Abstract
Background: Post-neonatal tetanus is an important problem. Prevention of tetanus in Nigeria is via immunization with three doses of Diphtheria-Pertussis-Tetanus (DPT)/Pentavalent vaccine at 6, 10 and 14 weeks. The anti-tetanus antibody levels of these children are not known after they had received DPT3/Pentavalent vaccines. Aim: This work was to determine the anti-tetanus antibody (IgG) response in Nigerian children aged six months to five years who had received three doses of DPT vaccine in early infancy. Methods: Children aged six months to five years who were attended to in the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital for acute illnesses were recruited. Their anti-tetanus IgG levels were measured using Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). The optimal cut-off level of ≥0.1 IU/ml was used as the protective level. Data was analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20.0 with simple proportions and percentages. Students’ “t” test and ANOVA were used to compare quantitative variables while Chi-square and Fisher’s exact test were used to compare categorical data. Results: Four hundred and eighteen children participated in the study. The mean IgG antibody level was 1.021 ± 0.9 IU/ml. Four hundred children (95.7%) had protective levels of antibodies. The highest proportion of subjects with protective levels was in infants, 6 - 11 months (99%) and lowest in children aged 36 - 47 months (92.2%). Conclusion: The proportion of children with protective levels was above 90% in all age groups studied. The current national immunization schedule is adequate. Further studies in older age groups are needful.
Highlights
Tetanus is a potentially fatal, acute, vaccine-preventable disease caused by an exotoxin produced by the bacterium Clostridium tetani
The anti-tetanus antibody response of study subjects to vaccination in early infancy was satisfactory as the overall proportion of the children with reliable protection was 95.7%
The mean antibody level was highest in the age group of 48 to 60 months
Summary
Tetanus is a potentially fatal, acute, vaccine-preventable disease caused by an exotoxin produced by the bacterium Clostridium tetani. It occurs worldwide but is endemic in developing countries and has continued to be a significant public health problem in resource-poor nations including Nigeria [1] [2]. Aim: This work was to determine the anti-tetanus antibody (IgG) response in Nigerian children aged six months to five years who had received three doses of DPT vaccine in early infancy. Methods: Children aged six months to five years who were attended to in the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital for acute illnesses were recruited Their anti-tetanus IgG levels were measured using Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA).
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