Image copyright Tim Masin Image caption Public Health advised that pregnant women, as well as doctors, should get inoculated
A program to vaccinate children under five against a potentially fatal but rarely used childhood disease has begun in Toronto.
It is the first of its kind in Canada.
Heart is generally thought to be caused by infection, but the disease, known as CVID-19, was identified more than 20 years ago in children.
The World Health Organization is planning to make it the first rare strain of the disease.
The symptoms include fainting, vomiting, difficulty breathing and difficulty sleeping.
Although there is no antidote, it can often be reversed by the use of an antibiotic to clear up viral infections.
Children and young adults are thought to be more susceptible to the disease because, unlike their grandparents, they are increasingly exposed to the virus during disease outbreaks.
Public Health Ontario says the disease is rare, although in the 1990s there were instances in children in England and Scotland.
The measures to prevent the spread of the disease include writing parents’ contact details on their vaccinations cards and putting leaflets on children’s lunchboxes with details of the disease.
It was found in children who had received the full two doses of the influenza vaccine but had not been inoculated against it.
Parents are advised to ensure their children are up to date with their vaccinations, especially those who live in neighbourhoods where the disease has been detected.
Public Health advised that pregnant women, as well as doctors, should also get vaccinated against the virus.
