What does disease prevention and control mean for Latin America?

Washington, DC, October 24, 2002 (PAHO) -- When cases of dengue or polio returned to the Americas, there was a bitter lesson for the countries of the region, which the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) has been repeating indefatigably: Disease prevention and control cannot be neglected.

Something similar occurred with the vaccine-derived poliovirus outbreak in the Dominican Republic and Haiti in the year 2000, which experts attributed to failure to maintain vaccination coverage and surveillance.

At the time, Dr. George Alleyne, Director of PAHO said: "I want to strengthen the appeal for all the countries to maintain the local and national vaccination programs with useful immunization coverage. The fact that a disease is controlled does not mean that the investment should be smaller. If obtaining a goal requires an effort, maintaining it needs greater investment and surveillance."

PAHO's Division of Disease Prevention and Control has four programs and three Pan American centers: Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome and Sexually Transmitted Diseases; Non-Communicable Diseases; Communicable Diseases, and Veterinary Public Health. Its centers include the Caribbean Epidemiology Center, the Pan American Institute for Food Protection and Zoonoses; and the Pan American Foot-and-Mouth Disease Center.

Through this division, PAHO works to prevent, control, and eliminate communicable diseases and non-communicable diseases, including intentional and unintentional injuries. It works with the countries to promote, coordinate and implement technical cooperation activities directed top those goals. It focuses on raising awareness of national institutions to the fact that, while infectious and re-emerging diseases continue to pose a significant problem in the Region, chronic and non-communicable diseases are on the rise.

PAHO has set up alliances to work together in the control of chronic, or noncommunicable diseases, emphasizing cardiovascular diseases, cervical cancer, and diabetes mellitus.

An important part of this work deals with regional cooperation, promoting the creation of a regional network that uses an integrated approach for noncommunicable disease control, with the objective of improving national and regional surveillance of the noncommunicable diseases and risk factors.

Coronary and cerebrovascular diseases need effective programs for prevention, diagnosis, and control. Control of hypertension is crucial as an initial component of an integrated program that has to be implemented in developing countries," explained Dr. Pedro Orduñez of PAHO.

Primary prevention through programs based on the lifestyle of the population, as well as effective and economically viable methods of detection and management are complementary approaches in the struggle against cardiovascular diseases.

Every day 200 women in the Americas are diagnosed with cervical cancer. "This type of cancer can be prevented. We know that it is of infectious etiology, but from the perspective of public health, we are aware of that control programs have not functioned as expected. We now know much more about the natural history of the disease and are looking forward to a vaccine that is in the process of development," according to Dr. Sylvia C. Robles, who coordinates the program on chronic diseases.

To combat AIDS and consolidate national programs for control and prevention of the epidemic, the regional strategies have focused on surveillance, research, the promotion, the dissemination of information, direct technical cooperation, mobilization of resources, the training, and international cooperation.

"We have always emphasized the importance of uniting prevention and care of people infected with HIV/AIDS. It is not possible to consider them separately form, since care offers an opportunity to improve prevention and vice versa", said Dr. Fernando Zacarías, director of the Regional Program on AIDS/STI of PAHO.

PAHO also works to strengthen the capacity of the countries to run programs to combat tropical diseases, infectious diseases, and emerging and reemerging diseases, and promotes research on communicable diseases.

PAHO was established officially in 1902 and is the oldest health organization of the world. It works on with all the countries of the Americas to improve their health and living standards, and serves as the regional office of the World Health Organization.

For more information, please contact: Daniel Epstein, Office of Public Information, (202) 974-3459, e-mail: epsteind@paho.org.

Related Information:
PAHO BOOKS:

• Health Promotion: An Anthology
• Health In The Americas, 2002