World Immunisation Day丨Scientific immunisation to build family health defences

At a recent symposium on the theme of ‘Strengthening Immunisation and Building Healthy Families’, Wu Jing, Director of the Centre for Chronic Non-Communicable Disease Prevention and Control of the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), emphasised that in the season of high incidence of infectious diseases, it is necessary to improve the preventive capacity of the corresponding infectious diseases and enhance immunity to prevent the occurrence of diseases through vaccination. The aim is to prevent diseases from occurring. Young children, the elderly, patients with chronic diseases and other people with fragile immune functions are the key groups that need to be strengthened.

Experts at the conference pointed out that with the gradual drop in temperature since the beginning of winter, a variety of infectious diseases are highly prevalent. Among them, middle-aged and elderly people are at increased risk of infectious diseases such as influenza, pneumococcal diseases and herpes zoster due to a gradual decline in their immune system. Immunity is the body's ‘protective barrier’ against foreign bacteria and viruses, and is a key weapon in disease prevention. However, with age, the immune function of the middle-aged and elderly population declines, and they are invariably affected by many infectious diseases.

Herpes zoster, for example, is an infectious skin disease caused by the reactivation of the varicella zoster virus when the body's resistance declines, and the older the person, the more likely they are to fall ill and the more serious their condition. Studies have shown that in China, middle-aged and older people aged 50 and above have a high prevalence of herpes zoster, with about 1.56 million new cases of herpes zoster occurring each year in this group. Herpes zoster can lead to serious and long-lasting complications, the most common of which is postherpetic neuralgia, which can last for months or even years, severely affecting the patient's quality of life. At the same time, herpes zoster is often a ‘one-trick pony’, and middle-aged and older people are often at ‘stacked’ risk.

‘We encourage the family as the basic unit to strengthen health awareness and jointly participate in vaccination and health management, so as to reduce health risks and build a health protection barrier for family members.’ Wu Jing said that by providing appropriate vaccines for the middle-aged and elderly groups, especially those with chronic diseases, the spread of related infectious diseases can be effectively prevented, thus reducing hospitalisation and treatment costs due to these diseases, easing the burden of care on family members, and reducing the burden on families. This is not only an important initiative to actively promote healthy ageing, but can also contribute to the building of healthy families.