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Kenya campaign led to high coverage against polio
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An outbreak response in late 2013 in Kenya using inactivated poliovirus vaccine combined with oral poliovirus vaccine led to more than 90% coverage among children in refugee camps, according to the CDC.
The coadministration of inactivated poliovirus vaccine (IPV) and oral poliovirus vaccine (OPV) is more expensive than OPV-only campaigns and requires training of vaccination workers, but combining the vaccines is feasible and can achieve high population immunity levels, researchers wrote in MMWR.
From April to December 2013, a polio outbreak caused by wild poliovirus type 1 resulted in 217 cases around the Horn of Africa, including 14 cases in Kenya — seven of which occurred in refugee camps. In response, the Kenyan Ministry of Health initiated one national and several subnational vaccination campaigns using OPV only. In December, the Ministry of Health launched another mass vaccination campaign, this time using both IPV and OPV. More than 300 teams of trained health workers targeted 126,000 children aged 59 at least months who lived in refugee camps or surrounding communities.
Forty-seven of the teams were randomly selected and assessed by campaign monitors. Of those teams, 91% had sufficient staff, vaccine and supply to vaccinate children. Five teams (11%) made an error in the administration of IPV, either with the injection site or the vaccine dosage, two teams (4%) prefilled syringes before vaccinating, and eight teams (17%) recapped needles while preparing the injection.
Immunization coverage with IPV and OPV was 92.8% among children residing in refugee camps and 95.8% in the surrounding communities. Coverage in the previous campaign using OPV only was 97.2% in the refugee camps and 97.3% in surrounding communities.
According to the researchers, 107 (5%) of children aged 6 weeks or younger did not receive IPV. Reasons for not getting vaccinated included not knowing where to go for vaccination and refusals (ie, illness, fear of pain and fear of adverse effects of the vaccine).
“The Kenya experience has shown that IPV also can be provided in campaigns with high coverage and community acceptance, although at a higher cost than OPV-only campaigns and requiring particular attention to training and supervision,” the researchers wrote.
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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