After a long wait, a vaccine against dengue is available in the market.
The Mexico health authorities have recently approved Dengvaxia, the first dengue vaccine in history. Developed by Sanofi, it took around 20 years of painstaking research and clinical trials for a total cost of more than $1.65 billion.
Dengue fever is a viral condition contracted by humans from an infected mosquito called Aedes aegypti, the same species responsible for Chikungunya and the rare Zika virus. It is characterized by mild to high fever, chills, muscle and joint pains, and rashes. However, it can also become dengue hemorraghic fever, a severe form involving abdominal pain, liver swelling, vomiting, nausea, and bleeding.
According to World Health Organization (WHO), dengue fever has increased to more than 25 times over the last 50 years, making it one of the most common mosquito-borne diseases in the entire world. At least 45 million are infected with the virus every year with around 22,000 cases of death.
The approval of the vaccine in Mexico is only appropriate since dengue fever is endemic in the country, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported. It has also one of the fast-rising economies with over 78% of its people living in urban areas. Many of the reported dengue cases occur in places that are densely populated or where residents are low-income earners such as in Africa.
Based on the statement released by the Mexican health agency on Wednesday, Dec. 9, the said vaccine has been tested in more than 26,000 patients around the globe and that the manufacturer has proven its safety and effectiveness.
The effectiveness rate of the vaccine is 65%, which may be low by vaccine standards, but it is expected to work on all four types of dengue fever and prevent the more serious effects of hemorraghic fever. However, it is not recommended to patients 9 years old and below as it doesn't show significant protection among them.
With the approval of Mexico, Sanofi hopes they will receive more of it from other countries.
