On December 17th, reporters learned from the Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention that, from December 16th, Yichang integrated inactivated polio vaccines (IPV) into the national immunization program in the whole city according to the unified arrangement of the province. In Hubei province, the children, who are two months old on December 15th and whose immunization history is zero and the under-sevens (including migrant children), can be inoculated one dose of free inactivated polio vaccines according to the national immunization schedules.

According to experts, poliomyelitis, commonly known as Polio, was a communicable disease which has a strong impact on children’s growth and development in China. National Immunization Program implements free “Polio” inactivated vaccine to the school-age children. The vaccines were divided into OPV (a live attenuated oral polio vaccine) and IPV (an inactivated polio vaccine). Before IPV was integrated into the National Immunization Program, the children in Yichang can be vaccinated with four doses of IPV (a dose at two, three, four months and four years). OPV is known as sugared pills while people should pay for the inoculation. After putting IPV into the National Immunization Program, the“Polio” vaccines for school-age children were adjusted to one dose and three doses of OPV, namely, vaccinated with one dose of IPV for free when the children at two months and inoculated in one dose of OPV at three, four months as well as four years old. “Firstly, IPV and OPV, while used together, provide a better protective effect on children. IPV can reduce the cases of Vaccine Associated Paralytic Poliomyelitis (VAPP) and Vaccine-derived Polio Virus (VDPV), while the OPV can provide a stronger protection for intestinal tract; secondly, to prevent the spread of Polio wild virus, China need to establish a strong “Polio” gut immunity. Hence IPV vaccination isn’t recommended for the whole but demands to inoculate as early as possible after inoculating it in one dose.” At the same time, China needs to introduce at least one dose of IPV vaccination according to the global trend of eliminating polio.’’ Experts explained that children can’t drink milk or hot water after inoculating OPV within half an hour. The children who are allergic to eggs or have a stomach upset also shouldn’t be vaccinated. After changing into IPV, babies can be inoculated as long as they haven’t a cold or a fever. According to understanding, the city’s first freely issued IPV reached 8000 doses, and over 350 people have been inoculated since December 15th.

Links

　　1.Which kinds of “Polio” vaccines are used in China recently?

Two different kinds of vaccine are currently available in China, monovalent and trivalent OPV, but we only use trivalent OPV for routine or supplemental vaccination,   

Inactivated polio vaccine, produced by the foreign vaccine company, was allowed to list in China in 2009. We inoculate the second type of vaccine -IPV in the principle of informed, voluntary and self-supporting. In addition to IPV, there are combination vaccines containing IPV components. After 20 years of development, the IPV, researched by the Institute of Medical Biology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences has access to productive application for registration of the State Food and Drug Administration on January14, 2015.

　　2.Why IPV are integrated into National Immunization Program?

Oral “Polio” attenuated vaccine has played an important role in the process of eliminating “Polio”. With the process of eliminating “Polio” in the last stage, the World Health Organization does not recommend any longer OPV immunization program just concerning OPV, but advises that all country should use at least one dose of IPV and update “Polio Vaccine” routine vaccination policy. (Journalist Liu Jingjing, Correspondent Yan Yi)