In the shadow of the corona vaccine ...

In the shadow of the corona vaccine ... March 3, 11:15

Vaccine for new coronavirus.

Inoculation in Japan has begun, and it is attracting a lot of attention every day.

Did you know that behind the scenes there is a huge shortage of vaccines for other diseases?

Why shortage?

Are you okay?

I investigated when the reporter (Akimoto) became a party.

(Network News Department Reporter Hiromi Akimoto Ken Memida)

Another year later

"Unfortunately, I'm running out of vaccines, but please call me again about a year later."

(... Well, a year later ?!)

The other day, a reporter (Akimoto) called his pediatrician to get a vaccination for a 3-year-old child.

It was the Japanese encephalitis vaccine that I tried to receive.

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare recommends that

▽

2 times at 3 years old ▽

1 time (3rd time) at 4 years old ▽

1 time (4th time) at 9 years

old

as a standard method

.

And the reason for the vaccine shortage is that one of the two groups that manufacture vaccines in Japan had trouble during the manufacturing process.

"Is it okay to delay the vaccination for a year?"

Anxiety arose in the reporter's head.

But what is Japanese encephalitis in the first place?

I've heard of it, but I realized that I had no knowledge at all.

What is Japanese encephalitis?

Japanese encephalitis.

Since the name is just "Japan", do you have a deep relationship with us?

I asked the "National Institute of Infectious Diseases".

First of all, why is it called "Japan"?

The reason is that in 1935, there was a case in Japan where the virus was first successfully "isolated" from the patient's brain to propagate it outside the body, and it became possible to prove that it was the cause of the disease. was.

Then, it is an outline of the disease called Japanese encephalitis.

▽ Widely distributed from the Far East to Southeast Asia and South Asia

▽ The virus increases in the body of amplified animals (pigs), and mosquitoes suck blood.

It is transmitted when the mosquito bites a human

▽ It does not

spread from person to person

▽ Even if it is infected

, about 1 in 100 to 1000 people get sick ▽ When it gets sick

, symptoms such as high fever, headache, and vomiting appear. Following that, it causes disturbance of consciousness, etc.

▽ The mortality rate at the time of illness is around 20-40%

▽ It is said that sequelae remain in 45-70% even

after

recovery, especially for children, convulsions, paralysis, and mental disorders. Often severe obstacles remain.

It turns out that it is a serious illness.

In Japan, more than 50 years ago, in the 1960s, the number of patients exceeded 2,000 a year, but after that, regular vaccinations began and the number of patients decreased sharply.

In recent years, the number has increased from a few to 10 per year.

Still, as long as it is owned by animals such as pigs and transmitted by mosquitoes, it is difficult to eliminate the virus from nature, and the chances of infection are still there.

Is it okay to postpone the vaccination?

Is it okay not to get vaccinated under these circumstances?

..

I asked Dr. Masahiko Sakamoto, the chief pediatrician at the Saku Medical Center in Saku City, Nagano Prefecture, who is developing a site called "Tell me! Doctor" that provides medical information on children's injuries and illnesses.

Dr. Sakamoto is studying tropical medicine at a university in Thailand.

Reporter "How should I take it?"

Dr. Sakamoto

"It is desirable that the Japanese encephalitis vaccine be given in a timely manner, but even if it is infected, only about 1 in 100 to 1000 people will get sick, so it is okay if you are not afraid more than necessary. is"

First of all, Dr. Sakamoto gave me words to ease my anxiety.

But be careful.

Dr. Sakamoto

"When a child becomes ill, it is easy to get serious, so don't forget to inoculate when the vaccine supply is ready."

On top of that, if you hit 2 of the 4 inoculations when you were 3 years old, you will get some antibody, so hit 2 times first.

If you can't get the third dose, you don't have to rush.

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare also gives priority to the first and second times.

However, are there any measures that can be taken before the vaccine is given?

Dr. Sakamoto

"It is important to avoid being bitten by a mosquito called Culex tritaenior, which mainly carries the virus. This mosquito becomes active especially after the sun goes down from July to August. Paddy fields, swamps, etc. It has the property of spawning, and it is said that it will travel a distance of about 10 km, so be careful. When you go out, use insect repellents and wear clothes with less exposed skin. "

It is said that there is also a point in how to choose an insect repellent.

Dr. Sakamoto

"Icaridin and DEET are recommended as ingredients of commercially available insect repellents. Especially, Icaridin is easy to use because there is no limit to the number of times it can be applied even by children."

How careful should I be and what measures should I take?

Now that I understand that, I feel calm.

"Microorganisms in the undiluted solution of vaccine"

When that happens, the question becomes once again why there is a shortage of vaccines.

We will confirm from the basic information announced by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.

First, the Japanese encephalitis vaccine supplied in Japan is all manufactured by two organizations.

One of these, the "Osaka University Microbial Disease Study Group" in Osaka Prefecture, temporarily stopped the production of vaccines, which is the cause of the shortage.

According to the "Osaka University Microbial Disease Study Group," it has been suspended for about a month since mid-November last year.

It was discovered that "microorganisms were generated in the undiluted solution of the vaccine," so the production was stopped in consideration of safety.

As a result of this suspension, the annual production volume of the study group was 3.38 million this year, but it will be halved to 1.56 million next year.

"Eh! ?. Is it halved after a one-month suspension?"

Such a question comes up, but there was a difficulty in manufacturing a vaccine.

Vaccine production is a long-term battle

The Japanese encephalitis vaccine is called an "inactivated vaccine" that is made by using an actual virus to eliminate toxicity.

According to the study group, the specific manufacturing method is to eliminate the toxicity after growing the virus strain in cells for culture derived from the kidneys of African green monkeys called "Vero cells".

Then freeze-dry to complete.

However, the period required for this process is about one year.

Therefore, if a problem occurs on the way, the production volume will be greatly reduced even if the suspension period is one month.

According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, in addition to the "inactivated vaccine", there are "gene vaccines" that use the genes of artificially synthesized viruses that have been put into practical use with the new coronavirus, and among actual viruses and bacteria. There are several types, such as "live vaccines", which are selected and increased with less toxic vaccines.

It is said that it takes more time to produce than general pharmaceuticals because all of them are manufactured in large numbers and take a long time to cultivate.

Repeated vaccine shortage

Therefore, troubles such as lack of vaccine occur repeatedly, not only for Japanese encephalitis vaccine.

In addition to Japanese encephalitis, children's vaccinations recommended by the Vaccination Law cover more than 10 types, including hives, pneumococcal bacteria, hepatitis B, rotavirus, diphtheria-perniform, and polio.

According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, there was a shortage of hepatitis B vaccine and hib vaccine among them due to troubles in the manufacturing process.

How to deal with vaccines

A vaccine that I was only thinking about going to inoculate when I was informed.

Actually, there was a problem.

Now that I am sensitive to the word "vaccine" because it is a corona illness, I talked to Professor Itsuko Horiguchi of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tokyo University of Science, who specializes in risk communication and how to deal with vaccines again.

Professor Horiguchi

: "It's natural for healthcare professionals to be careful about the manufacture, supply, and storage of vaccines, and to be prone to trouble, but for many people

this is not the case. think"

"The new corona has increased interest in vaccines, but the government and medical side give a polite explanation about vaccines, saying that vaccines are such things, and those who receive vaccinations are delighted with information such as shortages. It is important to calmly look at the supply prospects, etc.

What is the future supply of Japanese encephalitis vaccine?

The shortage of Japanese encephalitis vaccine this time.

According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, the increase in production by another domestic manufacturing company is expected to bring the total supply of the two to more than 3.23 million units next year, which is close to 80% of this year.

In addition, we plan to increase the number to 5.63 million in the next fiscal year, which is about 1.4 times that of this year, to cope with the delay.

Know about the disease and the outlook for vaccine supply.

Then, take possible measures and wait calmly.

As with the new corona vaccine, I would like to keep calm while calling on the government to take immediate action.