Four children have died in Kerala
after they were administered pentavalent vaccine,
which was introduced by Kerala government in its
Universal Immunization Programme (UIP) on December
14, 2011. However, whether the administration of
pentavalent vaccine is the reason for the death of
these children is yet to be established.
According to sources, a Public Interest Litigation (PIL)
has been filed by an NGO called Human Rights Law
Network (HRLN) in the Kerala High Court at Ernakulam
on behalf of parents of a female baby Ancy who died
after receiving pentavalent vaccine on December 15,
2011. In the PIL, the HRLN has prayed to the court
to stop vaccinating pentavalent vaccine to the
other children as there is risk of death due to the
vaccine. The PIL was filed on February 16 this year.
Advocate Sandhya Raju, who is representing the HRLN
in the case, said that the untoward incident
involving the 56-day old female baby Ancy happened
on December 15 a day after she was administered the
first dose of pentavalent vaccine at the community
health center at Vithura in Thiruvananathapuram
district on December 14, 2011. On the same day of
vaccination, the baby developed fever and the next
day she died.
Sources said that in the second case at Kattakkada,
Thiruvananathapuram, another baby died after
administering the pentavalent vaccine. In this case,
the child had reaction on way home from government
hospital after vaccination. They went back to same
government hospital. But the child died there. The
hospital asked to do post-mortem which the parents
declined.
Experts argue that if the reaction occurred after
the injection and there was no other cause for the
reaction it must probably be due to the vaccine.
In two other cases involving two children, who were
administered the pentavalent vaccine, said to be
died of co-morbid condition. But, the authorities so
far could neither explain what the co-morbid
condition was nor why the doctors gave pentavalent
vaccine to two children who were so sick.
The introduction of five-in-one or pentavalent
vaccine under the national immunisation programme
was a controversial issue in the country till an
expert panel, headed by Indian Council of Medical
Research (ICMR) director general Dr V M Katoch,
recommended to the government early last year that
the vaccine merits introduction in the country's
immunisation programme in phases after studying the
impact assessment in each phase.
The diseases covered by the five-in-one vaccine are
diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough),
hepatitis B and haemophilus influenzae Type B (often
known as Hib) which causes some severe forms of
pneumonia and meningitis.
The union health ministry set up the expert
committee under Dr Katoch after the National
Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (NTAGI)'s
recommendation to introduce pentavalent vaccine
under the government’s immunisation drive became
controversial with the experts in the field airing
doubts over the need for universal vaccination for
some of the diseases covered by the vaccine.
There was widespread criticism in the country
against the introduction of pentavalent vaccine
under the government’s immunisation programme. The
critics were of the opinion that the vaccines, which
are of questionable utility, expensive and also
carry possible side-effects, are sought to be
introduced at the cost of public exchequer at the
behest of World Health Organization (WHO) and
vaccine manufacturers.
Sanofi-aventis, Shantha Biotech, Serum Institute of
India, Bharat Biotech and Panacea Biotec are among
the major companies that had introduced pentavalent
vaccines in the domestic market.