The burden of vaccine preventable diseases in Australia—summary

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Release Date: 01 Nov 2019

Topic: Immunisation

Media release

AIHW

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2019) The burden of vaccine preventable diseases in Australia—summary, AIHW, Australian Government, accessed 05 November 2024.

APA

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2019). The burden of vaccine preventable diseases in Australia—summary. Canberra: AIHW.

MLA

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. The burden of vaccine preventable diseases in Australia—summary. AIHW, 2019.

Vancouver

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. The burden of vaccine preventable diseases in Australia—summary. Canberra: AIHW; 2019.

Harvard

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2019, The burden of vaccine preventable diseases in Australia—summary, AIHW, Canberra.

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This summary report presents key findings from the Burden of Vaccine Preventable Diseases in Australia study which focused on diseases with vaccines on Australia’s National Immunisation Program schedule. It provides estimates of the burden of disease for each disease individually, as well as for the diseases as a group, for 2005 and 2015. Estimates of vaccine preventable disease burden among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians for a subset of diseases are also presented.

This is a companion report to The burden of vaccine preventable diseases in Australia.

ISBN: 978-1-76054-640-3
Cat. no: PHE 242
Pages: 20

Findings from this report:

80% of the vaccine preventable burden in 2015 was due to premature death
Influenza contributed over one-third (36%) of the total vaccine preventable burden in 2015
The rate of vaccine preventable burden was highest among infants and those aged 85 and older
In 2015, 10% of the burden due to vaccine preventable diseases was among Indigenous Australians

Summary

What is a vaccine preventable disease?

Vaccine preventable diseases (VPD) can have a severe impact on individuals and the community. A VPD is a disease that can be prevented, or its impact reduced through immunisation (generally with a vaccine). Vaccines stimulate the body’s immune system to protect against future infection.
The Australian Government provides free vaccines to eligible people. In 2018, the Australian National Immunisation Program (NIP) schedule provided vaccines against 17 diseases.

This analysis focuses on the 17 diseases with vaccines in the NIP schedule in 2018. The diseases included are chickenpox, diphtheria, Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), hepatitis A, hepatitis B, human papillomavirus (HPV), influenza, measles, meningococcal disease, mumps, pneumococcal disease, polio, rotavirus, rubella, shingles, tetanus and whooping cough.

What is burden of disease?

Burden of disease analysis is a way to measure, combine and compare the impact of different diseases, conditions or injuries on a population. It measures the impact of living with illness and injury and dying prematurely. The summary measure ‘disability-adjusted life years’ (DALY) measures the years of healthy life lost from death (fatal burden) and illness or injury (non-fatal burden).

Most VPD burden was due to premature death

The 17 VPD covered under the NIP schedule were responsible for almost 16,000 DALY in 2015, at a rate of 62 DALY per 100,000 population. Most of the burden (80%) was due to premature death (fatal burden).

5 diseases accounted for almost all of the total VPD burden

In 2015, influenza, pneumococcal disease, HPV, shingles and meningococcal disease accounted for almost 95% of the total VPD burden.

Contribution of individual diseases to overall burden (DALY) due to VPD, 2015 (%)

The stacked bar chart shows influenza contributed the largest overall burden (DALY) at 36%25, followed by pneumococcal and HPV each at 24%25, shingles at 7%25, meningococcal at 4%25, with all other vaccine preventable diseases combined contributing 5%25 to the overall burden in 2015.

Note: ‘All other VPD’ comprises hepatitis B, whooping cough, chickenpox, rotavirus, hepatitis A, measles, diphtheria, tetanus, rubella, Hib, mumps and polio.

Burden decreased between 2005 and 2015

The overall rate of burden due to VPD decreased by almost one-third (31%) between 2005 and 2015.

Comparing 2 time points of 2015 and 2005, the Burden of Vaccine Preventable Diseases in Australia study (BVPD study) has shown a reduction in the burden for a number of diseases for which vaccines have been added to, or vaccine eligibility extended on, the NIP schedule during the past 20 years—such as HPV, chickenpox, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, meningococcal disease, pneumococcal disease and rotavirus.

The introduction of vaccines appears to have reduced both the number of cases and the overall disease burden associated with these diseases.

Burden rate higher among Indigenous Australians

Estimates of the burden among Indigenous Australians are provided for 13 VPD: chickenpox, Hib, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, HPV, influenza, measles, meningococcal disease, mumps, pneumococcal disease, rotavirus, shingles and whooping cough.

In 2015, VPD among Indigenous Australians accounted for 10% of the burden due to these 13 specified VPD. After adjusting for differences in population age structure, the Indigenous burden rate was 4.1 times that for non-Indigenous Australians.

Between 2005 and 2015, the age-standardised rate of burden among Indigenous Australians decreased by almost 41% (more on Indigenous Australians).