Vaccines are a way out of a pandemic

Vaccines are the most effective public health intervention in human history. Thanks to them, our world is much better. Most Americans need to be successfully vaccinated to resume their pre-pandemic life and be able to safely go to concerts, sporting events, crowded restaurants and large weddings. There is.

People in our society often take vaccines for granted, partly because of how successful vaccines are in eradicating smallpox and other diseases from the planet. Between 1900 and 1980, about 300 million people died of smallpox. Thanks to an aggressive vaccination program, the disease was completely eradicated by 1979. Diseases that kill 30% of infected people and often permanently injure and blind survivors are obsolete.

“Another vaccine success is the polio vaccine. In 1988, a global effort to eradicate polio through the use of the vaccine began. At that time, there were about 350,000 new cases of polio annually. By 2018, 22 polio cases had occurred only in areas where vaccination was blocked by war conditions.

“Vaccine advances over the last three decades have made the planet much healthier. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation wrote in its 2017 annual letter, 122,200, mainly through the distribution and dissemination of vaccines since 1990. It reports that the lives of more than 10,000 children have been saved. The incidence of life-threatening airway inflammation, rash, tetanus, and laryngeal folds has been significantly reduced by childhood vaccination.

“There is no doubt that vaccines continue to save countless lives. Successful vaccination gives us the luxury of debating whether or not to vaccinate.

“There is a lot of false information about the COVID-19 vaccine. The truth is that more serious reactions such as Bell’s palsy are very rare. People are infected with COVID-19 rather than suffering from the extreme side effects of the vaccine. It’s much more likely to be.

“Yes, the COVID-19 vaccine is new. Yes, it was put together earlier than most people expected, but third-party reviews show that the vaccines currently on the market are not only safe to use. It is also very effective in protecting people from this virus. They are far more effective than the flu shots that millions of people receive each year.

“For the success of the COVID-19 vaccine, Americans must be vaccinated on a large scale. Herd immunity is based on the premise that a large number of people will be vaccinated and prevent the transmission of the disease. Only when 70% of Americans are vaccinated will they begin to reach herd immunity. Fear and false information will lead to more and more people refusing to take the vaccine, COVID- It will delay efforts to stop the 19 epidemics. As of February 7, Illinois has recorded 1.15 million COVID-19s, and about 22,000 Illinois people have been tragically killed by the disease. As an elderly doctor specializing in elderly care, I witnessed the devastating effects of the disease and unfortunately lost the patient.

“To understand how to approach the current vaccine situation, we only need to look at the past. The truth is that vaccines are an essential tool for improving public health and extending the life expectancy of our population. The history of vaccine success is undeniable. It is research and innovation that has provided us with the tools to wipe out some of the deadliest diseases on the planet, which is of great harm to our society. It is science and innovation that make it possible to wipe out the COVID-19 pandemic that has caused the disease.

“We can end this pandemic. The path forward begins with mass vaccination. It’s not a less traveled path. It’s been done many times in history. It’s the road.

• Dr. AvinashMantha, MD, is the attending physician at Edward Hines VA Hospital.