Illustrative image. (Photo: AFP/VNA)HCM City (VNA) – Research on a vaccine against has been completed in
Vietnam and the vaccine still needs ethical approval from the Ministry of
Health before being popularized, according to the vaccine research group from the Pasteur Institute in Ho
Chi Minh City.
The research
of a vaccine named Dengvaxia, sponsored by France-based Sanofi Pasteur, began
over 20 years ago and has gone through many phases on both humans and animals regarding pharmacology,
safety and efficacy, said Dr. Tran Ngoc Huu, former director of the HCMC
Pasteur Institute and head of the research group on July 27.
Two major
studies on the vaccine’s safety and efficacy have been completed in 10
countries, including five in Southeast Asia – Indonesia, Malaysia, the
Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam, from 2011 to 2017, Huu noted.
In Vietnam,
since 2011, the research group has tested the vaccine on 2,336 children aged 2 – 14 in the two Mekong Delta
provinces of An Giang and Tien Giang.
All the children in Vietnam who participated in
the test are safe without any complications, he said.
Tests in other
countries have also shown the
Dengvaxia is highly effective in preventing dengue fever in children aged 9 –
16, who have been previously infected.
Based on such
results, Sanofi Pasteur has registered to distribute in many
countries around the world. As of May this year, the vaccine has been licensed by 54 countries
and territories.
Huu added
Sanofi Pasteur has pledged to
provide the vaccine to the
Vietnamese market at a reasonable price if it receives approval. –VNA
Source: VietnamPlus
