The Importance of Vaccines and why we ALL need to be Vaccinated
1. Vaccines have been used since 1796.
They are a proven and safe way to prevent deaths from many diseases.
2. The first success of vaccination
On 14 May 1796, 73 years before the first issue of Nature, and inspired by Lady
Montagu’s promotion of the “variolation” concept
thought to have first been used in China and India. Edward Jenner inoculated eight-year-old James
Phipps with cowpox pus to prove that the less virulent cowpox would protect
against smallpox. This experiment was a game changer in medicine and health. For
the first time, it was possible medically to prevent infection in a healthy
person. Although vaccines have been widely introduced in high-income countries
since the late 1950s, it took 180 years after Jenner before the Expanded
Programme on Immunization (EPI) was launched in 1974, promoting access to six
essential vaccines in all countries worldwide. Today, vaccines against 26
infectious diseases are internationally available according to the World Health
Organization (WHO)1, although more have been licensed worldwide, changing the
future of the human species. Others are in experimental public health use, such
as Ebola vaccines, or pilot implementation such as the RTS,S malaria vaccine,
and about 240 vaccine candidates are in development2 (Table 1). The US Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention declared vaccination the number one success
story for public health in the twentieth century.
Immunization is a global health and development success story, saving millions
of lives every year. Vaccines reduce risks of getting a disease by working with
your body’s natural defences to build protection. When you get a vaccine, your
immune system responds.
3. Current Status We now have vaccines
to prevent more than 20 life-threatening diseases, helping people of all ages
live longer, healthier lives. Immunization currently prevents 3.5-5 million
deaths every year from diseases like diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, influenza
and measles.
Immunization is a key component of primary health care and an indisputable human
right. It’s also one of the best health investments money can buy. Vaccines are
also critical to the prevention and control of infectious disease outbreaks.
They underpin global health security and will be a vital tool in the battle
against antimicrobial resistance.
The Covid-19 pandemic, associated disruptions, and Covid-19 vaccination efforts
strained health systems in 2020 and 2021, resulting in dramatic setbacks.
However, from a global perspective recovery is on the horizon - in 2022
diphtheria-pertussis-tetanus (DTP) immunization coverage, albeit unevenly
between countries, has almost recovered to 2019 levels.
Measles, because of its high transmissibility, acts as a “canary in the
coalmine”, quickly exposing any immunity gaps in the population.
Still, 22
million children missed their routine first dose of measles vaccine by 2022,
compared to 19 million in 2019. A clear scandal largely promoted by a
combination of
irrational fear of vaccines and exploitation by irresponsible social media, some
thought even to have been promoted by political regimes.
4. Some of the most important vaccine successes:
Refer to:
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-019-1656-7/tables/1
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Diseases now substantially prevented by
vaccination. Symptoms and effects:
Smallpox. This vaccine protects people from smallpox by
helping their bodies develop immunity to smallpox. The vaccine is made from a
virus called vaccinia, which is a poxvirus similar to smallpox, but less
harmful.
Tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infection that most often
attacks the lungs, but in infants and young children, affects other organs like
the brain. A severe case could cause serious complications or death. TB is very
difficult to treat when contracted, and treatment is lengthy and not always
successful.
Hep B Hepatitis B Hepatitis B virus is a really dangerous liver
infection that, when caught as an infant, often shows no symptoms for decades.
It can develop into cirrhosis and liver cancer later in life. Chronic
hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection affects about 296 million people worldwide and
is the leading aetiology of cirrhosis and liver cancer globally. Major medical
complications also include acute flares and extrahepatic manifestations.Chronic
hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection affects about 296 million people worldwide and
is the leading aetiology of cirrhosis and liver cancer globally. Major medical
complications also include acute flares and extrahepatic manifestations.Chronic
hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection affects about 296 million people worldwide and
is the leading aetiology of cirrhosis and liver cancer globally. Major medical
complications also include acute flares and extrahepatic manifestations.
The most common extrahepatic manifestations fall into 4 main categories: blood
diseases, autoimmune disorders, kidney disease, and skin conditions.
https://www.ranker.com/list/famous-people-who-died-of-hepatitis/reference
Polio (Poliomyelitis) is a virus that paralyzes 1 in 200 people
who get infected. Among those cases, 5 to 10 per cent die when their breathing
muscles are paralyzed. There is no cure for polio once the paralysis sets in –
only treatment to alleviate the symptoms.
There is also post-polio syndrome (PPS). The main symptoms of PPS are new
progressive muscle weakness that gradually worsens, together with severe fatigue
and pain in muscles and joints. It is often accompanied by decreased muscle
endurance during activities. Up to 20 million polio survivors around the
world face the threat of new disabilities 15 to 40 years after their original
illness, which could leave them using wheelchairs or ventilators for the rest of
their lives. No cure exists for PPS. Doctors advise patients to curtail
physical activities and take rest periods during the day, including during
working hours. Many doctors also advise more severely affected patients to use
wheelchairs part-time or full-time, even if they can walk without them.
Pre-infection vaccination is a must to prevent this double disease.
Diphtheria infects the throat and tonsils, making it
hard for children to breathe and swallow. Severe cases can cause heart, kidney
and/or nerve damage.
Tetanus causes very painful muscle contractions. It can cause
children’s neck and jaw muscles to lock (lockjaw), making it hard for them to
open their mouth, swallow (breastfeed) or breathe. Even with treatment, tetanus
is often fatal.DTP Pertussis Pertussis (whooping cough) causes coughing spells
that can last for weeks. In some cases, it can lead to trouble breathing,
pneumonia, and death.
Haemophilus influenza type b (Hib) Hib is a bacterium that
causes pneumonia, meningitis and other severe infections almost exclusively in
children under 5 years old.
Pneumococcal diseases Pneumococcal diseases range from serious
diseases such as meningitis and pneumonia to milder but more common infections
like sinusitis and ear infections.
Pneumococcal diseases are a common cause of sickness and death worldwide,
especially among young children under 2 years old. The pneumococcal vaccine
helps protect against serious illnesses like pneumonia and meningitis. It's
recommended for people at higher risk of these illnesses, such as babies and
adults aged 65 and over.
The pneumococcal vaccine helps protect against some types of bacterial
infections that can cause serious illnesses like:
meningitis (an infection in the brain and spinal cord)
sepsis (a life-threatening reaction to an infection)
pneumonia (an infection in the lungs)
It can also help protect against other illnesses such as sinusitis and ear
infections.
Rotavirus Rotaviruses cause severe diarrhoea and vomiting,
which can lead to dehydration, electrolyte imbalance and shock in young
children. Indeed, this can lead to death if treatment, especially fluid replacement, is
not immediately started.
Measles is a highly contagious disease with symptoms that
include fever, runny nose, white spots in the back of the mouth and a rash.
Serious cases can cause blindness, brain swelling and death.
Mumps Mumps can cause headache, malaise, fever, and swollen
salivary glands. Complications can include meningitis, swollen testicles,
swift sterilisation in men and deafness.
Rubella Rubella infection in children and adults is usually
mild, but in pregnant women it can cause miscarriage, stillbirth, infant death
or birth defects.
Human papillomavirus (HPV) and Cervical cancer
HPV usually has no symptoms, but some strains can cause cervical cancer – the
fourth most common cancer in women. Almost all cases of cervical cancer (99 per
cent) are caused by HPV. HPV can also cause genital warts in both men and women,
as well as cancer on other parts of the body.
Cholera. The cholera vaccine is effective at
preventing cholera.
The currently recommended cholera vaccines are administered orally to elicit a
protective local mucosal immune response in the gut, something which was poorly
achieved with the injectable vaccines that were used until the 1970s.
Influenza Seasonal annual vaccination is needed after the
specific likely local virus has been identified.
Malaria. Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease which
annually affects an estimated 247 million people worldwide and causes 619,000
deaths. As of April 2023, the vaccine has been given to 1.5 million children
living in areas with moderate-to-high malaria transmission. It requires at
least three doses in infants by age 2, and a fourth dose extends the protection
for another 1–2 years. The vaccine reduces hospital admissions from severe
malaria by around 30%
Yellow fever. Yellow fever is a viral infection that occurs in
Africa and South America. Some yellow fever symptoms are similar to flu, such
as: high temperature. headache. feeling or being sick. aches and pains. loss of
appetite. feeling generally unwell. These symptoms often last 3 or 4 days. But a
small number of people get more serious symptoms within 24 hours of feeling
better. Most people begin to develop immunity within ten days of vaccination and
99% are protected within one month, and this appears to be lifelong.
Reference:
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/mar/28/how-mary-wortley-montagus-bold-experiment-led-to-smallpox-vaccine-75-years-before-jenner