Hib is no less dangerous than HIV

You often hear about HIV but rarely heard of a bacterium with an abbreviated name, Hib, the leading culprit in meningitis in children under 5 years old and many serious complications like pneumonia. .

Hib stands for Haemophilus influenzae type B, or Hib disease. About one-fourth of children with Hib meningitis suffer permanent brain damage, and 1 in 20 deaths. In addition, many children suffer from serious conditions such as pneumonia and other sequelae.

In the 1980s, 1 in 200 children under 5 years of age had Hib. In that period, on average, about 12,000 children with Hib meningitis annually. The disease usually occurs in children under 5 years of age, and up to 60% of cases in children under 1 year old, most have not been vaccinated with Hib vaccine.

Symptoms of meningitis (caused by Hib bacteria or any other agent) are fever, headache, and vomiting. Children may be lethargic, drowsy, or more severe, drowsy, lethargic. Some children have seizures, rolling their eyes or bracing themselves. In such cases, the doctor needs to perform a spinal cord screening procedure to remove a small amount of test fluid to determine if the child has true meningitis.

Haemophilus influenzae type B bacteria ( Photo: soundmedicine)

The disease can be prevented by vaccines. In the United States, after starting to use Hib vaccine in 1985, the disease was almost controlled and disappeared. With the application of vaccination, Hib has decreased markedly. In the mid-1980s, the US had about 20,000 cases of Hib disease each year, but this number is now only a few hundred cases.

In Vietnam, Hib vaccination has been gaining attention in major cities in recent years. Should be given to children from 2 months of age. However, some parents fear that the baby is too young, afraid of being unable to bear the shots. In some places, health workers recommend that after injecting all vaccines in the national vaccination program (not including Hib), Hib vaccination will be given, on the grounds that "after 1 month of age, only 1 injection will be cheap." than".

In fact, these concerns or advice are not appropriate. It should be noted that Hib germs attack primarily in young children under 1 year of age and cause life-threatening complications or leave permanent sequelae such as deafness, blindness . so it is necessary to inject soon. With Hib vaccine, children should be given 3 or 4 doses (note the first dose at 2 months of age).