25 October 2019
Uganda in cooperation with healthcare providers maintains high alert for deadly virus.
Uganda is increasing cross border and airport screening of travellers for the Ebola virus disease (EVD). The country is also using Merck’s investigational recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus-Zaire Ebola virus vaccine to defend against possible spread of any imported EVD.
The increased surveillance, which includes infection prevention and control practices by healthcare and frontline workers, coincides with the launch of a trial in Uganda to confirm the immunogenicity and safety of an untried two-does Ebola vaccine, manufactured by Janssen Vaccines & Prevention, part of Johnson & Johnson.
The open-label single-arm study targets 800 participants including healthcare workers such as cleaners, mortuary staff, ambulance and burial teams, who receive the two vaccine doses 56 days apart.
Targeting healthcare and frontline staff is aimed at evaluating the safety and immune response to the vaccine as well as safeguarding workers. As of July 2019, at least 132 health workers in the Democratic Republic of Congo were infected. Nearly 68% of the infected health workers were nurses, according to the World Health Organisation.
For further details visit this month’s Chemistry & Industry
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