A strong word of caution has been issued to the public not to buy what is being touted as a vaccine for the dreaded Zika virus.
There have been several international reports about an experimental vaccine for the virus, with many volunteers flooding hospitals in the United States in the hope of testing the serum.
It was also alleged that a local pharmacy in Antigua was selling the so-called vaccine.
The reports prompted an immediate response from Chief Medical Officer Dr Rhonda Sealy Thomas, who said no such vaccine exists.
“Unfortunately, there is no vaccine proven or endorsed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to treat Zika,” Sealy Thomas said.
She stated further, “WHO is the leading public health agency, they have a department that deals with vaccine technology research, and if you go on the website there is no Zika vaccine. Certainly, if a vaccine has been developed, we in Antigua & Barbuda, through the Ministry of Health, would have been able to procure that vaccine.”
The public debate about the pros and cons of vaccines re-surfaced earlier this week, when the Health Ministry announced that children are to be immunized against the Human Papillomavirus (HPV). (The Daily Observer)
