WASH and Vaccines
Dr Joseph Katema, former Minister of Community Development, Mother and Child Health, giving the first Rotavirus Vaccine to a child in Zambia.
About
Diarrhoea is the second leading cause of death in children under five worldwide (Liu L, 2012), and rotavirus is well documented as the principal cause of severe and moderate diarrhoea. Under SHARE Phase II, the Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia (CIDRZ) - uniquely situated at the forefront of diarrhoeal surveillance efforts in Zambia – is conducting research to better understand the role of pathogens on oral vaccine failure, which may help to explain why the rotavirus vaccine has low levels of effectiveness in high burden settings.
This study aims to simultaneously evaluate the viral, bacterial and protozoal aetiologies of moderate-to-severe diarrhoea in Zambian children under the age of five. Researchers will evaluate of the presence of these pathogens among those with diarrhoea who have been immunized with the rotavirus vaccine and those who have not, as well as among a control group of children without diarrhoea.