Diphtheria is rapidly spreading in south Indian states affecting many children due to lowering vaccination coverage.
India needs a better vaccination and awareness program to address lowering vaccination coverage.
What is Diphtheria?
Diphtheria is a highly infectious disease, which usually shows up as a sore throat and difficulty in breathing.
It spreads through contact or cough and sneeze droplets, and is caused by the bacterium Corynebacterium diphtheriae.
In severe cases, the toxin secreted by this bacterium kills cells in the throat.
If the patient isn’t treated the toxin can spread through the bloodstream hurting the heart and kidneys.
What is the status of the disease in India?
India has had a diphtheria vaccination programme since the 1980s.
Yet India continues to be a world leader in diphtheria today, with 3,380 cases and 177 deaths reported in 2016.
This year has seen worrying outbreaks in Karnataka, Kerala and Telangana, among other States.
Diphtheria is increasingly infecting adolescents and adults in India, though it was historically an illness of children under five.
What are the reasons behind the growing disease in India?
Under the Universal Immunization Programme (UIP), all children below one year of age are supposed to get three doses of the Diphtheria-Tetanus-Pertussis (DTP) vaccine.
It is followed by two booster doses between 1-2 years and 5-6 years.
But coverage of the three primary doses is inadequate at 80% across the country and there is no vaccination for grown-ups.
Data on coverage with the two booster doses is patchy, with one study showing poor rates of around 60% and 36% for each dose, respectively, in 2006.
What are the reasons behind lower vaccinationcoverage?
Usually lower vaccination coverage is triggered by an ill-advised change in vaccination schedules and socio-economic instability among the population.
A review from Chennai’s National Institute of Epidemiology found low rates of vaccination among Muslim communities, one of the reasons driving outbreaks in States like Andhra Pradesh.
Kerala despite its high vaccination rates, has susceptible pockets for the same reason.
This because there are anti-vaccination sentiments seeded by few Islamic clerics in this regions.
