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The Inside Story Of Medication

A pharmaceutical drug is a literal definition of medication. Medication can be further classified according to biological, therapeutic or chemical modifications. A detailed classification is based on ATS system. The World Health Organization has its principles laid down for medication governance. A general guideline regarding medication involves:

Antipyretics  concerning fever, Analgesic related to pain reduction, Antimalerial drug, Antibiotics related to viral growth check. Antiseptics governing viral check due to cuts, bleeding, etc. Pharmacotherapy is a innovative branch of study which classifies medication as: Digestive system: Antacids, PPIs. Cardiovascular system: Betablockers, statin, Antihypersentive drugs, betastatin. Nutrition: Electrolytes, antiobesity drugs. Every specific system of our body is ruled by specific listed drugs. They target specific systems to mollify contradictions.

Depending on judicial involvements medication can be classified as OTC and PPMs with detailed guidelines to be laid down by a legal medical practitioner. Behind the counter medication doesn’t need a prescription but is advised to be kept distant from public to be issued by a pharmacy technician. The international Narcotics Control Board with lineage to the United Nation governs the prohibition of medications in certain respects. OTC medication is considered safe which doesn’t require a prescription.

Many countries follow strict guidelines wherein medication can be followed at registered pharmaceutical trading zones under the guidance of trained pharmacists. Incase of patented medication, rules are laid down linking traders with manufacturers to follow the principles of trade. Pharmacoenvironmentology is an extended version of pharmacovigilence which studies the after effects of medication and its reaction with immediate environment.

Ecopharmacology further studies the effects of medication changing the features of ecology. Governments globally are highly involved in drug designing and delivery. Oliver Wendell Homes said “All medications are not clean and can result in biosphere degradation”. A recent question hovering around is whether a child needs medication for ADHD? Ritalin proved beneficial in controlling the symptoms.

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Filed Under: Conditions and Diseases, Health Tagged With: , ,

The Steps Taken By The WHO To Reduce Incidence Of Malaria

The World Health Organization has been taking various steps to ensure that the incidence of Malaria is on the decline. There are various methods that have already been used and there are more deadlines and initiatives that the WHO has issued to the countries that have a high incidence of Malaria.
There are some countries, mainly in the tropical regions that are very endemic to Malaria. The sad part about the disease is that in spite of the various developments and research in the field of health care, there has been a lot of deaths that have been reported in these countries.

The reason behind the severity of the disease is that people who are affected by the disease do not seek health care very quickly. The health care is also not available in some places that lead to various problems. The World Health Organization has made sure that the various countries have been given a deadline to reduce the incidence of the disease. This has given an impetus to the various countries to try and reduce the incidence of Malaria.

The main method that is handled by the countries to reduce the number of people affected by Malaria is the prevention. These aspects of prevention include the provision of various aids like mosquito nets and also mosquito repellents. Other than the provision of these aids, the other methods that are used by the countries with the World Health Organization collaboration is to provide medications in these areas where the disease is common. The medications are also given as a prophylactic to the people who seem to be at a high risk of the disease, especially in the season where the mosquitoes breed. In spite of all the efforts by the World Health Organization and the other countries, the incidence of Malaria and the associated complications are very high.

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Filed Under: Diagnosing, Health, Preventive Measures Tagged With: , ,

Controlling Malaria Vectors

In the juvenile stages of Anopheles mosquito development, they grow on top of different types of water. Therefore, this is a primary target for controlling malaria vectors as it is a breeding ground for infection. Vectors are areas with a high concentration of mosquitos that may carry the malaria parasite. The implementation of these control points is expensive, time consuming and overall difficult but the end result would be worth the drawbacks. Also, new studies show that adult mosquitos can disseminate larva more efficiently than using traditional methods.

There are two basic tools for control a malaria vector. These are insecticide-treated bed nets (ITN) and indoor residual spray (IRS) which have had a significant impact on malaria transmission. Despite their success, they alone cannot stop the transmission of malaria but only act as a small piece. These tools are only effective in a small, local area with a few mosquitos. The efficient control of malaria vectors is through a proactive approach that covers a vast number of mosquitos such as at their outdoor resting area or through their biting behavior. One increasing drawback is the development of resistance to these two tools by mosquitos.

One of the most popular strategies is targeting an aquatic breeding area. The primary challenge with this is identifying the most malaria productive mosquitos. Larva has not been known to transmit malaria therefore they do not impact the disease in any form.

A recent study identified the common behaviors of an adult mosquito. The study revealed an effective insecticide, a prediction as to where the mosquitos are most vulnerable and limiting their habitat. Pyriproxyfen was developed with no long-term side effects to the adult mosquito allowing the larva habitats to be unproductive for periods of time while continuing to be safe for the environment and in drinking water. This insecticide method was approved by the World Health Organization.

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Predicting Malaria Risks in Afghanistan

With approximately 60 percent of the population of Afghanistan living in a high-risk area, malaria is a major problem for the country. The diversity of terrain and landscape contribute to the prevalence of the disease in the country. Therefore, to help contain malaria outbreaks, it is important to understand different environmental variables on transmission of the disease.

Some of the most important environmental variables observed through health posts and space observations by NASA include precipitation, vegetation index and temperature. It was determined in a study that vegetation index is the greatest predictor simply due to irrigation methods and areas of sitting water. Surface temperature was found to be the second strongest predicting variable. Finally, precipitation was not a considerable predictor as it does not contribute to an increase in larval population.

Since much of Afghanistan is arid or semi-arid climate, agriculture greatly depends on irrigation. The Anopheles mosquito breeds on all bodies of water so melting of snow during the spring season and rainfall in the summer create opportunities for additional larval habitats to form and increase the number of mosquitos carrying the malaria parasite.

The primary space observation used satellite measured environmental parameters which produced reasonable results and accuracy. The World Health Organization is currently developing the Malaria Control and Elimination Plan which will create an economical surveillance system that acts as an early warning and detection system based on environmental variable measurements.

The most common current method of prevention in Afghanistan is insecticide-treated bed nets. This has slowly been adopted due to massive campaigns, subsidized sales and extensive public awareness of their functional importance. In some regions of the country, approximately 75 percent of citizens have purchased and utilize their bed nets. Two extremes are being used to fight the transmission of malaria in Afghanistan: traditional techniques and advanced technology. Bed nets working in conjunction with advanced satellite measurements for prediction should ensure the safety of the inhabitants of Afghanistan.

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The scourge of Malaria

The science of medicine has advanced by leaps and bounds in the past few decades of human civilization leading to the prosperity of our species. We age slower, live longer. But only some of us; many of our brethren are not so fortunate.

Like a dark cloud in a silver sky, there are certain scourges that have become the bane of human beings. Certain diseases that refuse to go and take too many lives each year. That too of children and people living in squalor and apathy. Several hundreds of children die each year in many parts of the world due to malaria. The bite of the female anopheles variety carried from one human being to another consumes the life of a child in Africa every 45 seconds, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Children across the world are particularly vulnerable due to their low immunity. African children are even more susceptible because of the under-hygienic living conditions in which many of them try to survive. The malaria-carrier mosquitoes thrive in humid conditions and wherever waste accumulates. Poverty forces people, especially children, in Africa to live in squalor. Also, poor people are unable to sustain malaria treatment costs over a prolonged period.

Many countries in the temperate and sub-tropical climatic zones have been able to eradicate the disease but tropical countries have not been able to. Also, research in the past few decades has revealed that anti-malaria vaccinations have failed or been largely ineffective as malaria parasites quickly become resistant to drugs and reappear in other forms. This has been one reason why organizations like WHO and UNICEF moved away from focusing on malaria eradication to malaria control.

Two of the most recommended malaria-control methods are: sleeping inside the cover of insecticide-treated mosquito nets and spraying the interiors of residences with residual insecticides.

Since inability to eradicate malaria still challenges the medical world, taking anti-malaria preventive measures is the only way out.

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Filed Under: Conditions and Diseases, Preventive Measures Tagged With: , ,