Need for PneumoADIP

More children die each year from pneumonia than from any other infectious disease – even more than from malaria or AIDS – according to the World Health Organization. A bacterium, Streptococcus pneumoniae (also known as pneumococcus), is the leading cause of severe pneumonia in children and it is also a major cause of meningitis, blood stream infections, and ear infections. Pneumococcal disease is a global problem, yet 90 percent of pneumococcal pneumonia deaths occur in developing countries.

According to the WHO, pneumococcal pneumonia and pneumococcal meningitis are responsible for more than 800,000 and up to one million child deaths each year.

Control and prevention of pneumonia is possible though vaccination, case management, improved nutrition (including breastfeeding and zinc intake), and risk factor modification (e.g. controlling indoor air pollution). Growing antibiotic resistance is making treatment of the disease more complicated, however, and risk factor modification cannot be achieved over night. Vaccination is the best solution for saving precious lives now.

For further information on pneumococcal disease download the What is Pneumococcus? slide set [PPT file, 9.9 MB].

Aiming to save more lives by accelerating access to vaccination

Pneumococcal conjugate vaccination (PCV) is safe and effective for preventing severe childhood pneumococcal disease. Millions of deaths can be prevented by using the existing vaccine now and accelerating access to vaccines with expanded protection. However, without a coordinated effort by GAVI’s PneumoADIP and partners, it is likely to take 15-20 years for these vaccines to reach the children in the developing world who desperately need them. This is predominantly due to the prohibitive costs of vaccines for low income countries. By acting now to ensure vaccines are available to developing countries at a sustainable low price, the global community can prevent 5.4 million pneumococcal child deaths by 2030 through vaccination.

For further information on the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of pneumococcal disease download the Diagnosis, Treatment, and Prevention slide set [PPT file, 18.5 MB].