Long COVID, mental disorders among diseases to watch in 2023: IHME
- December 27, 2022
- Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
- Category: DPN Topics
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Long COVID, mental disorders among diseases to watch in 2023: IHME
Context:
- The coronavirus infection has also given birth to sequelae conditions (Long COVID) and aggravated some existing ailments (mental health disorders). They are widespread and not understood very well.
Long Covid:
- While SARS-CoV-2 is typically an acute illness lasting about three weeks, some people with COVID have symptoms that last months or longer.
- The World Health Organization defines long COVID as symptoms that last 12 weeks or longer.
- Some patients have felt the impact of coronavirus infection till weeks after they tested negative. COVID-19 impacted the various organs of the human body in different ways and these sequelae conditions are so widespread that they were referred to as the ‘silent pandemic’.
- Symptoms: Headache, memory loss, confusion, chest ailment and lingering cough.
- Impact: often disrupts a person’s ability to engage with school, work or relationships for months at a time.
- People with long COVID need diagnostic and proper rehabilitation support from primary care physicians.
Mental health disorder:
- According to the World Health Organization (WHO), mental health is a state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community.’
- Like Physical health, Mental health is also important at every stage of life, from childhood and adolescence through adulthood.
- An estimated 150 million people across India are in need of mental health care interventions, according to India’s latest National Mental Health Survey 2015-16.
- The southern part of India including Tamilnadu has the highest burden of mental stress cases in India.
Climate change impact:
- The worsening climate has had a cascading effect on the health and well-being of the global population; heat and floods have increased disease prevalence and mental stress, among other impacts.
- Minimising the impact via adaptation and enhanced resilience, technological solutions like using drought-resistant crops etc.
Cardiovascular disease:
- Highest burden among non-communicable diseases.
- Proper monitoring is needed.
- Disease burden can be reduced by controlling lifestyle factors such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, obesity, dietary risks, smoking and air pollution.
Lower respiratory infection:
- Lower respiratory infections (LRI), especially respiratory syncytial virus and influenza, are rising health issues.