HA NOI — Babies under 12 months will receive a new combined diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, hepatitis B and haemophilus influenza type B vaccine under the National Expanded Programme for Immunisation (EPI) as of June 2010.

"The five in one vaccine, donated by the Global Alliance for Vaccine and Immunisation (GAVI) through the United Nation Fund for Children (UNICEF), will be given free of charge to about 1.5 million of Vietnamese children, with each baby receiving three doses," said Director of EPI Nguyen Tran Hien to Viet Nam News.

"With the new vaccine, children will only have to receive one shot instead of three previous injections to protect them against five diseases. This will reduce costs, time and human resources as previously the babies would have had nine injections over three months, which with this new treatment will be reduced to three over three months," explained Hien.

The haemophilus influenza type B (Hib) vaccine is the 11th vaccine added to the regular vaccine provided free of charge by the EPI for all children across the country.

The new vaccine, Quinvaxem, has satisfied all World Health Organisation standards. Manufactured by Berna Biotech, Quinvaxem has been distributed and used in 34 countries world-wide with total 73.5 million doses.

Hien said that the new vaccine was safe and would protect at least 95 per cent of the vaccinated children in Viet Nam.

In 2008, the Global Alliance for Vaccine and Immunisation contributed US$37 million of funding to help Viet Nam introduce the new vaccine into the programme over 2010 and 2011.

The EPI estimates Hib bacterium was responsible for more than 600 meningitis cases and more than 100,000 serious cases of pneumonia yearly in Viet Nam. — VNS

From VietnamNews