Experts outline initiatives for future control of dengue fever

The original article can be found on: Caribbean News Now 

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Dengue v2V, a group of international experts in dengue, public health and vaccinology, held a meeting in Puerto Rico on 5–6 November 2011 to continue to outline steps for the introduction of a dengue vaccine once licensed. Dengue is a threat to almost half of the world’s population, and a public health priority in Latin America and Asia where epidemics are common.

“Puerto Rico was a relevant venue for this meeting given its location and experience with both endemic and epidemic dengue activity,” said Dr Harold Margolis, Chief of the Dengue Branch at the Centers for Disease Control, Puerto Rico and co-chair of the meeting. “In addition to mosquito control measures, a dengue vaccine is seen as the best way to effectively control dengue.”

“The well coordinated introduction of a dengue vaccine will be crucial to reducing the burden of disease, but vaccination programs are complex to implement and dengue itself presents unique challenges. It is critical that we anticipate the challenges ahead of us and start preparing now,” said Associate Professor Joseph Torresi, Austin Health and University of Melbourne, Australia, and co-chair of the meeting.

Attendees at the meeting included dengue experts, vaccinology experts, and public health officials from Puerto Rico, Australia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, France, the French Caribbean, Korea, Mexico, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, the United Kingdom and the United States, who drew on their experiences with dengue and other vaccination programs to propose strategies for…

To continue reading this article please visit the original article on: Caribbean News Now.

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