PREVENTION OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES

PREVENTION OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES

Preventive measures are categorized into two distinct groups:

General preventive measures :

It includes:

• Safe drinking water :Drinking water should be filtered to remove suspended particles And boiled, ozonized and treated with chlorine before drinking to avoid water borne diseases like typhoid, cholera, hepatitis etc.
• Proper disposal of waste: Garbage should not be dumped here and there rather it should be thrown in covered garbage cans and burnt or buried for disposal. Sewage carrying drains should be covered for proper treatment of diseases of stomach and intestine.
• Control of vectors : Growth and breeding of animals like mosquitoes, rats, flies, Cockroaches should be controlled, by keeping surrounding clean, spraying insecticides, removing stagnant water from populated areas.

• Strong immune system: It helps to defence our body against invading microbes and can be made strong by proper diet and nourishment.

Immune

system: our body possesses a special type of defence mechanism called immune system. It provides resistance against disease causing microorganisms. immunity is the ability of the body to resist the infections. Two specific types of cells are present in our body that  provide immunity.

They are WBC (leucocytes) in blood and lymphocytes in lymph when any foreign body attacks our body these cells are released to all parts of body, they isolate, engulf, kill and digest the infectious agents and thus defend our body against any type of infection.

Specific Preventive Measures :

This can be done two ways :

• Immunization: Stimulating the body to produce antibodies by artificial means. our Immune system is misleader, to develop a memory against particular infection by introducing something into the body that mimics the specific microbe. Specific prevention is provided by the immune system. it produces specific molecules called antibodies that fight against the invading microorganism or their products called antigens. Antibodies are pertinacious molecules made by WBC’s and lymphocytes to fight against foreign bodies or other harmful chemicals. Antigens are also proteins or other harmful chemicals that are present on surface of invaders. Whenever there occurs attack of a foreign body specific Antibodies are produced corresponding to that antigen and an antigen antibody reaction occurs. it either engulfs and phagocyte it or makes it harmless and then makes them unable to grow and multiply. Besides  this immune system also possesses memory. once antibodies are produced they remain in the body and at the second infection they recognize the antigens and show a much faster response.
• Vaccination: A vaccine is a suspension of disease- producing micro-organisms which is

Modified by killing or wreaking  (attenuated) so that the suspension will not cause disease. Rather it stimulates the formation of antibodies upon inoculation. The antibodies remain in blood for long and when the germs of a particular disease enter the body, the antibodies destroy them. This is the basis of immunization.

Some common vaccines:

• DPT = Diptheria, Tetanus and pertusis

• BCG = Bacillus Calmatte - guerin
• OPV = Oral Polio Vaccine
• TT    = Tetanus Toxoid

Pulse polio programme: The aim of this programme it to eradicate polio from our country. it was first held in our country in December, 1995. Polio vaccine called Oral polio vaccine (OPV) is given to children orally (through the mouth), as per the National Immunisation Schedule (NIS),