Editorial on IAP - Scientific Bulletin Vol4-2001

By Dr. L Ranbir *

EDITORIAL

It gives me a great pleasure to present the fourth issue of the Scientific Bulletin of the Indian Academy of Pediatrics, Manipur State Branch on the occasion of the V Annual Conference and the Pre-conference CME on HIV/AIDS in Children and Adolescents" and "Growth and Development in HIV infected Children".

HIV/AIDS pandemic in a span of 20 years has caused tremendous social, economic, ethical, legal and health consequences on the people all over the world. Although the infection rate is decreasing or plateauing in many of the industrialized countries, the situation is alarming in the developing countries like India, where the infection rate is increasing unchecked.

In Manipur, the history of HIV/AIDS is around 11 years old. In such a short time, the HIV infection has reached epidemic proportion affecting men, women and children, making it one of the most serious public health problems in the state. Of the total HIV infected individuals, approximately 60% are young IDUs and more than 80% of the infected women of child-bearing age got their infections from their husbands.

As the epidemic progresses, an increasing number of women of child-bearing age are being infected with HIV, resulting in the corresponding rise in the number of HIV infected children. Since the recognition of the first pediatric HIV in Manipur in 1994, it is estimated that hundreds of HIV infected children have died, thousands are still struggling for survival and many have been orphaned.

Realizing the grave situation in our state, holding such a CME on "HIV/AIDS in Children and Adolescents", is indeed a landmark in the history of HIV/AIDS in India.

Another part of the CME is on "Growth and Development in HIV infected Children", without which I feel, the CME would not have been complete. Nutrition is one single clinical parameter, which is of paramount importance.

And nutritional support therapy in conjunction with prevention and treatment of common childhood diseases prevailing in the community, plays an important role in modifying the clinical course of the HIV disease and to bring about a better quality of life and longer survival of the children.

In the present CME, eminent national and state resource persons are delivering their lectures. The texts of the deliberations by various resource persons are being compiled in the form of a bulletin. The texts contain the updated information on the latest developments in the field of HIV/ AIDS research, which is still evolving.

I feel that the bulletin is handy and will be of great help to the practicing pediatricians of our state in updating their knowledge of this chronic fatal disease and in the proper management of the HIV infected children with the limited resources we have. If this purpose is served to the least extent, the objective of bringing out this bulletin is fulfilled.

I am immensely grateful to all the resource persons for their valuable contributions and my colleagues for their constant encouragement and support at all stages in bringing out this bulletin in such a short time.

Last but not the least, I shall be failing in my duties if I do not pay my thanks to my junior colleagues and the staff members of the BCPW, Lamphelpat, Imphal who have rendered all possible helps in bringing out this bulletin.