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UN children’s agency supports expanded tetanus immunization in Uganda

UN children’s agency supports expanded tetanus immunization in Uganda

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The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has announced its support for an expanded campaign to immunize more than 850,000 girls and women of childbearing age in Uganda against the threat of tetanus, which poses grave risks to pregnant women and their babies.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has announced its support for an expanded campaign to immunize more than 850,000 girls and women of childbearing age in Uganda against the threat of tetanus, which poses grave risks to pregnant women and their babies.

The immunizations, to be extended to nine additional, high-risk districts this month, are organized by the Ugandan Ministry of Health with the support of the World Health Organization (WHO), the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), and various non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as well as UNICEF.

A total of 20 districts have been selected by the Ministry of Health to each undergo three rounds of maternal and neonatal tetanus vaccination campaigns, in order to attain coverage levels of 95 per cent or above, UNICEF said. The nine districts to be reached in this latest effort represent the final set in the national campaign.

Tetanus threatens pregnant women and their babies because infection is often contracted through non-sterile cutting of the umbilical cord and passed on to the newborn child. Antibodies provided by the Tetanus Toxoid vaccine, given to the mother, protect newborn children for the first two months of life when they will usually be vaccinated themselves.

In 2004, more than 700,000 girls and women of childbearing age were immunized with the tetanus vaccine in six high risk districts, following approximately 537,000 reached in five districts in 2003. Such campaigns since 2002 have led to the reduction in reported maternal and neonatal tetanus cases from over 300 to fewer than 50 cases.

UNICEF assists the immunization campaigns through the provision of vaccines, training of health staff and mobilization of communities.