The Brazilian Ministry of Health has temporarily suspended the administration of the dengue vaccine developed by the Butantan Institute. The decision, taken as a precaution, came after 42 rare adverse events were reported, including three serious cases and two deaths among vaccinated individuals.
To date, over 500,000 citizens have received the vaccine. Health authorities, together with Anvisa and the Butantan Institute itself, will now launch a thorough investigation to clarify the nature and causes of the reported cases.
The Ministry of Health has clarified that, at present, there is no evidence linking the deaths to vaccination. The temporary suspension therefore does not call into question the vaccine’s efficacy, but rather represents a precautionary measure that confirms the proper functioning of the vaccine safety surveillance and monitoring system.