Costa Rica Health News – There are not many things that worry me about living in Costa Rica, but mosquitoes are one of them. However, there might be good news on the horizon.
The Sanofi-Pasteur company recently announced positive results from a test on their Dengue vaccine and suggested that the vaccine could be ready by the end of 2015 or the beginning of 2016, as the regulatory phase can last a year and a half.
They are up to phase 3, where they test both efficiency and safety. This vaccine showed to be 60.8% effective. It also reduced hospitalizations. Some side effects did appear, such as pain and redness at the injection site, discomfort and headaches.
This vaccine has been tested and improved upon for the last 20 years. Previous studies were only showing 25% or less efficiency. The vaccine is being made to attack all four types of the Dengue virus.
The vaccine is being tested on kids ages 9-16, as it has already proven to be safe in adults. The tests are being carried out in 20 cities and consists of three doses. 20,785 people are involved in the study. The study is being done in Latin America to see how effective it is in this setting and compare it to findings in Asia.
Although the vaccine is 60.8% effective, it’s not 100%, and it’s not ready yet, so we should continue to take precautions, such as emptying anything that collects water and attracts mosquitoes.
