Glaxosmithkline Pharmaceutical company has said that globally, pneumonia kills more children under five than AIDS, malaria and measles combined.

The company stated this in a release issued in Lagos on Monday to mark this year’s World Pneumonia Day.

According to the release, “every year more than 150 million children under five suffer from pneumonia, and there are more than 90 million estimated pneumonia cases in Asia-Pacific, 35 million in Africa and three million in Europe in children under five.”

The release added, “every year, pneumonia hospitalises between 11 and 20 million children, and kills more than two million children worldwide. This is equivalent to 13 Boeing 747 crashing every single day. With effective treatment and prevention, 1.3 million of those lives could have been saved.”

It further stated that, pneumonia places a significant burden on patients, families, healthcare professionals and society.

“Prevention through vaccination can reduce disability and death from the disease; reduce pain, suffering, sleepless nights and loss of work days and income for parents due to the need to care for an ill child,” the release noted.

Also speaking, Mr Lekan Asuni, General Manager, Glaxosmithkline Pharmaceutical, Anglophone West Africa stated,“GSK is committed to fighting pneumonia worldwide and in Anglophone West  Africa in particular. Improving the level of awareness on the impact of the disease on our population is a critical step in winning the battle.”

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