(Eagle News)– There have been no reported deaths related to the dengue vaccine Dengvaxia.
This is according to Sanofi Pasteur, which manufactures the drug that it said could cause “severe cases” upon administration in those that have not been afflicted with dengue beforehand.
In a statement on Monday, the pharmaceutical company said that this means that these people had an “increased risk of hospitalization for dengue and severe dengue, predominantly Grade I or II Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever (DHF)” upon administration of the vaccine.
“Severe dengue can be categorized from milder to more severe forms as DHF I, II, III, and IV according to (the World Health Organization),” the company said.
It added it was proposing new vaccine labels so they could reflect the new data.
Philippine authorities and French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi said on November 4 that the world-first dengue vaccine would not lead to death, days after the company warned it could worsen the disease in some cases. / AFP PHOTO / TED ALJIBE
The Philippines on Friday suspended the program, after more than 733,000 people had been immunized, in response to a statement from Sanofi that its vaccine could cause “more cases of severe disease” for people who had not previously had the mosquito-borne ailment.
After news outlets and some politicians in the Philippines expressed concern about the welfare of those immunized, the French pharmaceutical giant held a press conference in Manila to state the potential cases of “severe dengue” would not be fatal.
“What is this severe (dengue)? When people think of ‘severe’, this already includes dengue shock that could lead to death, but no,” Sanofi Pasteur regional head for dengue Joselito Sta. Ana told reporters.
Sta. Ana said Sanofi’s definition of “severe dengue” merely referred to symptoms including two days of fever, a lower platelet count and bruising.
Philippine presidential spokesman Harry Roque also sought to allay fears, stating there was “no danger” with the Dengvaxia vaccine.
“The worst that can happen is for those who have not had dengue before — which is one out of 10 (Filipinos) — they may get infected with dengue but falling under our previous classification of ‘mild’, having fever and bruises,” Roque said.
Nevertheless, the justice department announced Monday that the National Bureau of Investigation would investigate the vaccination programme “over the alleged danger to public health”. It warned in a statement that charges could follow.
The previous administration of president Benigno Aquino launched the vaccination programme last year, making the Philippines the first nation to use Dengvaxia on a mass scale.
Although the Philippine program has been suspended, Dengvaxia remains available on an individual basis in consultation with doctors, the health department said.
(with a report from Agence France Presse)