Immunization During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Recommendations From Indian Academy of Pediatrics Advisory Committee on Vaccines and Immunization Practices

Kasi, Srinivas G; Dhir, Shashi Kant; Verma, Sanjay; Pemde, Harish; Balasubramanian, Sundaram; Agarwalla, Sunil Kumar; Shah, Abhay; Shivananda, S; Marathe, Sanjay; Chatarjee, Kripasindhu; Srirampur, Sanjay; Kalyani, Srinivas; Parekh, Bakul Jayant; Basavaraja, G V; Gupta, Piyush

doi:10.1007/s13312-020-2071-8

Cited by 11 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…17 A study on the Ebola outbreak in 2014–2015 also found a higher number of deaths due to secondary diseases during the outbreak compared to the Ebola itself. 18 …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic Lockdown on Routine Immunization in the Province of Laghman, Afghanistan

Abid¹,

Delgado²,

Martínez³

et al. 2022

RMHP

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Background The COVID-19 pandemic, declared by the World Health Organization as a public health international emergency concern in March 2020, has caused serious impacts on individuals, families, communities, and societies across the globe. The COVID-19 pandemic not only disrupted the health systems and the economy, but also significantly impacted routine immunization programs. Aim To study the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown on the routine immunization coverage program in the province of Laghman, Afghanistan. Methods A comparative cross-sectional quantitative study was conducted to understand the impact of COVID-19 on routine childhood immunization during the study period. Secondary data was used from the Ministry of Health from April to July 2020 and compared with the historical data of the same period in 2019. Student t -test was used to test the association between the mean changes in the daily immunization coverage. A p -value<0.05 was considered as statistically significant with 95% confidence interval. Results There was a 21.4% significant ( p <0.01) decline in the total immunization coverage during April–July 2020 compared to April–July 2019. This reduction was diverse across all districts and all vaccine antigens. The most affected district was Alingar, and the most affected vaccines were measles and OPV4, with 28% declines, followed by PCV3 at 26%, and DPT3, IPV, OPV3, PCV2 and rotavirus at 23%. The outreach vaccination coverage declined by 56.1% compared to the fixed, at 13.4%. Conclusion The COVID-19 pandemic seriously affected the routine immunization in Afghanistan. On average, 325 children per day missed out on a lifesaving vaccine in Laghman province which put them at risk of getting preventable diseases. To provide access to routine immunization during pandemics, the study suggests a set of customized interventions to strengthen and sustain routine immunization.

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“…17 A study on the Ebola outbreak in 2014–2015 also found a higher number of deaths due to secondary diseases during the outbreak compared to the Ebola itself. 18 …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic Lockdown on Routine Immunization in the Province of Laghman, Afghanistan

Abid¹,

Delgado²,

Martínez³

et al. 2022

RMHP

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Under the Universal Immunization Programme (UIP) in India, a routine childhood immunization programme rolls out and is primarily provided at SCs through static and outreach sites. In India, during the COVID-19 pandemic, preventive health care services like child immunization faced an unprecedented disruption holding on this primary health care service and putting the women and children at the risk of VPDs like measles, rotavirus and tetanus (39). COVID-19 pandemic preparedness caught all the attention to meet the public health emergency affecting various on-site and community immunization services across India.…”

Section: Plos Global Public Healthmentioning

confidence: 99%

Population and sub-national (district) level diversity in missed and dropout of different doses of hepatitis-B vaccine among Indian children aged 12–59 months

Khan

Shil

Puri

2022

PLOS Glob Public Health

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Initiating with a birth dose and a full immunization against hepatitis-B is crucial during early childhood in a country like India where maternal screening of hepatitis-B surface antigen is almost negligible and there is a considerable risk of vertical transmission among children. It is also evident that coverage of hepatitis-B is lowest among all other vaccine doses included in the universal immunization program. In addition, the major challenge is posed by the missed and drop-out of different doses of hepatitis-B among Indian children. In this context, this study examined the population and sub-national level diversity in missed and dropout of different doses of hepatitis-B vaccine in India. We analysed a large dataset of 196,654 children aged 12–59 months from a nationally representative cross-sectional survey, the National Family Health Survey (NFHS), 2015–16. Bivariate cross tabulation was used to estimate the prevalence and the dropout rates. Multivariable-adjusted logistic regression was applied to assess the likelihood of the study events. Within a Bayesian framework, a district-level spatial analysis was conducted employing the Besag-York-Mollie (BYM) Model and the Leroux Model. During 2016, 38% of the children missed the birth dose nationally and 45% of the children did not complete full immunization of hepatitis-B. Findings suggest, presence of socio-economic and demographic gradients in missed and drop-out of different doses of hepatitis-B at national level. The sub-national level spatial analysis identifies more than 280 (out of 640) districts with substantially higher risk (Posterior Median Risk>1) in terms of missed and drop-out of different doses. Most of these districts are scattered across the North-Eastern and Northern part of India. The findings hint the existence of a population and sub-national level diversity in India’s missed out and dropout of hepatitis-B doses. Identifying high risk population sub-groups and the districts with children at higher risk of missing the birth and consecutive doses informs the existing knowledge base and helps in formulating community-oriented policies and programs.

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“…Delivery of routine immunizations has the potential to avert many preventable child deaths and must remain a priority. Specific advice for healthcare workers in resource-limited settings on maintaining routine immunizations during the pandemic, such as those from the Indian Academy of Pediatrics, is likely to be helpful [ 46 ]. Additionally, plans should be made now for catch-up programs addressing missed immunizations once pandemic restrictions are reduced.…”

Section: Potential Impacts Of Covid-19 On Global Child Healthmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mitigating the Impacts of COVID-19 on Global Child Health: a Call to Action

et al. 2021

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Purpose of Review Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the cause of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), continues to affect individuals, communities, and health systems worldwide. Here, we highlight how COVID-19 threatens to jeopardize the tremendous gains made over the last few decades on improving children’s health globally. Recent Findings In contrast to adults, children with COVID-19 are less likely to develop severe disease requiring hospitalization or die as a direct result of infection. However, the pandemic will likely have other important health impacts disproportionately affecting vulnerable children globally. Possible effects include worsening of poverty and food insecurity; disruption of already strained routine child health services; damage to already imperiled healthcare workforces; a wave of mental health challenges; interruption of education; and increased risks of violence, abuse, exploitation, and neglect. These challenges notwithstanding, the response to COVID-19 may also provide opportunities, such as for health system strengthening, that could improve child health after the pandemic. Summary The negative impacts of COVID-19 on global child health may be substantial. However, these are not foregone conclusions and much can be done to mitigate the worst outcomes. Child health providers should advocate for an equitable response to COVID-19 that prioritizes the health of vulnerable children and furthers the gains made in global child health.

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Immunization During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Recommendations From Indian Academy of Pediatrics Advisory Committee on Vaccines and Immunization Practices

Cited by 11 publications

References 6 publications

The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic Lockdown on Routine Immunization in the Province of Laghman, Afghanistan

The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic Lockdown on Routine Immunization in the Province of Laghman, Afghanistan

Population and sub-national (district) level diversity in missed and dropout of different doses of hepatitis-B vaccine among Indian children aged 12–59 months

Mitigating the Impacts of COVID-19 on Global Child Health: a Call to Action

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