DOHA: Prevenar, Pneumococcal saccharide conjugated vaccine, has been accepted in the national immunisation programme for all six Gulf countries. The vaccine for children under two helps protect infants and young children against the seven vaccine serotypes causing the majority of pneumococcal diseases worldwide that are the leading vaccine-preventable cause of death in young children worldwide, as they kill and disable infants by causing meningitis, pneumonia, sepsis and bacteremia.
A total of 35 countries worldwide now include Prevenar on their immunization schedule, of which 26 are in Europe and the Middle East; which accounts for more than seven million children born each year.
Following the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommendation for priority inclusion of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in national childhood immunisation programmes, all GCC countries have taken the initiative to include Prevenar in their National Immunization Program (NIP).
"Wyeth, the manufacturer of Prevenar, applauds governments' decision and commitment to reducing child mortality and combating infectious diseases. We are pleased to be part of these initiatives and welcome the introduction of this life-saving vaccine into the national immunisation schedule," said Dr Baher Masoud, Medical Director at Wyeth Middle East and North Africa.
Two major local studies conducted in Saudi Arabia showed that pneumococcal diseases such as meningitis, bacteremia, sepsis and bacteremic pneumonia, are serious threats to children in Saudi Arabia. Prevenar will cover up to 83 percent of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) serotypes and will prevent 82 percent of antibiotic-resistant IPD based on findings from a local study.
Another local study to assess the incidence of pneumococcal diseases in children below the age of five years, found that IPD cases occurred in 65 cases out of every 100,000 children under the age of two years.
© The Peninsula 2009
