1）UNICEF Begins Tetanus Immunization Campaign in Afghanista

Broadcast: Feb 02, 2003

 

The U.N. Children's Fund units service is starting a weeklong campaign to immunize thousands of Afghan women against tetanus. This is part of a global campaign to eliminate maternal¹ and neonatal ^2）tetanus by 2005. UNICEF says health workers aim to reach 740,000 Afghan women aged² 15-45.

UNICEF says Afghanistan has one of the highest maternal death rates in the world. It says almost half of all deaths among Afghan women aged between 15 and 49 are a direct result of pregnancy³ and childbirth.

UNICEF Spokeswoman, Lynn Geldof says protecting women against tetanus is one of the simplest and most effective ways of reducing the country's high maternal death rate. She says the vaccine⁴ also will keep many newborn babies alive.

"About the global impact of tetanus, 70 percent of babies who contract it die in the first month. So, this protection is not just for mothers, but also for newborns. A quarter of all neo-natal deaths are attributed to tetanus. So, this is an extremely important campaign," Mr. Geldof said.

A recent study by UNICEF and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control says about 1,600 women die for every 100,000 live births in Afghanistan. For example, that is 200 times higher than the rate in the United States.

Neonatal tetanus is a deadly disease and a major killer⁵ of infants in the developing world. UNICEF says about 200,000 infants around the world die from the disease each year.

Neonatal tetanus occurs as a result of ^3）unhygienic birth practices. This leads to contamination of ⁴⁾the umbilical cord with tetanus spores⁶ when it is being cut or dressed after delivery. Ms. Geldof says health workers are using a new device which will facilitate the ⁵⁾immunizations.

"It will reach out quite broadly for the first time because they are employing Uniject, which is a simple ⁶⁾vaccination⁷ format⁸ where the needle and the capsule are pre-prepared. So, it does not involve massive training. You do not have to be a health person to do it. And secondly⁹, it does not require a cold chain system so that can makes it much more easier logistically," she said.

The campaign is conducted by the Afghan Ministry¹⁰ of Health, with support from UNICEF, the World Health Organization and private agencies. Ms. Geldof says more than 1,000 vaccination teams will fan out across Afghanistan's major cities this week. She says women living in villages will be targeted in two further immunization drives later in the year.

Lisa Schlein for Voa news, Geneva.

 

1）UNICEF 联合国儿童基金组织

2）tetanus [5tetEnEs]n.[医]破伤风

3）unhygienic [7QnhaIdVI5enIk] adj.不卫生的，不清洁的

4）the umbilical cord脐带

5）immunization [7imju:nai5zeiFEn]n.使免除, 使免疫

6）vaccination[7vAksi5neiFEn]n.[医]接种疫苗, 种痘, 牛痘疤

1 maternal   

adj.母亲的，母亲般的，母系的，母方的

参考例句：

• He is my maternal uncle.他是我舅舅。
• The sight of the hopeless little boy aroused her maternal instincts.那个绝望的小男孩的模样唤起了她的母性。

2 aged   

adj.年老的，陈年的

参考例句：

• He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了，也老点了。
• He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老，然而记忆力还好。

3 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

4 vaccine   

n.牛痘苗，疫苗；adj.牛痘的，疫苗的

参考例句：

• The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives.脊髓灰质炎疫苗挽救了数以百万计的生命。
• She takes a vaccine against influenza every fall.她每年秋季接种流感疫苗。

5 killer   

n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者

参考例句：

• Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。
• The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。

6 spores   

n.（细菌、苔藓、蕨类植物）孢子( spore的名词复数 )v.（细菌、苔藓、蕨类植物）孢子( spore的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Ferns, mosses and fungi spread by means of spores. 蕨类植物、苔藓和真菌通过孢子传播蔓生。
• Spores form a lipid membrane during the process of reproducing. 孢于在生殖过程中形成类脂膜。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 预防生物武器

7 vaccination   

n.接种疫苗，种痘

参考例句：

• Vaccination is a preventive against smallpox.种痘是预防天花的方法。
• Doctors suggest getting a tetanus vaccination every ten years.医生建议每十年注射一次破伤风疫苗。

8 format   

n.设计，版式；[计算机]格式，DOS命令:格式化(磁盘)，用于空盘或使用过的磁盘建立新空盘来存储数据；v.使格式化，设计，安排

参考例句：

• Please format this floppy disc.请将这张软盘格式化。
• The format of the figure is very tasteful.该图表的格式很雅致。

9 secondly   

adv.第二，其次

参考例句：

• Secondly,use your own head and present your point of view.第二，动脑筋提出自己的见解。
• Secondly it is necessary to define the applied load.其次，需要确定所作用的载荷。

10 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。