First Indigenous Rotavirus Vaccine Rotavac of India Has Been Launched by the Union Health Ministry

The first indigenous rotavirus vaccine named Rotavac of India has been launched by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to combat infant mortality due to diarrhoea. Union Health Minister J. P. Nadda has launched this vaccine as part country՚s ambitious Universal Immunization Programme (UIP) .

This vaccine will be extended to the entire country in a phased manner.

At the Initial stage the vaccine is being introduced in four States:

  • Andhra Pradesh
  • Haryana
  • Himachal Pradesh
  • Odisha

A public-private partnership between the Union Ministry of Science Technology, Union Health Ministry, institutions of the US Government and NGOs in India supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has jointly developed this Rotavirus vaccine.

The vaccine is managed orally to children in three dose course at ages of six, ten and fourteen weeks as part of Universal Immunization Programme (UIP) .

Note: It is an addition of three new vaccines which are introduced by Union Government as part of country՚s UIP and the three vaccines are:

  • Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV)
  • Measles, Rubella (MR) vaccine
  • Adult Japanese Encephalitis (JE) vaccine

About Rotavirus:

  • In the family Reoviridae, the Rotavirus is a category of double-stranded RNA virus.
  • It most common causal agent of moderate-to-severe diarrhoea (MSD) between children below 11 months age group and death among children less than five years of age.

Transmission:

  • Main form of transmission is person to person due to bacterial and parasiting agents that are primarily transmitted through contaminated food or water.

Impact on Health:

  • It causes gastroenteritis after it costs the cells that line the small intestine and causes gastroenteritis.
  • And in some cases it sources malnutrition, delayed physical and mental development among children.

Examrace Team at Aug 21, 2021