A new study published in Vaccine estimates that universal coverage of childhood rotavirus vaccination could bring about a substantial reduction in the inappropriate use of antibiotics in India. The study uses a dynamic agent-based model of rotavirus progression in children under five within each district in India, estimating several scenarios with differing vaccination coverage in the context of India’s Universal Immunization Programme.
The findings showed that vaccination was estimated to reduce the prevalence of rotavirus cases by an estimated 33.7%, total antibiotic misuse due to rotavirus by 21.8%, and total deaths due to rotavirus by 38.3% for children under five. Researchers estimate total antibiotic misuse due to rotavirus infection to be 7.6% of total antibiotic consumption in this demographic versus 9.6% in the absence of vaccination.
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