MANILA SUSPENDS DENGUE VACCINE
Manufacturer warns it can worsen virus in some cases
THE Philippines yesterday said it had suspended use of a landmark vaccine for the potentially deadly dengue virus after its manufacturer warned it could worsen the disease in some cases.
French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi announced on Wednesday that its world-first dengue vaccine could lead to severe symptoms for people who had not previously been infected.
The Philippines has vaccinated more than 700,000 children with Dengvaxia since last year, when it became the first country to start using it on a mass scale.
But, it said yesterday the programme had been suspended.
“In the light of this new analysis, the Department of Health will place the dengue vaccination programme on hold while review and consultation is ongoing with experts, key stakeholders and the World Health Organisation,” a government statement said.
Sanofi had initially said its Dengvaxia vaccine was “critical” in the fight against dengue, the world’s most common mosquitoborne virus.
It said on Wednesday that a new study confirmed Dengvaxia’s benefits for “those who had prior infection”.
“For those not previously infected by dengue virus, however, the analysis found that in the longer term, more cases of severe disease could occur following vaccination upon a subsequent dengue infection.”
The Philippine government stressed it had not yet received reports of problems with Dengvaxia, saying that there had been no reported case of severe dengue infection among those who received the vaccine.