India may soon start a national immunization schedule for the elderly people offering flu and pneumococcal vaccines aiming to reduce the burden of respiratory infections and antimicrobial use in this susceptible population.
As a first step towards this direction, the top research body, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has invited researchers and research institutions to conduct studies to evaluate the effectiveness of these jabs for flu and pneumonia in reducing infections and subsequent antimicrobial use in the susceptible population.
Post Covid-19 pandemic, the impact of vaccinating the adults against vaccine-preventable diseases in terms of health, social and economic benefits is being increasingly recognized, said a scientist from the premier research body.
More so, given that the population over 50 years is expected to represent 27 per cent of the projected population in India in 2036 out of which 13 per cent population will be over 60 years.
“Elderly people suffer from dual medical problems, i.e., both communicable as well as non-communicable diseases. A decline in immunity with age leads to increased risk of infections in the elderly like pneumococcal infection, influenza, tetanus and herpes zoster.”
"The upper respiratory tract infections (URTI) are among the major causes of morbidity and mortality among the elderly and are responsible for a large number of deaths and hospitalizations, he said.
Incidentally, they also account for major portion of antibiotic prescriptions especially in developing countries, thus fuelling the already ongoing crisis of antibiotic resistance, the scientist noted.
Vaccines for many of these respiratory infections are now available globally, including in India, and can be used as a tool to reduce impact of these diseases as well as strengthen fight against antimicrobial resistance.
Adult vaccination guidelines favoring pneumococcal and influenza vaccination have been issued by the Geriatric Society of India, the Association of Physicians of India, the Indian Medical Association and other professional bodies.
Adult vaccination was highly encouraged during the Covid-19 pandemic and this provides an opportunity to extend the benefit of available vaccines and vaccination to adults, elderly and the at-risk populations.
Influenza immunization is associated with a decrease in antibiotic use, and pneumococcal vaccines reduce the carriage and transmission of antimicrobial-resistant strains of pneumococcus, the scientist added.
However, there are several barriers to adult immunisation, even when available, including lower vaccine confidence, cost, lack of awareness and limited access to vaccines.
The study will be a prospective randomized controlled study wherein the vaccines in question will be given to the elderly adults from both rural and urban areas across different states of India, said the scientist about the study.