Cuba’s systematic immunization campaigns against 13 diseases on the island have contributed greatly to the decline, and, in many cases, eradication, of various communicable and infectious diseases. These include tetanus, measles, polio, and diphtheria.

Cuba’s National News Agency reported January 18 that 410 people died from tetanus in the country in 1962. The figure dropped to 81 in 1970, reached a record low of 3 deaths in 2003, and was zero last year.

“Before the 1959 revolution, there were 500 deaths reported annually from measles, tetanus, and whooping cough; 300 cases of paralysis by polio; and tens of thousands of cases of diseases that could have been prevented by vaccines,” Dr. Miguel Galindo, director of the National Vaccination Program in Cuba, wrote in a 1999 report.

In 1959, workers and farmers in Cuba overthrew the U.S.-backed dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista and established a workers and farmers government—opening the road to socialism in the Americas. The revolutionary government established the Ministry of Public Health in 1960, which initiated campaigns to vaccinate all Cuban school-age children and prevent the spread of preventable diseases.

Galindo emphasized that Cuba’s vaccination program encompassed the entire Cuban population, beginning vaccinations at the primary care level and drawing in the aid of the country’s mass organizations—from trade unions, to student associations, and women’s rights groups.

“Decisive is the word that best describes the participation of community organizations—such as the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution (CDRs) and the National Association of Small Farmers (ANAP),” Galindo said. “Over 80,000 members of these organizations have actively worked on the national vaccination drives.” As with all other health-care services in Cuba, these immunizations are free and provided in every region of the country.

The development of Cuba’s biotechnology industry has also helped. According to a January 18 article in Trabajoradores, the newspaper of the Central Organization of Cuban Workers (CTC), the country’s biotechnology industry today produces 7 out of 10 vaccines used throughout the island. Cuban laboratories first developed a meningitis B vaccine in 1999, and in July 2004 they produced a vaccine that stimulates the immune system against lung cancer cells. MEDICC review, a health and medical online newsletter, reports that Cuba’s Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Center is developing a plant-generated antibody to more cheaply generate vaccines and replace the use of laboratory animals. Work is also underway to produce synthetic vaccines that protect against infant meningitis and pneumonia, saving the country “$2-3 million a year in imports,” according to Granma International, a weekly published in Havana.

Tetanus is commonly referred to as lockjaw because as the tetanus toxins spread throughout the body they cause muscle spasms and stiffness in the neck and jaw. Tetanus is an acute, often fatal disease of the nervous and respiratory system, with a 50 percent mortality rate worldwide.

Despite the existence of a vaccine for the disease since 1924, there are 1 million cases reported annually, mostly in semicolonial countries where these vaccinations are costly and rare. The disease is contracted when individuals with puncture wounds or cuts are exposed to toxins bred in unsanitary conditions. According to the World Health Organization, tetanus commonly occurs during childbirth under non-sterile conditions. The Jakarta News said that an outbreak of tetanus has occurred in Indonesia’s Aceh province, the area most devastated by the recent tsunami that killed hundreds of thousands of people.  
 
 
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