A new combination vaccine that will protect children from the bacterium Hib (Haemophilus influenzae type B), the most common cause of deadly pneumonia and meningitis, and four other common childhood diseases, is being introduced by the government this month. The Hib bacterium is a top killer of children under the age of five in the developing world and in Pakistan each year an estimated 23,000 children die from Hib disease.
This new vaccine, introduced under the Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI), is crucial to reducing meningitis and pneumonia-related deaths among children, and achieving child health-related Millennium Development Goals in Pakistan, said Dr Anita Zaidi, Professor, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Aga Khan University (AKU), at an international symposium on diseases of the tropics being held at the University.
Dr Martin Mogwanja, Unicef Representative to Pakistan, was the chief guest. The first day of the symposium focused on improving the child survival rate in country and debating the difference that research can make.
Dr Kim Mulholland from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine presented various studies from across the developing world to show the importance of developing, promoting and implementing vaccines against childhood pneumonia. He said that children who are poorly nourished or living in crowded, polluted and smoky environments are at a higher risk of acquiring the disease.
Dr Zulfiqar A Bhutta, Professor and Chair, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, AKU gave the plenary lecture at the symposium, discussing how targeted research can provide feasible and effective solutions for decreasing child deaths in developing countries. Dr Zaidi presented evidence from a study from Karachis katchi abadis, which shows that antibiotic injections for treating serious infections in young babies can save many lives.
One in 10 children under the age of five dies each year in Pakistan due to diseases that can be prevented through vaccines, like pneumonia. Other prominent guest speakers at the conference included Dr Karen Kotloff from the Center for Vaccine Development at the University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Baltimore, US.
The International Symposium on Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, Global Perspectives: Local Solutions, in collaboration with the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, UK, and the Infectious Diseases Society of Pakistan, is being held from November 10 to 13, 2008, at AKU. -PR
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