15 South Sudanese children die from contaminated measles vaccine - Xinhua quoting : xinhuanet

Last month, the health ministry and partners launched an ambitious campaign to vaccinate over 2.3 million children against measles across war-torn South Sudan. Exposure to contaminated water is a major cause of cholera. (Xinhua/John Okoyo)JUBA, June 3 (Xinhua) -- South Sudan's ministry of health said on Friday that 15 children have died and 32 others left with severe symptoms of fever, diarrhea and vomiting in southeast of the country after being administered contaminated measles vaccine. The ministry said measles outbreaks have been increasing in South Sudan for the past 10 years despite implementation of a follow up campaign in 2011 to 2013. Kok added that all of the children who died were under the age of 5.




× Unsafe delivery of measles vaccine kills 15 children in South SudanNAMORUNYANG, South Sudan — In a remote village in South Sudan, 15 children died from severe toxicity caused by contaminated measles vaccines, government health investigators said Thursday. Struggles in South SudanA country in east-central Africa, South Sudan borders Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic. "The measles vaccine is a live virus vaccine," Schaffner said, which has been weakened, so it provides protection without making people sick. The investigators say that reuse caused a syringe to become contaminated, and this contaminated the measles vaccine vials, which then infected the children. In 2011, South Sudan gained its independence from Sudan, yet it has struggled with governance, according to the CIA World Factbook.

South Sudan: 15 children dead from contaminated measles vaccine

Fifteen children died in South Sudan from receiving a contaminated measles vaccine, the World Health Organizationsaid in a statement on Friday. At least 32 children presented with fever, vomiting and diarrhea, but recovered, the world health body said. An investigation into the tainted vaccine campaign determined that vaccine administrators reused syringes for multiple vaccine vials over the entire four days of the campaign instead of discarding it after a single use. Around 300 people in the rural and remote Nachodokopele village in South Sudan are believed to have received the compromised vaccine, which took place between May 2 and 5, Reuters reported. The Sudanese Ministry of Health is reviewing the investigation and will recommend actions to improve immunization safety, the WHO said in a statement.


collected by :Lucy William

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