Vietnam rolls out first EV71 vaccine against HFMD

The rollout makes Vietnam the first country in Southeast Asia to offer the vaccine, according to VNVC.

The vaccine is indicated for children aged two months to under six years, with a two- or three-dose schedule depending on the age at which vaccination begins.

The vaccine was tested in a Phase III clinical trial in Vietnam and was found to have 96.8 percent efficacy against EV71-associated HFMD, with no EV71 cases recorded among vaccinated participants, according to published data.

EV71 is associated with a large proportion of severe cases and deaths from HFMD, according to information presented at the vaccine launch.

The vaccine is being introduced as HFMD remains a concern in Vietnam, particularly among children under six, according to VNVC.

On the first day of the rollout, tens of thousands of registrations were recorded at nearly 300 VNVC centers across the country, with children under three accounting for around 70 percent of registrations.

In Ho Chi Minh City, Nguyen Duc Quy of Hoa Hung Ward brought his 23-month-old son, Nguyen Chi Minh Duc, to a VNVC center early in the morning after waiting for the vaccine to become available.

"My son often crawls around, puts objects and his hands in his mouth, while there are many young children in daycare, so the risk of infection has always worried our family. Now that the center has the vaccine, I brought him in early to protect him and feel more reassured when he goes to daycare," Quy said.

Dr. Nguyen An Nghia of Children's Hospital 1 in Ho Chi Minh City said children with hand, foot and mouth disease can deteriorate from mild illness to critical condition within six to eight hours.

EV71 is the most severe of the virus strains that cause the disease because it can damage the central nervous system, Dr. Nghia said.

Dr. Truong Huu Khanh, vice-chairman of the Infectious Diseases Society of Ho Chi Minh City and a leading expert on infectious diseases in children, said the EV71 vaccine was a solution that pediatric specialists had been awaiting for years after multiple outbreaks sent children to hospital, with some developing severe illness and dangerous complications.

"Many parents have asked me over the years when a vaccine for HFMD would become available. During major outbreaks, the rapid increase in hospitalized children puts greater pressure on the healthcare system. So I am very happy that Vietnam now has an EV71 vaccine for children," Dr. Khanh said.

Dr. Bach Thi Chinh, medical director of VNVC, said the company had worked with Substipharm Biologics for several years to bring the vaccine to Vietnam and had prepared its supply, storage, transportation and professional training systems before the nationwide rollout.

Fabrice Baschiera, CEO of Substipharm Biologics, said he was pleased that the company could work with VNVC to bring the HFMD vaccine to Vietnam, making the country the first in Southeast Asia to roll out the vaccine.