A Seroepidemiologic Study on Rubella Antibody Positivity: Primary School Students in Gyenggi-Do / 한국역학회지

PURPOSE: The purpose of this seroepidmiologic study was to examine the immunization and infection history of rubella, positivity of rubella specific antibody, seroconversion rate of two rubella vaccines and to develop an adequate immunization program of rubella. Research Methods : Subjects of the study were 2.071 students of 8 priamary schools in Gyenggi-Do. Questionnaire and blood sampling were done. Test method of Rubella specific antibody was ELISA (Abbott IMx autoanalyzer). The anayltic methods for the study were chi-square-test, t-test and ANOVA. RESULTS: The results of the study were as follows : (1)The number of subjects who had infection history of rubella were only 28 students(1.5%). (2)The immunization rate of rubella was the highest in 6 year-old group(65%), it decrease as subjects grow older. (3)The positivity of rubella antibody was 76. 6%, it is the highest in 6 year old group and the lowest in 7 year-old group and it increase again as subjects grow older. (4)Average antibody titer was 53.3 IU(SD 79.2), the trend of antibody titer by age was similar to that of positivity. (5)The seroconversion rates of both vaccines, vaccine A,vaccine B, were 99.5% and 99.6%, the ratio of increase of antibody titer after immunization was higer than 400. it means that both vaccines are very efficacious. CONCLUSION: Results of the study suggest that it is necessary to increase the coverage of rubella immunization, and further studies are necessary to get more information for rubella.

Cost-Benefit Analysis on Rubella Vaccination Policy / 예방의학회지

Rubella is a viral disease with mild constitutional symptoms and generalized rashes ln childhood, it is an inconsequential illness, but when it occurs during early pregnant period, there are significant risks of heart defects, cataract, mental retardation to the fetus. The series of congenital defects induced by rubella is called 'congenital rubella syndrome'. Many research have been performed to find out more effective prevention program on rubella. The objectives of this study are, first, to calculate the incidence rate of acute rubella infection and congenital rubella syndrome in korea, second, to evaluate economic efficiency of several rubella vaccination policies and to offer data for the most reasonable decision on vaccination policy. Study populations are 663,312 children of one year-old in 1992. The author has performed cost-benefit analyses according to the three vaccination policies-U.S.A.'s. U.K's and Sweden's. In this study, the author got the incidence rate of acute rubella infection using the catalytic model. In the meantime, the author used 50 per 100,000 live births as the incidence rate of congenital rubella syndrome. The discount rate used in this study was 5 percent per annum. The sensitivity analyses were done with different discount rates (4%, 7%) and different incidence rate of congenital rubella syndrome (10,100 per 100,000 live births): The study results are as follows: 1. Without vaccination, lifetime expenditures per patient for acute rubella infection amount to 14,822 won and the total expenditures to about 3.1 billion won. Meanwhile, lifetime expenditures per patient for congenital rubella syndrome amount to about 91 million won and the total expenditures to about 16.3 billion won without vaccination. 2. The cost of vaccination for a child of one year old was 2,322 won and the total cost for the one year old children was about 1.5 billion won(American style). The cost for vaccination of female children at fifteen was about 339 million won (British style). And the cost of vaccination at one for both sex and female children at fifteen was about 1.9billion won (Swedish style). 3. The benefit to cost ratios of vaccination or female children at fifteen that is the british mode of rubella vaccination, was 60.0 at the level of 80 % population coverage and 48.6 at 100% coverage. It shows much higher benefit to cost ratio than those of the other two vaccination policies. 4. Both net benefits of vaccination at one (American style) and that of vaccinations at one and fifteen (Swedish style) range from about 17.0 billion to 17.8 billion won, those were larger than that of vaccinations of female children at fifteen(British style, about 16.0 billion). 5. In marginal cost-benefit analysis of only additional program or revaccination, the benefit to cost ratios were 3.6(80% coverage rate) or 0.6 (100% coverage rate). It implies that additional program was less efficient or inefficient 6. In sensitively analysis with different discount rates (4% or 7%) and different incidence rates of congenital rubella syndrome (l0 or 100 per 100,000 live births), the benefit to cost ratios has fluctuated in wide range. However, all the ratios of vaccination of female children at fifteen were higher than those of the others. Even under the most conservative assumption, the benefit to cost ratios of all the rubella vaccination policies were higher than 3.3. In conclusion all the rubella vaccination policies found to be cost-effective and particularly the vaccination of female children at fifteen was strongly recommended.

A study on the positive rate of rubella antibody and the sero-conversion rate after rubella vaccination / 한국역학회지

No abstract available.