Research on a vaccine against dengue fever 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.

Illustrative image. (Photo: AFP/VNA)

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 Dengvaxia 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.