2 September, 2009 - The health ministry has introduced an additional vaccine to protect infants against pneumonia, one of the leading causes of death in children under 15 years in Bhutan, and meningitis.

“Haemophilus influenza type B (Hib) germ is the most common cause of pneumonia and meningitis in babies,” said the public health director, Dr Ugen Dophu. “This vaccine almost eliminates this common cause, but infants can still be susceptible to other viral and bacterial causes of these diseases.”

This additional vaccine will be given together with four other vaccines against diphtheria, whooping cough (pertussis), tetanus and hepatitis-B, which are already being administered to infants. This five-in-one vaccine, called the pentavalent vaccine, was introduced nationwide yesterday.

“With our commitment to reduce childhood mortality by 40 percent, we strongly feel that we’re moving in the right direction by making this vaccine available for our children,” said the health minister, Lyonpo Zangley Dukpa.

How effective the vaccine is will be seen only after five years, said the program officer of the vaccine preventable disease program, Tshewang Tamang. “After five years, the number of Hib pneumonia and meningitis cases should reduce by 50 percent,” he said.

In the past four years, 262 children have died from pneumonia, according to records maintained by the health ministry. Pneumonia is an infection of the lungs and meningitis is the infection of the protective covering of the brain and spinal cord.

Hib disease is most common in children under five years and those between four to 12 months are most at risk, according to health officials. It often results in serious illness or death and can lead to permanent brain damage in those who survive. It spreads through air in the form of droplets during coughing and sneezing.

The vaccine will be available in all health centres across the country and given to infants in three doses, when they are six, ten and 14 weeks old.

Besides redness, swelling and pain in the place where the vaccine is injected, and fever, there are no other serious side effects from the vaccine, said health officials.

According to records with the Thimphu referral hospital, there were 71 cases of Hib pneumonia in children under five years last year. The only record of a Hib meningitis case was in 2002. Bhutan then saw between 80-270 cases in children under five years.

Bhutan received a total of 30,200 pentavalent vaccines from the global alliance for vaccine initiative (GAVI), which will last for eight months, said Tshewang Tamang. GAVI is an organisation based in Geneva and supported by G8 countries. “In a year, about 13,600 newborns are immunised across the country, so this vaccine will immunise about 1,100 babies,” said Tshewang Tamang.

A dose of pentavalent vaccine costs USD 3.6, which comes to about Nu 173. Bhutan, however, pays only USD 0.23 (Nu 11) and the rest is borne by GAVI. “GAVI will pay for the next five years, after which Bhutan will have to bear the whole cost,” said Dr Ugen Dophu.

The vaccine has already been introduced in 175 countries around the world. Bhutan is the third country in the region to introduce this vaccine.