Indonesia Strives To Stamp Out Typhoid

Nusa Dua, Bali, May 2 (Antara) -- The Indonesian government is trying to eradicate typhoid, which continues to be a threat especially in developing countries, a government official said. Those aged between 5 and 24 years are susceptible to the disease the most, Director of the Center for Biomedical Affairs and Basic Health Technology of the Ministry of Health, Pretty Multihartina, stated at the International Conference on Typhoid and Non-Typhoidal Salmonella in Nusa Dua, Bali, held over the weekend. Referring to a research on basic health carried out in 2007 by the Health Research and Development Agency, the directorate found that 1.6 percent of some 900 thousand respondents of different ages admitted to have been diagnosed with typhoid at least once. The research was conducted through telephonic interviews in 33 provinces. As the disease is still a health problem in developing countries in Asia and Africa, they need to establish cooperation to develop selective diagnostic devices and vaccinations for affordable treatment. The problem indicates that vaccines are needed for the short term, although the World Health Organization recommends that they be used at an early stage. Indonesia alone has state pharmaceutical company Bio Farma that produces typhoid vaccines, which are exported to countries across the world. The typhoid vaccines are expected to provide effective protection to the high-risk group as they can be consumed by children since they are six months old. The vaccines are expected to prevent nearly 90 percent of typhoid cases and to save as many as 190 thousand people every year. Moreover, health experts from the Coalition against Typhoid, which is part of the Sabin Vaccine Institute of the United States, noted that some 21 million people in the world are affected by typhoid, which leads to 216 thousand deaths every year. Children under 15 years of age make up the largest segment of these cases. In addition, non-typhoidal salmonella causes some 3.4 million cases and 681,316 deaths annually.