An Injection of Hope

By Wang Hairong

The drive to effectively vaccinate the worlds population against COVID-19 has seen many other important vaccines lose their place in the public spotlight. However， one particular group of vaccines was back in the news in April after the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences （CAMS） named their development as one of Chinas most important medical science achievements of the 21st century.

The vaccines， the first of their kind worldwide， protect against enterovirus 71 （EV71）， a dangerous virus that can cause epidemics of severe neurological disease and hand， foot and mouth disease（HFMD） in children.

The vaccine development project was carried out by several research institutions including the Institute of Medical Biology （IMB）， an organization under the CAMS， and the National Institutes for Food and Drug Control， as well as pharmaceutical companies such as China National Biotech Group and Sinovac Biotech Co. Ltd.， according to the CAMS.

The vaccine developed by the IMB was approved by the China Food and Drug Administration on December 3， 2015， followed by two others， approved respectively weeks later and approximately a year later， Li Qihan， Director of the IMB and one of the developers of the vaccine， told Beijing Review.

In 2016， doctors began to administer the vaccines nationwide. With about 10 million doses delivered annually onward， according to the CAMS， the vaccination program has so far reduced the death toll from HFMD by more than 90 percent in the country.

“Vaccination is the most effective method to prevent and control the disease. It can give children immunity to shield them from the virus，” said Li.

At the time the IMB vaccine was approved， Bernhard Schwartl？nder， representative of the World Health Organization （WHO） in China， said it is a crucial tool for controlling the illness. “There is no specific treatment for the EV71 disease， which is what makes the development and licensing of this vaccine so important，” Schwartl？nder said.

A highly infectious disease

HFMD is a communicable disease with a high incidence rate in China. Its transmission coefficient can be as high as 4.2-6.5， which is three times that of COVID-19， Zeng Guang， chief epidemiologist of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention（China CDC）， told the press in June 2020.

In March 2008， during an outbreak in Fuyang， Anhui Province， 3，321 cases were confirmed in roughly one month， resulting in 22 deaths.