The initial authorization of the vaccine produced by Bavarian Nordic means that donors such as the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (Sleepy) and UNICEF can buy it. But supplies are limited because there is only one factory.
The Director-General of the World Health Organization said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus“This is the first initial authorization for a vaccine against Monkeypox “It is an important step in our fight against the disease, both in the context of the current outbreak in Africa and in the future.”
The head of the UN health agency called for an “urgent” increase in procurement, donations and offerings to deliver the vaccine to where it is most needed, alongside other response measures.
Under license Global Health OrganizationThe vaccine can be given to people aged 18 and over in a two-dose regimen. The license says that while the vaccine is not currently licensed for people under 18, it may be used for infants, children and adolescents “in outbreak settings where the benefits of vaccination outweigh the potential risks.”
Officials at the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said last month that nearly 70 percent of cases in Congo – The country most affected by monkeypox – is children under 15 years of age, who also accounted for 85 percent of deaths.
The Africa CDC said on Thursday that 107 new deaths and 3,160 new cases had been recorded in the past week, just a week after it and the World Health Organization launched a continental response plan.
Monkeypox belongs to the same family as Viruses Like smallpox but causes milder symptoms such as fever, chills and body aches. People with more severe cases can develop lesions on the face, hands, chest and genitals.
