A new study by icddr,b scientists and partners published in The Lancet has shown for the first time that a novel oral polio vaccine (nOPV2) developed for use in outbreak control is safe and leads to the production of productive antibodies in newborns not exposed to any polio vaccine. The randomised, double-blind, controlled, phase two trial was conducted in rural Bangladesh at icddr,b's Matlab Health Research Centre in Chandpur from September 21 2020 to August 16 2021. The researchers identified women in their third trimester of pregnancy and invited them to enrol their infants in the study. It evaluated the safety and tolerability, and immunogenicity after one and two doses of nOPV2 administration at four weeks apart to the infants. The researchers also looked at some secondary outcomes. The vaccine was found to be immunogenic, resulting in 99 percent of infants having protective neutralising antibodies. Overall, 327 received two doses of vaccine or placebo and among these 325 were tested for immunogenicity per protocol. Read: Polio in US, UK and Israel reveals rare risk of oral vaccine The vaccine was safe and adverse event rates were similar in the vaccine and placebo groups, icddr,b said. Oral polio vaccines (OPVs) use live but weakened forms of the poliovirus to prime the immune system. On rare occasions, type 2 poliovirus used in traditional OPVs can mutate and reacquire neurovirulence – the ability to cause disease of the nervous system. Concerns about possible outbreaks of circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2), led the Global Polio Eradication Initiative to withdraw type 2 poliovirus from OPVs and target only types 1 and 3. The UN health agency recently authorised the use of a new OPV against type 2 poliovirus called nOPV2, which is less likely to revert to neurovirulence. However, the vaccine had only previously been tested on individuals who had received at least one dose of the inactivated polio vaccine (IPV), which is less effective than OPVs at preventing transmission of the virus. "So, the findings of this new study will equip public health experts and policymakers with the evidence to inform the use of nOPV2 in newborns with no previous exposure to other polio vaccines, who constitute the most vulnerable group for polio transmission," icddr,b said. Dr K Zaman, senior scientist at the Infectious Diseases Division at icddr,b, who led the study, said: "The novel oral polio vaccine is safe and immunogenic in the age group that most needs to be vaccinated to stop the chain of polio transmission in at-risk communities." Read: Pakistani PM kicks off nationwide anti-polio campaign as new cases emerge "This information is particularly welcome given that over 450 million doses have already been distributed under the World Health Organization Emergency Use Listing procedure, with no age restrictions for recipients." "Our study supports the continued use of the vaccine. However, there is still no data on how nOPV2 may interfere with the Bivalent Oral Poliomyelitis Vaccine, the currently approved oral vaccine targeting types 1 and 3 poliovirus," Dr K Zaman said. Preventing the transmission of vaccine-derived poliovirus by vaccinating vulnerable vaccine-naïve newborns with nOPV2 is likely to be a key step toward poliovirus eradication.

As millions of children returned to classrooms amid the growing concern of the possible third wave of Covid-19, experts fear that any laxity in maintaining health protocols and guardian’s lack of awareness can put the kids at risk of infections. They said children in the areas where the virus infection rate is still over 15 percent are highly vulnerable to the deadly virus. The experts ring the alarm bell as the extremely transmissible Delta variant has been taking its toll on children in different countries, including the USA, where children went back to schools in person. Read: School Closure: 50,000 students may have dropped out in Kurigram They said though the performances of most of the school authorities still look good when it comes to maintaining health safety rules, the guardians seem unaware of the looming danger of pandemic since they are seen crowding outside of different schools, even many of them without masks, risking their own health and that of their children. The analysts said the authorities have to ensure that health guidelines are consistently followed without any laxity. Besides, they said, the school authorities should motivate the guardians to maintain social distancing and health safety rules when they gather outside of the gates. Read Fresh Covid surge may lead to school closure again: Dipu Moni

A seroprevalence study in Chattogram has shown the presence of anti-coronavirus antibodies in 65% of Covid-19 patients in Chattogram. The study enrolled both those who tested positive for the virus, and those who tested negative but were treated as Covid patients based on symptoms, and observed them over a 6-month period. The antibodies were found in about 90 percent of those who tested positive for the virus in an RT-PCR test, and 26% of RT-PCR negative patients. Physicians at Chittagong General Hospital conducted the research on 1530 people (989 who tested positive, and 541 who tested negative)from October 2020 to April 2021 to investigate the presence and persistence of antibodies produced by the body as an immune response to Covid-19. Also read: Bangladesh detects first case of Indian Coronavirus strain The objectives of the study apart from finding the presence of antibodies were to gather information on the socio-economic status of the patients, what symptoms were present in them at the time of infection and whether there were any long-term complications after recovering from Covid. Although participants of the research were selected on random basis, majority of them were male (75%) and employed (60%). Their main symptoms after contracting Covid-19 were fever (92 percent), cough (63 percent), and loss of sense of smell (52 percent). Symptoms such as sore throat, headache, diarrhoea, shortness of breath, etc. have also been observed. Many of the affected people were already suffering from chronic diseases like diabetes (15 percent), high blood pressure (23 percent), respiratory complications (9 percent) and heart disease. After recovering from Covid, about 57 percent of them had long-term symptoms  including physical weakness, pain, anxiety, fatigue, cough, hair loss, etc. Also read: Covid-19: Bangladesh sees 45 more deaths with 1285 new cases Dr. Md. Abdur Rob, the head of the research team, said, “We have been treating Covid patients for a long time. This study is very timely in order to know more about Covid-19 in more detail about patients' symptoms, long-term complications after recovery and the presence of antibodies." Dr. Mohammad Asif Khan, Coordinator of the research work, said that there is no alternative to such research to improve the medical science in the reality of our country as directed by the Hon'ble Prime Minister. "This is the first example of a district-level hospital conducting research on its own initiative. We hope that this initiative will encourage self-managed research in the medical field," he said. In light of the data collected, Dr. HM Hamidullah Mehdi said that one of the successes of this study is that a large number of infected patients have been included in it and the data has been collected through direct interviews and tests. The results of the study will make the government's ongoing COVID-19 vaccination program more acceptable and dynamic. Also read: Indian Covid Strain: Two more cases identified in Jessore Dr. MA Kabir Chowdhury, who is in charge of data and data analysis, said that while analyzing the data collected in the study, they have found some important information, such as the presence of antibodies in the body of RT-PCR positive patients for more than 6 months. The findings were presented today at the conference room of the Chattogram General Hospital. Barrister Mahibul Hasan Chowdhury Nawfel, Deputy Minister for Education and Chairman of the Management Committee of the 250-bed Chattogram  General Hospital was the chief guest on the occasion. He said the 250-bed Anderkilla General Hospital in Chittagong was the first and only place of recourse for Covid-19 patients in Chittagong after the corona virus entered the country. Initially, the hospital was in dire need of medical equipment for the treatment of patients suffering from covid, but now it is fully capable.

Though the Covid-19 pandemic looks to have become under control in Bangladesh with the weather getting warmer, experts think there is no room for complacency as this deadly virus may remerge any time with any new strain.

A new study revealed that the Covid-19 patients who recovered from the disease may have strong immunity from the coronavirus eight months after infection.