Employees of vaccine company Bavarian Nordic work at the company’s laboratory in Martinsried, near Munich, Germany. File photo | Photo courtesy of LUKAS BARTH
The World Health Organization on Monday, October 14, announced that Bavarian Nordic’s mpox vaccine will be given to adolescents aged 12 to 17, who are considered particularly vulnerable to outbreaks of the disease, which has caused global concern. announced that it had been approved.
The WHO announced in a statement that it granted prequalification for use in adolescents to the Ginneos vaccine on October 8.
In August, the WHO declared mpox a global public health emergency for the second time in two years, after the virus spread from the Democratic Republic of the Congo to neighboring countries.
In September, the United Nations agency approved the vaccine for use as the first immunization against M.P.O.X in adults, making it easier for hard-hit African countries to access the vaccine.
Children, adolescents, and people with weakened immune systems are especially vulnerable to mpox, a viral infection that causes flu-like symptoms and pus-filled skin lesions.
The WHO’s decision comes after the European Union approved the drug as a vaccine for adolescents in September.
Published – October 14, 2024 4:33 PM IST
