Indian Immunologicals Ltd (IIL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), launched India’s ‘first’ indigenously developed Hepatitis A vaccine, Havisure.
About Havisure
- Havisure is expected to play a key role to protect against the Hepatitis A virus, which primarily affects the liver.
- The vaccine is effective in preventing the disease and is recommended for children in routine immunisation.
- It is a two-dose vaccine wherein the first dose is administered at above 12 months of age and the second dose is given at least after 6 months of the first dose.
- The vaccine is also recommended for individuals who are at risk of exposure or travel to the regions with high hepatitis A prevalence.
- In addition to this people with occupational risk of infection and suffering from chronic liver diseases also need Hepatitis A vaccination.
About Hepatitis
- Hepatitis is a general term used to describe inflammation of the liver. There are five viruses that cause the different forms of viral hepatitis: hepatitis A, B, C, D and E.
- Hepatitis A is mostly a food-borne illness and can be spread through contaminated water and unwashed food.
- Hepatitis B can be transmitted through exposure to contaminated blood, needles, syringes or bodily fluids and from mother to baby. It is a chronic disorder and in some cases may lead to long-term liver damage, liver cancer and cirrhosis of the liver after many years of carrying the virus.
- Hepatitis C is only transmitted through infected blood or from mother to newborn during childbirth.
- Hepatitis D is only found in people who are also infected with hepatitis B.
- Hepatitis E virus is shed in the stools of infected persons and enters the human body through the intestine. It is transmitted mainly through contaminated drinking water.
