More infants fall sick after getting measles vaccines

DOTI, Aug 23: When Suntali Nepali, of Kadamandau VDC-7 in Doti district, cremated her eight-month-old daughter Sujata, who died soon after being vaccinated against measles, on Tuesday, Mauri Biswokarma, of Kadamandau VDC-8, too, was frightened. It was because Mauri´s one-year-old son Krishna was also administered with measles vaccines alongside Sujata.

Within hours after Sujata was cremated, three more infants -- nine-month-old Anju Biswokarma, eighteen-month-old Gauri Chiral and one-year-old Milan Damai -- also died. Sujata, Anju and Milan were vaccinated against measles while Milan was administered DPV vaccines on Sunday. [break]They all died on Monday.

Mauri´s son also started vomiting Tuesday evening. She took her son to District Hospital of Doti on Wednesday. "I was panicked when four infants died one after the other,"an anxious Mauri told Republica, adding, “I could not stay back when my son also fell ill.”

4 infants die after getting vaccinated

Ratan, an eleven-month-old son of Naru Dhanuk, a resident of Kadamandau VDC-5, who was also vaccinated on Sunday, has also been admitted to the district hospital for treatment. “My baby was down with fever within hours after being vaccinated,” Naru said. According to her, most of the vaccinated babies are suffering from fever and diarrhea.

According to Junu Biswokarma, a resident of Kadamandau VDC, some babies, who suffered from mild fever and diarrhea after being vaccinated, have been taken to local medical centers for treatment. As part of a monthly vaccination drive to protect children from various diseases like measles and hepatitis, 19 babies were vaccinated in Kadamandau VDC.

A kid undergoing treatment.

As of Wednesday, the government remains clueless about the actual causes of the infant deaths. A medical team that visited Kadamandau VDC to find out if the vaccines indeed caused the infant deaths is yet to come up with its official conclusion. According to Dr Bikash Lamichhane, Chief of Regional Health Directorate, another medical team will reach Doti on Thursday to find out the cause of infant deaths.

“We´ll be able to say something only after the medical team submits its report,” said Dr Karki. “Problems may be either in vaccines or in syringes.”

According to Ram Swartha Yadav, supervisor of vaccination program at District Public Health Office of Doti, measles vaccines supplied to Kadamandau on August 16 were not date-expired.