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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Ciro de Quadros, MD, MPH, Division of Vaccines and Immunization, Pan American Health Organization, 525 Twenty third St. NW, Washington, DC 20037-2897, 202-974-3178, quadrosc@paho.org
Over these last 100 years, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) has paved the way for the eradication of diseases. The Americas was the first region to eradicate smallpox, and applying that experience worldwide, smallpox was eradicated globally in 1977. Following that example, PAHO targeted the eradication of poliomyelitis from the Americas, applying the strategy of routine vaccination with oral poliomyelitis vaccine and national immunization days (NIDs) aimed at rapidly interrupting chains of transmission. Surveillance for detection of cases of acute flaccid paralysis (AFP), with laboratory investigation for wild poliovirus, proved to be a key component. The Americas was certified polio free in September 1994. Following that success, PAHO then targeted measles eradication from the Americas. Strategies included one-time only national campaigns aimed at immunizing all children one to fifteen years of age with measles vaccine regardless of previous vaccination status and maintenance of high immunization levels in the new cohorts of newborns. This was complemented by intense measles surveillance and prompt investigation and containment whenever a confirmed case of measles occurred. Supplementary follow-up campaigns aimed at all children 1-4 years of age are conducted every 4 years to ensure that high levels of immunity are sustained. By the end of 2001, only 534 confirmed measles cases were reported in 2001, down from over 250,000 at the onset of the program, and indigenous transmission was detected only in Venezuela, which experienced an outbreak due to an importation from Europe. The eradication of smallpox, polio, and measles demonstrates that humankind can conquer other diseases and is of historical significance in the annals of public health.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Epidemiology, Immunizations
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.