The World Health Organization (WHO) has made it clear that it did not support the enactment of the Dengvaxia Dengue vaccine in the Philippines. The said vaccine has caused more harm than help since it made people who had never had dengue more prone to the deadly disease.
WHO's statement contradicted Philippines' former Health Secretary Janette Garin, who claimed in an interview that the dangerous Dengue vaccine was administered as per WHO's instructions.
WHO has also explained, "The WHO position paper did not include a recommendation to countries to introduce the dengue vaccine into their national immunization programs, rather, WHO outlined a series of considerations national governments should take into account in deciding whether to introduce the vaccine, based on a review of available data at the time, along with possible risks."
According to the international organization, they have also stated that the vaccine must only be introduced to communities and areas where at least 70 percent of the population had already been exposed to the Dengue virus and must be given to people 9 years of age and above. The Dengvaxia vaccine was reportedly administered by Filipino officials even before WHO's advice last April 2016.
It wasn't until recently that Sanofi Pasteur, the manufacturer of Dengvaxia, announced that the vaccine poses risks to those who were not infected by dengue virus before. There is a reported 10 percent risk of more severe Dengue manifestation in those vaccinated with Dengvaxia but had not experienced the disease before. What's worse is that it was administered mostly to 733,000 school children, mostly at the age of nine. The Dengue virus carried by mosquitoes is already as deadly as is, but with the said vaccine on the wrong people, it is even more lethal.
The risk of a severe Dengue outbreak is now calculated for approximately 70,000 school children, all of whom must now avoid contracting the disease, which is easier said than done since mosquitoes are some of the most persistent insects in the Philippines. WHO has announced support for the Philippine Department of Health (DOH) in pulling out the Dengvaxia vaccination programs. In the meantime, parents were advised to seek medical help the moment their children show symptoms of Dengue. As for the time being, there is no way to reverse the damage of Dengvaxia.
