Dengue Cases Continue to Increase, ICMR to Conduct Vaccine Trial

Dengue fever, a mosquito-borne viral disease, has been on the rise in recent years. According to the World Health Organization, an estimated 390 million people are infected with dengue each year, and the number of cases is steadily increasing. To combat this, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has announced plans to conduct a clinical trial for a dengue vaccine.

The ICMR has developed a live attenuated dengue vaccine that has shown promising results in pre-clinical studies. The vaccine is designed to protect against all four serotypes of the dengue virus, which are known to cause severe illness and can be fatal.

The clinical trial is expected to involve over 1,500 participants and will be conducted across 11 sites in India. The trial will test the safety and efficacy of the vaccine in preventing dengue infection. If successful, the vaccine could be a game-changer in the fight against dengue and could potentially save thousands of lives.

Currently, there is no specific treatment for dengue, and prevention measures focus on mosquito control and avoidance. However, these measures have proven to be challenging to implement effectively, especially in densely populated urban areas where the disease is most prevalent.

The increasing incidence of dengue highlights the urgent need for an effective vaccine. The disease can cause severe symptoms, such as high fever, severe headache, and joint and muscle pain. In severe cases, it can lead to dengue hemorrhagic fever, which can be fatal if not treated promptly.

Re-reported from the story originally published in The Indian Express