Children with dengue fever treated at Sóc Trăng Province's obstetrics and paediatrics hospital. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam will be one of the countries taking part in trials of a dengue fever vaccine from Japan, Prof. Dr Nguyễn Văn Kính, Deputy Chairman of the Việt Nam Medical Association, has revealed.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), dengue fever is among the top 10 threats to global health as 40 per cent of the world’s population reside in the areas at risk of infection. It is one of the fastest spreading mosquito-borne diseases and popular in tropical regions. The disease leads to about 20,000 deaths worldwide each year.

Dengue fever is caused by four dengue virus types, namely DEN-1, DEN-2, DEN-3 and DEN-4, of which DEN-1 and DEN-2 account for 90 per cent of cases. A person infected with a virus type can gain lifelong immunity to that type, but is still at risk of contracting others. Particularly, repeat infections are highly dangerous since the disease situation is often more severe from the first.

Since the start of 2023, Việt Nam has recorded more than 90,000 dengue fever cases, including 26 deaths, said the Ministry of Health.

Some countries used to test and license some dengue vaccines, but the vaccines’ efficacy has yet to meet expectations, especially when it comes to DEN-2, Kính said.

Recently, Japan has developed a new vaccine which initially showed efficacies for all the four virus types. The single-dose vaccine can be used for both adults and children.

However, he noted, efficacies of trials are necessary to have thorough assessment before it is used on a large scale. — VNS