Tuberculosis in Russian Prisons
Introduction
Authored by: Christopher Murphy
To start your own paper: Type your page title into the Search box. (Be sure to spell correctly.) Press "Go." The site will offer you the opportunity to "Create this page."
Next, use the "edit" tab to reveal the coded file of BIOL 191 Paper 2009. Select all and copy; paste into the edit window of your own page. (Do not try to edit the class page.)
Introduce the topic of your paper. What public health question do you raise? Whose health is affected; in what country or location? What disease organisms are involved?
Below are some sample codes that will be useful for your paper.
Mycobaterium tuberculosis, better known as tuberculosis, is considered one of the most deadly infectious diseases.
Humans are tuberculosis's only reservoir, meaning that humans are the only compatible organism to host this infectious agent.
As a result, humans have suffered heavily from this disease. More specifically, the 17th and 18th centuries experienced the "White Palgue" in which about everyone had been infected and 25% of adult deaths could be attributed to tuberculosis.
In recent years there has been a reemergence of tuberculosis, one area severely affected by tuberculosis is Russia.
To upload an image: Use "Upload File" (in margin at left)
To make the image appear, you need to embed image insertion code (see sample at right). The insertion code consists of:
Double brackets: [[
Filename: PHIL_1181_lores.jpg
Thumbnail status: |thumb|
Pixel size: |300px|
Placement on page: |right|
Legend/credit: Electron micrograph of the Ebola Zaire virus. This was the first photo ever taken of the virus, on 10/13/1976. By Dr. F.A. Murphy, now at U.C. Davis, then at the CDC.
Closed double brackets: ]]
Other examples:
Bold
Italic
Subscript: H2O
Superscript: Fe3+
Why Tuberculosis is so prevalent in Russia
Tuberculosis is a opportunistic infection, it exploits compromised immune systems. The compromising of immune systems can occur as the result of any of the following: sizable populations, lack of nutrition, the use of intravenous drugs, alcoholism and HIV/AIDS.
All of these risk factors can be found in Russia, particularly in Russian prisons. These prisons are overcrowded and in sordid conditions, consequences of severe penal codes and lack of funds. As a result, tuberculosis flourishes under these conditions. Moreover, prisoners are 58 times likelier to contract tuberculosis than the average Russian citizen and are 28 times likelier to die from the disease than the average Russian citizen.
As of 1999 the Russian prison population neared 1.1 million prisoners, of those prisoners 1 in 11 have tuberculosis. In addition, treatment is sporadic at best and consequently MDR strains have arisen affecting 20,000 prisoners.
The prison population surged above over a million and the movement of people being incarcerated and being released also numbered in the millions. The strict penal codes in addition to the dire economic state of Russia only added to this number. As a result prisoners with latent infections could no longer had the immune strength to suppress the TB and other prisoners became infected by being in such close proximity with sick prisoners. The number of TB cases has reached an epidemic level.
There are several contributing factors to prevalence of tuberculosis in Russia. The recent spike in cases is attributed to the combined affect of the fall of the Soviet Union and prisoners who are inadequately treated for TB being released back into society. As a result of the collapse of Russian infrastructure, alcoholism, unemployment, crime rate, incarceration rate and the movement in and out of prison all increased significantly. In addition, health and social services ceased to exist only exacerbating the problem at hand. The immune system is weakened through drugs, alcohol and inadequate nutrition. To highlight the consequences of the effects of crime, prisons were deemed "epidemiological pumps" for the rest of Russian society. After being in cramped quarters inside prisons, released prisoners would return home to equally small apartment blocs. During the winters, these unventilated apartments served as breeding grounds for TB. Russia had previously its satellites to produce antibiotics but with the collapse drugs and funding were both in short supply. The newly independent satellite republics no longer continued the barter trade with Russia for antibiotics. Another factor perpetuating was the Health ministry's resistance to adopting the DOTS strategy. They were adamant about keeping the status quo. On the contrary, many of the local doctors were fine with participating in the DOTS strategy, however, many of the pharmacies ran out of supplies-even first-line drugs where in short supply.
Include some current research in each section.
Attempts of Fighting off Tuberculosis
Russia continued to struggle with Tuberculosis until recent outside help. Starting in the late 1990s George Soros has been a principle financial contributor. In addition, the work of Medical Emergency Relief International and Partners in Health in the area,as they experimenting to develop a new TB program, has lead to success. The DOTS program has been implemented and is usaully the strategy of choice. It is an everyday procedure in which 4 antibiotics are taken orally for 6 to 9 months under the care of a health official. In following years, Partners in Health developed a technique called DOTS Plus which all MDR-TB cases are being treated, which has lead to more extensive and intensive treatment. It is considered a bolder and more costly procedure. Local doctors were encouraged first in the prison system and then all throughout the region. This program takes up to two years and requires 6 to 8 drugs. Russia has heavily relied outside the Eli Lilly and Company Foundation and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria. Furthermore, the creation of the Green Light Committee, a drug procurement consortium, has been crucial to the fight against tuberculosis. Green Light Committee is compromised of WHO, U.S. CDC, ngos and pharmaceutical firms. The effectiveness of this program is highlighted by the drop in cost of patient care. Previously, treatment cost $10,000 to $15,000 and currently runs around $3,000 to $4,000. Through this committee countries such as Russia could afford medication, including the more expensive second line drugs to treat MDR-TB. This was the direct consequence of purchase contracts and subsidies. The general condition of hospitals has improved with increased funding from organizations such as Global Fund. Improvements include new lab equipment such as airtight closets to house sputum and technology for culturing. The handling of cases has also changed for the better, those with TB are sent back to the barracks while MDR-TB prisoners are isolated in the hospitals, 6 to 8 prisoners to a room.
Include some current research in each section.
Sample Section 3
Include some current research in each section.
Conclusion
Overall paper length should be approximately 2,000 to 2,500 words.
Include at least two data figures.
Use professional sources, including at least two research studies.
References
Edited by student of Joan Slonczewski for BIOL 191 Microbiology, 2009, Kenyon College.
