The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a report in March 2023. The report warns that climate change increases the global risk of infectious diseases.
- The relationship between climate and disease is evident yearly.
- The usual pattern of mosquito-borne disease outbreaks has changed.
- Dengue now shows two to three peaks in a year.
- Changes in temperature, rainfall, and humidity disrupt disease transmission cycles.
- These changes also affect the distribution of vectors and animal reservoirs hosting parasites.
- Heat can alter the genetic structure of pathogens, impacting their infectiousness and virulence.
Impact Of Climate Change On Infectious Diseases And Ecosystems
- Habitat loss drives disease-carrying animals into human regions, escalating the chances of disease transfer from wildlife to humans.
- Viruses harmless to animals can be deadly to humans. The Nipah virus, causing recurring outbreaks in Kerala, is a case in point.
- A 2022 study in Nature Climate Change indicates an increased exposure to a wider range of infectious agents due to climate change.
- Over half of all known human-affecting infectious diseases intensify with changing climate patterns.
- Diseases can now spread through various new transmission routes, including environmental sources, medical tourism, and contamination of food and water.
- Climate change alters ecosystems, which in turn introduces invasive species and expands the territory of existing ones.
- These changes disrupt ecosystems unpredictably, making it difficult for ecologists and epidemiologists to forecast outbreaks.
- Climate change, primarily caused by human activities, is triggering a significant health crisis.
- This climate shift has resulted in serious health issues, including a dengue epidemic in Dhaka and Kolkata, and the Nipah virus outbreak in Kerala.
New Detection And Response Strategies
- Disease scenarios have changed, necessitating new detection and response strategies.
- In the past 20 years, India has reported more disease outbreaks.
- The Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) began in some states in 2007.
- The IDSP reported 53 outbreaks in 2008 and 1,714 by 2017.
- The IDSP was replaced by the Integrated Health Information Platform (IHIP), a web-based, near-real-time system.
- The IHIP was introduced in seven states in 2018.
- The IHIP monitors 20 additional diseases beyond the 13 of the IDSP and can show detailed data.
- Unfortunately, the IHIP hasn’t met expectations for tracking disease outbreaks in real-time.
- Current surveillance methods are insufficient for new disease scenarios.
- Controlling climate change-related diseases needs ecosystem protection, reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, and active disease surveillance.
One Health Approach In Disease Prevention And Control
- A comprehensive approach, known as One Health, is crucial.
- One Health integrates human, animal, plant, and environmental health monitoring.
- Employing this approach is of utmost importance in mitigating outbreaks, particularly those originating from animals.
- It includes zoonotic diseases, neglected tropical diseases, antibiotic resistance, and environmental pollution.
- India needs to initiate a One Health and infectious disease control programme.
- This requires strong collaboration between the centre and states’ entities and their specific agencies.
- Departments like animal husbandry, forest and wildlife, municipal corporations, and public health must unite.
- These departments should establish strong surveillance systems.
- These entities must foster trust and confidence among each other.
- Data sharing is a must for them.
- They need to form logical roles and responsibilities.
- A coordinating agency should supervise their work.
(Note: This editorial analysis is based on the article titled “With climate change, tackling new disease scenarios” published in The Hindu published in September 27, 2023 edition)