Dengue vaccine arrives in PH

Medical societies in the Philippines welcomed yesterday the first shipment of the tetravalent dengue vaccine as it was launched yesterday in Parañaque City.

The Philippine Pedriatic Society, with its sub-specialty societies the Philippine Foundation for Vaccination, the Pedriatic Infectious Disease Society of the Philippines, and the Philippine Society of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, jointly welcomed the arrival of the world’s first dengue vaccine in the country.

The Dengvaxia vaccines, developed by Sanofi Pasteur, are now stored in the latest state- ofthe-art distribution facility of the Zuellig Pharma Corporation.

Department of Microbiology Research Institute for Tropical Medicine head Dr. Rose Capeding said in a statement that the vaccine would be for the 9-to-45year- old age group.

Dr. Sally Gatchalian, president of the Pediatric Infectious Disease Society of the Philippines, said as dengue is the fastestgrowing mosquito-borne disease in the world, the introduction of the vaccine in the country’s immunization programs will help reduce the incidence dengue in the Philippines.

Dr. Cecilia Montalban, president of the Philippine Foundation for Vaccination, noted that on average, over 110,000 Filipino get sick of dengue every year and that the country spends an estimated 16.7 billion annually due to dengue.

Dengvaxia is the culmination of over two decades of scientific innovation, collaboration, and research involving 25 clinical studies in 15 countries around the world. The Philippines, meanwhile, participated in all three phases of the clinical trials for the vaccine.