Cameroon – Health: False vaccine against meningitis in circulation

The Minister of Public Health instructs those responsible for the structures responsible for the distribution of vaccinations to take appropriate measures.

One might wonder at the outset how such a harmful product could have been in circulation? But for now, the

important thing is to remain vigilant about a falsified circulating meningitis vaccine within the reach of the structures in charge of drug distribution and vaccination.

According to the daily Le Messager of Wednesday 5 July 2017, this product is dangerous and can produce the same effects as a bomb by causing many victims. The product in question is in ampoules of 10 doses each and includes the words: Polysaccaride Méningococcal Acwy Vacine, lot number: 089umh002z, expiry date: 09/2017, date of manufacture: 09/2014. Manufacturer : Bio Manguinhos / Fiocruz.

For this, in a statement, the Minister of Health André Mama Fouda calls for the vigilance of all and instructs those in charge of the structures in charge of the distribution of drugs and vaccination to take certain measures. According to the newspaper, the aim is to ensure that the vaccine is not in stock, stop its distribution, dispensation and/or administration and quarantine.

Moreover, André Mama Fouda emphasizes that the counterfeiting of a pharmaceutical product does not guarantee its quality, even less its effectiveness, one reads in the newspaper. For the World Health Organization (WHO), which has sounded the alarm for this vaccine, “this product has not yet been subjected to any laboratory analysis. At this stage, no adverse post-vaccination manifestations attributed to this product are known or reported … “.

The daily reminds that already last year, precisely in March, a falsified vaccine against yellow fever called “stabilized Amaril” was in circulation. Public and private health facilities were then asked to ensure that this product was not in their stocks.

Source: Kmer SAGA