[afro-nets] Rabies Vaccine availability in Africa

["R Reddy" <reddy.cdbio@gmail.com>]

Rabies Vaccine availability in Africa
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Dear All

More than 100 years ago, Louis Pasteur and his colleagues developed the first crude rabies vaccine based on attenuated virus from desiccated nerve tissue. Unfortunately, the majority of post-exposure immunizations against rabies are still performed with vaccines of crude nerve tissue origin. Although continuously improved over the years, inactivated vaccines produced in sheep or goat brains (Semple) or suckling mouse brain (Fuenzalida) may be associated with serious adverse events. Possible post-vaccinal neurological reactions may include meningoencephalitis, meningoencephalomyelitis, mononeuritis multiplex, dorsolumbar transverse myelitis and ascending paralysis of the Landry type, usually occurring between one and two weeks after the first injection. With the Semple-type vaccines,

Furthermore, in terms of protective potency these vaccines are inferior to modern cell-derived vaccines and WHO recommends phasing out of semple type vaccine production and discourage its use in man and animals.

In view of the WHO recommendation many of governments in Asia are switching over to the production of modern cell culture rabies vaccine in Asian countries and also many regulatory authorities banned the use of semple type rabies vaccine for human use.

Recently I come to know Bangladesh, Ethiopia and Nepal are still using this type of vaccine. I would like to know the name of the countries still using such type of vaccine and What is situation of rabies in Africa countries?

Does there is any difficulty for availability of modern cell culture rabies vaccine in African countries? Do any body phasing problems?

Please share your opinions and situation of rabies in African countries in this forum

Thanking you

R Reddy
Pharmacist
India
mailto:reddy.cdbio@gmail.com