200,000 more children vaccinated against Japanese Encephalitis in Myanmar's Rakhine state

YANGON, Dec. 27 (Xinhua) -- A total of 200,000 more children under five years of age in Myanmar's western Rakhine state were vaccinated against Japanese Encephalitis, the official Global New Light of Myanmar reported Wednesday.

The inoculation campaign, launched by the Rakhine state Health Department, covered 14 townships including Sittway, Mrauk U, Maungtaw, Kyaukphyu and Thandwe.

Moreover, more than 40,000 children in far-flung border areas in the state were also immunized from the deliberating mosquito-borne disease during the period.

The first round of the campaign, which lasted from Nov. 15 to 23, had given vaccination to 470,580 children between the age of 5 years and 15 years under the Rakhine state program.

The vaccination targets a total of 14 million children in Rakhine.

Japanese Encephalitis virus is maintained in a cycle involving mosquitoes and vertebrate hosts, mainly pigs and wading birds. Humans can be infected when bitten by an infected mosquito.

Some infected patients will develop neurological symptoms including tremors, seizures (especially among children), as well as mental status changes and movement disorders.

Japanese Encephalitis can be fatal in 20 to 30 percent of cases and most of survivors continue to have neurologic, cognitive or psychiatric symptoms. Enditem