WHO approves simplified cholera vaccine in the face of shortagesPhoto: Archive
Published 04/19/2024 21:15 | Updated 04/19/2024 21:16
The World Health Organization (WHO) announced this Friday (19) that it has approved a simplified version of an oral vaccine against cholera, to increase production and face the increase in the number of cases.
The Euvichol-S vaccine is a simplified formula of Euvichol-Plus, with fewer compounds, which should allow important volumes to be produced more quickly, the WHO reported. The compound is produced by the South Korean group EuBiologics and has similar efficacy to more complex formulations.
“The new vaccine is the third product from the same family of vaccines that we have for cholera on our WHO prequalification list,” said Rogério Gaspar, director of the UN health agency’s regulatory department.
Cholera is contracted through bacteria transmitted through contaminated water or food and causes diarrhea and vomiting, which leads to dehydration that can be fatal, especially in children. In recent years, there has been an explosion in infections worldwide, with 473,000 cases in 2022, double the number in 2021. According to preliminary data, there were 700,000 cases in 2023.
Although the global supply of vaccines has multiplied over the past decade, growing demand has created shortages, and 23 countries are currently reporting cases of cholera.
To combat the increase in cases, the WHO started recommending one dose of the vaccine, instead of two.
