– aims to further reducing rotavirusIn recognition of the fact that the rotavirus is one of the major causes of diarrhoea among young children, the Ministry of Health has over the past few years been keenly monitoring deaths related to diarrhoeal infections.And based on information emanating from the Health Ministry, more than 53,NFL Jerseys Cheap,000 cases of diarrhoea were recorded in 2008.One of the two babies among the first to receive the RotaTeq vaccine.However, according to Minister of Health, Dr Leslie Ramsammy,Authentic Jerseys Cheap, that figure does not represent the infection rate among children alone but rather the entire population. About half of the recorded figure cases were among children, he asserted. He also revealed that although the rotavirus is a major threat, not all of the cases were caused by that virus.According to the World Health Organisation rotavirus is the most common cause of severe diarrhoeal diseases in infants and young children globally.It is estimated that the virus is responsible for approximately 527,000 deaths each year, with more than 85 percent of these deaths occurring in low-income countries, over two million are hospitalised each year with pronounced dehydration.Children under five years of age, especially those between six months and two years are most vulnerable to the disease.However, he related that no effort will be speared to keep tracking the cases of diarrhoea as it has been determined that globally 30 to 40 percent of all deaths due to diarrhoea in children are caused by the rotavirus.Based on local health statistics there were some 45 deaths recorded in 2008. Then there were 48 cases in the previous year among children.The years 2006 and 2005 both saw an all-time high of 76 deaths. Fifty deaths were recorded in 2004. And given the recorded cases of death, Minister Ramsammy has emphasised that there has been a marked reduction in the number of deaths when the years 2006 and 2005 are considered.Minister Ramsammy has revealed that of the 45 recorded children’s deaths in 2008, a total of 14 were caused by the rotavirus while in 2007 there were 17 such deaths. As such it is the assumption of the Minister that with the introduction of the rotavirus vaccine the number of diarrhoeal cases in children will be significantly reduced.However, the Ministry was challenged earlier this year when it recorded an unusually high number of diarrhoeal cases. According to a report from the Ministry, 11,017 cases of gastroenteritis (diarrheal illnesses) among children alone were discovered in the first four epidemiological weeks of this year.These cases it was revealed represented a notable increase over 2009. That state of affairs has since been appeased with a drastic reduction of cases,Chicago White Sox Jerseys, according to Minister Ramsammy.“Guyana has come a long way in addressing children morbidity and mortality in children under five…” RotaTeq, a vaccine geared at warding off the rotavirus from young children was introduced to the local health sector last week.The move was described as historical by the Minister, who in the company of his colleague Health Minister, Dr Bheri Ramsaran,Nick Castellanos Tigers Jersey, witnessed the first bout of RotaTeq vaccination, at a special forum held at the Regency Suites,Cheap NFL Jerseys China, Hadfield Street.“This is an expression from the health sector that as much as we have done a good job in reducing the deaths we are not yet ready to celebrate because we believe that no child should die and therefore we are doing everything within our power to make small steps and large impacts.This vaccine is going to have a huge impact, in terms of our children’s health and in terms of our country’s health.”With the addition of RotaTeq,Justin Upton Tigers Jersey, Guyana is well on its way to achieving the Millennium Develop Goal as it relates to vaccination. And this achievement could not have been possible without support from the Pan American Health Organisation which has been a constant partner, according to Minister Ramsammy.He revealed, too, that in the past 10 years the health sector has had another constant partner through GAVI (the Global Alliance for Vaccine and Immunisation) which funded the supply of the RotaTeq vaccine which is valued at some US$400,000.“This is a vaccine that if you were living in America you would have had to pay US$100 or more for it. We are p