MR vaccination: 24 per cent students get shots in two weeks

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Under the Measles Rubella vaccination campaign which began on October 3, 31,29,226 children —  23.56 per cent of the student population in the state — have been vaccinated till October 17. Despite opposition from certain quarters, the health department has conducted the MR campaign effectively across the state. According to health officials,  Pathanmathitta, Kottayam, Alappuzha, Thiruvananthapuram and Wayanad districts are leading in the vaccination campaign in percentage terms. However districts like Malappuram, Kozhikode and Kannur are picking up gradually. Health officials said the number of students was more in these districts hence the campaigning would take more time to cover all students. Steps are being taken to expedite the campaign in other districts as well.

Since the campaign was launched in the state, there have been whatsapp messages and Facebook pages coming out with baseless allegations against MR vaccine. Certain sections tried to create confusion in the minds of people too.
However, effective campaign with the help of schools and other authorities, the health department could effectively counter the misinformation drive. In view of such miss-information campaigns,  the health department had created awareness about the importance, efficacy and safety of MR vaccine.

Experts had created awareness that measles and rubella being highly infectious could spread through contact with an infected person by coughing and sneezing. Measles was associated with high fever, rashes all over the body, cough, running nose and red watery eyes. With immune system getting weakened, measles could result in serious complications including blindness, encephalitis, severe diarrhoea and respiratory infections such as pneumonia. In some cases the complications could turn fatal.

On the other hand Rubella which was a mild viral infection that occurred most often among children and young adults was followed by rash and low fever. It may be also associated with swelling of lymph node and joint pain. Health experts had also created awareness about the safety of MR vaccine. More than 150 countries use MR vaccine. MR vaccine has undergone rigorous licensing process that requires very high safety standards, quality and efficacy. These have to be proved before granting license. The regulatory agencies also continuously monitor the safety of products in use. The vaccination programmes have been thoroughly tested involving thousands of persons.