WHO calls for intensified anti-dengue measures amid Dengvaxia mess

PHOTO BY EDWIN BACASMAS

Intensified anti-dengue measures must be in place to quell exposure in areas where the controversial Dengvaxia vaccine has been administered, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

The WHO also advised governments to expedite access to immediate medical care to vaccine recipients with apparent symptoms of dengue infection.

“To minimize illness for seronegative vaccinated people, WHO recommends enhancing measures that reduce exposure to dengue infection among populations where the vaccine has already been administered,” the WHO said in a statement.

“For vaccine recipients who present with clinical symptoms compatible with dengue virus infection, access to medical care should be expedited to allow for proper evaluation, identification, and management of severe forms of the disease,” it said.

Dengue is a mosquito-borne disease that has spread to most tropical areas, such as the Philippines.

The Philippines is the first country in Asia after the country’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) licensed and approved the vaccine in December 2015.

According to the Department of Health (DOH), over 700,000 children have been administered with Dengvaxia in line with the government’s mass immunization program./ac