MSD India today announced the launch of its 'Rota Teq', which is already in the markets of 60 countries, as the first pentavalent rotavirus vaccine to prevent rotavirus gastroenteritis which is a leading cause of life-threatening diarrhoea in infants and young children.

Announcing this at a press conference here, company’s president for Asia-Pacific region Ramesh Subramanian said the company was open to hold talks with the government to include the same in the universal immunization programme at affordable prices.

Rota Teq is an oral, three-dose vaccine given to infants between the ages of six to 30 weeks from MSD India, a part of the Merck and Co. It has licence from the regulatory authorities in 98 countries and it was included in the universal immunisation programmes of 11 countries already.

Managing director of MSD India K G Ananthakrishnan said it was the first paediatric vaccine from the innovation-driven company in India and the company was looking to come up with a number of other vaccines and drugs in the area, thanks to the prolific product portfolio in the pipeline. He said, the company would tie up with associations and official agencies to create awareness about this vaccine as part of its commitment to put patients first.

Rotavirus is the single most common cause of severe gastroenteritis in children worldwide and globally it causes 114 million cases of disease, 24 million outpatient visits, and 2.4 million hospitalisations each year. It is estimated that 610,000 children die each year from rotavirus.

In India alone, it is associated with 39.2 per cent of all diarrhoea-related hospital admissions among children aged less than five years resulting in substantial mortality and morbidity for children. About 2 million outpatient visits in children under the ages of five years can be attributed to this highly contagious disease while nearly one in every 200 children under the age of five years dies due to rotavirus diarrhoea in the country, said Dr Rohit Agarwal, the president-elect of the Indian Association of Paediatricians.