New Delhi. Every year, with the arrival of monsoon, people start fearing dengue. Between July and October, the number of dengue patients in hospitals starts increasing. If we look at the data, it is found that more than 32,000 cases of dengue were reported in India in the year 2024. Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Prataprao Jadhav had told the Lok Sabha that before this, 18391 cases of dengue were reported in the year 2023.
In severe cases, dengue also increases the risk of internal bleeding, which can even prove fatal. Amidst these dangers, a major breakthrough has emerged in India regarding dengue. Japanese pharmaceutical company Takeda Pharmaceutical’s dengue vaccine, Qdenga, has received approval from the Indian drug regulator. Significantly, this is the first dengue vaccine approved in India. This is expected to open a new chapter in the field of dengue prevention.
Dengue Vaccine in India
According to reports, the most important feature of this vaccine is that it has been developed to provide protection against all four types of dengue virus. Furthermore, there will be no need to test whether a person has had dengue before administering it.
This approval comes at a time when dengue cases in India have increased exponentially over the past 20 years. Thousands of people contract the disease each year, and many patients are hospitalized. Experts have long emphasized the need for an effective vaccine. Takeda, in collaboration with the Indian company Biological-E, has also begun preparations for large-scale production of this vaccine.
Qudenga vaccine will provide protection against dengue
According to the company, QDENGA is a tetravalent live-attenuated vaccine. Simply put, this means the vaccine is designed to protect against all four types of dengue virus. It uses a weakened form of the virus so the body’s immune system can learn to recognize and fight the virus, but it doesn’t cause illness.
The company says this approval comes at a crucial time, given the rising incidence of dengue in India. According to available data, dengue cases in India have increased nearly 11-fold over the past two decades.
Takeda entered into a partnership with Indian vaccine manufacturer Biological-E in 2024. Under this agreement, Biological-E will develop the capacity to produce approximately 50 million doses annually. This will help Takeda achieve its goal of producing 100 million doses annually worldwide by the end of the decade.
Effective in preventing dengue
Dengue, a mosquito-borne viral infection, has become a major public health challenge for many countries worldwide. According to the company, India alone accounts for approximately one-third of the global dengue cases. Mahendra Nayak, Head of Intercontinental Markets at Takeda, said that since its launch in 2022, QDENGA has been approved in 43 countries and more than 32 million doses have been distributed worldwide. Studies on the vaccine show that it has proven effective in providing long-term protection against dengue and reducing the risk of hospitalization due to dengue.