Environmental health needs and launching of an environmental health protection unit in Pakistan.

Pakistan is seriously confronted by many complex and difficult environmental challenges related to air, water, soil, forests and food including issues such as climate change. The close link between environment and health is neither well understood nor appreciated. The annual cost of environmental degradation in Pakistan has been estimated to be around US $4.0 billion orat least 6% of the country's GDP. Up to 35% of the burden of disease is attributable to environmental hazards and risk factors and most of this burden is preventable. A systematic process for identifying environmental health needs and issues as well as the efforts made by the government of Pakistan and the World Health Organization in establishing and launching an environmental health protection unit are described. Also presented are the mission, functions, structure (operational and logistical) and technical requirements as well as sustainability aspects of the environmental health protection unit.

Environmental health needs and launching of an environmental health protection unit in Pakistan

Pakistan is seriously confronted by many complex and difficult environmental challenges related to air, water, soil, forests and food including issues such as climate change. The close link between environment and health is neither well understood nor appreciated. The annual cost of environmental degradation in Pakistan has been estimated to be around US $ 4.0 billion orat least 6% of the country's GDP. Up to 35% of the burden of disease is attributable to environmental hazards and risk factors and most of this burden is preventable. A systematic process for identifying environmental health needs and issues as well as the efforts made by the government of Pakistan and the World Health Organization in establishing and launching an environmental health protection unit are described. Also presented are the mission, functions, structure [operational and logistical] and technical requirements as well as sustainability aspects of the environmental health protection unit

Investigation of the probable causes of specific childhood disabilities in eastern Afghanistan (preliminary report).

To identify risk factors likely to cause developmental disabilities and to generate hypotheses for a further study of risk factors predisposing to disability and slow mental and physical development. Mothers and children attending/visiting the Sandy Gall's Afghanistan Appeal (SGAA) clinics in the East Zone of Afghanistan. The main outcome measures, developmental disabilities, cerebral palsy (CP), club foot, CDH and polio. Results, 37.5% of the disabilities were present at birth, 46% of the disabled children were born from parents who are 1st cousin which was confirmed by computing chi2 value, which is 10.87 with one degree of freedom. 58.3% of the disabled children were born from parents who lack antenatal care. 22.4% of the pregnant women in the defined population had antenatal checkups, and 97% of the mothers in the defined population are illiterate, 52% of the children found with CP specific and mental retardation. 25% were with delayed physical and mental development. 13% were with CP specific and 10% were club foot. 2% of the children were visually handicapped, 9% with hearing impairment. 61% of children were from Nangarhar, 25% from Laghman and 14% from Kunar.