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NepalDiseases and Disease Control
Poor health conditions were evident in the high rate of
infant
mortality and a short life expectancy. In the mid-1960s, a
national
health survey was conducted. In 1991 that survey was still
considered the major comprehensive published source of
information
on the national public health situation.
A number of diseases and chronic infections were
prevalent.
Goiter, a disease directly associated with iodine
deficiency, was
endemic in certain villages in the hills and mountains. In
most of
the villages surveyed, more than half of the population
had goiter,
and in these same villages the incidence of deafness and
mental
retardation was much higher than in other villages.
Leprosy also
was a serious problem. Foreign assistance, specifically
through
Christian missions, was responsible for setting up leprosy
treatment centers in different parts of the country.
Tuberculosis
has been a chronic problem and was more common in urban
areas.
During the 1970s, the Tuberculosis Control Project was
established
to provide immunizations to all children younger than
fifteen, and
it is likely that this project has reduced tuberculosis.
Other
chronic, widespread problems were intestinal parasites,
diarrhea,
and gastrointestinal disorders. Some polio and typhoid
infections
were common but not severe.
Malnutrition was a chronic problem, especially in rural
areas.
More than 50 percent of the children surveyed were
reported to have
stunted growth. "Wasting," defined as a condition in which
a child
has very low weight for his or her height, was also
evident. These
conditions were particularly bad in the Hill and Mountain
regions,
both of which suffered from food shortages. The country's
public
health program, however, has essentially eliminated
smallpox and
has been able to control malaria, which used to be endemic
to the
Tarai Region and other lowlands.
Data as of September 1991
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