New study finds that a mass measles vaccination campaign saved several thousand children's lives in India between 2010 and 2013. The findings of the study are published in the journal eLife.
Eliminating deaths from measles in India could be possible, although it will require continued diligence to ensure high immunization rates among Indian children and direct mortality monitoring. The results may also help to encourage greater uptake of vaccinations in children across the world.
Syrian Opposition Halts Measles Vaccinations
The Syrian opposition said that it halted a measles vaccination campaign in the northeastern Idlib province following reports children had died after being innoculated.
Advertisement
‘A new study provides a fresh insight into the impact of mass vaccination campaigns introduced in 2010 in India. The findings suggest that eradicating deaths from measles in India could be possible.’
Read More..
Tweet it Now
Read More..
There have been substantial decreases in the number of deaths from measles over the last 30 years. However, the infection remains a significant cause of mortality in children under five years old globally, with much of the burden of mortality and transmission residing in Africa and Asia.
India was one of the last countries to adopt two doses of the measles vaccine as part of national immunization programs. In 2010, its government implemented second-dose measles vaccines alongside mass immunization campaigns in districts (small administrative areas, each comprising about two million people) with low child vaccination rates.
![Measles Vaccination Drive Launched in Tanzania]( "Measles Vaccination Drive Launched in Tanzania")
Biggest ever campaign against measles and rubella aimed at protecting 21 million children from the potentially fatal diseases was launched in Tanzania.
"We know that measles deaths have declined in India, but what we did not know before this study is if the national measles campaign reduced child mortality rates," explains first author Benjamin Wong, Epidemiologist at St. Michael's Hospital and the University of Toronto in Canada. "Until now, no studies had directly answered this question due to gaps in the available data."
Wong and his team applied a novel statistical method to data from the Million Death Study (MDS) - a nationally representative sample of all deaths in India, which includes detailed interviews with families about child deaths. They examined 27,000 child deaths from 1.3 million households surveyed from 2005 to 2013. During this period, the MDS captured deaths for 13,490 girls and 13,007 boys aged between one and 59 months old.
The current analysis suggests that the measles vaccine campaigns saved 41,000 to 56,000 children in India from 2010 to 2013, or 39%-57% of the expected number of deaths nationally. Mortality in children aged between one and 59 months fell more in the campaign states following launch (27%) than in the non-campaign states (11%). Measles mortality risk was notably lower for children living in the campaign districts and those born between 2010-2013.
The team also found that the campaign was particularly successful for girls, as there was a steeper decline in the mortality rates of girls than boys in the vaccination campaign states during the three years. But while this highlights a narrower gap between girls and boys, mortality rates remain higher for girls. This is possibly due to lower vaccination coverage, a social preference for boys and/or lower levels of breastfeeding and healthcare access.
"Together, our results demonstrate the significant success of the measles vaccination campaigns in saving children's lives in India," concludes senior author Prabhat Jha, the University of Toronto Chair in Global Health and Epidemiology, and Executive Director of the Centre for Global Health Research at St. Michael's Hospital. "We've shown that nationwide mortality studies that are representative of the population are an inexpensive and practical way to directly investigate the impact of interventions for other diseases in India and elsewhere."
Source: Eurekalert
Measles Vaccination Drive Launched in Tanzania
Biggest ever campaign against measles and rubella aimed at protecting 21 million children from the potentially fatal diseases was launched in Tanzania.
Advertisement
"We know that measles deaths have declined in India, but what we did not know before this study is if the national measles campaign reduced child mortality rates," explains first author Benjamin Wong, Epidemiologist at St. Michael's Hospital and the University of Toronto in Canada. "Until now, no studies had directly answered this question due to gaps in the available data."
Wong and his team applied a novel statistical method to data from the Million Death Study (MDS) - a nationally representative sample of all deaths in India, which includes detailed interviews with families about child deaths. They examined 27,000 child deaths from 1.3 million households surveyed from 2005 to 2013. During this period, the MDS captured deaths for 13,490 girls and 13,007 boys aged between one and 59 months old.
The current analysis suggests that the measles vaccine campaigns saved 41,000 to 56,000 children in India from 2010 to 2013, or 39%-57% of the expected number of deaths nationally. Mortality in children aged between one and 59 months fell more in the campaign states following launch (27%) than in the non-campaign states (11%). Measles mortality risk was notably lower for children living in the campaign districts and those born between 2010-2013.
The team also found that the campaign was particularly successful for girls, as there was a steeper decline in the mortality rates of girls than boys in the vaccination campaign states during the three years. But while this highlights a narrower gap between girls and boys, mortality rates remain higher for girls. This is possibly due to lower vaccination coverage, a social preference for boys and/or lower levels of breastfeeding and healthcare access.
"Together, our results demonstrate the significant success of the measles vaccination campaigns in saving children's lives in India," concludes senior author Prabhat Jha, the University of Toronto Chair in Global Health and Epidemiology, and Executive Director of the Centre for Global Health Research at St. Michael's Hospital. "We've shown that nationwide mortality studies that are representative of the population are an inexpensive and practical way to directly investigate the impact of interventions for other diseases in India and elsewhere."
Source: Eurekalert
Measles Vaccination Reduces Child Mortality Rates
All-cause mortality is significantly lower when a child is most recently immunized with a measles vaccine, revealed research.
Advertisement
 WHO Calls for Measles Vaccination in EuropeThe World Health Organization (WHO) called on European nations to step up vaccinations against the highly contagious measles virus. | Advertisement
|
Advertisement
Recommended Readings
Latest Child Health News
The presence of Streptococcus in the placenta was associated with a two- to three-fold increase in the probability of neonatal unit admission.
Facing discrimination and acculturating during pregnancy could not only affect the mother but also potentially harm the baby's brain health.
A number of pathogens are to blame for the rise in childhood acute respiratory diseases, according to Chinese health officials.
World Health Organization (WHO) and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) highlight the deficiencies in disease surveillance efforts.
Need for gender-specific interventions in brain injuries has been highlighted by a new study due to its higher prevalence in newborn boys.