Ahmedabad
Mirror: Ahmedabad: Thursday, 22 January 2015.
Sunita Bora,
a nine-year old tribal girl living in Vadodara died suddenly in 2010. She was
one of the two students who died after they were administered a anti-cervical
cancer vaccine that was meant for observation studies. There are several cases
of adverse events following immunisation (AEFI) like this, but they don't get
reported. According to the latest figures available with Mirror, 128 children
have succumbed to AEFI across the country and shockingly, Gujarat accounts for
the highest number of such deaths in India.
Moreover,
experts from the Indian Academy of Paediatrics (IAP) say the data is the tip of
the iceberg as most of the deaths go unreported. Gujarat has the unenviable
distinction of topping the list with 38 deaths followed by Uttar Pradesh (25),
TN (12), Maharashtra (12) and West Bengal (10). The figures came out following
an RTI application filed by this correspondent on September 23, 2014. The data
was provided by Deputy Director (Stats) K K Bansal. AEFIcould be because of
vaccine quality, contamination and complications in the health of the child. It
may lead to disabilities and deaths.
PENTAVALENT
TO BLAME
According to
IAP, most of these deaths are caused by pentavalent vaccine. "After
enrolling the vaccine in 11 states of India, the number of AEFI has surged
drastically. Around 90 per cent of such cases are due to pentavalent vaccine.
Other than south Indian states, Gujarat also shares a large part of the
deaths," said Dr Vipin Vashishtha, IAPCOI convener. Pentavalent vaccine is
a five-in-one conjugate that combines antigens against five infections -
diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus (DPT), hepatitis B and Hib Meningitis. It was
first introduced in Kerala and Tamil Nadu as a pilot project on December 14,
2011.
The following
year, 19 children died due to AEFI. Two PILs were filed in the Supreme Court
seeking ban on pentavalent. However, it didn't stop the government from
launching it in seven states, including Gujarat, during the second half of
2012. Soon after its launch in the state, two children died after they were
administered the vaccine. This was reported in a response to an RTI application
filed by K V Babu of Kannur in Kerala. The figure has surged to 38 deaths. Dr
Yogesh Jain, former assistant professor of paediatrics at AIIMS in Delhi had
clearly stated in his PIL to ban pentavalent vaccine as it had adverse
side-effects and was banned in many developed countries. "The most deadly
component of the vaccine is diptheria, pertusis, tetanus (DPT)," added Dr
Vashishtha.
STATUS IN
PVT HOSPITALS
Due to lack
of awareness many such deaths go unreported. Highlighting the issue, Dr
Vashishtha stated in a report published in Indian Pediatrics that there was
almost no participation from the private sector. "It is important that
AEFI from this sector are also reported and investigated, as per the national
guidelines. Additionally, the AEFI reporting from private sector hospitals will
provide vital information on the safety of new vaccines in India," stated
the report. However, Dr Chetan Trivedi, president of Association of Pediatrics,
Ahmedabad said that private hospitals hardly see any such cases.
"Though
we have a large number of patients who go to private hospitals for
vaccinations, we haven't recorded any case of AEFI that we can report," he
said. Last year, former Union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad in a written
reply to Rajya Sabha stated, "There has been rise in the reported Adverse
Events Following Immunization (AEFI) cases all over the country including 8
states (Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Goa, Jammu & Kashmir, Haryana, Gujarat,
Karnataka and Puducherry) where pentavalent vaccine has been introduced in
phased manner." When Mirror contacted state Health Minister Nitin Patel, he
said that every year more than 12 lakh children are born and they are
vaccinated. "The vaccination process in the state is extremely extensive
and efficient. But we haven't come across any such incident. It (the death) may
be accidental or due to the prior health condition of the child," he said.
He, however, said he would look into the matter and gather more information.