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In both industrialized and developing countries, childhood immunization has become one
of the most important and cost-effective public health interventions. National immunization
programs have prevented millions of deaths since WHO initiated the ‘Expanded
Program on Immunization’ in 1974. Smallpox was eradicated in 1979, poliomyelitis is
on the verge of eradication, and two thirds of developing countries have eliminated
neonatal tetanus. Global immunization coverage was at 78% in 2005. Through their
impact on childhood morbidity and mortality, immunization programs are contributing
to reaching the ‘Millennium Development Goal 4’ – a two-thirds reduction of under-five
mortality by 2015. However, the failure to reach more than 20% of the world’s children
with existing vaccines was responsible for at least 2.5 million of an estimated 10.5 million
deaths of children under 5 years, mainly in developing countries. Of these deaths, 1.4
million could have been prevented by vaccines currently recommended by WHO. Rapid
progress in our understanding of the pathogenesis of infectious diseases, immunology,
and biotechnology has increased the number of candidate vaccine antigens available.
Pressures are growing on public health decision makers to establish evidence-based
ways to decide which new vaccines should be introduced on a large scale into national
immunization programs. The gap in access to new vaccines between the developing and
industrialized worlds is still wide, and wealthy countries are still the first to introduce and
use new vaccines. Interest from countries and partner agencies in vaccination, as one of
the most cost-effective public health interventions, continues to be strong, also due to
rapid progress in biotechnology and vaccine development and the emergence of global
infectious disease threats, including HIV/AIDS, SARS, and influenza. The establishment
of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization has focused global activities to
support vaccination programs through raising considerable funds, and to assist especially
poorer countries in improving and expanding their vaccination programs. Global efforts
concentrate on further reducing the gap in the access to all existing vaccines between
industrialized and developing countries.
Starting with historical, epidemiological and sociocultural issues, this book presents clinical and molecular biological aspects of pediatric infectious diseases. The text offers new insights into the pathogenesis of infection, and updates on diagnostics, prevention and treatment of pediatric viral, fungal and bacterial diseases, as well as emerging new pathogens. The book will interest an interdisciplinary audience of clinicians and non-clinicians: pediatricians, infectious disease researchers, virologists, microbiologists and more. |
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