Special vax drive in Rayagada after diphtheria outbreak

BHUBANESWAR: The Odisha government has decided to launch a special drive for diphtheria vaccination in Rayagada district from Wednesday following an outbreak in Kashipur area that has claimed the lives of five children.

While in and out migration from Mahushpadar village where the children fell to the bacterial infection has been restricted, containment measures will continue to minimise spread of disease to neighbouring villages. The disease has spread to Koraput and Kalahandi districts bordering Kashipur.

The Health and Family Welfare department has asked the district administration to make elaborate arrangements to administer pentavalent vaccine shot to kids of less than one year, single dose diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough) and tetanus (DPT) to children aged one to seven, and tetanus and diphtheria (Td) vaccine to children above seven years.

Health secretary Shalini Pandit said the vaccine will be initially administered to non-immunised and under-immunised children identified during house-to-house survey in the affected Manushpadar village and later expanded to other hard-to-reach villages apart from the left out or drop out children.

“The health officials have been asked to deploy a medical officer at each outreach vaccination site and ensure that anaphylaxis kit is available for management of adverse events following immunisation (AEFI) cases. The drive will be completed within 15 days,” she said.

Pentavalent vaccine provides protection to a child from five life-threatening diseases – diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, hepatitis-B and Hib. The vaccine will be administered as per immunisation schedule to those who have missed due dose. The DPT and single dose Td vaccine will be administered to the age specific children who have not received diphtheria containing vaccine in the previous five years. Since diphtheria is transmitted most often from person-to-person through droplets or direct contact with respiratory secretion and its incubation period is two to five days, people in the affected villages have been advised to use face masks and maintain hand hygiene to control further spread of disease among vulnerable populations. Director of public health Dr Nilakantha Mishra said the affected districts have been directed to strengthen surveillance, house-to-house visits by teams.