More than 5,220 cases of infections of the respiratory system per 10,000 people were recorded in Moldova in 2017, as opposed to almost 4,500 in 2016. Last year, there were logged about 90 cases of pneumonia per 10,000 people, as against 86 in 2016. The data were presented by the National Public Health Agency in connection with World Pneumonia Day that is marked on November 12, IPN reports.
Specialists of the Agency said pneumonia is one of the main infectious causes of death among children younger than five. The disease is one of the most fearful infectious killers of children of such an age. Among children aged between 0 and 17, the incidence of pneumonia in 2017 was 16,915 cases, as opposed to 16,083 cases in 2016. Fifty-one children died of pneumonia last year, in contrast to 57 in 2016, 22 and, respectively, 28 of whom at home.
The specialists noted pneumonia is an ordinary respiratory disease that in 2000 – 2015 annually caused 1.7 million to about 920,000 deaths worldwide. Despite the positive dynamics, pneumonia remains a leading killer of children, especially of those from poor and rural areas, which are the most vulnerable ones. The World Health Organization and UNICEF worked out a plan of action for the prevention and control of pneumonia that aims to reduce the number of pneumonia deaths among children to fewer than 3 per 1000 live births until 2025.
Pneumonia can be prevented by a set of practices, such as exclusive breastfeeding during the first six months of life, appropriate nutrition supplemented with vitamin A, changes in behavior and parents’ education, mandatory vaccination, ensuring of the supply of drinking water, sewerage and hygiene, including reduction of air pollution from inside.
