CALL IT lack of awareness or anything else the first priority of the doctors is medicine instead of ORS!
According to national family health survey of Government of India only 18 per cent doctors prescribe ORS to diarrhoea patients while 49 per cent prescribe medicines instead of ORS.
Talking to HT after flagging off of ‘Heath Run’ on the occasion of ‘National Oral Rehydration Solution Day’ today, senior paediatrician Dr Raj Tilak said, “Malnutrition, weight loss coupled with young age makes children more vulnerable to diarrhoea.”
As per the survey diarrhoea claims over 8000 children per day in the world. Surprisingly, 60 per cent of the deaths are reported from the developing countries like India.
Coming back to ORS, Dr Tilak said that in India 60 per cent people use medicine directly while only 36 per cent give priority to ORS. Interestingly, 42.7 per cent mothers have knowledge of ORS in the country. However, only 25.9 per cent give ORS to their children. More than half of deaths reported in the country are from places where serious problem of malnutrition existed, he said .
Detailing about the benefits of ORS, Dr Tilak said that water-borne diarrhoea could be cured only by ORS and there was no need for any medicine in such cases. He said ORS if given earlier could reduce 20 per cent lose motion, 30 per cent vomiting and 40 per cent of children could be prevented from being admitted to hospital.
{{/usCountry}}Detailing about the benefits of ORS, Dr Tilak said that water-borne diarrhoea could be cured only by ORS and there was no need for any medicine in such cases. He said ORS if given earlier could reduce 20 per cent lose motion, 30 per cent vomiting and 40 per cent of children could be prevented from being admitted to hospital.
{{/usCountry}}Dr Tilak said that diarrhoea was not a serious problem as it helps in relieving germs from the body. It’s not the diarrhoea, which was a problem but its after affects, if not given proper attention could compound problems, Dr Tilak said.