All children should get stomach bug jab says WHO

A jab to guard against a diarrhoea and vomiting virus should be routinely given to all children, the World Health Organization said today. Four children die every minute from diarrhoea, which causes one-fifth of all child deaths worldwide, with most concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia.

Diarrhoeal diseases are caused by the poor sanitation that comes with poverty, yet are easily and cheaply treatable. However diarrhoeal diseases still claim 1.8 million lives a year. Some 500,000 children die every year and two million end up in hospital because of Rotavirus. More than 85% of these deaths are in developing countries in Africa and Asia. Although UK scientists have said in the past that the jab is too expensive, International experts welcomed the WHO's recommendations which are based on new research.

The clinical study, found that rotavirus vaccine significantly reduced episodes of severe diarrhoea. In the UK alone, rotavirus causes 130,000 cases of gastroenteritis each year. "This is a tremendous milestone in ensuring that vaccines against the most common cause of lethal diarrhoea reach the children who need them most," said The WHO's Dr Thomas Cherian. But because diarrhoea can also be spread through contaminated food or drinking water, or from person-to-person as a result of poor hygiene, it is also important to improve water quality, hygiene, and sanitation and ensure oral rehydration solutions and zinc supplements are available, the WHO stressed. "This WHO recommendation clears the way for vaccines that will protect children in the developing world from one of the most deadly diseases they face,” Dr Tachi Yamada, president of the Global Health Program at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, told the BBC. "We need to act now to deliver vaccines to children in Africa and Asia, where most rotavirus deaths occur," he added.

Dr Julian Lob-Levyt, chief executive officer of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisations (GAVI) which was involved in the trials, said: "This represents another important step in our ability to achieve significant impact on under-five deaths in the world's poorest communities and make progress towards the Millennium Development Goals. "We are extremely excited about the potential to offer African and Asian countries funding to introduce rotavirus vaccines." Children in poor countries suffer the dehydrating condition on average about four times a year, according to the latest figures from the WHO.

The drug company GlaxoSmithKline that makes the vaccine was also involved in the rotavirus clinical trial, working with researchers in South Africa and Malawi. In February, The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), which advises the government, said it would only consider recommending the jab if it was cheaper. The JCVI said: "Rotavirus vaccination would reduce the incidence of rotavirus in the population. "However, the cost-effectiveness analysis showed that, based on current vaccine prices, universal vaccination of young children significantly exceeded the commonly accepted threshold for cost-effective healthcare interventions."Introduction of rotavirus vaccines may only become cost-effective if the vaccine price is reduced significantly."

By Hayley Jarvis for SOS Children