Myanmar Times-Oct 3
People in Rakhine State need to be more aware of the dangers of schistosomiasis, an acute and chronic disease caused by parasitic flatworms, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Officials from WHO headquarters, WHO South East Asia, WHO Myanmar, the Ministry of Health and Sports, and Yangon University met in Myanmar from August 26 to 31 to learn more about the disease in the country, a senior WHO Myanmar official said.
The disease, also known as snail fever or bilharzia, affects the urinary tract or intestines, and can cause abdominal pain, diarrhea, blood in the stool and urine, and can lead to liver and kidney failure.
According to WHO’s website, people can be infected during routine agricultural, domestic, occupational, and recreational activities that expose them to infected water. Chronic schistosomiasis may affect people’s ability to work and in some cases can result in death. In children, schistosomiasis can cause anemia, stunting and learning difficulties.
“The mission found that the environment in the region is conducive for schistosomiasis transmission. Proper sanitation is lacking, floods are very common, and behavior that favors the transmission of the disease was evident,” Dr Stephan Paul Jost, WHO representative to Myanmar, said on Friday.
He added that snails, a vector for the transmission of the disease, are commonly found in Rakhine, and people surveyed by the WHO team lacked awareness of the illness.
The WHO survey team visited schistosomiasis patients at Sittwe General Hospital and villages in Mrauk-U township. It also collected samples of snails, which have been sent to a WHO center in London for study.
A schistosomiasis control effort has been set up to address the problem, comprising people with expertise in disease control, school health, the environment, water and sanitation, and coordinated by the ministry. “It is much more effective to provide proper health education and to improve water sanitation. Health education is key to preventing and controlling the disease,” Dr Jost said.
“The ministry plans a massive health education campaign in the country,” he added. To support the government’s prevention and control efforts, WHO will provide technical guidance, take part in field investigations, and provide medicine and urine filtration.
Schistosomiasis cases have been reported in Rakhine, southern Shan State near Inle Lake, and Bago Region. A total of 428 cases of schistosomiasis were diagnosed at Sittwe General between October 2016 and August 20 this year, WHO said.
An estimated 700 million people in 78 countries, including Cambodia, Indonesia and Laos, have the disease, according to the WHO.
‘https://www.mmtimes.com/news/dangerous-disease-rears-its-head-myanmar.html
