4/18/2015

BankersAdda:SBIPO2015:EssayonSwineFlu

SBIPO2015:EssayonSwineFlu
Swine flu is an infection caused by swine influenza virus. Swine influenza
virus is common throughout among the pig population worldwide. It infects
therespiratorytractofthepigs.Transmissionofvirusfrompigstohumansis
not common. Usually, the virus spreads among pigs only. Transmission of
thevirusfrompigstohumannotalwayscauseshumanflu,butifitcausesit
is called zoonotic swine flu. People who are in regular contact with pigs are
mostvulnerableforthisinfection.
SwinefluhasbeendeclaredpandemicbyWHOasithascausedmillionsof
deathsworldwide.Swineinfluenzawasfirstproposedtobeadiseaserelated
tohumanduring1918pandemic.Thefirstidentificationofaninfluenzavirus
asacauseofdiseaseinpigsoccurredafterabout10yearsin1930.
Swinefluishighlycontagious.Itspreadsquicklyfromonepersontoanother
through air, mucus and saliva particles. The spread of virus is temperature
dependent. The number of cases of people getting infected by this virus
increases during the winter season. People who are at most risk include
children below 3 years, pregnant women, people with certain medical
conditionssuchasheartdisease,lungdisease,asthma,diabetesetc.,orthe
peoplewithweakimmunesystem.
Early symptoms include cough, fever, headache, sore throat, muscle pain,
chills,vomitingordiarrhea.Swineflucanbediagnosedonlythroughtestina
specializedlaboratory.
InIndia,themostrecentoutbreakscausedbySwinefluoccurredin2009and
inlastmonthsof2014whichisstillgoingon.Around2,000peoplehavedied
and more 20,000 have been reported to be infected in 2015 alone. It was
declaredepidemicbyRajasthangovernmentin2014.
BothoftheseoutbreakswerecausedbyH1N1virus.Theonlyknowndrugto
workagainstH1N1virusisTamiflu.In2009,Tamifluwasnotsoldingeneral
medicalstoresasthegovernmentfearedthatpeoplemayconsumeitwithout
any reason thereby making virus resistant to only known cure. The generic
version of Tamiflu has also been launched in the market. A biotechnology
firm had made an indigenous developed swine flu vaccine under the brand
nameHNVAC.
In Delhi, where the toll of infected people were high, the Delhi government
fixed the price of flu diagnostic tests and the labs charging more than that
wereissuedshowcausenoticeaskedthemwhytherelicensesshouldnotbe
cancelled.InFebruary,thedistrictmagistrateofAhmedabadGujaratbanned
assembling of people so as to prevent spread of the disease. The health
ministryofIndiahasgivenspecialattentiontosupplyofthedrugTamiflu,N
95 masks and diagnostic kits. Care has been taken by the government to
prevent spread of the disease. Surveillance has been put at airports to
identify infected people coming from other countries. The state government
hasalsoplayedtheirrolebycheckingpeoplecomingfrominfectedzones.By
better awareness and by developed health system, Delhi and Tamil Nadu
governmentwasabletoreducethedeathtollwhereasthenumberofinfected
werehighinthesetwostates.
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4/18/2015

BankersAdda:SBIPO2015:EssayonSwineFlu

As it is well said "Prevention is better than cure". There are some steps by
following which we can prevent spread of this disease. Vaccination to
provideimmunityagainstthisdiseasehasprovedineffectivebecauseofthe
evolutionoftheviruswhichgetsimmunizedtothesevaccines.Focusshould
be given on prevention of transmission of virus from pigs to humans. The
chanceoftransmissionofvirusishighestamongthefarmersofswinefarms.
Theswinefarmersshouldusehandglovesandmaskswhileincontactwith
pigs.Thesevirusesgettransferredwhenfarmersaftertouchinginfectedpigs
touchtheireyes,noseormouth.Theinfectedpigsshouldbevaccinatedand
quarantined.
To prevent human to human transmission, the infected person should be
quarantined. Influenza spreads between people when infected person
sneezes and the nearby people inhale the air or touch something with virus
onitandthentouchtheirface.Frequentwashingofhandsafterbeingoutin
public,withwateroralcoholbasedsanitizerhelpsincontrollinginfection.
The Indian government should give top priority to the development of
indigenous drugs, masks and diagnosis kits. The treatment of swine flu
should be subsidized so that poor people can afford the treatment. The
governmentshouldkeepaneyeonprivatelaboratoriestopreventthemfrom
takingexorbitantamountfromthepatients.Modernlaboratoriesshouldbeset
upineverypartofthecountry,sothattheinfectedpersonwillgettreatment
asearlyaspossibleanditwillalsohelpincontrollingspreadofinfection.The
war against Swine flu can be won only by the united efforts of all the
countries. If any country is not equipped with modern facilities and there is
shortageofdrugs,thenothercountriesmusttakeresponsibilitytoprovidethe
necessarydrugsandequipment.

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