Dengue fever vaccines are in high demand.

For half a century, finding a dengue fever vaccine has been a pressing issue. Recently, Vietnam approved its dengue fever vaccine along with 39 other countries worldwide , taking another important step in the prevention and control of the disease.

The VNVC vaccination system has administered and received reservations for nearly 15,000 doses of dengue fever vaccine for children and adults since launching the vaccination program on September 20th.

The dengue fever vaccine is receiving a lot of public attention.

At the recent in-depth seminar on dengue fever vaccines, Ms. Bach Thi Chinh, Medical Director of the VNVC Vaccination System, stated that dengue fever vaccines are currently receiving a lot of attention from the public.

Attending an in-depth workshop on dengue fever vaccines along with hundreds of doctors, nurses, and VNVC medical staff, former Minister of Health , Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Thi Kim Tien, stated that dengue fever not only places a burden and pressure on patients and their families but also on the healthcare system and its workforce.

Nearly 40 years ago, Vietnam witnessed a devastating dengue fever epidemic in the Mekong Delta. At that time, prevention relied primarily on eliminating mosquitoes and larvae; there was no specific treatment, resulting in numerous deaths in Ho Chi Minh City and the Mekong Delta region. The introduction of the dengue fever vaccine is a significant step forward in the fight against this dangerous disease.

For half a century, finding a dengue fever vaccine has been a pressing issue. Vietnam has approved its dengue fever vaccine along with 39 other countries worldwide, taking another important step in disease prevention and control.

The use of vaccines along with other preventive measures will reduce the number of cases, hospitalizations, and severe complications from the disease in the not-too-distant future. This is the most compelling evidence of the safety, effectiveness, and high humanitarian value of vaccines in general and the dengue vaccine in particular.

From a management perspective, Associate Professor Nguyen Vu Trung, Director of the Pasteur Institute of Ho Chi Minh City, shared that before the vaccine was approved and brought to Vietnam for nationwide vaccination, many dengue fever prevention measures had been aggressively implemented by the health sector for many years. However, due to the complex development of the epidemic, control became more difficult, leading to an increase in the disease.

He argued that the dengue vaccine is a proactive and specific preventive measure for the general public. Research results show that it is a safe vaccine and can be used for children, who are a vulnerable group and have a very high incidence of dengue fever.

He expects that as the number of people using the vaccine increases, along with other measures, the burden of dengue fever on the community will certainly decrease significantly in a short period of time.

As the first unit to deploy dengue fever vaccination in Vietnam, Dr. Bach Thi Chinh, Medical Director of the VNVC Vaccination System, said that since the vaccine was launched on September 20th, nearly 200 vaccination centers nationwide have administered and received reservations for nearly 15,000 doses of dengue fever vaccine for children and adults.

According to Dr. Chinh, with its strength as the leading vaccination service center system in Vietnam with nearly 200 centers, more than 10,000 doctors, nurses, and medical staff, a cold storage system and a professional refrigerated vehicle system for vaccine transport meeting GSP standards, VNVC can also organize mobile vaccination teams to schools, businesses, residential areas, etc., with the highest safety vaccination procedures to promptly protect the health of children and adults before the peak dengue fever season that usually occurs in October every year.

Sharing information about the dangers of dengue fever, Dr. Chinh said that the Dengue virus has four different serotypes. An initial infection with any one serotype is believed to create long-lasting immunity, but this may not last a lifetime and provides temporary protection, estimated at a few months to 1-2 years, against other serotypes.

A person can contract dengue fever multiple times in their life with different types of the virus, and the second infection may even be more severe than the first.

Dengue fever can cause dangerous complications such as hypotension, heart failure, kidney failure, hemorrhagic shock, multiple organ failure, cerebral hemorrhage, coma, etc.

The disease is at risk of becoming severe during the fever-free phase, from the 3rd to the 5th day, which can easily lead patients to underestimate the severity. Groups at higher risk of developing severe dengue fever include young children, pregnant women, people with chronic diseases, and obese individuals. In pregnant women, dengue fever can cause fetal distress, premature birth, and stillbirth.

At the workshop, Dr. Truong Huu Khanh, Vice President of the Ho Chi Minh City Infectious Diseases Association, stated that since 1959, there has been no specific treatment for dengue fever, while the disease is becoming increasingly complex, widespread, and occurs year-round instead of seasonally. Control measures for disease-carrying mosquitoes face many difficulties due to urbanization, trade, and travel.

Every year, Vietnam experiences hundreds of thousands of dengue fever cases, with dozens to hundreds of deaths. The WHO ranks dengue fever as one of the top 10 global health burdens, at level 3 (the highest level) of health emergency.

According to Doctor Khanh, dengue fever is difficult to control because people infected with dengue fever may not show any symptoms or may have unclear symptoms.

According to research, 80% of asymptomatic individuals are still capable of transmitting dengue fever. Severe illness is difficult to predict and can develop without warning signs.

The latest data from Children's Hospital 1 shows that the number of dengue fever cases is currently higher than in the same period of 2023.

In August 2024, the hospital admitted 130 dengue fever cases and 8 cases with complications such as dengue shock, requiring intensive treatment. "Without a vaccine, we will simply lag behind dengue fever," Dr. Khanh stated.

There is currently no specific treatment for dengue fever; the focus is on early detection and treatment of symptoms. The WHO calls for public awareness campaigns, vector control, and close monitoring, along with vaccination, as a key measure for effective prevention.

The Qdenga dengue vaccine, manufactured in Germany by Takeda Pharmaceuticals of Japan, protects against all four serotypes of the dengue virus: DEN-1, DEN-2, DEN-3, and DEN-4. This is the first dengue vaccine approved in Vietnam, administered in a two-dose regimen 3 months apart for children aged 4 years and older to adults.

The dengue vaccine has been researched and developed for 45 years, tested based on data from more than 28,000 participants. The vaccine uses the genetic framework of the attenuated DEN-2 type to ensure full coverage of the remaining types, which are also the types of virus that most often cause severe illness.

Currently, Takeda's dengue vaccine has been rolled out as part of community immunization programs in many endemic countries with high numbers of cases and deaths, such as Brazil and Argentina.

In Indonesia, the dengue vaccine has been included in the provincial immunization program of three cities in two provinces that have recorded high numbers of cases.

Studies and vaccination deployments show that Takeda's dengue vaccine is part of a comprehensive dengue control strategy.

The study results showed that the vaccine is safe and highly effective in preventing dengue fever regardless of the serotype of the virus. There was no evidence of increased disease severity, no increased risk of hospitalization, and no vaccine-related deaths in vaccinated individuals, regardless of their initial dengue infection status.

It is known that the dengue fever vaccine was researched and brought to market by Takeda Pharmaceuticals. Previously, at the seminar: "Promoting Innovation and Sustainable Development in the Healthcare Industry" organized by Investment Newspaper on September 25th, Mr. Dion Warren, General Manager for Southeast Asia and India, Takeda, stated that Takeda pursues a strategy of providing advanced healthcare solutions to build a healthier future for Vietnamese people, through expanding access to medicines and strengthening cooperation with partners to jointly achieve the common goal of improving public health.

“We have spent nearly $5 billion on research and development (R&D). Takeda has achieved many outstanding breakthroughs in the fields of cancer treatment, digestive diseases, rare diseases, plasma-derived therapies, and now vaccines,” said Dion Warren.

In May 2024, we reached a significant new milestone when the Vietnamese Ministry of Health approved Takeda's dengue fever vaccine.

This is the first dengue vaccine approved in Vietnam, adding a proactive and sustainable prevention method to the integrated prevention strategy, in response to the growing public health threat of dengue fever in Vietnam.

Vietnam is one of the countries most affected by dengue fever. In 2022, Vietnam had nearly 370,000 cases and 150 deaths. Dengue fever is more prevalent in the South than in other regions of Vietnam.

Increasing vaccination rates is a top priority in Takeda's infectious disease prevention strategy, especially as dengue fever is placing a significant burden on both the national healthcare system and economy.

To achieve this goal, we will continue to collaborate with health agencies, universities, research institutes, partners, and public and private vaccination centers.

“Takeda has over 40 years of experience addressing various healthcare issues in countries, including Vietnam. From our perspective, the most important thing is collaboration and dialogue to achieve common goals and create meaningful value for the community,” said Dion Warren.

Takeda is a Japanese pharmaceutical company with a presence in over 80 countries and regions worldwide, with revenue reaching $28.2 million in 2023 and a workforce of 50,000 people.

Source: https://baodautu.vn/vac-xin-sot-xuat-huyet-dang-hot-d226002.html