Write an essay about the diseases that can be prevented through vaccination.
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Immunization through vaccination is critical in the health sector. People take vaccinations to prevent themselves from contracting infectious diseases, and through vaccinations, millions of lives have been saved. Piot al. (2019) stated that “vaccines are biological products that induce protective immunity against infection and disease; they consist of sub-components, killed or inactivated organisms or live-attenuated viruses that train the immune system for a future response to a natural infection” (p.1). According to Piot al. (2019) “a decade ago, the WHO, UNICEF and the World Bank estimated that routine childhood immunization programs were preventing more than 2.5 million deaths every year” (p.1). According to Piot al. (2019) stated that “although scientific progress opens exciting perspectives in terms of new vaccines, the pathway from discovery to sustainable implementation can be long and difficult, from the financing, development and licensing to program implementation and public acceptance” (p.1). Thus, vaccination is important as it prevents the transmission of infectious diseases.
Immunization was discovered at the beginning of civilization. The first immunization to prevent infection in a person who was not infected was on May 14, 1796. It was “inspired by Lady Montagu’s “variolation” concept, Edward Jenner inoculated eight-year-old James Phipps with cowpox pus to prove that the less virulent cowpox would protect against smallpox; This experiment was a game changer in medicine and health” (Piot al., 2019, p.1). 180 years after the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) in the year 1974, vaccines became available in high-income countries from the late 1950s. In today’s society, “vaccines against 26 infectious diseases are internationally available according to the World Health Organization (WHO)1, although more have been licensed worldwide, changing the future of the human species” (p.1). Some of the vaccines include pilot implementation, such as the RTS, Ebola vaccines, and Malaria vaccines. Piot al. (2019) also stated that vaccination was declared as the number one success story in the health sector in the twentieth century by the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The progress on vaccines still remains highly uneven within different countries, depending on their level of development. More developed countries have a higher rate of vaccinations because they can afford to manufacture the vaccines. Vaccination prevents diseases and Ebola and Malaria are some of the fatal diseases that can be prevented through vaccination.
Ebola can be prevented through vaccination. According to Feldmann et al. (2020), “EBOV refers to the specific member virus of the type species Zaire ebolavirus in the genus ebolavirus” (p.1). The Ebola virus is found in the Filoviridae family. Feldmann et al. (2020) stated that Maarburg virus (MARV) was discovered in 1967 and was the first filovirus. EBOV and Sudan virus (SUDV) were first discovered in the year 1976 in South Sudan and in the Republic of Congo. Other examples of ebolaviruses that were discovered is Taï Forest virus (TAFV) in Côte d’Ivoire in 1994 and Bundibugyo virus (BDBV) in Uganda in 2007, the Reston virus (RESTV), imported into the United States from the Philippines in 1989–1990, and RESTV sequences were detected in pigs in China (Feldmann et al., 2020). “The recent re-emergence of EBOV in Guinea, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) emphasizes the continued need for safe and effective vaccines against this deadly pathogen along with optimal deployment strategies” (Feldmann et al., 2020, p.1). According to Woolsey et al. (2021) “the most effective vaccination strategies to prevent EBOV disease should balance benefits and risks to maximize vaccine impact while minimizing global costs, effort, and human suffering” (p.1). The Zaire ebolavirus is the only vaccine approved to prevent Ebola as of 2020. Thus, Ebola can be prevented through vaccination by the Zaire ebolavirus vaccine.
Malaria.
Malaria can also be prevented through vaccination. Malaria outbreaks started at the beginnings of civilization. Malaria was the leading cause of death in many continents like Africa, but because of vaccination, malaria infections have reduced significantly over the last decade. According to Talapko et al. (2019), malaria is caused by the parasite called Plasmodium which is transmitted from one person to another by the bite of an infected female mosquito of the species called Anopheles. Malaria has affected an estimated 219 million people and caused 435000 deaths, and therefore countries increased their efforts in the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of malaria to curb the problem (Talapko et al. (2019). The first case of malaria was discovered in the ancient China in 2700 BC. An example of the prominent figures who have died of malaria is Alexander the Great, who was a military leader. The only approved malaria vaccine is called RTS, S, also known by the brand name Mosquirix and it is used to prevent malaria (Talapko et al., 2019). The vaccine was administered to 1 million children from five months of age who lived in places with high levels of malaria transmission, and it was administered in four doses. Thus, malaria can be prevented through vaccination of Mosquirix.
In conclusion, vaccines are used in healthy individuals and require continuous monitoring to identify the side effects to be safe. All nations have their national immunization plan, which was inspired by the Global Vaccine Action Plan (GVAP) framework, which was formed in 2011-2020. In vaccination, there have been countless efforts by volunteers to vaccinate patients who are willing to be vaccinated helped curb the disease. vaccination can prevent Ebola and Malaria. Malaria is the most commonly widespread disease, and many people have lost their lives; This led to the discovery of vaccines to prevent it has led to a significant reduction of malaria cases. Vaccination should be implemented to prevent people from transmitting infectious diseases.
Talapko, J., Škrlec, I., Alebić, T., Jukić, M., & Včev, A. (2019). Malaria: the past and the present. Microorganisms, 7(6), 179.
Woolsey, C., & Geisbert, T. W. (2021). Current state of Ebola virus vaccines: A snapshot. PLoS pathogens, 17(12), e1010078.
Feldmann, H., Sprecher, A., & Geisbert, T. W. (2020). Ebola. New England Journal of Medicine, 382(19), 1832-1842.
Piot, P., Larson, H. J., O’Brien, K. L., N’kengasong, J., Ng, E., Sow, S., & Kampmann, B. (2019). Immunization: vital progress, unfinished agenda. Nature, 575(7781), 119-129.