The varicella vaccine should be introduced into the UK’s NHS (National Health Service) scheme for young children, scientists advising the British government have recommended.
The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization (JCVI), which advises UK health departments, said the injection should be given to babies in two doses when they are 12 months and 18 months old.
Data from other countries suggest the vaccine (also known as the chickenpox vaccine) will prevent most severe cases in children and help “make chickenpox a thing of the past”, experts said.
The JCVI also recommended the inclusion of a temporary catch-up program for older children, although details of their ages are not currently available.
We now have decades of evidence from the US and other countries showing that introducing this program is safe, effective and will have a truly positive impact on the health of young children.
Professor Sir Andrew Pollard, JCVI
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) will now consider the recommendation.
The varicella vaccine has been administered in other countries, including the US and Australia, for many years, but the NHS has always said there was a concern that introducing it in the UK could increase the risk of chickenpox and shingles in adults.
The NHS website says that if a childhood chickenpox vaccination program was introduced, people would not get the virus as children, leaving unvaccinated children to get chickenpox as adults, when cases may be more severe.
But thinking about the vaccine has now changed.
Professor Sir Andrew Pollard, President of the JCVI, said: “Chickenpox is well known and most parents will probably consider it a common and mild illness among children.
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2023-11-14 12:26:19
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