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Vaccination campaigns carried out around the planet have saved approximately 154 million lives, which is equivalent to six lives every minute of every year for the last 50 years. The majority of these lives, around 101 million, correspond to babies. These are the conclusions of a new study led by the World Health Organization (WHO) that will be published in the scientific journal The Lancet.
The study indicates that vaccination is the most significant contribution of any health intervention to ensure that babies not only celebrate their first birthday but also enjoy a healthy life into adulthood. Among the vaccines studied, the measles vaccine had the most significant impact on reducing infant mortality, representing 60% of the total lives saved thanks to vaccination. It is expected that this vaccine will continue to be the main means of preventing deaths in the future.
In the last 50 years, vaccination against 14 diseases (diphtheria, Haemophilus influenza type B, hepatitis B, Japanese encephalitis, measles, meningitis A, pertussis, invasive pneumococcal disease, poliomyelitis, rotavirus, rubella, tetanus, tuberculosis and yellow fever ) has directly contributed to a 40% reduction in child deaths globally and more than 50% in the African region.
The Director General of the WHO, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has highlighted “vaccines are among the most powerful inventions in history and allow us to prevent previously feared diseases.” And he adds that “thanks to vaccines, smallpox has been eradicated, polio is on the brink and, thanks to the recent development of vaccines against diseases such as malaria and cervical cancer, we are driving these diseases back. “With continued research, investment and collaboration, we can save millions more lives today and over the next 50 years.”
Vaccines prevent sequelae and disability associated with the disease
The study also found that for every life saved through immunization, an average of 66 years of full health were gained, totaling 10.2 billion years of full health over the past five decades. As a result of polio vaccination, more than 20 million people can walk today who would otherwise have been paralyzed, and the world is on the verge of eradicating polio for good.
These advances in child survival highlight the importance of protecting immunization progress in every country around the world and accelerating efforts to reach the 67 million children who did not receive one or more vaccines during the COVID pandemic years.
Released ahead of the 50th anniversary of the Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI), which will be celebrated in May 2024, the study is the most comprehensive analysis of the global and regional health impact of the program over the past five decades. Founded in 1974 by the World Health Assembly, EPI’s original goal was to vaccinate all children against diphtheria, measles, whooping cough, polio, tetanus, tuberculosis and smallpox, the only human disease eradicated to date.
Today, the program, now known as the Essential Program on Immunization, includes universal recommendations for vaccination against 13 diseases and context-specific recommendations for 17 other diseases, extending the reach of immunization beyond children to adolescents and adolescents. Adults.
“Thanks to vaccines, more children now survive and thrive past their fifth birthday than at any other time in history.”
The study highlights that less than 5% of children worldwide had access to routine immunization when the EPI was launched. Today, 84% of infants are protected with three doses of the diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (DTP) vaccine, the global marker of immunization coverage.
“Thanks to vaccines, more children now survive and thrive past their fifth birthday than at any time in history,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell. “This enormous achievement is a credit to the collective efforts of governments, partners, scientists, health workers, civil society, volunteers and parents themselves, all moving in the same direction to keep children safe.” of deadly diseases. “We must build on the momentum and ensure that every child, everywhere, has access to life-saving vaccines.”
The study only includes the impact of vaccination against 14 diseases and the number of lives saved thanks to vaccines is a conservative estimate and not a comprehensive review of the key role these drugs have played in population health. Social, economic or educational impacts on health and well-being over 50 years have also contributed to further reductions in mortality. Vaccines currently exist to protect against more than 30 potentially fatal diseases.
Also not included in the study was the HPV vaccine, which protects against cervical cancer in adults but is expected to prevent a large number of deaths as countries increase immunization targets aimed at eliminating cancer. of cervix by 2030.
Additionally, vaccines against malaria, COVID-19, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and meningitis, as well as vaccines against cholera and Ebola used during outbreaks, will save even more lives over the next 50 years. Global immunization programs have shown what humans are capable of when the efforts of many stakeholders come together, including heads of state, regional and global health agencies, scientists, charities, aid agencies, businesses and communities.
Source: World Health Organization (WHO)
