Rotavirus remains a major killer of children under five years of age worldwide, taking the lives of 453,000 children in 2008 according to the latest estimates, published today in the Lancet Infectious Diseases journal. This translates into the staggering fact that more than 1,200 young children will die from rotavirus diarrhea each day. Rotavirus-related deaths accounted for 37% of all diarrheal deaths and 5% of all deaths in children under five years of age. One of every 260 children born each year will die from rotavirus diarrhea by their fifth birthday.
Tragically, approximately 95% of rotavirus deaths occurred in countries that are eligible to receive GAVI-support to introduce rotavirus vaccines. Five countries–India, Nigeria, Pakistan, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Ethiopia–all GAVI-eligible, accounted for more than half of all rotavirus deaths globally.
Figure 1: Countries with the most rotavirus diarrhea deaths, by number and percentage of global total
The vast majority of rotavirus deaths occurred in developing countries of Africa and Asia, and the highest concentration of countries with high death rates from rotavirus are in sub-Saharan Africa.
Swift and significant declines in hospitalization and deaths due to rotavirus and all-cause diarrhea have been observed in many of the 30 countries that have introduced rotavirus vaccines into their national immunization programs. The reduction of severe and fatal diarrhea following the introduction of rotavirus vaccines underscores the incredible potential for rotavirus vaccines to save children’s lives. Five GAVI-eligible countries have introduced rotavirus vaccines: Nicaragua, Bolivia, Honduras, Guyana, and Sudan. Last month, GAVI approved rotavirus vaccine funding for 16 new countries, 12 of which are in Africa, including three of the 10 countries with the greatest number of rotavirus deaths worldwide (Angola, Congo DR, and Ethiopia).
GAVI’s support for the affordable and financially sustainable introduction of rotavirus vaccines in national immunization programs can have a dramatic impact on global mortality due to rotavirus diarrhea, as 95% of rotavirus deaths occur in GAVI-eligible countries. The widespread use of rotavirus vaccines as part of a comprehensive strategy to prevent and manage diarrhoeal disease, a leading killer of children under age five, will reduce child mortality and morbidity and improve child health worldwide.
Please click here to access the Lancet article, “Global Mortality Associated with Rotavirus Disease among Children in 2008: Findings Based on a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.”
PATH collaborates on rotavirus vaccine activities with the CDC, WHO, UNICEF, vaccine manufacturers, and countries around the world. RotaFlash is funded by the GAVI Alliance.
For information on rotavirus disease and RotaFlash, please email us. For information on diarrheal disease, please visit DefeatDD’s website. For information on the GAVI Alliance’s support for rotavirus vaccine introduction, please click here.
Banner photo courtesy of One: Living Proof.
Figures reprinted with permission from Elsevier (The Lancet Infectious Diseases, Early Online Publication, 25 October 2011
doi:10.1016/S1473-3099(11)70253-5).
