Vaccinate your child before meningitis, measles attacks

Do not get alarmed, but there is a new strain of meningitis in town. This is sad news for Nigerians, as the country is still battling the outbreak of Lassa fever.

According to the Director, National Centre of Diseases Control, Abuja, Prof. Abdulsalam Nasidi, the new strain of meningitis has killed a significant number of people.

Nasidi says, “There is the need to inform Nigerians that there have been reported cases of Meningitis ‘C’ and it is killing people. The Type ‘A’ has been successfully dealt with and now we are battling with the ‘C’ type.

“ I call on all state governors especially those in the North-West to start warming up to introduce vaccines.”

Lately, vaccine-preventable diseases such as measles, diarrhoea, pneumonia and meningitis have been killing Nigerians. The worst hits are children, whose parents could have saved them from premature deaths by doing the needful.

This week, the Oyo State Government ordered its Ministry of Health to begin an urgent immunisation of children after it was reported that measles killed five persons in the state.

Following these developments, stakeholders have stressed the importance of vaccination in reducing communicable childhood diseases.

A professor of Virology, Oyewole Tomori, while acknowledging the importance of vaccine, notes that it stimulates the body’s immune system to recognise some diseases as foreign and destroys them.

Tomori, who states that newborn babies do not have enough immunity to fight diseases, advises that there is the need to give them enough vaccines against some of these communicable diseases.

The virologist notes that poor vaccination of children is a major factor why Nigeria records the second highest infant deaths in the world after India.

His observation is not far from the truth, given that over 97,000 Nigerian children die every year from diarrhoea infection, a vaccine preventable disease.

Pneumonia, a disease that can be prevented with the pneumococcal vaccine still kills about 150,000 Nigerian children yearly.

The World Health Organisation notes that even though the number of children dying before the age of five has decreased in over 100 countries in the world, the situation is still bad in Nigeria and India.

The WHO states that Nigeria with 13 per cent and India with 21 per cent mortality rate accounted for more than a third of under-five deaths worldwide in 2013.

The organisation expresses fears that if more children are not receive vaccination against some childhood killer diseases, half of the global infant deaths may occur in the two countries.

Consultant paediatrician with the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Idi- Araba, Dr. Ekanem Ekure, says all hands must be on deck to ensure that Nigeria stops contributing to these “ugly” statistics.

Ekure notes that mothers especially must realise that it is their responsibilty to ensure that their children complete their immunisation schedules as and when due.

Many parents still worry that vaccines could harm their kids, hence they refuse to give it to their children.

Tomori, while informing parents that vaccines have been proven effective and safe for children, says no sincere parent should shy away from the life saving drug.

He noted, “Parents want to do what is best for their kids. But, did you know that one of the best gifts you can give them is to make sure they have all of their vaccinations”?

Vaccinating your child against meningitis, diarrhoea, pneumonia and polio would ensure that they do not die.

Here is a list of some important vaccines that parents must ensure that their children take for all round protection :

Bacillus Calmette-Guerin Vaccine

The BCG vaccine is the only tuberculosis vaccine currently available, although there are other TB vaccines under development. It is a relatively inexpensive, safe, and readily available vaccine.

The BCG vaccine is normally given to children as it has been shown to provide very good protection against the disseminated forms of TB in children.

Rotavirus vaccine

It is an oral vaccine against rotavirus infection, a common cause of diarrhoea and sickness, is given as two doses for babies aged two months and three months alongside their other routine childhood vaccinations.

The vaccine, called Rotarix, is given as a liquid from a dropper straight into the baby’s mouth for them to swallow.

Rotavirus is a highly infectious stomach bug that typically strikes babies and young children, causing an unpleasant bout of diarrhoea, sometimes with vomiting, tummy ache and fever. Some children who are not given this vaccine may die from rotavirus infection if it is severe.

Hepatitis B vaccine

Hepatitis B is one of the most infectious killer disease in the world. It is however, a vaccine preventable disease. Family health physician, Dr. Femi Omolola, notes that the HPV vaccine has been proven to be 99 per cent effective in preventing the viral infection when given to babies at birth.

Other vaccines on the national routine immunisation programme in Nigeria include eight DPT (Dipheteria-pertusis-tetanus), Hib (Haemophilius Influenza type B, oral polio, measles, yellow fever, and the meningiccocal vaccines.

PUNCH.