A new vaccine for dengue received prequalification from the World Health Organization (WHO) on 10 May 2024.
Developed by Takeda, TAK-003 that contained weakened versions of the four serotypes of the virus that cause dengue, is the second dengue vaccine to be prequalified by WHO.
WHO recommends the use of TAK-003 in children aged 6–16 years administered in a 2-dose schedule with a 3-month interval.
Dengue (break-bone fever) is a viral infection that spreads from mosquitoes to people. It is more common in tropical and subtropical climates.
Severe dengue is a potentially lethal complication which can develop from dengue infections.
The most common symptoms are high fever, headache, body aches, nausea, and rash.
It is estimated that there are over 100-400 million cases of dengue worldwide each year and 3.8 billion people living in dengue endemic countries, most of which are in Asia, Africa, and the Americas.
The WHO prequalification list also includes CYD-TDV vaccine against dengue developed by Sanofi Pasteur, said the note.
The largest number of dengue cases reported was in 2023 with the WHO Region of the Americas reporting 4.5 million cases and 2300 deaths.
Dengue cases are likely to increase and expand geographically due to climate change and urbanization.
