Guyana will be introducing another vaccine into its menu of vaccines, the rotavirus vaccine, so that by year-end Guyana’s health sector will be offering 15 vaccines.

This is according to Health Minister Dr Leslie Ramsammy at a recent press briefing.

ȁWith this complement of vaccines, Guyana will rank among top countries as it relates to vaccination programmes,” Ramsammy said.

Rotavirus disease usually starts with fever, an upset stomach, and vomiting, followed by diarrhoea.

It is very contagious, spreading easily from children to other children and sometimes adults.

Once a child has been exposed to rotavirus, it takes about two days for symptoms to appear.

Children who have rotavirus disease develop vomiting and watery diarrhoea that may last from three to eight days.

They may lose interest in eating and drinking and become dehydrated from loss of fluids.

A child may develop rotavirus disease more than once because there are many different rotavirus types, but second infections tend to be less severe than original infections.

Rotavirus spreads easily
Large amounts of rotavirus are shed in the stool of infected persons and rotavirus is easily spread on contaminated hands and objects.

Children can spread rotavirus both before and after they become sick with diarrhoea. They can sometimes pass the virus to other members of the family and close contacts.

Children are typically treated by replacing lost body fluids through drinking products that contain water with sugar and minerals.

In severe cases requiring a visit to the emergency room or hospitalisation, body fluids are replaced with fluids given directly to the child through the veins using an intravenous line.

While it is important that you wash your child’s hands, better hygiene and sanitation have not significantly reduced rotavirus disease.

Additionally the vaccine is a better way to protect against the rotavirus disease.

Ramsammy explained that 35 percent of diarrhoea in children in Guyana is caused by rotavirus and is the second primary cause of infant morbidity.

However, the health minister projected that in two years’ time a reduction in infant deaths, expressly due to diarrhoeal diseases, will be seen.

To this end, the minister assured that Guyana’s vaccination programme consists of all the relevant vaccines.

Ramsammy added that this venture will be followed by another such in 2010 when the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine will also be made available.