Data from the World Health Organization indicates that dengue is the fastest spreading mosquito-borne viral disease, with some 40 percent of the world’s population living under the threat of dengue virus. As everyone should know by now, dengue is a deadly viral disease caused by the bite of Aedes Aegypti mosquitoes (there are many mosquito types falling under this genus). With the rainy season now definitely here, mothers are worried about the proliferation of mosquitos and the possible outbreak of dengue.Contrary to common notion, dengue mosquitoes thrive in stagnant, clean water – not in dirty stagnant water such as those we see on canals or esteros. People should carefully check areas where mosquitoes could breed, such as pails and other water containers, old tires, uncovered soft-drink bottles in the yard, etc.
According to reports, the vial disease is the source of 390 million infections and the cause of over 20,000 deaths every year on a global scale. In the Philippines, more than 200,000 cases of dengue fever were reported, although health experts suspect that the number could be higher because many cases are either underreported or misdiagnosed. Data also shows that the number of dengue cases is on the rise, with 101,401 suspected dengue cases already reported as of Aug. 20 this year (higher by 16 percent compared to the same period in 2015), with 442 deaths recorded.
The Department of Health has launched an anti-dengue vaccine program early this year with Dengvaxia, the world’s first anti-dengue vaccine manufactured by a French multinational pharma. Grade 4 public school children in selected areas that have shown high cases of dengue were the initial beneficiaries with expectations that the program would be expanded later in the year until June 2017. But for some reason, the vaccination program was reportedly put on hold by the DOH that wants the vaccine subjected to further review to ascertain how effective it is in offering protection to the most common dengue serotypes in the country known as serotypes 1 and 2. Apparently, the efficacy of the aid vaccine could be affected if one has already been previously infected with the disease prior to vaccination.
No doubt dengue is a deadly global disease, with children and the elderly (especially those with poor health conditions) among the most vulnerable. One positive development is the announcement from pharmaceutical company Takeda that it has initiated the third phase of its trials to determine the efficacy of a vaccine under development for all four dengue serotypes—regardless of previous exposure to the disease.
The Japanese pharma company – which is the biggest in Asia—said it has vaccinated the first subject for Phase 3 of its Tetravalent Immunization against Dengue Efficacy Study. Approximately 20,000 healthy children between the ages of four and 16 years living in dengue-endemic countries in Latin America and Asia will be included. The study aims to evaluate the efficacy of the vaccine candidate to protect all individuals at risk for symptomatic dengue fever caused by any of the four dengue virus serotypes regardless of age and whether the individual has previously been exposed to the virus, the company reiterated.
“While vector-control efforts are important, there is still much work to be done in terms of disease prevention through vaccination. Dengue-endemic countries throughout the Asia Pacific region would benefit from a vaccine that would protect against all four types of the virus in both adults and children with an acceptable safety profile, whether or not they have been previously infected with dengue,” said Dr. Annelies Wilder-Smith, professor of Infectious Diseases and Director for Global Health and Vaccinology Programme at the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine in Singapore.
Dr. Rajeev Venkayya, president of the Global Vaccine Business Unit at Takeda, disclosed that “Initiation of this Phase 3 trial brings us closer to bringing a vaccine to market in places that need it most to help address unmet needs in dengue protection.”
According to doctors, more than half of those infected with the virus are “asymptomatic”—meaning they do not exhibit the symptoms such as high fever, profuse sweating, feeling of nausea or vomiting, pain in the joints, loss of appetite, appearance of rashes, swelling of the hands and soles of the feet, and a drop in blood pressure.
If you experience any or all of these symptoms, don’t waste your time – go visit a doctor or a hospital to get yourself checked.
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