Non-communicable diseases continue to be a factor of concern for healthcare experts globally because of the high mortality rate they result in. Close to 70% of deaths worldwide every year are due to non-communicable diseases.
How can this be best managed has always challenged the best of global medical experts. Let’s take a look at some of the aspects related to non-communicable diseases and their effective management strategies.
What are Non-Communicable Diseases?
Non-communicable Diseases (NCDs) are medical conditions that stay for longer durations and have a slow progression rate. The word non-communicable signifies that they cannot be transferred from person to person. In other words, NCDs are also referred to as Chronic Diseases (which we commonly get to hear from medical professionals)
What are the different types of Non-communicable Diseases?
There are 4 main types of Non-Communicable Diseases
- Cardio Vascular Diseases
- Cancer
- Chronic Respiratory Diseases
- Diabetes
However, there are some other types of medical conditions that also find a place under Non-Communicable Diseases. They are.
- Hypertension
- Obesity
- Endocrine disorders
- Neurological disorders
- Rheumatoid Arthritis
- Osteoporosis
- Genetic disorders
- Hematological disorders
What are the key risk factors for Non-Communicable Diseases?
There are certain key factors that can lead to non-communicable diseases. They are:
- Genetic factors: History of diseases suffered in the family or genetic inheritance
- Environmental factors: These include weather variations, environmental pollution and air pollution
- Socio-demographic factors: These can include Age, Gender, Education, Race etc.
- Factors relating to self–management – They can include Alcohol, Tobacco, and Choice of food to name a few
- Factors relating to medical conditions – This can include medications, blood pressure, stress etc.
How can Non-communicable diseases be best managed?
NCDs are known to be silent killers. As they progress slowly, they do not show any symptoms till reaching an advanced stage. As such, patients suffering from non-communicable diseases require long-term care that is personalized, proactive and sustainable.
The earlier these types of diseases are diagnosed, the better it is for the overall management from an economic point of view. Many studies have indicated that lifestyle factors have direct links to cancer risk and changing lifestyles, in a positive approach, can considerably minimize the cancer burden.
Access to complete and specific treatment for non-communicable diseases is more evident in high-income countries compared to economically challenged countries. This has resulted in controlling cardiovascular diseases in a better way in high-income countries. Every country needs to prepare a specific plan within its managing limits to prevent these diseases from increasing.
A well-formatted, cost-effective strategy needs to be put in place to diagnose and treat diabetes and hypertension at an early stage.
Above all, a healthy diet routine can go a long way in preventing the rise of non-communicable diseases and inturn reduce mortality rate by a great extent.
The Bottom Line
In modern society, NCDs are the main challenge in health systems. Risk factor management is essential in NCDs’ management. The management of NCDs requires many strategies from several perspectives and on different levels. To know more on how this can be achieved please feel free to connect with Apollo TeleHealth, your trusted healthcare partner.
