PANDEMIC AFTERSHOCK

Yes, yes, we’re all sick of talking about it, but this is important, so listen up! During 2020 and 2021, worldwide vaccination rates for all kinds of preventable diseases dropped significantly. This means we should all be on high alert for outbreaks. Measles is back, and even polio has reared its head again. The national Department of Health is urging us to get our children up to date again and get boosters wherever possible. Pneumonia is one of the single most infectious causes of mortality in children worldwide and accounts for up to 14 percent of deaths in children under the age of five. Fortunately, the vaccine against it works and is part of our government’s Expanded Programme on Immunisation. Your baby should get it at 6 weeks, 14 weeks and 9 months. So pat yourself on the back if your baby got them all, and if not, make those appointments now. The technical stuff: The PCV13 vaccine protects against potentially serious and even deadly infections caused by pneumococcal disease. This includes Streptococcus pneumoniae, a leading cause of bacterial pneumonia and invasive pneumococcal disease such as pneumococcal meningitis. Global studies have indicated that PCV13 has proven effective in reducing the impact of this disease by as much as 48 percent.