Gender discrimination weighs heavily down on babies
Koshy, L.M.
Indian Medical Tribune 3(22): 3
1995
ISSN/ISBN: 0971-488X PMID: 12179193 Document Number: 294081
During a pediatric conference in New Delhi, India, physicians compared their experiences with various diseases to the body of knowledge contained in Western-oriented medical textbooks. One physician noted that the most important longterm intervention to prevent low birth weight babies and congenital malformations is social and involves reducing discrimination against women in India. Many childhood disorders, such as thalassemia, can be prevented by proper genetic screening. Children with thalassemia depend upon blood transfusions to survive, yet they can contract serious and life-threatening illness from an unsafe blood supply. Another physician implicated improper handling by parents in habit disorders such as thumb sucking. A report on childhood epilepsy noted that 20% of the cases are resistant to therapy. A session on nephrotic syndrome relayed the practical experiences of the pediatricians. The fact that this syndrome recurs until puberty and, thus, requires longterm management makes it an important pediatric topic. Asthma was described as a condition which is increasing and which parents are afraid to acknowledge. Another physician suggested adding childbirth to the list of medical emergencies in India, since 75% of them are attended by untrained personnel who may contribute to the incidence of death from neonatal tetanus.