Bhubaneswar: In order to eliminate measles and control rubella by 2020, the government is introducing the MR (Measles-Rubella) vaccine programme in the state from January 29, 2018. With measles has been part of the routine immunisation program along with nine other vaccines, rubella will be introduced in the state from next year.
Keeping in view the government’s initiatives to tackle childhood diseases, the Unicef organised a media roundtable on the issues here Wednesday.
The Unicef officials informed the participants about the Measles-Rubella (MR) campaign which will cover 1.24 crore children in nine months to less than 15 years in the state with an aim to enhance the immunity in the population. Many doctors and health experts of state government also participated in the discussion.
KK Dash Joint Director of Child Health and State epidemic intelligence (EPI) officer said that MR occur among the children between nine months to 15 years and the affected children suffer from pneumonia and diarrhoea . In measles the children start getting rashes on his body parts which can be found in first 14 days. The rate of mortality in this disease is only 10 per cent, he added.
Mritunjay Das, a paediatrician, said that this disease infectious and vaccination is very important to control its spread.
Rubella occurs due to mother-to-child spread and the child suffers from night blindness, long term disability and other ailments.
Vivek Singh, a health specialist of Unicef Orissa, said that the coverage of measles vaccination in Orissa is around 88 per cent but to eliminate measles from the community the coverage should be more than 95 per cent.
He said that 30,000 cases of CRS are reported every year and more than 65 per cent of parents not able to vaccinate due to lack of awareness about vaccine.
Tapas Kumar Patra Deputy director of Immunization Govt of Orissa said that in 2014 we become polio free state and in 2015 we become MNTE Maternal and Neonatal Tetanus Elimination (MNTE) free state. We can make the state MR free if each and every person take the vaccination on time. He said for full implementation of the programme that each and every department has to work.
PNN
