Abstract
The Center for Vaccine Development - Mali (CVD - Mali), the World Health Organization's regional office in Africa (WHO/AFRO), and the CVD at the University of Maryland School of Medicine hosted the 10th African Rotavirus Symposium in Bamako, Mali on 1-2 June 2016. The symposium is coordinated by WHO/AFRO, the Regional Rotavirus Reference Laboratories, and the African Rotavirus Network (ARN), with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The event brings together leading rotavirus researchers, scientists, and policy-makers from across Africa and the world. Over 150 participants, from 31 countries, including 27 in Africa, joined forces to address the theme "Reaching Every Child in Africa with Rotavirus Vaccines." This symposium, the first in francophone Africa, occurred at an unprecedented time when 33 African countries had introduced rotavirus vaccines into their national immunization programs. The symposium concluded with a Call to Action to introduce rotavirus vaccines in the 21 remaining African countries, to increase access in countries with existing vaccination programs, and to continue surveillance and research on rotavirus and other diarrheal diseases.
Highlights
Preventing rotavirus infection through vaccination is a critical intervention to reduce morbidity and mortality in young children, in settings without accessible or affordable health care [1]
The symposium focused on assessing the role of the regional rotavirus surveillance network in defining rotavirus epidemiology in the pre-vaccine era, and the on-going efforts to assess the impact of vaccines and to monitor adverse events [2]
A total of 263 cases were enrolled in active intussusception surveillance conducted at 8 large pediatric hospitals post-rotavirus vaccine introduction between July 2012 and April 2016; the median age was 6 months and 91 percent of the cases were under 12 months of age
Summary
Preventing rotavirus infection through vaccination is a critical intervention to reduce morbidity and mortality in young children, in settings without accessible or affordable health care [1]. The African Rotavirus Symposium is a gathering of rotavirus experts that occurs every one to two years and provides a unique venue to discuss the latest research findings and global recommendations, and to share monitoring, surveillance, and vaccine introduction data from across Africa and the globe. The symposium included participants from African Ministries of Health and government agencies; the Regional Reference Laboratories; and other rotavirus researchers, scientists, and policy-makers. The objectives of the conference, presented by Dr Jason Mwenda, WHO/ AFRO, were to: Share research and findings on global, regional, and country-specific epidemiological trends on rotavirus diarrheal disease; provide updates on vaccine introductions, progress, challenges, and way forward to accelerate vaccine introduction in Africa; share experiences on vaccine impact and safety; and facilitate networking for research, academic, and career growth among researchers, program managers, and policy-makers
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