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36,000 children to be vaccinated against Hepatitis B virus

By Our Staff Reporter

CHENNAI FEB. 19. An estimated 36,000 children born in families below the poverty line in Chennai Corporation area will be vaccinated against the Hepatitis B virus (HBV) in the first phase of the immunisation programme, said S. Semmalai, Health Minister.

Inaugurating the programme here today, where 10 children under one year received the vaccine, he said Hepatitis B, which attacked the liver leading to death was the second most common cause of death after AIDS. Hepatitis A virus which spread through food and water could be cured.

The programme, the first of its kind in the country, will be expanded to include Madurai, Ramanathapuram, Virudhunagar and Nilgiris districts in the second phase. The State had successfully eradicated polio for two years now and aimed to eradicate jaundice with this initiative, he said. P. Krishnamurthy, Director, Public Health, said a survey in the State two years ago showed that 15.4 per cent population in the age group of 15-45 suffered from various diseases caused by this viral infection. Since the vaccine was steeply priced, the poor could not afford it. With support from the World Health Organisation, the Ability Foundation and the UNICEF, it was now possible to administer the vaccine free to the children in the slums.

According to a study by the WHO, half the vaccinations done in a year do not conform to prescribed safety standards. One of the aims of the programme was to ensure safe vaccination, he said. The auto-lock syringe system ensured that only one dose of vaccine was administered. The vaccine costs Rs. 150 for three doses which are given at a month's interval. The best time to administer the first dose is 35 days after birth.

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