WHO warns public against falsified rabies vaccines, serum in PH
Published Jul 18, 2019 02:43 pm
By Jan Carlo Anolin
The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned the public against three different falsified rabies vaccines and one falsified anti-rabies serum circulating in the country.
(ALI VICOY / MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO)
In its Medical Product Alert on Tuesday, July 16, WHO identified the falsified vaccines as Verorab, Speeda, and Rabipur while the serum refers to Equirab.
The said circulation of falsified anti-rabies vaccines and serum are related to the falsified Verorab vaccines reported to the WHO on January this year.
“WHO recently received confirmation that falsified batches of Verorab, Speeda, Rabipur and Equirab were available at patient level in the Philippines. Investigations are ongoing, and laboratory analyses are being facilitated for available samples to determine their contents and better assess the risk to public health,” WHO said in its alert.
Citing an ongoing rabies vaccine shortage in the Philippines, WHO said it has not received any reports or adverse reactions attributed to the said falsified products.
"If you are in possession of the above products, please do not use. If you have used these falsified products, or if you suffer an adverse event having used these products, please seek immediate advice from a qualified healthcare professional, and ensure they report the incident to your local Ministry of Health/National Medicines Regulatory Authorities/National Pharmacovigilance Centre."
Genuine Verorab, Speeda, and Rabipur vaccines are used for pre-exposure vaccination or post-exposure prophylaxis while genuine Equirab serum provides passive immunization against rabies, WHO said.
Authorities said that Sanofi Pasteur Inc., which manufactures the authentic Verorab, Rabies Vaccine for Human Use, Prepared on Cell Cultures (Inactivated), confirmed that they did not manufacture the vaccines with batch numbers H1833, H1742, N1J75V, and N1E353M.
The WHO also warned the public against counterfeit versions of SPEEDA, Purified Rabies Vaccines (Vero Cell). Products with batch numbers: 201803067, 201708295, 201710356, and 201803069 are counterfeit versions, it noted.
The organization said the genuine version is manufactured by Liaoning Cheng Da Biotechnology Co., Ltd.
Moreover, "falsified versions of two different combinations of batch numbers have so far been discovered" for RABIPUR, PCEC rabies vaccine for human use. The counterfeit products have batch numbers 3503 and 3479.
Furthermore, the WHO also warned the public against counterfeit versions of EQUIRAB, Anti-Rabies Serum (Equine) with batch numbers A02717008, A02718008, and A02718012.
Rabies is a vaccine-preventable viral disease that is present worldwide with over 95% of human deaths occurring in Asia and Africa, it added.
“In up to 99% of cases, domestic dogs are responsible for rabies virus transmission to humans. Yet, rabies can affect both domestic and wild animals. It is spread to people through bites or scratches, usually via saliva,” WHO said.
The WHO also reminded for "increased vigilance" in hospitals, clinics, health centers, wholesalers, distributors, pharmacies, and any other suppliers of vaccine. (with a report from Analou De Vera)
(ALI VICOY / MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO)
In its Medical Product Alert on Tuesday, July 16, WHO identified the falsified vaccines as Verorab, Speeda, and Rabipur while the serum refers to Equirab.
The said circulation of falsified anti-rabies vaccines and serum are related to the falsified Verorab vaccines reported to the WHO on January this year.
“WHO recently received confirmation that falsified batches of Verorab, Speeda, Rabipur and Equirab were available at patient level in the Philippines. Investigations are ongoing, and laboratory analyses are being facilitated for available samples to determine their contents and better assess the risk to public health,” WHO said in its alert.
Citing an ongoing rabies vaccine shortage in the Philippines, WHO said it has not received any reports or adverse reactions attributed to the said falsified products.
"If you are in possession of the above products, please do not use. If you have used these falsified products, or if you suffer an adverse event having used these products, please seek immediate advice from a qualified healthcare professional, and ensure they report the incident to your local Ministry of Health/National Medicines Regulatory Authorities/National Pharmacovigilance Centre."
Genuine Verorab, Speeda, and Rabipur vaccines are used for pre-exposure vaccination or post-exposure prophylaxis while genuine Equirab serum provides passive immunization against rabies, WHO said.
Authorities said that Sanofi Pasteur Inc., which manufactures the authentic Verorab, Rabies Vaccine for Human Use, Prepared on Cell Cultures (Inactivated), confirmed that they did not manufacture the vaccines with batch numbers H1833, H1742, N1J75V, and N1E353M.
The WHO also warned the public against counterfeit versions of SPEEDA, Purified Rabies Vaccines (Vero Cell). Products with batch numbers: 201803067, 201708295, 201710356, and 201803069 are counterfeit versions, it noted.
The organization said the genuine version is manufactured by Liaoning Cheng Da Biotechnology Co., Ltd.
Moreover, "falsified versions of two different combinations of batch numbers have so far been discovered" for RABIPUR, PCEC rabies vaccine for human use. The counterfeit products have batch numbers 3503 and 3479.
Furthermore, the WHO also warned the public against counterfeit versions of EQUIRAB, Anti-Rabies Serum (Equine) with batch numbers A02717008, A02718008, and A02718012.
Rabies is a vaccine-preventable viral disease that is present worldwide with over 95% of human deaths occurring in Asia and Africa, it added.
“In up to 99% of cases, domestic dogs are responsible for rabies virus transmission to humans. Yet, rabies can affect both domestic and wild animals. It is spread to people through bites or scratches, usually via saliva,” WHO said.
The WHO also reminded for "increased vigilance" in hospitals, clinics, health centers, wholesalers, distributors, pharmacies, and any other suppliers of vaccine. (with a report from Analou De Vera)