The World Health Organization (WHO) recommended the use of a dengue vaccine developed by the Japanese pharmaceutical company Takeda. Although vaccines against dengue already existed, it is the first time that the UN agency recommends one. Unlike other immunizations, this can be applied to people who have never been infected by the virus. This announcement comes at a time of expansion of infections in Latin America and Asia.
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This is an announcement that strengthens the fight against dengue. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommended on Monday, October 2, the use of the TAK-003 vaccine manufactured by the Japanese pharmaceutical company Takeda.
The vaccine is based on a weakened version of the virus that causes dengue, a disease transmitted by mosquitoes. Aedes aegypti. The infection usually produces symptoms similar to those of the flu (high fever, headaches, muscle aches, nausea, …). On some occasions, it can evolve into much more serious and sometimes fatal states, such as “dengue hemorrhagic fever.”
The vaccine demonstrated its effectiveness in tests carried out among patients aged 4 to 16 years in Asia and Latin America, explained Finnish scientist Hanna Nohynek, president of the group that advises the WHO on immunization issues. She added:
“It has great potential, at a time when many countries are suffering major outbreaks of the disease and the situation is worsening with climate change.”
An observation shared by Dr. Carlos Eduardo Pérez, infectious disease doctor at the National University of Colombia: “The approval of the vaccine by the WHO indicates its safety and effectiveness in clinical studies, and strengthens the implementation of large-scale vaccination programs.” “not only in some countries, but in all the countries in the region that are immersed in the problem of dengue.”
You do not need to have been infected for the vaccine to be effective.
In a press conference, the director general of the WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, specified that the vaccine will be recommended for children between 6 and 16 years of age in areas where the disease has become a major public health problem.
Takeda’s vaccine, also called Qdenga, is not the first dengue vaccine to be developed. Dengvaxia, from the pharmaceutical laboratory Sanofi-Pasteur, already exists, but it has the disadvantage of only being able to be applied to patients who already had a previous dengue infection.
On the contrary, with the Takeda vaccine, previous infection “is not necessary and that makes it possible to implement mass vaccination programs and, above all, in children who have not had previous exposure,” explains Dr. Carlos Eduardo Pérez.
Despite Monday’s recommendation, Hanna Nohynek stressed that the vaccine is recommended for types 1 and 2 (the most dangerous) of the dengue virus, but that, in the two other known types, 3 and 4, there are still “uncertainty” about its effectiveness.
It is also worth noting that the Qdenga vaccine recommended by the WHO has already been approved in several countries such as Brazil, Argentina, the United Kingdom, Indonesia, Thailand and the European Union.
In this way, the WHO recommendation constitutes strong support for the use of this vaccine and the development of previous vaccination programs, but each country has the power to approve, or not, the vaccine in its territory.
Furthermore, Dr. Pérez warns that vaccination is not a miracle remedy. The fight against dengue also involves controlling the vectors of the virus, that is, mosquitoes, and more education against the disease.
“Dengue will not only be prevented with the vaccine, but also with the control of vectors and social determinants. “Pedagogy must be involved in both the medical staff and the community about the early identification of the disease.”
“This vaccine will be a very valuable tool for prevention, but it is not the only one,” he adds.
The number of dengue cases diagnosed annually has multiplied by ten since 2000
The WHO recommendation appears even more important in the case of dengue: year after year the virus conquers new areas across the planet.
A common disease in tropical areas, dengue is found today in temperate areas whose climatic conditions had protected them from the virus. In Latin America, mountainous areas and highlands must now also face this new problem.
Thus, the WHO warned European countries this summer that they too could be faced with major outbreaks of the virus in future years. Countries on the continent such as France or Croatia have already registered cases of dengue.
Scientists attribute this spread of the virus to climate change, among other factors. Heat waves are examples of climatic phenomena that can trigger dengue outbreaks in more temperate areas.
The number of cases diagnosed annually increased tenfold, going from just half a million in 2000 to 5.2 million in 2019, according to the WHO.
Other studies highlight that almost half of the world’s population, that is, about 3.9 billion people, live in areas exposed to the risk of dengue. According to the WHO, 126 countries are affected by the virus.
The American continent is particularly exposed. Since the beginning of 2023, nearly three million suspected and confirmed cases of dengue have been recorded, a figure that exceeds 2.8 million cases registered throughout 2022, according to the WHO. 1,302 have died from the disease in the Americas so far this year. The three most affected countries are Brazil, Bolivia and Peru.
With AFP, EFE and Reuters
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