After re-evaluation of the vaccines, the High Authority for Health (HAS) recommended on Tuesday to resume vaccinating infants from six weeks to six months against rotavirus infections, the main causes of acute winter viral gastroenteritis, to prevent serious forms. and hospitalizations. Two vaccines (Rotarix and RotaTeq), administered orally, have marketing authorization in France.
A vaccination is recommended with two doses at the ages of two and three months for Rotarix, with three doses at two, three and four months for RotaTeq, she specifies in a press release, inviting the use of the same vaccine for the whole scheme. vaccine. The HAS insists on respecting this schedule in order to be able to complete the vaccination schedule before the age limit (six months for Rotarix and eight months for RotaTeq). “At this stage, the HAS considers that it is premature to envisage making this vaccination compulsory,” she specifies.
Recommended by the World Health Organization, the European Academy of Pediatrics and the European Society for Pediatric Infectious Diseases, vaccination against rotavirus infections is practiced in 127 countries worldwide. Introduced in France in the vaccination calendar in 2013 by the High Council of Public Health, it was suspended in 2015 after the occurrence of serious adverse effects.
Respect hygiene measures
After reassessing the two available vaccines and reviewing the latest vaccine efficacy and tolerance data, HAS judges that they confirm “very good efficacy of these two vaccines” in preventing these infections but also serious forms of gastroenteritis, which can lead to a visit to the emergency room and/or hospitalization. As for safety data, “no new signal has been highlighted since 2014 at the global level”, adds the HAS.
Concerning an increased risk of acute intestinal intussusception (a reversal of the intestine on itself causing an occlusion estimated up to six cases per 100,000 children in the seven days post-vaccination), she assures that this can be treated ” easily and without seriousness” and especially advocates information for parents, in particular on the signs to watch out for (unusual crying, refusal to eat or drink, vomiting, pallor, hypotonia, blood in the stool).
Recalling that these vaccines do not protect against acute gastroenteritis due to causes other than rotavirus, HAS calls for hygiene measures to be observed (washing of hands and surfaces), to “promote breastfeeding and take early management of symptoms through the administration of a rehydration solution”.