May 29, 2021.
For many years, humans have battled diseases, and while sometimes it seems we are winning, the infectious agents, or the non-infectious diseases, change pathways and the original ways of perpetuating themselves and surprise us. Even when we seemingly have won against some, others that are deadlier, either through natural evolution, or as insinuated recently, through deliberate genetic modifications, are coming out with nearly overwhelming frequency.
It’s a tiring venture, the business of keeping diseases in control. So many factors are coming together to determine the outcome of this ageless wars, and while it may look like we are still having an upper hand (at least we’ve not been wiped out yet), we should keep exploring ways to keep those hands up. Unsurprisingly, it is still the same old methods that we have been modifying for years in order to tackle them.
First on the list is prevention. Preventing a disease from initiating at all has proved tricky as both human and environmental and many other factors are so involved. Initially thought to be easy, but now known to be so difficult to enforce. While human carelessness can be attributed for some, the environmental factors are also very important. For example, how does one prevent mosquito bites every time in the tropical region, where most of our economical activities are carried out outdoors? Poverty and lifestyle are also proving to be other main disruptive factors to prevention, while evolution of the causative agents of most of these diseases is also becoming prominent. Vaccines and prophylaxis are also to be considered.
Secondly, diagnosis is a big issue in the world right now, especially in developing countries like ours. As mentioned in this article by the author, the COVID-19 pandemic exposed the numerous faults in our healthcare system. Basic diagnostic equipment are lacking in most areas where most of these diseases are prominent, and even these basic equipment are no longer enough, as the increased sophistication of these diseases and their agents has necessitated that new faster and more efficient approaches and machineries are needed. Along with these equipment, well-trained personnel are needed to handle them.
Thirdly, treatment is now a serious concern as people have discovered that the arsenals of drugs for infectious diseases are fewer than the diseases that are emerging or reemerging. Non-infectious diseases have been known to have little to no curative drugs, but the rate at which we are becoming powerless in the face of the onslaught from infectious diseases are really becoming bothersome. Although vaccines are being produced quicker these days, they are not as preventive as expected. Adequate curative treatments are required to tackle these diseases, and one of the suggested ways to investigate alternative medicine and therapies in terms of herbal drugs and Eastern medicine.
All these and many more are what we plan on providing solution-based communication activities for at MicroBiotics, especially for services and products aimed at preventing, controlling and managing diseases. We are doing this by not only seeking collaborations among biomedical practitioners who ar ready to be collaborators and partners, and partaking in our science communication and health education activities. We intend to achieve all these by also partnering with government on disease outbreak investigation in order to halt or reduce the stride of any disease before it spreads too far.
Thanks.
Tayo Fasuan,
CRCO, MicroBiotics