Pneumonia, a killer disease is the biggest cause of child mortality around the globe, killing a child every 30 seconds.
It contributes 18% of the total global child deaths and Pakistan is the first South Asian country to include Pneumococcal vaccine in its national immunisation programme, Dr Iqbal Memon, President Pakistan Paediatric Association and Dr. Jamal Raza, Secretary General Pakistan Paediatric Association stated this while a press briefing about the disease burden and its prevention on Monday.
Pneumonia Day is being observed on November 12 – 92,000 children of less than five years of age are dying annually in Pakistan due to Pneumonia. Hence, 12th November marks the commemoration of the government’s commitment towards providing each and every child a vaccination that it is required to achieve Millennium Development Goals.
Every year due to vaccines, approximately 3,000,000 deaths are prevented and 750,000 children are saved from disability.
“In Pakistan 85 out of 1,000 children die under the age of five and most of the deaths are due to vaccine preventable diseases,” said Memon. “Despite the provision of free vaccinations through EPI, Punjab has only 56% coverage and the conditions of other provinces are even worse.”
He said that in order to achieve MDG4 we ought to reduce child mortality rate by one third and for this Pneumonia is one of the biggest obstacles.
Pneumonia is a form of acute respiratory infection that affects the lungs. When an individual has pneumonia, the alveoli (small sacs in lungs which fill with air when a healthy person breathes) are filled with pus and fluid, which makes breathing painful and limits oxygen intake. Infants and children younger than age 2 years are at higher risk of contracting pneumonia as their immune systems are still developing. Symptoms of pneumonia in children include rapid or difficult breathing, cough, fever, chills, headaches, loss of appetite and wheezing. They may also face difficulty to breathe, with their chests moving in or retracting during inhalation.
Dr Jamal said the Pakistani government introduced the pneumococcal vaccine last year in its EPI program making Pakistan the first South Asian nation to provide free vaccination against pneumonia to infants. But, this vaccine inclusion alone is not enough; it is an equal responsibility of the parent to ensure timely visits to the EPI centre and to get their children vaccinated against pneumonia and other deadly diseases for free. PPA has started immunisation awareness campaign throughout the Pakistan, to conduct 190 awareness sessions and establish vaccination camps in association with EPI, he added.
He stressed that after hygiene, immunisation is a proven tool for controlling and eliminating life-threatening infectious diseases and can protect children by preparing their bodies. Common diseases around the world, including smallpox, polio, measles, diphtheria, whooping cough, rubella (German measles), mumps, tetanus and Haemophilia influenza type b have been curbed.
Expanded Programme on immunisation was launched in Pakistan during 1976, which today is providing vaccines to every child of Pakistan free of charge. The EPI aims to protect children against nine vaccine preventable diseases, ie, polio, tuberculosis, pertussis, Hepatitis B, diphtheria, tetanus, measles and pneumonia, of which pneumonia is the latest addition, he added.
Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (pneumonia vaccine) was introduced in Pakistan’s EPI programme in October 2012.
Despite the government’s efforts, an unavoidable 46% of the child population in Pakistan still remains non-immunised leading to child mortality, concluded Dr Jamal.