The Drug Administration, Ministry of Health, has just granted a license for the circulation of the dengue fever vaccine manufactured by Takeda Company (Japan), named Qdenga. This is the first dengue fever vaccine to be licensed in Vietnam and is also a sustainable measure, providing significant support to preventive healthcare and treatment forces.

The dengue fever vaccine produced by Takeda Pharmaceutical (Japan) has been approved in over 30 countries, including: the European Union, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Argentina, Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia. This vaccine has also been approved and used for national vaccination programs in Brazil and Argentina.

Disinfection spraying in dengue fever outbreak areas.

The vaccine is intended for individuals aged 4 and above, regardless of whether they have previously had dengue fever. This is the first dengue fever vaccine licensed in Vietnam for individuals without requiring pre-vaccination testing.

It is expected that the newly approved dengue fever vaccine will be available in Vietnam from September 2024.

Dengue fever is a disease transmitted by viruses through mosquitoes and poses a significant threat to global public health when circulating in over 125 countries. Along with climate change, the dengue fever epidemic is increasing, putting pressure and overload on domestic healthcare facilities. In Dak Lak province, in the first 5 months of 2024, the province recorded 300 cases of dengue fever.

While waiting for the dengue fever vaccine to be available in Vietnam, the health sector recommends that the primary and most effective disease prevention measures currently are mosquito control, larvicide spraying, insect repellent, and mosquito prevention. People need to inspect, detect, and eliminate mosquito breeding sites by regularly cleaning and covering water containers, disposing of waste materials, natural water holes, overturning unused containers that can hold water, adding salt or insecticide to decorative ponds, miniature landscapes, or refrigerator drip trays, using mosquito nets to prevent mosquito bites even during the day, wearing long-sleeved clothing, using mosquito spray, mosquito repellent, electric mosquito swatters, and mosquito prevention measures.