WHO approves first mpox vaccine for use

GENEVA: The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced the pre-qualification of the MVA-BN vaccine, the first vaccine against mpox, amid an increasing number of cases worldwide, including in Pakistan.

Approval of pre-qualification is expected to facilitate timely and increased access to this critical product in communities in urgent need, to reduce transmission and help contain the outbreak.

The WHO assessment for prequalification is based on information submitted by the manufacturer, Bavarian Nordic A/S, and the regulatory agency of record for this vaccine, the European Medicines Agency.

“This first prequalification of a vaccine against MPox is an important step in our fight against this disease, both in the context of the current outbreak in Africa and in the future,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “We now need to scale up urgently in procurement, donations and roll-out to ensure equitable access to vaccines where they are needed most, along with other public health tools, to prevent infection, prevent transmission and to save lives.”

The MVA-BN vaccine can be administered as 2-dose injection 4 weeks apart in people over 18 years of age. After initial cold storage, the vaccine can be stored at 2–8°C for up to 8 weeks.

After one person tested positive in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the total number of MPOX cases in Pakistan has risen to five.

KP Health Minister Qasim Ali Shah announced that a 33-year-old resident of Peshawar tested positive for the disease.

The patient, who returned from Saudi Arabia on September 7, was diagnosed at Khyber Teaching Hospital and is currently in isolation at his home in Lower Dir.

In response to increasing cases of monkeypox, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has issued an advisory regarding the global spread of the virus.