Fighting diarrhoea to eradicate polio

NEW DELHI - It kills nearly 500,000 children every year. But one of the lesser known facts about diarrhoea is that it also makes anti-polio drops ineffective. Now, one of the leading donor organisations in India, Rotary International, has joined hands with the Indian government to help fight diarrhoea in order to eradicate polio.

“Diarrhoea kills nearly 500,000 children a year in the country. It is often associated with increasing risk of polio. The stomach of children suffering from diarrhoea becomes like a bucket with a hole. You keep on pouring the polio vaccine but it doesn’t stay there long enough to build immunity,” Deepak Kapur, chairman of the India National PolioPlus Society of Rotary International, told IANS.

“We have approached the government of India to help them eradicate diarrhoea by creating awareness about use of zinc tablet and oral rehydration therapy (ORT). The government has been very forthcoming,” Kapur said.

The use of zinc and ORT is recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to decrease the incidence and severity of diarrhoea.

The government has adopted a policy to use zinc and ORT in the treatment of diarrhoea under the National Rural Health Mission.

Diarrhoea is the second most common cause of death in children aged below five in India. And of these deaths, 88 percent were caused by lack of sanitation, poor hygiene practices and contaminated drinking water, Kapur said.

He said the focus of the intervention would be in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Orissa.

According to a government report, of the 136 fresh polio cases detected in the country this year, 97 were in Uttar Pradesh.

“Our Rotarians are constantly in touch with the district magistrates in Uttar Pradesh to get the supply of the zinc tablets from them. Recently, the district magistrate of Moradabad has sent a supply of zinc tablets and ORT,” Kapur said.

Rotary International has also signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Indian Academy of Paediatricians to make the campaign successful.

Naveen Thacker, former president of the International Paediatric Association, said: “Polio virus has still not been eliminated in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. One of the reasons for this is very high rate of diarrhoeal diseases, rampant malnutrition and high rate of NPEV (non-polio enterovirus) circulation in these areas.

“Each diarrhoeal episode causes damage to intestinal mucosa and hampers its absorption capacity for a long time which interferes with vaccine uptake, making these children susceptible to polio virus,” he said.

“The ORT-Zinc Campaign will help in speedy recovery from diarrhoea.”

The zinc tablets are given to children between the age of two months and five years.

Experts said the dispersible tablets can be administered by mixing with breast milk or water. The treatment should start from the first day of diarrhoea and a 14-day course should be completed.

India is one of the three countries in the world that still have the crippling polio disease.

“Even after administering multiple doses, the occurrence of polio cases in the children is of great concern. During 2008, 79 percent of polio cases had received more than seven doses. In 2009, the figure stood at 78 percent,” Kapur said.

Rotary International has invested $108 million (Rs.540 crore) in India for its dual fight against polio and diarrhoea.