According to government surveillance data, 2.5 crore children received Pentavalent vaccine, of which 237 deaths were reported
In an attempt to pull wool over the eyes of the country, Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) has not declared the correct data concerning vaccine-related deaths. When the MoHFW was asked in Lok Sabha if the government has conducted any study regarding deaths following immunisation, it quoted an independent study conducted by The International Clinical Epidemiology Network (INCLEN) trust in partnership with MoHFW and state health departments of Kerala and Tamilnadu, tracking 30, 688 infants who had received three doses of Pentavalent vaccine.
"There is no increase in the death and hospitalisation rates reported in the first week after vaccination as compared to fourth week after vaccination, implying pentavalent vaccine is completely safe," stated Ashwini Kumar Choubey, Minister of State, MoHFW.
According to government surveillance data, 2.5 crore children received PV, of which 237 deaths were reported. This has not been declared in the Lok Sabha reply. While Chaubey said that there was 'no spike in the Adverse Effects Following Immunisation (AEFI) deaths,' in 2017 as compared to 2016 and 2015. Chaubey added that 355 AEFI deaths were reported as of March 3, 2018, while there were 345 deaths in 2016 and 311 deaths in 2015, an obvious spike. The AEFI can range from minor to severe or even prove fatal to babies.
Last month, MoHFW data analysed by doctors and biostatisticians at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and St Stephens Hospital, New Delhi established that a string of increased deaths reported after introduction of PV in the Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP) of India.
The study has accessed data from government surveillance system from April 2012 to May 2016, on AEFI deaths caused by PV and DPT within 72 hours of administering the vaccine.
The study demonstrated an increase in reports of sudden unexplained deaths within 72 hours of administering PV compared to DTP vaccine. Of the 4.5 crore infants that received DPT, 217 deaths were reported across India, whereas of 2.5 crore infants that received PV, 237 deaths were reported. The study estimates that if the birth cohort of 2.6 crore in India is vaccinated each year, there would be 122 additional deaths within 72 hours, due to the switch from DTP to PV.
When questions arose in the Parliament to this effect, MoHFW rubbished the study conducted by AIIMS and St Stephens Hospital, saying that an assumption of additional 122 deaths within 72 hours due to switch from DPT to PV is not based on scientific facts. Also, there is no mention of the government surveillance data but reference to a trust-based report for establishing safety of PV, said doctors.
"Instead of declaring large sample sizes of 4.5 crore and 2.5 crore children which itself is government data and records, MoHFW chose to give information basis a sample size of 30, 688 infants. The sample size chosen by the Ministry in the INCLEN study is too small to demonstrate deaths and is therefore misleading," said Dr Puliyel, a paediatrician at St Stephens Hospital.
The PV was introduced in India on December 15, 2011 to replace the diphtheria?tetanus?pertussis (DTP) vaccine (diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough) in a staged manner.
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According to government surveillance data, 2.5 crore children received Pentavalent vaccine, of which 237 deaths were reported. This was not declared in the Lok Sabha reply
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