Indore: “Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) is also taken as a measurement of growth of any state and it is much higher in Madhya Pradesh than the national rate,” paediatrician Dr KK Arora said. He was addressing the workshop organised by Indore Academy of Paediatrics on subject of infections among children on Saturday.
“National IMR is 39 while the rate in state is 47. Government has taken many steps to pull down the rate but more efforts are needed to control the same as still large number of children are dying due to curable diseases in our state,” Dr Arora said.
He added that as the polio is eradicated from the country, the government has launched the campaign against pneumococcal pneumonia and its vaccine is available at government hospitals for free. Meanwhile, paediatrician Dr VP Goswami emphasised on awareness more than the facilities and appealed to the people to check the status of infections and diseases in the state where they are planning to tour or for any other purpose.
“Typhoid vaccine is also the need of the hour and government should work on providing it to the children in government set up,” he said.Overseeing the inception of monsoon, experts also discussed about spreading tentacles of dengue which had emerged as the most dangerous disease after pneumonia, diarrhoea and malnutrition.
Sholapur’s Dr Sanjay Ghodpade said, “Encephalitis is spreading and killing children in Uttar Pradesh. Due to migration, such diseases can be spread in other states as well. Similarly, dengue and its variants have become a cause of concern in Madhya Pradesh, especially in Indore region so government should start screening of patients at all the entry points to prevent the diseases from being spread.” He suggested the ways to prevent the disease and also shared the cases of infections for long time among children.