01 Feb Pneumonia vaccine to save thousands of lives
Posted at 19:21h
in News
A mass drive to immunise Yemen’s future generations against pneumonia was kick-started yesterday in a move that could save the lives of up to 5,000 Yemeni infants every year, according to UNICEF.
The pneumonia vaccine, which is currently being distributed to health facilities across Yemen, protects against pneumococcal disease, the leading cause of severe pneumonia in children. It also guards against a form of meningitis and blood poisoning. Around 800,000 newly born children are expected to have received the vaccine by the end of 2011.