.3 percent in FY 2072/73 at National level and is maintained below 1 percent over the last three years. At the regional level also it is below 1 percent during the last three years.
In terms of disease types among inpatients and outpatient services in 2072/73: the number one airborne disease was pneumonia (organism unspecified) (8,909 cases) followed by pneumonia (unspecified) (3,559 cases) & the number one airborne disease cause of death was pneumonia (unspecified organism) (134).
Nepal government launches CB-IMNCI Program to control pneumonia. CB-IMNCI is an integration of CB-IMCI and CB-NCP Program that is being implemented across the country after the decision of MoH on 2071/6/28 (October 14, 2015). This integrated package of child survival intervention addresses the major problem of sick new born such as birth asphyxia, bacterial infection, jaundice, hypothermia, low birth weight, counselling of breastfeeding. Among the age group of 2 months to 59 months children, it addresses major childhood illnesses like pneumonia, diarrhoea, malaria, measles and malnutrition in a holistic way. In addition, Female Community Health Volunteers advocate healthy behaviour by mothers and community people to promote child health & treat pneumonia cases, refer serious cases to health institution.
Source of Info: DoHS annual report
Key facts (WHO)
- Pneumonia accounts for 16% of all deaths of children under 5 years old, killing 920136 children in 2015.
- Pneumonia can be caused by viruses, bacteria, or fungi.
- Pneumonia can be prevented by immunization, adequate nutrition, and by addressing environmental factors.
- Pneumonia caused by bacteria can be treated with antibiotics, but only one third of children with pneumonia receive the antibiotics they need.
Pneumonia is a form of acute respiratory infection that affects the lungs. The lungs are made up of small sacs called alveoli, which fill with air when a healthy person breathes. When an individual has pneumonia, the alveoli are filled with pus and fluid, which makes breathing painful and limits oxygen intake.
Pneumonia is the single largest infectious cause of death in children worldwide. Pneumonia killed 920 136 children under the age of 5 in 2015, accounting for 16% of all deaths of children under five years old. Pneumonia affects children and families everywhere, but is most prevalent in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. Children can be protected from pneumonia, it can be prevented with simple interventions, and treated with low-cost, low-tech medication and care.
Causes
Pneumonia is caused by a number of infectious agents, including viruses, bacteria and fungi. The most common are:
- Streptococcus pneumoniae – the most common cause of bacterial pneumonia in children;
- Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) – the second most common cause of bacterial pneumonia;
- respiratory syncytial virus is the most common viral cause of pneumonia;
- in infants infected with HIV, Pneumocystis jiroveci is one of the most common causes of pneumonia, responsible for at least one quarter of all pneumonia deaths in HIV-infected infants.
Transmission
Pneumonia can be spread in a number of ways. The viruses and bacteria that are commonly found in a child’s nose or throat, can infect the lungs if they are inhaled. They may also spread via air-borne droplets from a cough or sneeze. In addition, pneumonia may spread through blood, especially during and shortly after birth. More research needs to be done on the different pathogens causing pneumonia and the ways they are transmitted, as this is of critical importance for treatment and prevention.
Presenting features
The presenting features of viral and bacterial pneumonia are similar. However, the symptoms of viral pneumonia may be more numerous than the symptoms of bacterial pneumonia. In children under 5 years of age, who have cough and/or difficult breathing, with or without fever, pneumonia is diagnosed by the presence of either fast breathing or lower chest wall indrawing where their chest moves in or retracts during inhalation (in a healthy person, the chest expands during inhalation). Wheezing is more common in viral infections.
Very severely ill infants may be unable to feed or drink and may also experience unconsciousness, hypothermia and convulsions.
Risk factors
While most healthy children can fight the infection with their natural defences, children whose immune systems are compromised are at higher risk of developing pneumonia. A child’s immune system may be weakened by malnutrition or undernourishment, especially in infants who are not exclusively breastfed.
Pre-existing illnesses, such as symptomatic HIV infections and measles, also increase a child’s risk of contracting pneumonia.
The following environmental factors also increase a child’s susceptibility to pneumonia:
- indoor air pollution caused by cooking and heating with biomass fuels (such as wood or dung)
- living in crowded homes
- parental smoking.
Treatment
Pneumonia should be treated with antibiotics. The antibiotic of choice is amoxicillin dispersable tablets. Most cases of pneumonia require oral antibiotics, which are often prescribed at a health centre. These cases can also be diagnosed and treated with inexpensive oral antibiotics at the community level by trained community health workers. Hospitalization is recommended only for severe cases of pneumonia.
Prevention
Preventing pneumonia in children is an essential component of a strategy to reduce child mortality. Immunization against Hib, pneumococcus, measles and whooping cough (pertussis) is the most effective way to prevent pneumonia.
Adequate nutrition is key to improving children’s natural defences, starting with exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months of life. In addition to being effective in preventing pneumonia, it also helps to reduce the length of the illness if a child does become ill.
Addressing environmental factors such as indoor air pollution (by providing affordable clean indoor stoves, for example) and encouraging good hygiene in crowded homes also reduces the number of children who fall ill with pneumonia.
In children infected with HIV, the antibiotic cotrimoxazole is given daily to decrease the risk of contracting pneumonia.
WHO Media Center: Pneumonia Fact sheet Updated September 2016
Promoting health through the life-course: World Pneumonia Day 2017
